Mainstream And Mainstream Social Psychology

Improved Essays
Since the beginning of Social Psychology, it has been a divided. The most important approaches are two: psychological social psychology (PSP) and sociological social psychology (SSP). The first one is focused on the individual and in the innate determinants of the social behaviour (individuo-centred approach). On the other hand, the second one emphasises the social dimension to the experience, and it is more concerned about the large human collectivities and the cultural determinants of the social behaviour (socio-centre approach). While mainstream social psychology has its roots in PSP, critical social psychology has its roots in the SSP. Both study the same topics from a point of view. Social Psychology rests on three pillars: methodology, ideology and social world. It is there where they are found the main differences between mainstream and critical social psychology. In the next paragraphs, these differences are …show more content…
The methods used from a mainstream position are quantitative, whilst the ones used from a critical position are qualitative. The most common method used in mainstream social psychology is the Scientific method. They claim that this method is the only valid to obtain knowledge, which totally objective and unaffected by bias, culture, etc. The scientific method provides facts, cause and effect relationships and reduces everything into numbers. Because what is more objective than numbers? From this position, social psychology should be treated as a natural science, and such as natural science it should be objective, neutral and value free. Consequently, the use of the scientific method is exactly what it provides. Nevertheless, is not the human being the sum of its experiences, beliefs and culture? How can this position reduces the human behaviour into numbers and graphics without taking into account the

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Socialization is the problem of learning the behaviors of a given society. During socialization one will be assigned a role, and be continuously expected to fulfill that role. Individuals will also form an identity based on their role, social norms, and other aspects about their life, and this identity will eventually lead to a personality. This personality will be a pattern of behaviors that someone constructs due to their identity. Functionalists view the point of socialization as the creation of cohesion through conformity.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Keith E. Stanovich, the author of “How to Think Straight About Psychology,” explains different aspects of psychology to his readers in the first chapter of his book. He starts off by stating how Sigmund Freud is a fraud when it comes to psychology. Although Freud’s work in psychology is so little, he is the reason why many people misunderstand psychology. Then the chapter begins to talk about how psychology is composed of different topics and studies, and when there are many different topics it is difficult to link all of the topics into one. When psychology is often discussed, many people do not consider it a science.…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Theory Analysis Paper Theoretical Assumptions and Background In the social work practice, professionals often use different theories when working with clients. These theories help social workers understand why their clients are behaving a certain way and how they ended up in the situation that they are in. Theories can also help the social worker decide the most efficient intervention options for those that are seeking help.…

    • 1191 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Love is one of the most essential emotions in life. People want to feel loved because it brings happiness and warmth to their hearts. Love makes people unconditionally selfless. They think about their loved ones before themselves. The researchers in Introducing Psychology (3rd ed.), Schacter, D. L., Gilbert, D. T., Wegner, D. M., & Nock M.K. (2015), discuss how six different perspectives in psychology can portray a behavior from a different angle.…

    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Death In Gaz Film Analysis

    • 1027 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In the film, “Death In Gaza”, there is much conflict in the Gaza Strip between the Israelis and the Palestinians. James Miller and Saira Shah are TV journalists who wanted to film and document the harsh conditions in Gaza, especially documenting how this conflict has affected children. In this film, they interviewed many Palestinian children, including Ahmed, Mohammud, and Najla. James Miller’s next goal was to document how this same conflict has affected many Israeli children. However, James was unable to fulfill his aspirations after he was killed while filming in Gaza.…

    • 1027 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    PSYCH 212- Introduction to Developmental Psychology will provide me with some background knowledge of how people grow and change throughout life. I believe this class will provide greater personal insight for me, and can help me learn a lot about children, and be able to interact with them which will help me if I decide to become a child custody lawyer. PSYCH 221- Introduction to Social Psychology is a branch of psychology that is concerned with how social influence us and how people interact with others. Understanding social psychology can be useful for m as a lawyer for so many reasons. for example, social psychology can help me better understand how groups impact others choices and actions.…

    • 221 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Concluding Essay: Importance of the sociological imagination In sociology, the focus on the social is very significant because it allows sociologists to see much that escapes the notice of other observers (McIntyre, 2014, p. 29). The focus is not on one particular individual, instead the focus is on the social environment and the ways it affects people. To do this, sociologists rely on their sociological imagination. “Which is the ability to look beyond personal troubles of individuals to see the public issues of social structure.…

    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    There are three major sociological theoretical perspectives, the first being functionalist theory. The functionalist theory is based on the work of Herbert Spencer, Emile Durkheim, Talcott Parsons, and Robert Merton. Functionalism is a system of interconnected parts that work together to maintain balance and social equilibrium for the whole. The next theory is conflict perspective; it views society as if it was composed of different groups competing for power and resources. The final theory we will explore is the symbolic theory; this theory believes that human interaction and communication is aided by words, gestures, and other symbols that have obtained conventionalized meanings.…

    • 409 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Under the socio-cultural lens the focus is on how the society affects the client. C. Wright Mills (as cited by Rogers, 2016) created the term sociological imagination, which is an important aspect of the socio-cultural lens, “to describe the relationship between the individual and the wider society” (p.106). Additionally, culture has to be taken into consideration because it is intrinsically related to social aspects that affect clients. Rogers (2016) mentions that “There is no universally accepted definition of culture; culture can mean different things to different people. In fact, definitions vary depending on the discipline and theory from which they originate” (p. 130).…

    • 1021 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Social Psychology Social psychology is defined as the branch of psychology that studies the effect of social variables on individuals behavior, attitudes, perceptions, and motives. It also studies group and intergroup phenomena. Many people have to deal with social situations that may make them feel uncomfortable or change the way one may view himself in the world. In Redirect, by Timothy D. Wilson, the ideas of the impact of social situations on individuals is shown throughout most of the book, and focuses on how to cope with social influences and the way they can make one feel about himself. Social psychology plays a big role in human behavior and obtaining a grasp on how to ignore negativities can make a big difference in everyone’s lives.…

    • 1478 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Chapter 1: Define the seven major perspectives in psychology and describe how each may explain how a person may develop depression. In psychology there is seven major perspectives or as some call them, approaches. These approaches as a whole represents and defines psychology.…

    • 951 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Besides the perspective of labor, morals and manners there is also another perspective that has affected me personally in the home seating and my education. Dorothy Smith’s standpoint theory, “is grounded by the assertion that women have devalued social statuses in patriarchal societies” (Roberts, 2015). Smith argues that men have obtained the most values and powerful positions in the paid employment. For decades men have been more recognized for either effort in the work force than women. Even though today more women are in the work force, they are still expected to come home to clean, cook, wash and care for the children.…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    HUMAN DEVELOPMENT Human development refers to the procedure through which people normally develop and progress from early stages through adulthood. It means the development in totality such as physical, social, cultural, mental and emotional development. The distinctive parts of development and improvement that are measured include physical development, psychological development and social development. The field of human improvement contains numerous HYPOTHESES and their diverse thoughts regarding how kids improve and change as per time ( Berk, 2007). There are various assumptions which make understanding that youngsters’ improvements are a test.…

    • 1442 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Understanding Sociological Perspectives and Theoretical Approaches From society to society across the globe, ideologies and ways of life differ. Though customs are unique to different cultures, there are also similarities which link them. The underlying cause of this phenomenon can be given responsibility to sociological perspectives and theories. Sociological perspectives and theoretical approaches are what make up the similarities, differences, and connection between cultures which produces an effect on these societies as well as the individual.…

    • 1716 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Compare and contrast Psychoanalytic Theory to that of Social Cognitive Perspective and the Humanistic Perspective. Also, tell me who are the primary psychologists who came up with each theory/perspective? Sigmund Freud was an influential psychiatrist and clinical psychologist. Freud began his work when he found that the disorders of the patients he was seeing made no neurological sense. What could be causing feelings that had no physical cause?…

    • 1455 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays