Laboratory in Social
Behavior and Interpersonal Processes:
Psychology 257 Syllabus (Winter 2004)
Neil Lutsky
Olin 111, x4379, e-mail: nlutsky@carleton.edu
Web Home Page: http://www.acad.carleton.edu/curricular/PSYC/lutsky/Lutsky.html
Organization and Requirements:
Psychology 257 is intended to introduce you to general issues in research in
social psychology and to selected examples of the phenomena social psychologists
study, the research questions they pose, and the research methods they employ.
Its means is to give you hands-on experience designing, executing, and reporting
experimental studies in social psychology. The list of topics and readings below
indicates what in social psychology we will be exploring. The requirements for
this two-credit course include the following: attendance at laboratory sessions,
completion of assigned readings in a timely manner, participation as researchers
in the design and execution of course projects, submission of two (short) research
reports, and construction of one (informative and engaging) research poster.
Course Topic and Reading Schedule:
- T, 1/6 Research, design, and ethical issues in social psychology; The Asch
study.
Fiske, S. (2004). Social beings, 35-77.
- Th, 1/8 Alternative methods of studying obedience to authority.
Collins, B. E., & Brief, D. E. (1995). Using person-perception vignette
methodologies to uncover
the symbolic meanings of teacher behaviors in the Milgram paradigm. Journal
of Social Issues,
51, 89-106.
- T, 1/13 Social influence laboratory.
White, G. M. (1975). Contextual determinants of opinion judgments: Field experimental
probes of
judgmental relativity boundary conditions. Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 32, 1047-1054.
- Th, 1/15 Social influence laboratory design and preparation of materials.
- T, 1/20 Social influence project data analysis.
- Th, 1/22 Writing a research report and constructing a poster.
Aronson et al., Methods of Research in Social Psychology, 326-345.
- T, 1/27 Physiological research in social psychology: Stress in a social
context.
Taylor, S. E., et al. (2000). Biobehavioral responses to stress in females.
Psychological Review, 107, 411-429.
- Th, 1/29 Nonverbal communication assessment.
- T, 2/3 Interpersonal compliance laboratory.
Burger, J. M., et al. (2004). What a coincidence! The effects of incidental
similarity on
compliance. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 35-43.
- Th, 2/5 Social compliance laboratory design and preparation of materials.
- T, 2/10 Social compliance laboratory.
- Th, 2/12 Social compliance laboratory.
- T, 2/17 Research methods for the study of relationships.
Gottman, J. M., Coan, J., Carrere, S., & Swanson, C. (1998). Predicting
marital happiness
and stability from newlywed interactions. Journal of Marriage and the Family,
60, 5-22.
- Th, 2/19 Attraction laboratory.
Gonzales, M. H., & Meyers, S. A. (1993). Self-presentation in the personals
ads of heterosexual
and homosexual men and women. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin,
19, 131-142.
- T, 2/24 Attraction laboratory.
- Th, 2/26 Attraction laboratory
.
- T, 3/2 Research methods for the study of groups: Social loafing.
Latane, B., Williams, K., & Harkins, S. (1979). Many hands make light
the work: The causes and
consequences of social loafing. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
37, 822-832.
- Th, 3/4 Conflict and strategic interaction simulation methods.
- T, 3/9 Poster presentation rehearsal.
- W, 3/10, 6:30-8:00, Public presentation of posters, Hulings Atrium
Space.
January 2, 2004