Social Psychology Essay - 1472 Words

Social psychology is a science that study social thinking (how we perceive ourselves and others, judgement we make and our attitudes); social influence (such as pressure to conform, group of people) and social relations such as aggression and helping (David G. Myers, 2008). Social psychological research methods vary by location: in the laboratory or in the field. Also, it varies by method: correlational or experimental (David G. Myers, 2008). A field research method is everyday situations, for example, Piliavin et al. (1969) Good Samaritanism. Laboratory research method is a controlled situation; for example, Zimbardo (1973) Stanford Prison Experiment. A correlational method measure relationship between two or more variables:†¦show more content†¦Their finding was that this uncaring deed was caused by diffusion of responsibility. Piliavin et al. recognised that Lantene and Darley 1970 experiment lacked ecological validity: it did not related to or reflects everyday, real life (Mark Holah, 2008). As a result, Piliavin et al. (1969) took the study from the laboratory into the field; a field experiment set up on a subway train in New York. Their hypothesis was that there must be factors that influence helping behaviour (Class Handouts). The factors they were interested included Independent variables such as the type of victim (blind or drunk); the race of the victim (black or white); and the Dependable variable such as the speed of helping; the frequency of helping and the race of the helper. Piliavin et al. used the participant observation method (Richard Gross, 2012). It is where researcher, in this case, a member of the study team is part of the activity being studied (Malim and Birch, 1998). The participants were the unsuspecting passengers that travelled on the train. The average racial composition of the passengers was 45% black and 55% white. The average number of people in the train carriage was 43 (Mark Holah, 2008). They did six to eight trials between 11a.m and 3p.m for forty-two days. Each trial had a different team of students: two males and two females (Mark Holah, 2008). The males (three white and one black) aged between 26 and 35,Show MoreRelatedSocial Psychology And Social Influence1600 Words   |  7 PagesIn social psychology, social influence is a process where someone’s beliefs, thoughts and behaviour change by being exposed to beliefs, thoughts and opinions of others. It manifests in several forms, such as obedience, compliance and conformity. All these types of social influence have been studied by numerous researchers who investigated the reasons why people conform to social norms and obey to authorities, such as Milgram’s classic studies on obedience. 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