PSY100 Class 2 assignments.

Writing Assignment 6: Social Psychology

(Chapter 11)

Instructions: Follow the directions below when writing this paper. Please note this assignment is written by the Behavioral Sciences Department, so it may look a little different than other paper assignments for this class. All PSY 100 courses are asked to complete this paper as a way to assess introductory psychology students’ abilities to meet the competencies described below.

Due date: Thursday, November 20th

Competencies Assessed:

· To create hypotheses about human behavior and gather empirical data from observations of people in naturalistic environments.

· To critically analyze human behavior using concepts and language from established social psychological theory.

Directions for Assignment:

1. For this assignment, you will need to gather empirical data from observing humans in a naturalistic environment. Identify a group of at least three people who are behaving (i.e., interacting socially) in a naturalistic setting. Take special care to make sure you cannot identify or be identified by the people you are observing. In other words, be discreet! It is critical that the group is not aware of your presence and does not know you are observing them.

2. Next, unobtrusively and anonymously observe your identified group for a period of 10 – 20 minutes. Take careful notes of what you observe and note any typical or non-typical behaviors. In your note-taking, please use the following questions to guide your data collection in this naturalistic observation:

a) Were the people in your group engaging in nonverbal behavior? What types of nonverbal behavior(s) did you observe?

b) Were the members of your group conforming to each other or to social/cultural norms? Not conforming? What situational factors might have affected whether or not you group displayed/did not display conformity?

c) Did you observe any examples of social or cultural norms? If so, please describe these norms and discuss how your group members were adhering to them.

d) Were there any instances of altruism or aggression in your observations? If so, please describe the scenarios you observed.

e) What situational factors affected the behavior of the group members you observed?

f) Were there any observed personality factors that might have affected the social behavior of the group you observed?

3. In a written summary of your observations:

a) First, develop a hypothesis about what factors might have influenced the particular interaction patterns you witnessed. For example, how did the social situation affect your group’s behavior? If your group engaged in atypical or norm-breaking behavior, what factors might have influenced their nonconformity? *Remember hypotheses are making predictions but also providing explanation. A good hypothesis should include the ‘why’ factor. Hypotheses may be written in an If, then…format. For example, If students in a group express the same opinion, then the last student to speak will conform to fit in. (Asch’s study)

b) Next, describe and discuss your data - the groups’ behavior - using at least 5 social psychological terms or concepts discussed in your book or in class discussion. In other words, specifically discuss the behaviors you observed using the language of social psychology.

c) Finally, discuss whether or not the behaviors you witnessed support established social psychological theories.