social experiment PSYCH

Extra Credit Overview

• Extra Credit Availability: 110% of overall grade; can significantly improve your grade.
• Submission Deadline: Due on the 3rd, after the project, and before finals.
• Purpose: Encourages completion of the project before pursuing extra credit.

New Trends in Psychology

• Dynamic Nature of Psychology: Constant evolution and adaptation to new findings.
• Topics of Interest:
  • Forensic Psychology: Growth over the last 5-10 years.
  • Artificial Intelligence: Recent developments in its application in psychology (last 2-3 years).
  • Environmental Psychology: Emerging studies related to environmental impacts.
  • Psychedelics: Growing interest and research in therapeutic uses and other aspects.
• Research Requirement: Students should explain relevance, not just describe, in their papers.

Classroom Participation and Future Courses

• Engagement in Fall Classes: Online courses available - Psychology of Gender, Human Sexuality.
• Open Communication: Students encouraged to ask questions regarding courses and psychological concepts.

Social Psychology: Key Concepts and Videos

• Definition: Examines how social interactions influence individual behaviors and mental processes.
• Focus on Human Behavior: Examines despicable behaviors in social contexts through guided videos.
• Upcoming Journals: Reflect on the relevance of older studies in today’s context.

Key Experiments and Concepts in Social Psychology

• Bystander Effect:

  • Definition: Diffusion of responsibility when a victim is surrounded by a group.
  • Illustrative Video: Demonstrations of individuals failing to help a person in distress due to group presence.
  • Key Takeaway: Encourages individuals to re-evaluate their reactions in emergencies.

• Conformity and Compliance:

  • Asch's Experiment: Study on conformity demonstrating individuals aligning their answers to group responses even when incorrect.
  • Concepts Defined:
  • Conformity: Changing behavior to align with group norms.
  • Compliance: Adjusting behavior due to external pressure or explicit request.

• Milgram Experiment:

  • Exploration of Obedience: Investigated the extent to which individuals would administer harmful shocks under authority pressure.
  • Findings: Shockingly high percentage of people obeyed authority, reflecting deep-seated social obedience.

• Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment:

  • Study Setup: Dividing participants into guards and prisoners to observe behavioral adaptations.
  • Results: Guards exhibited extreme abuse of power, demonstrating accountability to social roles.

Conclusion and Journal Assignments

• Journals Due: Emphasizes the reflection of personal experiences of social psychology.
• Suggestion for Another Experiment: Look up additional social experiments to analyze and discuss the implications of societal behavior.
• Final Thoughts: Students encouraged to critically reflect on psychological phenomena and their relevance in daily life.