Download Understanding People's Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in Social Contexts - Prof. K. Jill and more Study notes Introduction to Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! Social psychology – the systematic study of people’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior in social contexts. (Rohall, Milkie, and Lucas pg. 4) B = f(P, E) Behavior is a function of the person and the environment Psychological social psychology (PSP) – Focuses on the behavior in the presence of others - Elements o Thoughts, feelings, and behavior o Persons o Actual, imagined, or implied presence of others - Emphasizes the elements - Mechanisms- HOW other people exercise influence Example: Helping Sociological Social Psychology (SSP) – Focuses on how people behave in a given environment or culture Emphasizes: Societal influences on behavior Persons’ social characteristics Organization of social environment Meanings Group processes Involves Sociological Imagination Shows how… Structural arrangements, Cultural of society, and time in history ….influence personal experiences Culture Material culture – observable Nonmaterial culture- shared beliefs, values, language, norms, and symbols Society dictates how people think Example: UFO’s are a contested reality Santa is known to not be real however Our Thought communities influence how we split entities Into chunks of space Into blocks of time Via ritual transitions Values Shared ideas about what is good, right, desirable Are goals or guiding principles that may influence behavior Have a similar structure across societies Norms (An invisible electric fence) Rules for what is acceptable Social Structure The “Framework of Society” Explains why peoples’ personalities change when they are promoted to a higher position Roles How we are expected to behave in a group and what is expected of us by group members Organizations Large, complex network of positions, designed to accomplish specific tasks Social Institution – When the patters of interactions within a group or society are consistent and look to move in a similar direction Example: Religion How to read a journal article 1. Abstract 2. Theory and literature review 3. Methods 4. Results 5. Discussions 6. References 7. Appendix Symbolic Interactionism (SI) Studies how micro-level, day-to-day interactions of people comprise society -Guiding Assumptions 1. People use symbols especially language 2. People view reality using symbols, so realities are socially constructed 3. Interactions proceed through significant symbols 4. People react to situations depending on their definitions of given symbols 5. Meanings also emerge in interaction 6. People are purposive; they react and act in situations 7. Social life is give and take 8. People exercise agency but within limits 9. Human society consists of people engaging in joint action - Symbols… 1. Show us how to categorize experiences 2. Allow us to create and acquire culture 3. allow us to imagine remember and plan our actions 4. Allow us to transcend out immediate surroundings Social Structure and Personality (SSP) Studies influence on behavior, thoughts, and feelings of: 1. Social Structure a. Status i. Age b. Role relationships i. Employee c. Position in Social network
