PSY-FPX5120 covers graduate-level social psychology theory — social influence, attribution, and group dynamics — with an emphasis on applying these frameworks to genuine applied and research contexts.
Social influence and attribution at graduate depth
PSY-FPX5120 covers classic and contemporary social influence research (conformity, obedience, persuasion) and attribution theory, requiring graduate-level students to critically evaluate the research methodology behind these findings, not just recall the conclusions.
Group dynamics and applied social psychology
The course covers group dynamics theory — social identity, groupthink, deindividuation — and its application to real organizational, clinical, or community contexts, connecting theoretical social psychology to genuine applied problems students may encounter in professional practice.
Key topics in PSY-FPX5120
- Social influence research: conformity, obedience, persuasion at graduate depth
- Attribution theory and critical evaluation of underlying research methodology
- Social identity theory and group membership effects
- Groupthink and deindividuation in applied contexts
- Applying social psychology theory to organizational and community settings
- Critically evaluating classic social psychology studies' methodology and ethics
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Worked example: critically evaluating a classic study's methodology
- Study: A classic obedience study with significant real-world influence
- Graduate-level critique: Beyond citing the finding, evaluate the sample's generalizability, the ethical concerns the study raised (which shaped modern research ethics standards), and whether replication attempts have confirmed or complicated the original finding
- Lesson: Graduate study requires critically interrogating even foundational, famous studies, not simply accepting their conclusions as settled fact
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Frequently asked questions
Many classic social psychology studies, despite their significant historical influence and enduring citation in textbooks, have real methodological limitations by contemporary standards — small or unrepresentative samples, ethical concerns that wouldn't pass modern IRB review, and in some cases, replication difficulties that complicate the original, often dramatic conclusions. PSY-FPX5120 teaches graduate students to engage critically with these studies' actual methodology and evidentiary strength, rather than simply accepting their famous conclusions uncritically, because genuine graduate-level competency requires the ability to evaluate research quality directly, not just recall what a study is popularly understood to have found — this critical evaluation skill is essential preparation for eventually conducting or consuming psychological research professionally.
Social identity theory holds that a significant part of a person's self-concept derives from their membership in social groups, and that people are motivated to view their own group (the in-group) favorably compared to other groups (out-groups), which can shape behavior — favoritism toward in-group members, bias against out-group members — in ways that have little to do with any individual's personal traits and much more to do with the psychological dynamics of group membership itself. PSY-FPX5120 teaches this framework because it offers an important alternative explanation for behavior that might otherwise be misattributed purely to individual personality or moral character — understanding that ordinary, otherwise unbiased individuals can exhibit in-group favoritism or out-group bias simply due to group membership dynamics (as demonstrated in classic minimal group studies) reveals something important about situational and group-level influences on behavior that pure trait-based explanations miss.