Historical Origins of Social Psychology

Wilhelm Wundt William McDougall Floyd Allport

mid 1800’s 1908 1924

“Völkerpsychologie”

Translation: ‘folk psychology’ or‘culture psychology’

• Precursor of modern Social Psychology

• Studied the ‘collective’ or ‘group mind’

• Influence of society or group on an individual’s behaviour is difficult to investigate because the workings of the inner mind is beyond the scope of experiments.

• Culture is intangible (‘spiritual’) requiring a non-experimental and more philosophical approach.

Wilhelm Wundt

William McDougall

• Studied Eugenics and Heredity

• Individuals are motivated by inherited instincts that push them toward goals which may be unknown to them or they do not understand.

• Social behaviour is innate and stems from instincts.

• Beliefs, attitudes and thoughts were institutionalized, eventually becoming part of individuals in a group.

• Group Mind – what was common dispositions to a group of people

Floyd Allport

• Published a textbook in 1924 ‘Social Psychology’ attacking McDougall’s view.

• Argued that group behaviour can be studied using experimental methods

• Behaviourist approach – Social behaviour is derived from the behaviour and actions of others.

Floyd Allport

• Introduced social psychology ideas such as ‘social conformity’, facial expression of emotions and the influence of an audience on individual behaviour.

• Brought about advances in theoretical development such as the study of social norms, cognitive dissonance, attribution theory

• Father of Experimental Social Psychology

Modern Definition of Social Psychology

• Study of the nature and cause of individual behaviour in social situations.

Group Individual Behaviour(OTHERS) (SELF)

INFLUENTIAL FACTORS

(SOCIETY)

EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

• Lab experiments

Strengths – ability to isolate and control variables – allow evaluation of cause and effect – test theories about social behaviour

Weakness – artificial conditions, findings cannot be generalised.

• Natural/Field experiments

Strength – more authentic settings (+ strengths of Lab experiments given above)

Weakness – more extraneous variables

• Other Methods of Gathering Data:Observations of Behaviour, Case Studies, Surveys, use of archival data

Theories of Social Psychology – 5

Categories

• Behaviour of Others• Cognitive Processes• Ecological Variables• Cultural and Biological Processes• Personality

p 443-444, F&G Textbook