Social Psychology
Definition
Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the imagined, imagined, or actual presence of others.
Key Concepts
- Social Influence
- Social Perception
- Social Attitudes and Beliefs
- Attraction and Relationships
- Group Dynamics
- Intergroup Relations
Social Influence
Social Influence is the process by which individuals or groups change the behavior of others, either intentionally or unintentionally.
Social Influence can be categorized into three types: Conformity, Compliance, and Obedience.
Social Perception
Social Perception refers to the process by which we make judgments about others based on their appearance or behavior.
Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination are important topics in Social Perception.
Social Attitudes and Beliefs
Social Attitudes and Beliefs are the evaluative and cognitive components of an individual's reaction to social stimuli.
Cognitive Dissonance Theory and the Elaboration Likelihood Model are widely used models to understand Social Attitudes and Beliefs.
Attraction and Relationships
Attraction refers to feeling of liking, affinity or positive evaluation about a person, place or thing.
Relationship includes all stages of romantic or platonic relationship from building rapport to breaking-up.
Attraction and Relationships are associated with various theories such as Social Exchange Theory, Equity Theory, and Attachment Theory.
Group Dynamics
Group Dynamics refer to the study of behavior within groups.
Group Norms, Group Polarization, and Groupthink are some of the important topics in Group Dynamics.
Intergroup Relations
Intergroup Relations refer to the interactions and relations between different groups of people.
These interactions can take many forms and are often based on factors such as ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and religion.
Key Takeaways
Social Psychology is the scientific study of the interactions between people.
Social Influence, Perception, Attitudes and Beliefs, Attraction and Relationships, Group Dynamics, and Intergroup Relations are the key concepts of Social Psychology.
Social Psychology is helpful in understanding various social issues such as discrimination, stereotyping and bias in a more scientific way.