APPLYING SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY PAPER KEEPING SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY REAL.
Social psychological research—especially research in social cognition—is often criticized as being
far removed from the realities of everyday life.
Researchers tend to be ambivalent with respect to this criticism, however. On the one hand, they enjoy the certainty that lab experiments can provide.
On the other hand, some recognize that this approach tends to treat human thought and behavior
as if they occur in a vacuum, independent of everyday influences.
Document a real-world application of something you have learned about in this class. Discuss the importance of understanding that phenomenon (e.g., how
Does knowing what causes this phenomenon help you? how will knowing about this phenomenon
affect your behavior in the future?).