Social Psychology

Catalog description

In attempting to understand human beliefs and behavior, social psychology looks at the interrelationship between individuals and groups. Social psychology is rooted in Lewin’s field theory, which examines how a person’s behavior is impacted not just by the individual’s personality but the surrounding social environment. This course explores how various aspects of social psychology help explain issues such as aggression and altruism as forms of social behavior, how attitudes are formed and their relationship to behavior, how we present the self and issues around self-esteem, social identity, prejudice and stereotypes. Students also attend to the impact of cross-cultural experiences on these themes.