Practical Work in Social Psychology

Code:

P310

Acronym:

TPPS

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Psychology

Instance: 2015/2016 - 1S

Active?	No
Responsible unit:	Psychology
Course/CS Responsible:	Integrated Master Psychology

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

. To introduce students to Experimental Social Psychology by contacting and reasoning about classic experiments regarding central psychosocial phenomena.

. To train basic methodological skills and apply them in planning and conducting experiments within Social Psychology domain.

. To acknowledge the main differences between an experimental methodology from other research methodologies.

. To contact to typical constraints that are usually present in experiments in the lab.

. To ponder, in experiments’ conduction, major attributes that should be considered in experimental methodology: causal inference, world and psychological realism, validity (construct, internal, external), operationalization, etc.

. To consider the ethical implications of Experimental Social Psychology.

. To contribute to value research within students, as a major component of their academic education.

Learning outcomes and competences

By participating in the classes, either as participants, as confederates or as researchers, students may acknowledge the several points of view that are evolved in experimental research within Social Psychology. The objectives of this unit are focused on the acquisition of skills directly related with research (namely, experimental research), that are expected to improve throughout the classes.

Working method

Presencial

Program

Introduction to laboratorial experimental research in Social Psychology:
            . Contacting with Social Psychology classical experiments;
            . Planning an experimental study (in small groups).
            . Conducing the planned study in the Social Psychology Lab, including all the required steps that should be included in this process (materials’ construction, testing the manipulations, training the instructions and the scenario, data collection, … debriefing).
            . Presenting the theoretical concepts, research question and hypotheses evolved in the study, and describing the conducted study.
            . Discussing the theoretical and methodological aspects raised by the study.

 

Transversal concepts that will be approached through the classes:
         . Measurement and validity in experimental methodology.
         . Ethical implications in research: acknowledgement of the limits of studies, informed consent, confidentiality, debriefing, …
         . Experimental scenario: simulating “real” situations in the lab, experimental manipulations, operational definitions, experimental realism, randomization, confederates, …

Mandatory literature

Vala, J. e Monteiro, M-B; Psicologia Social. ISBN: 972-31-0845-3.
Hogg, M. ; Social psychology. ISBN: 0-13-486770-X
Judd, C.; Research methods in social relations. ISBN: 0-03031149-7
Smith, E. ; Social psychology. ISBN: 0-86377-587-X

Teaching methods and learning activities

Students are expected to participate in the classes, either as participants of an experiment conducted by the Professor or by another group of students, either as members of a group that will plan and implement an experiment.

Each class will focus on a traditionally studied domain within Social Psychology, and will be composed by 2 components: 1) conduction of an experiment; 2) presentation of the theoretical concepts approached in the experiment, research question, hypotheses and description of the study.

The first three classes will be directed by the Professor. The following classes will be guided by one group of students (supervised by the Professor).

 

Students have to be present in 75% of the classes (eliminatory criterion)

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

designation	Weight (%)
Participação presencial	0,00
Prova oral	30,00
Trabalho escrito	40,00
Trabalho laboratorial	30,00
Total:	100,00

Calculation formula of final grade

Evaluation of this unit will be based on three components: (1) planification and conduction of the experimental study (30%); (2) presentation of the theoretical-empirical concepts relevant regarding the conducted study (30%); (3) manuscript describing the experiment (40%).

Classification improvement

Students can improve their grade by improving the report. However, such report will maintain the same ponderation in the final grade (40%)