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Social Psychology
CLPS0700 (formerly PSYC 0210), CRN 24711
Spring 2016, Tue, Thu 2:30-3:50 p.m., Salomon DECI
Professor Bertram F. Malle
Metcalf 357 | (401) 683-6820 | [email protected]
Office hours: Posted on canvas, typically Fri or Mon, & by appointment

Graduate Teaching Assistants:

Mark Ho <[email protected]>, Junwen Lee <[email protected]>,
Boyoung Kim <[email protected]>, Ceyda Sayali <[email protected]>
Undergraduate Teaching Assistants:
Emorie Beck <[email protected]>, Anne Moody <[email protected]>,
Peter Tun <[email protected]>

Syllabus
Catalogue description. Examines the theories, findings, and methods of social psychology.
Topics include: social cognition (person perception, attitudes), social influence (cultural sources
of attitudes, conformity), and social relations (aggression, altruism, prejudice). Students become
better informed consumers of empirical research and acquire a new framework for interpreting
social behavior. Applications to historic and current events.

In this course you will learn about research and theories in social psychology that help us
understand how it is, and what it means, that humans are social animals.
You will work hard in this course. This is not a threat but a promise. In return for a considerable
amount of reading, thinking, and writing, you will gain insight into social psychology as a
science, excitement about the complexities of social behavior, and increased self-awareness of
the mechanisms that guide your own and other peoples behavior.
However, this is not a self-help course, nor a course in social activism. The focus is on the
science of social psychology, and both lectures and readings will routinely elaborate on the
methodological and theoretical challenges of this science. Committing to the scientific method
means to take a third-person perspective. It means you have to often set aside (though not deny)
your personal experiences, anecdotes, and intuitions and examine how strong the evidence is for
a certain belief, claim, or hypothesis. If the evidence is strong, then the belief can in fact provide
a good basis for self-help or for social activism. But we may not always like how the evidence
comes out, and we have to be critical of our own motives and biases in evaluating the evidence.
Its easy to be critical of other peoples motives and biases; very difficult to be critical of our
own. This course will provide you with insights into the mechanisms that make all us imperfect
but remarkable, deeply social beings.

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1 Course Format
This course combines multiple activities and sources of learning. You will learn about the field
of social psychology in lectures, electronic handouts, the textbook readings, and original research
articles. You will also write multiple short papers. These activities will require constant work
from you in order to keep up with the flood of new information, so getting behind will be very
costlyboth for your success and your enjoyment in the course.
Lectures. I have high expectations of my studentsthat they are intellectually curious,
prepared, and eager to be challenged. I also tend to talk fast. Interrupting me with questions is
therefore required and welcomed. To do so, please make yourself seen and heard. There will
also be points at which the large community of our class requires leaving a discussion and
encouraging it to be continued in another forum
I will make my lectures slides available on Canvas, and I will make every attempt to do
so before class so that you can take notes directly in the slides. We will video record all lectures
and make them available after class.
Research shows that another persons physical presence has many positive effects on
attention, interest, engagement, and of course provides opportunities to influence and guide the
person. It is your choice to come to class (I will not take attendance) or else to be a passive
consumer of a video recording. The video recording is an opportunity to review material and a
backup option for those who missed class because of illness or emergencies. But if you come to
class I expect you to be present and alert. Your presence and rightful expectation to be engaged
will inspire me to be as engaging as I can be.
Readings. The course relies on a textbook (Gilovich, Keltner, & Nisbett, Social
Psychology, 4th ed.) and 1-2 original research articles per class topic (available electronically).
The textbook has a very different organization from our course, so youll need to follow the
detailed topic sequence and reading references in our Reading list rather than read the textbook
from front to back (I know, you were planning to do that).
Most of the articles are taken from prime research journals and will challenge you with
both theory and methodology. Even though I have selected relatively short and readable pieces,
authors usually presume considerable theoretical and methodological knowledge. Often you can
acquire this knowledge from the lectures and the textbook, but you will benefit from several
strategies of reading and background research, which are detailed later in this syllabus.
On your reading list you will see that several topics have Extended readings. You are not
obligated to read them, nor will they be tested on the exams (except if content covered in the
textbook or in lecture shares some of their content ). These readings represent opportunities to
go into depth on topics of particular interest to you.
Written Assignments. In addition to learning, thinking about, and discussing social
phenomena, you will also write about them. You wont compose long papers but up to three
concise and precise responses to individual research articles, as described further below.
Exceptions. It would be unfair to hundreds of other students to give an exception just
because a given student dared to ask for it. In extreme circumstances (e.g., death in immediate
family, hospitalization), please provide evidence and directly talk with me.

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2 The Courses Social Community

A class of 300 is a small society. It is larger than the small nomadic groups humans lived in for a
million years, until 12,0000 years ago. Even though it is larger than we have evolved in
biologically, the mere presence of other people activates some of our deepest positive social
instincts but also presents challenges. In fact, many of the social phenomena we will study in
this course will be directly visible in our small society:

Persuasion, compliance, conformity (I hope no obedience)

Monitoring of norms, violations of norms, response to violations of norms, praising,
blaming
Stereotypes, prejudice, intergroup attitudes and conflict
Self-concept formation, change, expansion; threats to self-worth
Attraction, relationships, love, conflict
Prosocial behavior, antisocial behavior

One of the ways in which human communities have succeeded (the ones from which we
emerged) is by establishing a system of norms that guide individuals behavior for the benefit of
the group. This is the magic of norms: An individual accepts small restrictions on their behavior
and they get many benefits. Communities collapse when too many people violate too many
norms; but even short of collapse, communities become unpleasant to be in when a number of
people violate a number of norms.
To make our small society flourish we all have to accept small restrictions. So here is a
selection from the list of the norms that, if we follow them, will allow this learning community to
flourish. There are many norms that you already know, intuitively, or will learn over the course
of the semester. This is a selection of important ones.
1. Fight entropy
Be punctual, organized, prepared.
Read the syllabus, do the readings, submit your assignments in time.
2. Be aware and present.
Dont just drag your body to show up. If you choose to come here, be here.
Observe, appreciate, learn. Engage, think with critical curiosity.
Dont leave your phone on, or check your email, or read the news, or text your
buddies
3. Be an exemplar: everything you do has an impact on others. Imitation decides on the fate
of communities: it spreads the best and the worst in us with equal ferocity.
4. Recognize your choices: deliberate, choose, and then accept the consequences.
5. Recognize how you can benefit others. Identify opportunities for small acts of kindness.
Recognize how others can benefit you. Dont fear to ask for support.
6. Take perspective. The world is not you. Dont be overconfident in your beliefs. Respect
others perspective, try to understand it first, and if you disagree, articulate it in civil
ways.
And then there are of course the basic rules: first check the syllabus and canvas for any question
you might have; read the syllabus word for word; honor the rules therein.

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3 A Commitment You Make When Taking This Class

Some topics in this class are sensitive topics. This means that some of you may feel negative
emotions when engaging with the topic. You should know that we will talk about prejudice,
discrimination, low self-esteem, breaking up relationships, and violence. If you are ready and
willing to engage with these topics from a third-person perspective, this class is for you. You do
not have to suppress other perspectives (your first-person perspective, or other perspectives that
are not science, such as ethics or community activism). If you would like to share these other
perspectives with me or the TAs in private, we would be very open to it. But in the classroom, in
the textbook, in your papers, in exams, you commit yourself to taking a scientific perspective.
But the scientific perspective implies that we are always learning, always improving our
knowledge. Disagreement and debate are inherent to science. For example, I will not always
agree with the textbook. But when I dont I will tell you why; I will offer logical or conceptual
arguments or provide empirical evidence. Thats also how you can disagree with the textbook,
articles, or with me: Provide an argument or evidence.

4 Response Papers
Over the next three months you will make many new observations and have many new ideas
about social behavior. I want you to develop these ideas and communicate them. Therefore you
will write 3 short response papers about some of the research articles on your reading list. This
way, you continuously monitor and document your thinking and learn to communicate it. The
guidelines for these papers are detailed and the expected standard is very high. We will give you
thorough feedback on the first response to help you improve as you go along.
Format. Each response page must have a cover sheet that shows your Banner ID (no
names, please) and an APA-style reference for the article you are responding to. The response
must fit on one page and must be between 400 and 600 words long. It has three parts.
(1) The first paragraph summarizes the main point of the article or, if the article has multiple
points (e.g., a review), highlights the specific point that you are responding to. Your
summary must be clear and concise. Assume that the reader of your paper has not read the
article (though in reality of course they will have).
(2) One or two paragraphs develop a constructive point that the article stimulated in you. For
example, use the articles concepts or findings to analyze an everyday situation; to develop
a possible application in education, business, clinical, law, etc.; or to propose an additional
study. Dont vaguely point to several ideas; describe one constructive thought in detail.
(3) One or two paragraphs develop a critical point about the article. For example, critique the
clarity of the theory, the logic of the main claim; the adequacy of the methods (if the article
is empirical); or the strength of the empirical support for the interpretation or conclusion.
All papers must be submitted as .doc, .docx, or .rtf files (not pdf files), and we will open timestamped submission portals on Canvas for each paper. The papers will run through turnitin to
check for plagiarism. We are interested in your own thinking and communicating.
Writing quality. You will need to write clearly and concisely. Every sentence must be
grammatically well-formed and easily understandable, and sentences must be logically
connected to each other. Begin each paragraph with a one-sentence prcis of what you will say
in more detail in the paragraph. Whenever you make a claim (e.g., that the article has a certain

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shortcoming or can be applied to a certain domain), you must back up your claim with evidence
in the paper or in other literature, with logic, or with a compelling example. Dont be vague; be
precise; and concise. Re-read and edit your paper multiple times. And dont forget to spellcheck. If you speak English as your second language, make sure you have other students or
Student Services edit your papers.
Paper due dates. The response papers are due X, X, and X.
Late papers. Your response papers are due on the date marked in the Schedule. Turning
in a paper late leads to point deductions. Within 24 hours of the due date, you lose 10 points; for
every additional day, you lose an additional 10 points.
If you are an athlete traveling to an official event or if you face a serious difficulty with
your health or have a death in the family you must speak to us in advance of the due date to find
an accommodation. If you have a documented disability and anticipate needing accommodations
for the response paper assignment, please speak with TA X.
Response Grading. Each response paper earns up to 100 points, and the points
breakdown is as follows:
Within length and page requirement
Correct APA-style article reference on cover page
Language:
No spelling errors
No grave grammatical errors
Understandable sentences and sentence transitions
Clarity, relevance, backing of claims, and creativity
in each of the main three parts:
Summary
Constructive extension
Critique

10
10
5
5
10
20
20
20

Original work. You need to think deeply and independently about your response topics.
Ideas that are not your own must be acknowledged by source, and all quotes must be referenced.
All writing assignments will be checked with anti-plagiarism software.
Challenges (and how to overcome them). If you have little practice in writing (especially
writing short responses), you will find this assignment difficult at first. Read and edit your
papers repeatedly. Put yourself in a readers perspective and keep asking yourself: Is this clear?
Would they know what I mean? And heed our feedback on early papers.
The last of the three parts, the critique, is the most difficult. Keep these guidelines in
mind: Never attack the authors; instead, critique the theory, argument, data, or interpretation that
the article presents. Do not merely suggest that more data should be collected; say what kind of
studies would address your criticism. Do not critique the size of the study sample unless it
created real problems for the statistical analysis. Do not critique the composition of the sample
unless it seriously undermines the papers main conclusion. Do not vaguely refer to possible
personality differences; describe how such differences provide an alternative explanation of the
findings. Do not simply say: This finding is not true of me (every finding in psychology is
true of many but not all people); if you think that the finding is not true of most people, describe
your evidence or how one could collect such evidence.

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5 Quizzes and Exams

We will have two exams (Midterm TBD, Final 5/20, 2:00 pm). They assess your mastery of
material in the lectures and required readings (textbook sections and articles).
We do not write make-up exams, so you will need to take the exams at the scheduled times.
Students who face a serious difficulty with their health or a death in the family or athletes
traveling to official events must speak to us in advance and arrange remote exam administration.
Extreme circumstances (e.g., traffic accident with hospitalization) will be handled on a case-bycase basis.
If you require any accommodations for exams or other assignments, please let TA X know now
or at least a week in advance (because we need to organize a room, a proctor, and a procedure).

6 Research Participation
In this course you will hear and read about numerous methodologies of psychological research,
and there is no better way to get a sense of these methodologies than to participate in research
yourself. A requirement in this course is therefore to participate in 2 hours of empirical research
in the psychology department subject pool. Most studies come at 60min or 30min length, so you
will take part in two to four of them. (No paid studies count.)
Your participation is tracked electronically through a system called SONA (see separate
handout), but for full class credit you need to provide a brief written statement of your study
experience, which you submit to TA X by 5/15. This summary includes one sentence on each
study you participated insomething you took away from that particular study (e.g., a question,
an insight, a sentiment, a connection to class content).
You are free to opt out of the research requirement and instead choose one of these
alternative options:

Write a 2-page paper on any of the articles on which you havent already written a 1-page
reaction paper. Its criteria are similar to the required one-page responses (i.e., summary
portion, critique portion, extension portion), but depth and length are more extensive.
Attend two department colloquia, sign in with me or one of our TAs, and write one page
documenting your thoughts about both colloquia (i.e., a half page for each).

7 Grading
A perfect grade consists of 1000 points. You can earn points the following way:
Midterm exam
Final exam
Three response papers
Other participation (e.g., reading group, shared diary, blog)
Research participation or alternative

250
350
300
50
50

There will soon be more information about the Other participation category.
The translation of points into grades will be as follows: A > 900, B > 800, C > 700.
I offer no extra credit opportunities. Please dont ask.

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We put as much care into grading papers and exams as is possible (I have very high standards of
fairness). Errors can happen and will be corrected. However, attempts to persuade us of a
different interpretation or a different judgment call wont lead to correction because we couldnt
reapply a new rule to all other 299 exams or papers.
I do not tolerate any form of cheating and have failed students who have cheated in the past (e.g.,
copied somebody elses paper, plagiarized paper content, used extraneous material in an exam).

8 Communication
Because this course is work-intensive from the start, it is important that we communicate
effectively with each other inside and outside the classroom. Come to class and contribute; see
me or a TA in office hours; make sure you check Canvas several times a week. There are few
problems that cannot be solved by open and effective communication.
Please adhere to posted office hours or make an appointment; please dont show up unannounced
at my or the TAs offices. I will use a sign-up system on Canvas. If there is an emergency,
please email me directly.

9 Tips for Reading Research Articles

For empirical articles, first read the Abstract, the beginning of the Discussion, and the
Conclusions (if available). Then read the Introduction and the Results. Finally, read the
Methodology. The Methodology section is important, but its much easier to understand as
the tool that helped the authors answer their questions and support their conclusions.

There will be technical terms in every article. Check our textbooks glossary, and search the
terms on the internet. Not all internet sites are accurate (surprise!); so look for converging
information (and credible sites usually end in .edu). Obviously, you can ask me and the TAs;
but doing your own search creates a strong memory trace.

You can search (e.g., PsycINFO, Google Scholar) for other articles that cited the target
article you are reading. Those articles may highlight important aspects of the target article.

I encourage you to form an informal reading group in which you clarify and discuss the
reading material. If you are part of such a reading group, please document it. I dont give
explicit extra credit, but participating in a reading group will benefit you in a tough grading
decision (when your points are exactly at a letter cutoff).

You are welcome to visit, alone or in groups, our office hours to ask questions about the
readings or about lecture material. However, questions such as What was the article
about? are usually not productive; try to formulate specific questions that show you have
tried to read the article and have holes in your understanding that you are hoping to fill (e.g.,
about methodology and statistics).

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Schedule
Thu 1/28
Tue 2/2
Thu 2/4
Tue 2/9
Thu 2/11
Tue 2/16
Thu 2/18
Tue 2/23
Thu 2/25
Tue 3/1
Thu 3/3
Tue 3/8
Thu 3/10
Tue 3/15
Thu 3/17
Tue 3/22
Thu 3/24
Tue 3/29
Thu 3/31
Tue 4/5
Thu 4/7
Tue 4/12
Thu 4/14
Tue 4/19
Thu 4/21
Tue 4/26
Thu 4/28
Tue 5/3
Thu 5/5
Sat 5/20

Orientation: Syllabus, Overview

1: Science of Social Behavior
2: Self-Concept and Self-Schema
3: Dissonance and Rationalization
4: Self-Enhancement
5: Self-Esteem and Self-Presentation
6: Understanding Other Minds [guest lecture]
Long weekend
7: Explaining Behavior
8: Moral Judgment
9: (Social) Emotions
Review
MIDTERM EXAM
10: Personality Judgments
11: Interpersonal Aggression
12: Language and Communication
13: Prosocial Behavior
Spring Recess
Spring Recess
14: Stereotypes and Prejudice I
15: Stereotypes and Prejudice II
16: Intergroup perception and conflict
17: Persuasion and Compliance
18: Conformity
19: Obedience
20: Group Dynamics
21: Attraction
22: Affiliation and Relationships
Review_
2:00 p.m. FINAL EXAM