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Social Psychology
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Social Psychology
Core Concepts and Emerging Trends

First Edition
January 2016 | 696 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
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Employing a lively and accessible writing style, author Daniel W. Barrett integrates up-to-date coverage of social psychology’s core theories, concepts, and research with a discussion of emerging developments in the field—including social neuroscience and the social psychology of happiness, religion, and sustainability. Engaging examples, Applying Social Psychology sections, and a wealth of pedagogical features help readers cultivate a deep understanding of the causes of social behavior.
 
Part I: Foundations of Social Psychology
 
Chapter 1: Introducing Social Psychology
The Mystery of Romantic Attraction

 
Social Psychology Matters: Defining the Field

 
Social Psychology and the Quest for Human Nature

 
The Evolving Nature of Social Psychology: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

 
Principle Matters: Social Psychology's Guiding Principles

 
Science Matters: Social Psychology is a Science

 
Doing Research: An Introduction to Research Methods

 
Final Thoughts: Social Psychology and Human Nature Revisited

 
 
Chapter 2: The Social Brain
The Case of Phineas Gage

 
What Is the Brain

 
Origins of the Social Brain

 
Anatomy of the Brain

 
Chromosome, Genes, and DNA

 
Doing Research: Methods of Social Neuroscience

 
Social Neuroscience and the Fundamental Questions

 
Final Thoughts: Evolution, Brain Plasticity, and Culture

 
 
Part II: Thinking About the Self and Others
 
Chapter 3: Social Cognition
Believing is Seeing

 
The Psychology of Social Thinking

 
The Nature of Social Cognition

 
The Dual Mind: Automatic and Controlled Processing

 
Heuristics: Mental Shortcuts

 
Doing Research: Reliability and Validity

 
Motivated Reasoning

 
Culture and Cognition

 
Final Thoughts: Free Will and Rationality Revisited

 
 
Chapter 4: What Is the Self?
The Many "Me's" of the Self

 
What Is the Self: The Self as Thinker and the Thought

 
Knowing Who We Are: Introspection and Self-Perception

 
Doing Research: Questioning Self-Reports and Surveys

 
Evaluating How We Are Doing

 
Self-Presentation: Displaying Oneself

 
Self-Regulation: Controlling Oneself

 
Final Thoughts: The Paradox of the Self

 
 
Chapter 5: Social Perception
"Nice to Meet You. You're Hired!" Job Interviews in Seconds

 
Impression Formation

 
Biases in Social Perception

 
Nonverbal Communication and Emotional Expressions

 
Doing Research: The Challenges of Cross-Cultural Studies

 
Detecting Deception

 
How Observations Can Fail Us: Four Cognitive Illusions: Control, Gambling, Shooting Streaks, and Imagined Associations

 
Attributions: Determining the Causes of Behavior

 
Final Thoughts: Sex Categorization and Free Will

 
 
Part III: Interpersonal Influence
 
Chapter 6: Social Influence
Good People Turning Bad

 
Types of Social Influence

 
Six Principles of Interpersonal Influence

 
The Principle of Reciprocity

 
Conformity and the Social Validation Principle

 
Obedience and the Authority Principle

 
Doing Research: Deception and Ethics in Research

 
Obedience in the 21st Century: Milgram Revisited

 
Final Thoughts: The Upsides of Compliance, Obedience, and Conformity

 
 
Chapter 7: Attitudes and Persuasion
When Prophecies Fail

 
The Nature of Attitudes

 
The Origins of Attitudes

 
Two Routes to Persuasion

 
Elements of Persuasion

 
The Effects of Attitudes on Behavior

 
Doing Research: Measuring Attitudes

 
Cognitive Consistency and the Effects of Behavior on Attitudes

 
Final Thoughts: Resisting Persuasion

 
 
Part IV: Moral Behavior
 
Chapter 8: Helping
The Nature of Helping Behavior

 
Why We Help

 
Origins of Helping Behavior

 
When Do We Help?

 
Doing Research: Safeguarding Research Participants

 
The Empathy-Altruism Relationship

 
Person Factors Affecting Helping

 
Who Gets Helped?

 
Final Thoughts: A Broader View of Helping

 
 
Chapter 9: Aggression
Mass Shootings

 
The Nature of Aggression

 
The Origins of Aggression

 
When Do We Aggress?

 
The General Aggression Model

 
Doing Research: Archival Studies of Historical Aggression

 
Person Factors Affecting Aggression

 
The Route to Aggression: From Inputs to Outputs

 
Reducing Aggression

 
Final Thoughts: The Multiple Causes of Aggression

 
 
Part V: Affiliative Behavior
 
Chapter 10: Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination
Anti-Immigrant Attitudes Around the Globe

 
The Nature of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination

 
The Three Waves of Research on Racism

 
The Origins of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination

 
Social Identity Theory

 
Contextual Factors

 
Doing Research: Measuring Implicit Attitudes

 
Person Factors

 
Specific Types of Intergroup Bias

 
The Effects of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination

 
Overcoming Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination

 
Final Thoughts: The Changing Landscape of Prejudice

 
 
Chapter 11: Affiliation and Love
Friends with Benefits

 
The Nature of Affiliation and Love

 
Contextual Factors

 
Who is Attractive?

 
Evolutionary Perspective on Mate Selection

 
What is Love?

 
Doing Research: Examining Interpersonal Relationships

 
Relationship Satisfaction

 
Dating in the Virtual World

 
Final Thoughts: Does Facebook Make You Lonely?

 
 
Chapter 12: Group Processes
Sports-Related Riots

 
The Nature of Groups

 
Key Features of Groups

 
Groups and Behavior

 
Losing Onself in the Group: Deindividuation

 
Group Decision Making

 
Doing Research: Case Studies

 
Minority Influence

 
Leadership

 
Final Thoughts: Crowd Wisdom and Smart Mobs

 
 
Part VI: Emerging Topics in Social Psychology
 
Chapter 13: Three Emerging Trends: The Social Psychology of Happiness, Religion, and Sustainability
The Intersection of Happiness, Religion, and Sustainability

 
The Social Psychology of Happiness

 
The Nature of Happiness

 
The Antecedents and Benefits of Happiness

 
Doing Research: Generalizing to the Real World

 
The Social Psychology of Religion

 
The Nature of Religious Belief

 
Origins and Benefits of Religious Belief

 
The Social Psychology of Sustainability

 
Final Thoughts: Subjective Well-Being and Sustainability

 
 
Glossary
 
References
 
Author Index
 
Subject Index

Supplements

Student Study Site

SAGE edge for Students provides a personalized approach to help students accomplish their coursework goals in an easy-to-use learning environment.

  • Mobile-friendly eFlashcards strengthen understanding of key terms and concepts
  • Mobile-friendly practice quizzes allow for independent assessment by students of their mastery of course material
  • A  customized online action plan includes tips and feedback on progress through the course and materials, which allows students to individualize their learning experience
  • Chapter summaries with learning objectives reinforce the most important material
  • Web exercises and meaningful links make it easy to mine internet resources, further explore topics, and answer critical thinking questions
  • Multimedia content includes videos that appeal to students with different learning styles
  • EXCLUSIVE! Access to full-text SAGE journal articles that have been carefully selected to support and expand on the concepts presented in each chapter
Instructor Teaching Site

SAGE edge for Instructors supports teaching by making it easy to integrate quality content and create a rich learning environment for students.

  • An author-created test bank with 125 questions per chapter, including both multiple choice and essay questions, provides a diverse range of pre-written options as well as the opportunity to edit any question and/or insert personalized questions to effectively assess students’ progress and understanding
  • Editable, chapter-specific and author-created PowerPoint® slides offer complete flexibility for creating a multimedia presentation for the course
  • Sample course syllabi for semester and quarter courses provide suggested models for structuring one’s course
  • An Instructor’s Manual provides chapter-by-chapter lecture notes, discussion questions, class activities and more to ease preparation for lectures and class discussions
  • A robust set of Web Exercises hones in on three key areas (Applications, Social Media and Technology, and In the News), connecting chapter coverage with current web resources and related, carefully crafted follow-up exercises to help students master key concepts.
  • EXCLUSIVE! Access to full-text SAGE journal articles that have been carefully selected to support and expand on the concepts presented in each chapter to encourage students to think critically
  • Multimedia content includes videos that appeal to students with different learning styles
  • A course cartridge is provided for easy LMS integration.

 

An interesting text providing insight into the core theories and concepts. Accessible and relevant.

Ms Sarah Jane Cleak
Community Studies, Truro & Penwith College
July 6, 2016
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I think it is a hugely accessible book that undergraduates will find very helpful in applying psychological theories to practice situations. Of particular value to my students is the application of social psychology to matters of health Also an invaluable glossary is included.

Mr Michael John Grant
Faculty of Health & Wellbeing, Sheffield Hallam University
February 25, 2016
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This text allows the students to understand the basic fundamentals of social behaviour. Also giving them insight into topics such as human existence which helps develop their critical analysis skills.

Miss Ella Rachael Malton
Department of Health & Social Studies, Grimsby Institute of HE & FE
April 26, 2016
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Key features

KEY FEATURES:

  • Coverage of core theories is integrated with discussion of emerging trends and cutting-edge research, including such topics as happiness, religion, sustainability, evolutionary psychology, culture, and more.
  • An integrated discussion of research methods across chapters offers a dynamic depiction of the scientific method to enable a thorough understanding of the field.
  • A unique chapter on social neuroscience illuminates connections between brain biology and social behavior.
  • Applying Social Psychology sections highlight the relevance of social psychology in a variety of areas that include health, work, and the law.
  • Research boxes in each chapter illustrate hypotheses, methods, results, and conclusions of relevant studies to help readers see science as a process rather than a series of outcomes.
  • Pedagogy based on the science of learning include self-reflection exercises as well as Think Ahead!, Think Again!, and Think Further! questions that encourage critical thinking and broaden students’ ability to transfer their knowledge to new applications.
  • FREE SAGE edge online resources include PPT slides, a test bank, lecture outlines, a complete action plan for success, mobile-friendly eflashcards, access to SAGE journal articles, multimedia links, and more.

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 1

Chapter 4

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