Ch 1: Introduction to Social Psychology Lesson Plans
About This Chapter
Weekly Syllabus
Below is a sample breakdown of the Introduction to Social Psychology chapter into a 5-day school week. Based on the pace of your course, you may need to adapt the lesson plan to fit your needs.
| Day | Topics | Key Terms and Concepts Covered |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Field of social psychology and its major perspectives | Social psychology careers; sociocultural, social cognition, social learning and evolutionary perspectives |
| Tuesday | 7 major themes in social psychology | Themes of prosocial behavior, attraction/close relationships, group decisions, attitudes/persuasion, the self in social contexts, social cognition/perception, and stereotypes/prejudice/discrimination |
| Wednesday | Forms of group membership | Kurt Lewin's leadership study elucidating autocratic, laissez-faire and democratic leadership styles |
| Thursday | Conformity | Solomon Asch's seminal study on the power of group conformity |
| Friday | Social learning and group prejudice | Albert Bandura's 'Bobo doll' study of the behavioral effects of observed violence; Jane Elliott's 'blue eyes vs. brown eyes' study demonstrating group prejudice |
1. What Is Social Psychology? - Definition & Professions in the Field
Social psychology is the study of how people act, think, and feel in the context of society. In this lesson, we will learn more about social psychology, what it has in common with other fields of study, and what types of careers are available in social psychology.
2. Major Perspectives of Social Psychology
There are four major perspectives in social psychology. Let's look at each perspective and how each one might approach a common question in social psychology.
3. The 7 Major Themes of Social Psychology
Social psychology can be divided up into seven main themes, or categories. Under each theme is a whole host of more specific topics. In this lesson, we will look at each of the seven major themes and examples of topics that each theme covers.
4. Forms of Group Membership: Kurt Lewin's Leadership Study
Kurt Lewin is often described as the father of social psychology. His famous study about the three types of leadership helped psychologists and leaders understand how to form and lead effective groups. Let's take a closer look at Kurt Lewin's leadership study and how it impacted the field of psychology.
5. Conformity: Solomon Asch's Study of Informational vs. Normative Conformity
Solomon Asch was a famous social psychologist whose study on conformity showed that people often conform to the group, even when they know the correct answer. In this lesson, we'll learn about his experiment, as well as the different types of conformity.
6. Social Learning: Albert Bandura's Bobo Doll Study
Albert Bandura is a famous social psychologist whose Bobo doll study illustrates the social learning theory of psychology. In this lesson, we'll look at the Bobo doll study, its impact on the field of psychology, and what it can tell us about the effects of watching violent television.
7. Group Prejudice: Jane Elliott's Brown Eyes vs. Blue Eyes Experiment
Jane Elliott is an educator whose famous blue eyes/brown eyes exercise showed social psychologists (and her students) the impact that racism has on education and how social psychology can be applied to real-world situations. In this lesson, we'll learn about the exercise and its impact on social psychology.
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Other Chapters
Other chapters within the Social Psychology Syllabus Resource & Lesson Plans course
- Research Methods and Ethics in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- Social Cognition & Perception in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- The Self in a Social Context Lesson Plans
- Attitudes and Persuasion in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- Group Decisions in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- Attraction & Close Relationships in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- Stereotypes, Prejudice, & Discrimination in Social Psychology Lesson Plans
- Applied Social Psychology Lesson Plans
