This course has two main objectives. One is to stimulate thoughtful reflection on several topics: basic issues in the philosophy of social science, major theories of human social behavior, and recent challenges major theories. Another goal is to encourage students to apply the course content to one or the other of the following professional activities: 1) social psychological research on a specific social issue or applied research topic, and 2) teaching of psychology .

Ideally, students will regard and respond to the course as a personal intellectual quest or journey with potentially significant implications for their professional life. That it is also a time-limited core course whose requirements must be satisfactorily met as part of their doctoral degree program should be secondary. All assignments and assessments are intended to facilitate the indicated goals.

We will examine some assumptions that lie behind theory and research in the behavioral sciences, consider a range of psychological and sociological theories, examine the lives of scholars who proposed or worked with the theories, consider some subsequent developments including recent challenges to traditional theoretical perspectives, and examine narratives of non-Western workers that illustrate aspects of selected theories. The narratives are first-hand accounts of the work lives of Ghanaians and expatriates living in Ghana, West Africa. These narratives are available on the world wide web at this address: http://www.cgsweb.cgs.edu/~wickera/working.html

Here is an overview of the topics we will consider:

Jan. 22

       Major theoretical orientations in psychology and their assumptions
       Ways of knowing

Jan. 29

Are the behavioral sciences scientific?
Reflections on intellectual challenges; taking a position
Implications of theory for social programs
Social psychology in historical perspective
Life stories
Fritz Heider: Naive psychology

Feb. 5

Reductionism
Naive psychology and its legacy

Feb. 12

Naive psychology and its legacy, continued

Feb. 19

Neal Miller, John Dollard, Albert Bandura: Social learning theory
John Thibaut, Harold Kelley, George Homans: Social exchange theory

Feb. 26

Determinism
Sigmund Freud: The psychoanalytic perspective

Mar. 5

Karl Marx: Stratification, conflict, and social change

Mar. 12

Mid-semester examination

Mar. 19

No class--semester break

Mar. 26

Kurt Lewin: Field theory and action research

Apr. 2

Roger Barker: Ecological psychology and eco-behavioral science

Apr. 9

The legacy of Roger Barker

Apr. 16

Social constructionism and minority perspectives

Apr. 23

Social constructionism and minority perspectives, continued

Apr. 30

George Herbert Mead: Symbolic interactionism

May 7

Final examination

May 13

Tuesday 5 p.m. Deadline for assigned paper. Late papers will not be accepted.

Format

This is a reading, thinking, and discussing course. It is designed to encourage you to think carefully about issues, concepts, and theories related to human social behavior, and to engage in probing discussion about them. Anyone who diligently undertakes these activities should perform well on the exams.

A substantial portion of the time in most class sessions will be organized by teams of 3 class members. Teams will read the assignments in advance and plan an appropriate classroom activity based upon the readings. Various formats are possible; the goal of the teams should be to enhance the learning of class members on significant aspects of the assigned material. Each student will probably serve on 3 different teams (i.e., help plan three class sessions) over the semester.

All students should have read assignments in advance of class meetings, and should be prepared to participate actively in a discussion of the concepts and issues raised by the readings.

Grading

Grades for the course will be based on a mid-term exam (25%), a comprehensive final exam (35%); a written paper (25%); and on the in-class activities organized by student teams (15%). To meet the "core" course requirement, a student's final grade must be at the "B-" level or better.

Reading materials

Books by Slife & Williams, Heider, and Freud are required; complete references to these books appear in the assignments listed below.

One set of the other assigned readings will be deposited in Honnold Library for student use. These materials are designated by (R) in the syllabus. The approximate number of pages assigned each week is given in brackets after the last reading.

Communications

The best and quickest way to communicate with me on most matters is by e-mail (WICKERA). My drop-in office hours have tentatively been set for Wednesday from 2 to 4. My office is Room 202, Academic Computing Building. Students need not make an appointment during these hours; this is also a good time to reach me by phone (607-3716). You can also see me before or after class to schedule an appointment.

Teaching assistant Abe Recio can also be reached by e-mail (RECIOA). His office hours are (tentatively) Mondays, noon to 2, in a place to be announced, and he will also be available by appointment.

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Jan. 22

Major theoretical orientations in psychology and their assumptions
Ways of knowing

Slife, B. D., & Williams, R. N. (1995). What's behind the research?: Discovering hidden assumptions in the behavioral sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. (Required book) Chapters 1, 2, and 3. [94]

Jan. 29

Are the behavioral sciences scientific?
Reflections on intellectual challenges; taking a position
Implications of theory for social programs

Slife & Williams, Chapters 6 and 7.

Samoff, J. (1994). Triumphalism, Tarzan, and other influences: Teaching about Africa in the 1990's. In P. Alden, D. Lloyd, A. I. Samatar (Eds.), African studies and the undergraduate curriculum. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner. Read pp. 66-72. (R)

Social psychology in historical perspective

Cartwright, D. (1979). Contemporary social psychology in historical perspective. Social Psychology Quarterly, 42, 82-94. (R)

Life stories

Rosenwald, G. C., & Ochberg, R. I. (1992). Pp. 1-9 of Introduction: Life stories, cultural politics, and self-understanding. In G. C. Rosenwald & R. I. Ochberg (Eds.), Storied lives. New Haven: Yale University Press. (R)

Fritz Heider: Naive psychology

Heider, F. (1989). Autobiography. In G. Lindzey (Ed.), A history of psychology in autobiography. (Vol. 8, pp. 129-155). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. (R)

Rappaport, L. (1985). Scholarly creativity and the poetry of human development: The life of Fritz Heider. Human Development, 28, 131-140. (R)

Heider, F. (1958). Psychology of interpersonal relations. New York: Wiley. Chapter 1, Introduction; Appendix: A notation for representing interpersonal relations. (Required book) [This book is referred to below simply as "Heider."] [146]

Feb. 5

Reductionism

Slife & Williams, Chapter 5.

Naive psychology and its legacy

Weiner, M. B. (1995). The Austrian roots of Heiderian psychology. Society for the Advancement of Field Theory Newsletter, 13(1), 5-6; 8. (R)

Heider, Chapter 2, Perceiving the other person; Ch. 4. The naive analysis of action.

Wicker, A. W. (1996). The "Working in Ghana" Project. [On-line]. Available on the Internet at this address: http://www.cgsweb.cgs.edu/~wickera/working.html. Read About the project; Restaurant proprietor (cf. perceiving the other). [Assigned narratives are referred to below simply as "Wicker," followed by the job of the narrator.]

West, S. G., & Wicklund, R. A. (1980). A primer of social psychological theories. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole. Chapter 9, A theory of correspondent inferences; Chapter 10, Kelley's attribution theory; Chapter 15, An attributional model of achievement motivation. (R) [173]

Feb. 12

Naive psychology and its legacy, continued

Heider, Chapter 7, Sentiment; Chapter 11, Reaction to the lot of the other; Chapter 12, Conclusion.

Wicker, Member of parliament (cf. the lot of the other).

Newcomb, T. M. (1974). Autobiography. In G. Lindzey (Ed.), A history of psychology in autobiography. (Vol. 6, pp. 365-391). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. (R)

Shaw, M.E., & Costanzo, P. R. (1982). Theories of social psychology (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Chapter 8, Cognitive consistency theories. (R)

West, S. G., & Wicklund, R. A. (1980). A primer of social psychological theories. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole. Chapter 7, Equity theory. (R) [145]

Feb. 19

Neal Miller, John Dollard, Albert Bandura: Social learning theory

Shaw, M.E., & Costanzo, P. R. (1982). Theories of social psychology (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Chapter 2, The reinforcement-theory orientation; Chapter 3, Theories of social learning and imitation. (R)

John Thibaut, Harold Kelley, George Homans: Social exchange theory

Thibaut, J. W., & Kelley, H. H. (1959). The social psychology of groups. New York: Wiley. Chapter 2, Analysis and concepts. (R)

Homans, G. C. (1974) Social behavior: Its elementary forms (Rev. ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Chapter 1, Introduction; Chapter 2, The general propositions. (R)

Wicker, Fisherman (cf. social learning). [132]

Feb. 26

Determinism

Slife & Williams, Chapter 4.

Sigmund Freud: The psychoanalytic perspective

Freud, S. (1961). Civilization and its discontents. New York: Norton. Pp. ix - xxii, Sigmund Freud: A brief life; pp. 3-112. (Required book)

Hogan, R. H. (1976). Personality theory: The personological tradition. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Chapter 4, Sigmund Freud: The social theory. (R)

Shaw, M.E., & Costanzo, P. R. (1970). Theories of social psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill. Pp. 265-274, A psychoanalytic theory of social attitudes. (R) [154]

Mar. 5

Karl Marx: Stratification, conflict, and social change

McLellan, D. (1975). Karl Marx. New York: Viking. Chapter 1. The life. (R)

Turner, J. H., & Beeghley, L. (1981). The emergence of sociological theory. Homewood, IL: Dorsey. Chapter 6, Karl Marx I: The intellectual origins of his thought; Chapter 7, Karl Marx II: The basic works; Chapter 8, Karl Marx III; Models and principles. (R)

Wicker, Timber contractor. [98]

Mar. 12

Mid-Semester Examination

Mar. 19

No class--Semester Break

Mar. 26

Kurt Lewin: Field theory and action research

Hall, C. S., & Lindzey, G. (1957). Theories of personality. New York: Wiley. Chapter 6, Lewin's field theory. (R)

Lewin, K. (1958). Group decision and social change. In E. E. Maccoby, T. M. Newcomb, and E. L. Hartley (Eds.), Readings in social psychology (pp. 197-211). New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston. (R)

Lewin, M. (1992). The impact of Kurt Lewin's life on the place of social issues in his work. Journal of Social Issues, 48(2), 15-29. (R)

Marrow, A. (1969). The practical theorist: The life and work of Kurt Lewin. Preface; Chapter 14, Action research in industry; Chapter 15, Testing theory in action; Chapter 16, The search for help; Chapter 17, The dynamics underlying group life; Chapter 18, Action research in community affairs; Chapter 19, Launching group dynamics at M. I. T.; Chapter 20, Launching programs of community action; Chapter 21, Some major action research projects; Chapter 22, Unifying themes and the last days. (R)

White, R. K. (1992). A personal assessment of Lewin's major contributions. Journal of Social Issues, 48(2), 45-50. (R)

Fisher, R. J. (1992). Establishing applied social psychology: An exercise in pragmatic transcendence. In H. J. Stam, T. B. Rogers, and K. J. Gergen. The analysis of psychological theory: Metapsychological perspectives. Washington, DC: Hemisphere. (R)

Wicker, University residence hall porter/local union secretary. [185]

Apr. 2

Roger Barker: Ecological psychology and eco-behavioral science

Barker, R. G., & Wright, H. F. (1951). One boy's day. New York: Harper & Row. Read Introduction (pp. 1-10), and School recess (pp. 235-252). (R)

Wicker, A. W. (1984). An introduction to ecological psychology. New York: Cambridge University Press. Introduction; Chapter 1, Behavior settings. (R)

Barker, R. G. (1987). Prospecting in environmental psychology. In D. Stokols & I. Altman (Eds.), Handbook of environmental psychology (Vol. 2, pp. 1413-1432). New York: Wiley. (R)

Barker, R. G. (1979). Settings of a professional lifetime. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 2137-2157. (R)

Wicker, A. W. (1991). A tribute to Roger G. Barker. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 11, 287-290. (R)

Wicker, Cocoa farmer. [122]

Apr. 9

The Legacy of Roger Barker

Wicker, A. W. (1992). Making sense of environments. In W. B. Walsh, K. H. Craik, & R. H. Price (Eds.), Person-environment psychology: Models and perspectives (pp. 157-192). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. (R)

Wicker, A. W. & August, R. A. (in press). Working lives in context: Engaging the views of participants and analysts. To appear in W. B. Walsh, K. H. Craik, & R. H. Price (Eds.), New directions in person-environment psychology (2nd ed.) Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. [Not in the set of reserved readings; a copy will be made available later.]

Sundberg, N. (1994, August 19). Wisdom Series. Interview with Allan Wicker. Unpublished manuscript. Read excerpt. (R)

Meyrowitz, J. (1985). No sense of place: The impact of electronic media on social behavior. New York: Oxford University Press. Read Preface, Chapter 1, Introduction; Chapter 2, Media and behavior; Chapter 3, Media, situations, and behavior; Chapter 4, Why roles change when media change; Chapter 15, Where have we been, where are we going? (R)

Turkle, S. (1996, Winter). Virtuality and its discontents: Searching for community in cyberspace. The American Prospect, No. 24, 50-57. (R)

Wicker, Ethnomusicologist. [188]

Apr. 16

Social constructionism and minority perspectives

Berger, P. L., & Luckmann, T. (1966). The social construction of reality. New York: Doubleday. Read pp. 1-3; 19-72; 89-92. (R)

Rogers, R. S., Stenner, P., Gleeson, K., & Rogers, W. S. (1995) Social psychology: A critical agenda. Read Chapter 1, The mission, message and marketing of social psychology and Chapter 11, Methods of enquiry. (R)

Wicker, Traditional healer. [112]

Apr. 23

Social constructionism and minority perspectives, cont'd.

Mednick, M. T. (1989). On the politics of psychological constructs: Stop the bandwagon, I want to get off. American Psychologist, 44, 1118-1123. (R)

Mednick, M. T. (1988). Autobiography. In A. N. O'Connell & N. F. Russo (Eds.), Models of Achievement: Reflections of eminent women in psychology. (Vol. 2, pp. 247-259) Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. (R)

Riger, S. (1992). Epistemological debates, feminist voices: Science, social values, and the study of women. American Psychologist, 47, 730-740. (R)

Sampson, E. E. (1993). Identity politics: Challenges to psychology's understanding. American Psychologist, 48, 1219-1230. (R)

Commentaries on Sampson's article by Day & Tappan; Kuhlman; Blanch, Penney, & Knight; Silverstein. (1995). American Psychologist, 49, 47-51. (R)

Moghaddam, F. M. (1990). Modulative and generative orientations to psychology: Implications for psychology in the three worlds. Journal of Social Issues, 46(3), 21-41. (R)

Misra, G., & Gergen, K. J. (1993). On the place of culture in psychological science. International Journal of Psychology, 28, 225-243. (R)

Commentaries on Misra & Gergen's article by Poortinga and by Triandis, and Misra & Gergen's reply. International Journal of Psychology, 28, 245-254. (R)

Wicker, Pediatrician. [116]

Apr. 30

George Herbert Mead: Symbolic interactionism

Blumer, H. (1969) Symbolic interactionism: Perspective and method. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Chapter 1, The methodological position of symbolic interactionism; Chapter 2, Sociological implications of the thought of George Herbert Mead. (R)

Schellenberg, J. A. (1978) Masters of social psychology. New York: Oxford. Chapter 3, George H. Mead and symbolic interactionism. (R) Stryker, S. (1987). The vitalization of symbolic interactionism. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50, 83-94. (R)

Palmer, P. J. (1987). Community, conflict, and ways of knowing: Ways to deepen our educational agenda. Change, 19, 20-25. (R)

Wicker, Butcher. [121]

May 7

Final examination

May 13

Tuesday, 5 p.m. Deadline for assigned paper. Late papers will not be accepted.

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