Making a Difference with Social Psychology
Chapter 14 Social Psychology
Applied Research
Principles from Social Psychology can be applied to current social problems
Kurt Lewin: “There is nothing so practical as a good theory”
Applied Research
Applied research in Social Psychology:
Creating/testing interventions Prompting behavior Prompting attitude
change
change
Assessing Interventions
To assess the effectiveness and to evaluate potential risks to participants
Critical Incident Findings: no
Stress Debriefing
significant advantage; may actually prompt more significant stress responses
Theory and Application
Examples:
Social Contact
Theory-> Jigsaw Classroom
Education about
Diffusion of Responsibility-> Behavior Change
Social Psychology and Sustainability
Encouraging individuals to conserve:
Link
to social dilemmas
Studies- keeping
your money or donating it to the group- collaboration vs. cooperation
The common response is to keep our money
Social Psychology and Sustainability
Encouraging collaboration Communication- study:
when the group can interact, collaborative choices become more likely making a public commitment helpssense of group commitment and solidarity
Real-world:
Changing Social Norms
Social Change- using social norms/conformity for the greater good
Study:
confederate picks up the fast food bagyou are less likely to litter; the confederate doesn’t pick it up; you are more likely to litter
Less than 1% vs. 37%
Social Norms: Littering Study
Mailroom:
Condition one:
many ads on the floor Condition two: one watermelon rind on the floor Condition three: nothing on the floor
Students were least likely to litter in condition two
Social Change
Need to change the norm
High
status members help
Change
the norm with at least one ally (Asch line experiment)
Social Psychology and Sustainability
Making your consumption explicit
Water meters,
itemized energy bills
When people see their usage directly, it is more likely to prompt behavior change
Also, making the message “vivid” and compelling
Competitiveness
Individuals were more likely to conserve when it became a competition
Employees received
direct feedback on their personal consumption you conserve more than the other team?
Can
Introducing Hypocrisy
When individuals are asked to advocate/education on the issue, they are more likely to change their behavior
To
resolve the cognitive dissonance associated with being a hypocrite
Rethinking Fear-Inducing Communications
When using fear:
Moderate A
amount
way to address the fear