Social Psychology

Thomas Heinzen is Professor Emeritus of William Paterson University of New Jersey. He describes his career as “mostly fun” because of the diverse opportunities within social psychology. Most applications have revolved around the social psychology of creativity including: Individual differences among the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth Program Assessment for the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy Agent orange health statistics for the New York State Commission on Vietnam Veterans  Technology assessment related to distance learning for Public Service Training Program Tractor rollovers for the New York Center for Health and Medicine Documentations of problem-solving among pre-retirement New York State bureaucrats Documentations of problem-solving among the frail elderly living in nursing homes Applications of game design to curriculum development  Professor Heinzen invested in students’ lives by mentoring more than 60 student conference presentations. More recently, he created video games that teach critical thinking and the unwritten rules of college success.  He also has authored several books and published journal articles based on case studies, archival analyses, in-depth interviews, controlled experiments, and quasi-experimental designs. He has been elected a fellow of the Eastern Psychological Association (EPA), the American Psychological Association (APA, Division 1), and the Association for Psychological Science (APS). Wind Goodfriend has been teaching psychology at Buena Vista University, a Midwestern liberal arts school for fifteen years. Wind is a three-time Faculty of the Year award winner. She became Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies in 2017. She also serves as the co-director of the trauma advocacy program and volunteers as the chief research officer for the Institute for the Prevention of Relationship Violence. Wind has written 13 book chapters on psychology in pop culture, covering topics including Game of Thrones, Wonder Woman, Doctor Who, Star Trek, and more. She has developed a wide variety of undergraduate courses including special topics classes such as Psychology of Colonialism, Psychology in Popular Film, and Relationship Violence. She received her B.A. from Buena Vista University and both her Master’s and Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Purdue University.

Preface
About the Authors
Chapter 1. An Introduction to Social Psychology
What Is Social Psychology?
What Are the Big Questions Within Social Psychology?
Is Science a Valid Way to Learn About Complex Social Behavior?
How Can Social Psychology Make My Life Better Now?
Chapter Summary
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflections
Chapter 2. Research Methods
What Are the Elements of the Scientific Method?
How Do Social Psychologists Design Studies?
How Do Social Psychologists Analyze Their Results?
How Can Research Be Analyzed in Terms of Quality?
Chapter Summary
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 3. The Social Self
What Is the “Self”?
How Do We Know the Self Is Social?
Why Do We Present Different Selves in Different Situations?
Is the Truth Always the Self’s Friend?
What Is Self-Esteem and How Can We Measure It?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 4. Social Cognition
How Do We Think?
How Do We Remember Social Information?
Why Do Our Brains Sometimes Make Mistakes?
From Where Does Intuition Come?
Can We Trust Our Intuition? The Role of Heuristics and Biases
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 5. Person Perception
How Do We Form Impressions of Others?
How Do We Communicate Nonverbally?
How Do We Explain Other People’s Behavior?
Why Do We Misjudge One Another?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 6. Attitudes and Persuasion
What Are Attitudes, and Do They Predict Behavior?
From Where Do Attitudes Come?
How Are Attitudes Measured?
How Does Cognitive Dissonance Influence Attitudes?
How Do Attitudes Change?
What Persuasion Techniques Are Used to Change Attitudes?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflections
Chapter 7. Social Influence: Conformity, Social Roles, and Obedience
What Types of Social Influence Exist?
Why and When Do We Choose to Conform?
How Do Social Roles Change Our Behavior?
What Can We Learn From Milgram’s Experiments on Authority?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 8. Group Processes
Why Are Groups So Important to Us?
Why Are We More Committed to Certain Groups?
How Do Groups Help and Hinder Individual Effort?
How Do Individuals Influence Groups?
What Increases Group Creativity?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflections
Chapter 9. Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination
Why Do We Stereotype?
How Do Stereotypes Turn Into Prejudices?
Is Prejudice a Personality Problem?
Has Prejudice Decreased Over Time?
How Can We Reduce Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflections
Chapter 10. Helping and Prosocial Behavior
What Motivates People to Help Others, in General?
Why Do Some People Help More Than Others?
What Circumstances Make Helping More or Less Likely?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
Chapter 11. Aggression
What Does It Mean to Be “Aggressive”?
Is Aggression Explained by Biological Instincts?
Is Aggression Explained by Cultural Influences?
Is Aggression Explained by Situational Influences?
How Can We Manage or Reduce Aggression?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflections
Chapter 12. Intimate Relationships
What Causes Attraction?
What Makes Us Physically Attractive?
Do We Have a Relationship Personality?
How Do We Decide to Commit?
Do Men and Women Act Differently and, if So, Why?
Chapter Summary
Theories in Review
Critical Thinking, Analysis, and Application
Personal Reflection
APPLIED MINI-CHAPTERS
A. Social Psychology and a Sustainable Environment
What Are Threshold Effects, and Why Are They Important?
What Happens When Environmental Thresholds Are Exceeded?
B. Social Psychology of Law and the Courtroom
How Do Psychology and Law Fit Together?
What Career Opportunities Unite Psychology and Law?
C. Social Psychology of Stress and Health
How Do Environmental Stressors Influence Health and Health Care?
How Can Social Psychology Facilitate Adherence to Medical Advice?
D. Social Psychology and Happiness: Positive Psychology
What Is Positive Psychology?
What Are Historical and Upcoming Topics in Positive Social Psychology?
E. Social Psychology and Behavioral Economics
What Is Behavioral Economics?
How Is Behavioral Economics Applied to Everyday Situations?
F. Social Psychology and Relationship Violence
What Are Different Types of Relationship Violence?
What Is the Psychology of People Experiencing Relationship Violence?
How Can Survivors Heal and Move Forward?
G. Social Psychology of Work: Industrial/Organizational Psychology
What Is Industrial/Organizational Psychology, and What Is Its History?
What Content Areas Are Included in Industrial/Organizational Psychology?
H. Social Psychology of Volunteerism and Internships
Why Do People Volunteer?
How Do Internships Provide Career Guidance?
References
Glossary
Index