Social Psychology

Robbie Sutton was born in Wellington, New Zealand and completed undergraduate degrees in English, philosophy and psychology at Victoria University of Wellington, and went onto study for his PhD there. He has had teaching positions at Massey University (NZ), Keele University (UK), and now the University of Kent, where he is Reader in Psychology. He has published over 50 articles and book chapters on topics such as justice, inequality, gender, the fear of crime, feedback and causal explanation. He has also acted as a consultant on projects in environmental and community psychology. He serves on the editorial boards of the European Journal of Social Psychology, the British Journal of Social Psychology and the Journal of Language and Social Psychology. With Matthew Hornsey and Karen Douglas, Robbie edited Feedback: The Communication of Praise, Criticism and Advice.

Karen Douglas was born in Blackburn, England and grew up in the Hunter Valley, Australia. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Newcastle and her PhD at the Australian National University. Karen moved back to the UK to take up a lectureship at Keele University and later moved to the University of Kent where she is now a Reader in Psychology. Karen has many research interests, most notably on the social psychology of conspiracy theories, language and communication, and the psychology of the internet, having published and taught broadly in these areas. She has been an associate editor for the European Journal of Social Psychology, Social Psychology and the British Journal of Social Psychology.

From prejudice and aggression to group co-operation and close intimate relationships, this textbook covers the field of social psychology from general principles to cutting-edge research. Written as a comprehensive and complete guide, the authors take an outward-looking and international view of the discipline while maintaining a practical and 'hands on' writing style. This is achieved by placing the student experience at the heart of the text with various innovative features such as 'student projects' and 'try for yourself' exercises.

This blend of approaches from the critical appraisal of current research studies, to real life examples and illustrations, will help students to develop a solid understanding of social psychology whilst building the confidence to apply this knowledge successfully in assignments and exams.

Social Psychology is a fresh and forward-thinking introductory textbook covering all the key topics and using a range of examples and distinctive pedagogical features to enable students to relate the theory to real life.

A fresh and forward-thinking new introduction to social psychology packed with examples and features to enable students to apply all key topics to the real world

1. The discipline of social psychology.- 2. The social self: understanding ourselves.- 3. The social perceiver: understanding the social world.- 4. The social judge: attitudes, emotions and behavior.- 5. Communication.- 6. Persuasion.- 7. Close relationships.- 8. The social group.- 9. Social influence.- 10. Group behavior.- 11. Intergroup relations.- 12. Improving intergroup relations.- 13. Understanding and controlling aggression.- 14. Altruism and justice.- 15. Social psychology: an overview.