James Cook University Subject Handbook - 2006

PY3102 - Social Psychology

Credit points: 03
Year: 2006
Student Contribution Band: Band 1
Administered by:

Social psychology is concerned with the broader social contexts of behaviour and how interactions with others influence constructions and understandings of self, others and social reality. While the level of analysis is often the individual, theories and research take into account ongoing transactions with social and environmental settings and contexts and individual and collective sense making and representations. The subject attempts to provide a historical and contemporary overview of social psychology and to examine more closely a number of recurrent theoretical, methodological and ethical issues which social psychologists have addressed. Time is spent on classic social psychological theory and research in the areas of attitudinal change, social influence, person perception and group dynamics, as well as on applications of social psychology with respect to the psychology of difference (prejudice, cultural difference, gender difference) and behaviour change in the domains of politics, health, marketing and the environment. Social psychology has a particular interest in the way other people influence thoughts, feelings and actions and the nature and importance of the social environment in information processing. Hence the subject considers and contextualises past and current ways of framing attitudes, beliefs and values and attribution and social inference, in the context of current models of social cognition and social representations. Finally, social psychology has made a substantial investment in the development of measures and methodologies for researching attitudes, group processes, social cognition and intervention effectiveness; an ongoing critical discussion of these methods is an integral part of the subject.

Learning Outcomes

Prerequisites:(PY2091 or PY2101) and (PY2092 or PY2102) and (PY2093 or PY2106)
Inadmissible
Subject
Combinations:
PY3095

Availabilities

, , Study Period 1
Census Date 24-Mar-2006
Coord/Lect: Assoc. Professor Nerina Caltabiano.
Contact hours:
  • 26 hours
  • 24 hours
    Assessment: (25%); (25% - 50%); (25% - 50%).

    , , Study Period 1
    Census Date 24-Mar-2006
    Lecturer: Assoc. Professor Terry Engelberg-Moston.
    Contact hours:
    • 26 hours
    • 24 hours
      Assessment: (25%); (25% - 50%); (25% - 50%).

      , , Study Period 39
      Census Date 21-Jul-2006
      Face to face teaching 24-Jul-2006 to 08-Sep-2006
      Coordinator: Assoc. Professor Kerry McBain
      Lecturers: Assoc. Professor Kerry McBain, jc158390.
      Contact hours:
      • 24 hours
      • 22 hours
      • 11 hours
        Assessment: (25%); (25% - 50%); (25% - 50%).

        Note: Minor variations might occur due to the continuous Subject quality improvement process, and in case of minor variation(s) in assessment details, the Subject Outline represents the latest official information.