SOC 3Introductory Social Psychology

3 credits · Sociology · Penn State

Social psychology is a discipline that bridges sociology and psychology. Sociology focuses on large, medium, and small scale social patterns and influences while psychology tends to emphasize the individual organism and its functioning. Social psychologists borrow perspectives and methods from both sociology and psychology. The major thrust of the sociological perspective on social psychology is on the influence of the social group areas such as socialization, social influence, conformity, group decision-making, interpersonal relationships, and power. This introduction to social psychology course focuses on sociological perspectives on human development, social interaction between individuals, group influences on individuals, and interaction between groups. A key theme of this course is for students to demonstrate understanding of how sociology helps us understand "real world" human behavior, social interaction, subjective experience, including students' own. A secondary objective of this course is for students to demonstrate a basic understanding of where sociological knowledge comes from and how it is evaluated.