As a subfield of psychology,
social psychology differs in its approach to the scientific study of the human
mind and its functions. Psychologist
Philip Zimbardo (born 1933), famous for his Stanford prison project, once
stated “I have been primarily interested in how and why ordinary people
do unusual things, things that seem alien to their natures. [Further questioning,] [w]hy… good people
sometimes act evil [and] …smart people sometimes do dumb or irrational things” (Zimbardo,
2013, para 12). Social psychology
attempts to answer these questions by studying
how people relate to one another through social thinking, social influence, and
social relations.
Social Thinking
Within the realm of social psychology is the study of how
people interact and think about one another.
This interaction affects the way people behave and how others respond to
that behavior. The way people
communicate, verbally and nonverbally, is developed from birth and built upon
in the social interactions that take place throughout life; however, because of
this interactive perspective of social thinking, many people tend to use snap
judgments based on that intuition (e.g., fight or flight responses, love and
attraction, etc.). In many cases such interaction
should be fortified with critical thinking in the process because not all
individuals are able to learn the nuances of social thinking and
communication. Although most of these
challenges are found in individuals who suffer from autism, Asperger’s, ADHD,
and other nonverbal learning disabilities, there are those who develop
inappropriate behaviors; thus becoming the target for bullies (Horowitz, n.d.).
Social Influence
It is within human nature to belong, to be accepted, and to
be liked by others, especially within a group.
In most cases this requires that he or she conform to society’s norms;
following man’s and God’s laws as well as conforming to his or her immediate contexts. It is known that these powerful social
influences can and do shape one’s behavior.
Whether any specific context is a positive or a negative influence greatly
depends on a person’s personal attitudes and dispositions. A negative personal attitude (low
self-esteem) can influence one’s decision to follow social pressures (e.g.,
smoking, drinking, and experimenting with drugs); likewise, a strong positive
attitude (high self-esteem) may make a person a poignant influence him or
herself and able to resist such negative influences.
Social Relations
Cultural and social representations further play an
influencing role in social psychology.
Enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shape how people
view themselves and those around them. These
influences determine how people speak, express thought, and identify with
themselves and the world in which they live.
Western cultures encourage individualism (giving priority to one’s own
goals and contributions); whereas, Asian countries promote collectivism
(encouraging the attainment of group goals over individual attributes). These differences are driven by social
representations of a culture, which are widely held ideas, values, and
assumptions; thus people relate to and respond in accordance with these beliefs
(Myers, 2010). It is wise to use caution
when making assumptions about others using only cultural and social
relationships, as they may be wrought with prejudice and aggression; thus was
the situation with slavery and segregation.
Subfield’s of Psychology
Subfield’s of Psychology
Although closely related to personality psychology,
organizational psychology, and sociology, social psychology should not be
confused with social work, which
involves counseling and clinical work (Social Psychology Network, 2013). Counseling psychology, as described by the
American Psychological Association (2013), “focuses on the personal and
interpersonal functioning across the lifespan and on emotional, social,
vocational, educational, health-related, developmental and organizational
concerns” (para 1). Clinical psychology
focuses on the development, course, psychopathology, prevention, and
remediation of specific areas of personality.
Social psychology, however, concentrates less on the healing aspects of
the state of mind but on “how people
think about, influence and relate to one another” (Myers, 2010, p. 4).
As identified by the three main aspects of social
psychology, social thinking, social influences, and social relations how people
think about, influence, and relate to one another can be complex. The way people communicate; verbally and
nonverbally can be difficult to translate but in most situations this is
intuitive. Although social influences
can and do shape people’s lives, cultural and social representations influence
how one’s behaviors, ideas, and attitudes define social thinking; each aspect
feeding into the other. Thus, it appears
that social psychology or how people
think about, influence, and relate to one another may be even more important
than the why as studied in the other
disciplines of psychology.
No comments:
Post a Comment