PSYC21021 Topics & Issues in Developmental Psychology Essay Exam

PSYC21021 Topi

cs & Issues in Developmental Psychology Essay Exam

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PSYC21021 48 Hour Release The University of Manchester PSYCHOLOGY PSYC21021 Topics & Issues in Developmental Psychology Essay Exam 16th January 2023 09:45am Answer any one question, maximum length is 2 pages. Please submit your answer to each section separately to its own submission area on Blackboard. __________________________________________________ You should not share or make any copies of this exam paper ___________________________________________________________________ © The University of Manchester, 2023 Page 1 of 2 PSYC21021 Answer any one question, maximum length is 2 pages. Standard BSc Psychology formatting regulations apply. Please submit your answer to each section separately to its own submission area on Blackboard. 1. Discuss the importance of play for children’s social and cognitive development. 2. What constitutes full understanding of the minds of others? Discuss at what age children can be argued to show this full understanding. End of Examination, please check your answers. Page 2 of 2 07/12/2022 PSYC21701 Topics and Issues in Social Psychology 9. Communication and stereotyping Matt Farr matthew.farr@manchester.ac.uk Division of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences 1 Interactive questions – set up To join in with the questions / activities today, either: • head to ttpoll.eu • or use the PointSolutions app (Android and iOS) Enter uomsocialpsych in the session ID Click “Join Session” 2 Week Lectures (Roscoe, LT A) Labs (Zochonis, LT A) 1 Lab class 1: Intro, scale development 2 Lab class 2: Designing the new scale 3 Lab class 3: Data collection 4 Lab class 4: Handling survey data 5 6 7 Thu: Groups and norms Lab class drop-in Reading week Tue: Coursework deadline 8 Tue: Social identity and togetherness Thu: Intergroup relations and protest 9 Tue: Categorization and social cognition Thu: Representativeness and availability 10 Tue: Simulation and anchoring Thu: Theories of attribution 11 Tue: Attributional biases Thu: Communication and stereotyping 12 Tue: Discourse Thu: Revision session (Exam in January. See Blackboard for detailed schedule) 3 1 07/12/2022 Today Part 1 • Accents, languages, identity • Communication accommodation theory Part 2 • Inter-generational communication • “The communicative predicament of ageing” 4 Tony Blair variation (Kelner, 2006) 5 “happen she were wearing a mask” variation can be… phonological grammatical lexical (Robinson, 2007) Your Voices: contemporary accents of the UK. British Library. https://www.bl.uk/britishaccents-and-dialects/themes/your-voices-contemporary-accents-of-the-uk 6 2 07/12/2022 “happen she were wearing a mask” variation can be… phonological like “bath” pronunciation (see their map!) Other examples: “Definite article reduction” “Rhoticity” “L-vocalisation” (Robinson, 2007) Your Voices: contemporary accents of the UK. British Library. https://www.bl.uk/britishaccents-and-dialects/themes/your-voices-contemporary-accents-of-the-uk 7 “happen she were wearing a mask” variation can be… grammatical were (as opposed to was) – “verb is unmarked for person” – observed in N England and the Midlands (Robinson, 2007) Your Voices: contemporary accents of the UK. British Library. https://www.bl.uk/britishaccents-and-dialects/themes/your-voices-contemporary-accents-of-the-uk 8 “happen she were wearing a mask” variation can be… happen = perhaps / maybe “Centred on the Pennines” – Yorkshire, Lancashire or East Midlands lexical (Robinson, 2007) Your Voices: contemporary accents of the UK. British Library. https://www.bl.uk/britishaccents-and-dialects/themes/your-voices-contemporary-accents-of-the-uk There is information relating to possible origin of speaker 9 3 07/12/2022 “happen she were wearing a mask” variation can reflect social background (or context) wearing becomes wearin’ Also: “Multiple negation” “H-dropping” “T-glottaling” (Robinson, 2007) Social variation across the UK https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/articles/social-variation-across-the-uk 10 Social identities expressed / stereotypes perceived in the act of communication consider some examples: • Politics (e.g., politicians looking for your vote) • Careers (e.g., practices around recruitment) • Personal lives (e.g., receiving appropriate support from others) 11 Do you speak with an “accent”? What do you think people might infer about you from your accent? fertile ground for stereotyping…? What do you think of others when you hear their accent for the first time? 12 4 07/12/2022 Stereotyping based on geography, via accent Do you possess facts about that place? Can you easily bring to mind people from that place? What cultural activities are common in this place? What are common social and political attitudes in this place? …and so on. 13 “Matched-guise” technique Intergroup relations matter for the perception of language. Montréal – citizens on different sides of a linguistic divide What would participants infer about the speaker’s character traits when they spoke in one language or the other? The experimental paradigm manipulated the language of the text, using bilingual speakers Lambert et al. (1960) 14 “Matched-guise” technique “French prose of a philosophical nature” (Lambert et al., 1960, p. 44) Design able to compare both types of speaker across both types of judge French English Lambert et al. (1960) 15 5 07/12/2022 Lambert et al.: take account of the nature of the intergroup relations (e.g. minority/majority status) to better understand attitudes Impression formation not just about “objective” features of the voice, but also our mental representation of the group 16 “Matched-guise” paradigm: a speaker, a listener – an experimental simplification But communication that is two-way in nature (i.e., a real conversation) and that crosses a group boundary, is more complex Communication accommodation theory: General concepts about how communicators accommodate (!) – e.g., to adjust features of the exchange in a dynamic, circumstance-dependent way, using different strategies Dragojevic, Gasiorek and Giles (2016) 17 Different ways in which accommodation happens: e.g., gaze, posture, loudness, speed of response (Dragojevic, Gasiorek, & Giles, 2016) 18 6 07/12/2022 Convergence and divergence e.g., aligning the way you are talking with your conversational partner e.g., emphasising your accent when it is different to that of your conversational partner (Dragojevic, Gasiorek, & Giles, 2016) 19 Group status differences Symmetry of accommodation (i.e., from higher to lower or vice versa): (i.e., is it reciprocated, because if not, that might indicate something about status) accommodation that is described as “upwards” or “downwards” on this basis (Dragojevic, Gasiorek, & Giles, 2016) 20 affective cognitive Accommodation Adjusting your communication – choice of tech (e.g. app, text, voice, video?) – choice of vocabulary – syntax – audibility – choice of (and avoidance of) topics – appropriate for the emotion being expressed by the other party (Dragojevic, Gasiorek, & Giles, 2016) 21 7 07/12/2022 Why do we adjust communication? i) so we are understood; but also ii) because of the nature of our social relationships managing our communication to maintain a positive social identity “(…) adjustment is used to regulate social distance in pursuit of positive personal and social identities.” (Gasiorek, 2016), p. 28 (Dragojevic, Gasiorek, & Giles, 2016) 22 All the different groups you are a member of: these can be different forms of / elements of / expressions of your self-concept. The “self” we see will depend upon the time, the place, the company you are in Think of how circumstances you find yourself in – the social context determine how you see yourself (Climate campaigner? Volunteer? Athlete? Tourist?) But note these SCT ideas are relevant to not just self-perception, but also how we communicate with others Dragojevic and Giles (2014) 23 Communication with others not as individuals, but as representatives of groups Social mobility Social change Belief system Conversation Interpersonal Intergroup Social behaviour Stereotypes 24 8 07/12/2022 Intergroup identity low high low (communication less shaped by identity here) Interpersonal identity high based on Dragojevic and Giles (2014), p. 31 25 Interim summary • Communication is the actual stuff of social interaction! • If we look closely at this communication, we see a range of ways in which we accommodate. • There are theoretical arguments about why we might make adjustments with others in mind. 26 Break 27 9 07/12/2022 Today Part 2 • Inter-generational communication • “The communicative predicament of ageing” 28 Ways to categorize (stereotype)… Race Age  less attention in research Sex • Negative stereotypes of older persons postindustrial revolution • Possible to have positive attitude but still have communication affected by a stereotype • Generalized assumptions do not acknowledge full human qualities of older persons Nelson (2005) 29 “Paradoxically, people with positive attitudes toward older people often seem to communicate with older people according to negative stereotypes about older persons.” (Nelson, 2005, p. 209) 30 10 07/12/2022 Nelson: the following cycle is a problem: Our communicative experiences across the lifespan matter for how we see ourselves (i.e., self-stereotyping; “is it normal for me to be spoken to in this way?”) When we stereotype ourselves in this way, we diminish belief in our own abilities … … which then confirms the stereotype 31 The communication predicament of ageing “They’d get told off if they did . . . I’d tell them I’m not daft. No, I don’t have none of that business. I mean, I’m not going to say I’m brilliant, but I’m not daft . . . They think you’re daft just because you can’t walk . . . I’ve got a few more brains than they might think . . . .” (Ryan et al., 1986, p. 8) Ryan et al. (1986) 32 Stereotyping sets up expectations for communication across an intergroup divide “this person will have hearing difficulties…” “Why has he assumed I can’t hear him?” “…I’ll speak louder” Palomares et al. (2016) 33 11 07/12/2022 Palomares et al. • the world is frequently segregated by age • younger adults can have negative views towards older generations e.g. patronising style “painful self-disclosures” (not well received) (also not well received) 34 Palomares et al. Worldwide findings suggest younger adults find it difficult to communicate with older adults regardless of culture 35 Over-accommodation in patronising communication (e.g., assumption based on the stereotype that older adults are dependent, so do things for them that they are able to do themselves) What cues the stereotype in the first instance? Salience of… • stereotypical visible features (e.g., physical appearance – “old age cues”) • stereotypical behaviours (e.g., use of an assistive device) • stereotypical social roles (e.g., being seen to be a grandparent) Context • Where the interaction takes place (e.g., in a nursing home) i.e., salience and context can similarly affect communication on the basis of nationality, disability, gender, ethnicity… anywhere there is a stereotype Ryan, Hummert and Boich (1995) 36 12 07/12/2022 Verbal Forms of address First names and nicknames Terms of endearment Childlike terms Third-person reference Vocabulary Simple Few multisyllabic words Childish terms Minimizing words Pronoun modifications Topic management Directed topic selection and topic reinforcement Interruptions Dismissive of other-generated topics Exaggerated praise for minor accomplishments Grammar Simple clauses and sentences Repetitions Tag questions Imperatives Fillers Fragments Selected text from Table 1, “Psycholinguistic features of patronizing communication” Ryan, Hummert, and Boich (1995), p.154 37 Non-verbal Voice High pitch Exaggerated intonation Loud Slow Exaggerated pronunciation Proxemics Stand too close Stand over a person seated or in bed Stand too far off Gestures Shake head Shrug shoulders Hands on hips Cross arms Abrupt movements Facial expression Frown Exaggerated smile Raised eyebrows Gaze Low eye contact Staring Roll eyes Wink Touch Pat on head Pat on hand, arm, shoulder Selected text from Table 1, “Psycholinguistic features of patronizing communication” Ryan, Hummert, and Boich (1995), p.154 38 Encounter with older person Avoid talking to younger people: Do not understand me. Do not respect me. Recognition of old age cues Stereotyped expectations about communication competence Emotional instability Avoid talking to older people Unsatisfying. No interesting topics Dependency Need to adapt my talk to communication problems of older people Hearing deficit Cognitive decline Modified speech behaviour Restricted topics Directive speech Simple speech Childlike speech Be dependent, quiet, cooperative Loud speech or be complaining, Exaggerated nonverbals demanding Constrained opportunities for communication Reinforcement for age stereotyped behaviours Speaker Speaker Older person Older person Figure 1, Ryan, Hummert and Boich (1995), p.147 39 13 07/12/2022 “In the case of stereotyping, the core issue is inaccurate labeling because group homogeneity is assumed and individuality is not taken into account. In short, imperfect knowledge renders the individual invisible.” (Braithwaite, 2002, p. 317) stereotypes stigma attitudes to ageing itself Braithwaite (2002) 40 1. Heightening sensitivity to the stereotyping of older people. 2. Creating greater exposure to diversity in the personal characteristics of older people. 3. Having greater commitment to recognizing and responding to diversity in dealings with older people. 4. Making deliberate use of perspective taking to see the older person as an individual. 5. Seeking out opportunities for intergenerational cooperation. 6. Taking advantage of opportunities to promote the social attractiveness of older people. 7. Strengthening institutional practices that promote the norm of humanheartedness. 8. Desensitizing ourselves to the stigma of degeneration and dependency. 9. Reviewing policies and practices for evidence of stigmatizing through disrespect, particularly the disrespect communicated through treating older people as an invisible group. 10. Mandating inclusiveness of older people in policy planning and implementation. Braithwaite (2002), pp. 331-332 41 Summary • Communication can be both interpersonal and intergroup in nature. • We can go beyond cognitive representations alone as explanations for social problems and try to understand people’s identities as being fluid and contextually determined. • Examining communication adds to our understanding of implicit attitudes, through further understanding of (i) how these attitudes come to exist; and (ii) how they are sustained in practice. 42 14 07/12/2022 Recommended reading Textbook Hogg and Vaughan 598-607 (578-587 in 7th ed.) Communication; Language (Language, thought and cognition; paralanguage and speech style; social markers in speech; language, identity and ethnicity; speech accommodation) 43 References Images Braithwaite, V. (2002). Reducing ageism. In T. D. Nelson (Ed.), Ageism: Stereotyping and prejudice against Quino Al* older persons (pp. 311-337). Bradford. Mauro Mora* Dragojevic, M., & Giles, H. (2014). Language and interpersonal communication: Their intergroup Aron Visuals* dynamics. In C. R. Berger (Ed.) Interpersonal communication (pp. 29-51). De Gruyter. Dragojevic, M., Gasiorek, J., & Giles, H. (2016). Accommodative strategies as core of the theory. In H. Giles (Ed.), Communication accommodation theory: Negotiating personal relationships and social * / Unsplash identities across contexts (pp. 36-59). Cambridge University Press. Gasiorek, J., (2016). Theoretical perspectives on interpersonal adjustments in language and communication. In H. Giles (Ed.), Communication accommodation theory: Negotiating personal relationships and social identities across contexts (pp. 13-35). Cambridge University Press. Kelner, M. (2006, June 20) How Call-Me-Tony put a glottal stop to Chiles play. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2006/jun/20/worldcup2006.sport23 Lambert, W. E., Hodgson, R. C., Gardner, R. C., & Fillenbaum, S. (1960). Evaluational reactions to spoken languages. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 60, 44-51. Nelson, T. D. (2005). Ageism: Prejudice against our feared future self. Journal of Social Issues, 61, 207221. Palomares, N. A., Giles, H., Soliz, J., & Gallois, C. (2016). Intergroup accommodation, social categories, and identities. In H. Giles (Ed.), Communication accommodation theory: Negotiating personal relationships and social identities across contexts (pp. 123-151). Cambridge University Press. Robinson, J. (2007). Social variation across the UK; Phonological variation across the UK; Lexical variation across the UK; Grammatical variation across the UK. Articles in Your Voices: Contemporary Accents of the UK. British Library. https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/themes/your-voicescontemporary-accents-of-the-uk Ryan, E. B., Giles, H., Bartolucci, G., & Henwood, K. (1986). Psycholinguistic and social psychological components of communication by and with the elderly. Language & Communication, 6, 1-24. Ryan, E. B., Hummert, M. L., & Boich, L. H. (1995). Communication predicaments of aging: Patronizing behavior toward older adults. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 14, 144-166. 44 15 15/12/2022 PSYC21701 Topics and Issues in Social Psychology Revision and the January exam Matt Farr matthew.farr@manchester.ac.uk Division of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences 1 In this session • • • • • Recap of key concepts (your requests) Quick test MCQs Exam information Preparation Example questions for practice 2 In Weiner’s achievement attribution theory, which combination of the below dimensions corresponds to an explanation based on luck? 1. External locus, unstable, uncontrollable 2. Internal locus, unstable, uncontrollable 3. Internal locus, unstable, controllable 4. External locus, stable, uncontrollable Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 3 1 15/12/2022 Jones and Harris’s (1967) experiment demonstrated the fundamental attribution error, because dispositional attributions were made regarding the writer of the proCastro speech even when: 1. the subject of the speech was an outgroup member 2. the participant was also antiCastro 3. one condition was carried out in Cuba 4. the speech writer had been required to make that argument Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 4 The fundamental attribution error describes a bias where an explanation that is ______________________ is preferred to an explanation that is ______________________. 1. dispositional, situational 2. situational, dispositional 3. intergroup, interpersonal 4. interpersonal, intergroup Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 5 Which of the following is something that makes a person’s behaviour in your social environment more salient? 1. They are behaving in line with your expectations of them 2. What they do matters for your own goals 3. You are able to recall previous instances of that behaviour 4. Their behaviour is representative of that of similar others in the context Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 6 2 15/12/2022 Consistent with bias described by Pettigrew’s ultimate attribution error would be ________________ from an outgroup member being attributed ______________ 1. a lucky result, environmentally 2. prosocial behaviour, dispositionally 3. a good deed, externally 4. bad behaviour, situationally Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 7 Spending time with people who share our views, along with the accessibility of our own views, explains: 1. the actor-observer effect 2. self-handicapping prior to a task 3. the false consensus effect 4. an absence of non-common effects Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 8 Post-positivist social psychology: 1. offers criticism of experimental social psychology 2. is particularly prone to reductionist thinking 3. reduces subjectivity 4. views experiments as objective investigations Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 9 3 15/12/2022 Discourse analysis: 1. uses experimental methods to explore topics in psycholinguistics 2. is the process thought to explain speaker preference in the matched-guise paradigm 3. can be used to examine how individuals construct meaning in talk 4. extracts text for analysis in a context-free frame of reference Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 10 Received pronunciation is: 1. a standard spoken variety of English 2. a regional accented form of English 3. the transfer of English dialect in families 4. a method for learning English as a second language Join at ttpoll.eu or PointSolutions app – Session ID: uomsocialpsych 11 Preparing for the Jan exam 72 hour window for 6 hour “open book” “take-home” exam (remote online) Mon 23 Jan, 9.45 am to Thu 26 Jan 9.45 am 12 4 15/12/2022 Preparing for the Jan exam Before the exam date • Catch up on lectures if necessary • Use available time to do recommended reading • Work with the practice questions There will be a further opportunity to receive advice on course topics (e.g., theories, issues, findings, concepts) – the discussion board will be open the week before the exam (but not during it) 13 Topics You will choose ONE question from a choice of three for your essay. Topics are linked and overlap – it’s fine to bring in material from elsewhere on the course, if it is shown to be relevant. 14 I take too much time reading before starting writing – what would be the advised number of papers before starting my introduction? 15 5 15/12/2022 Getting started with writing (“how much reading?”) (Taylor, 2010) follow interest to choose your topic; ask a handful of questions of the topic; write a “one sentence” response to these questions; develop these sentences into a paragraph then do some purposive reading See pp. 21-24 in Chapter 2 “Reflection: asking questions and proposing answers” In Taylor, G. (2010). A student’s writing guide: How to plan and write successful essays. Cambridge University Press 16 As the exam is now an essay I’m worried I will perform as if it is just another piece of coursework and will do less successfully than a more “traditional” test. Any tips? 17 Open book exams (Cottrell, 2012) Engage with your course Make connections Know your materials Organise your material Practise Chapter 14 Managing different types of exam. (see pp. 229-233) Cottrell, S. (2012). The exam skills handbook: Achieving peak performance. (2nd ed.) Palgrave Macmillan 18 6 15/12/2022 (In)frequently asked questions What are the topics that will come up in the exam? 19 (In)frequently asked questions What sources should we use to write the essay? 20 (In)frequently asked questions What is the page limit? 21 7 15/12/2022 (In)frequently asked questions Do we cite the textbook and use in-text citations like in a normal coursework essay? 22 (In)frequently asked questions How much detail are we expected to go into, such as limitations and methods? 23 (In)frequently asked questions What is meant by critical evaluation? 24 8 15/12/2022 “Descriptive” and “critical analytical” writing (Cottrell, 2019) e.g., listing info about a theory vs. clarifying its relevance reporting findings vs. drawing conclusions (You need both) See pp. 353-354, “Critical analytical writing vs. descriptive writing”. In Cottrell, S. (2019). The study skills book (5th ed.) Red Globe Press. 25 (In)frequently asked questions Do we need a title page? 26 (In)frequently asked questions Are the topics given in the example questions the same as the exam or will they be different? 27 9 15/12/2022 Example 1 With a focus on ONE of the following, explain and critically consider how the social psychological concepts are relevant to voters’ thinking during an election campaign. Support your explanation using research from this course unit and your independent reading. 1. Intergroup relations, with respect to organised protests against a government policy. 2. Communication and discourse, with respect to the ways that a candidate could try to connect with voters. 3. Heuristics, with respect to how candidates and complex issues are portrayed and perceived. 28 Example 2 With a focus on ONE of the following, explain and critically consider how the social psychological concepts are relevant to the recruitment of an employee for a job. Support your explanation using research from this course unit and your independent reading. 1. Social identity, with respect to the value of a social identity shared with others at their new workplace. 2. Communication and discourse, with respect to spoken conversation that might take place between applicant and prospective employer in a job interview. 3. Attribution, with respect to why an applicant may inadequately prepare for an interview and how their performance may be interpreted by a prospective employer. 29 How to organise your work in the open book essay exam format Read through the general advice provided by the programme – includes links to revision resources and support Question released: then 72 hours to submit You are advised to spend 6 hours on this exam 30 10 15/12/2022 How to organise your work in the open book essay exam format Read through the general advice provided by the programme – includes links to revision resources and support Question released: then 72 hours to submit You are advised to spend 6 hours on this exam 31 Organising the six hours e.g. Cottrell’s 7 steps: 1. Clarify and plan the task 5% 2. Organise and link material 5% 3. Research 40% 4. Reflect, evaluate, critique 10% 5. Write an outline and first draft 10% 6. Review and redraft 25% 7. Final checks 5% pp. 282-283 Cottrell, S. (2019). The study skills handbook (5th ed.). London: Red Globe Press 32 Organising the six hours e.g. Clarify 20 min Organise 20 min Research 140 min Reflect, evaluate, critique 35 min Outline, first draft 35 min Review, redraft 90 min Final checks 20 min pp. 282-283 Cottrell, S. (2019). The study skills handbook (5th ed.). London: Red Globe Press 33 11 15/12/2022 SQUAWK and this exam… Structure Question Understanding Argument Writing Knowledge 34 Break • Please take a few moments to complete the Unit Survey for this course unit (PSYC21701) (log into MyManchester to find the surveys) 35 *** Well done *** You’re making great progress. Please look after yourselves and look out for your coursemates too. Talk to your academic advisor if you’re having a tough time with your work. You will very soon have finished the first semester of Year 2! Have a well earned break, then just give the exam your best. See you in the new year. 36 12 09/12/2022 PSYC21701 Topics and Issues in Social Psychology 10. Discourse Matt Farr matthew.farr@manchester.ac.uk Division of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences 1 Interactive questions – set up To join in with the questions / activities today, either: • head to ttpoll.eu • or use the PointSolutions app (Android and iOS) Enter uomsocialpsych in the session ID Click “Join Session” 2 Week Lectures (Roscoe, LT A) Labs (Zochonis, LT A) 1 Lab class 1: Intro, scale development 2 Lab class 2: Designing the new scale 3 Lab class 3: Data collection 4 Lab class 4: Handling survey data 5 6 7 Thu: Groups and norms Lab class drop-in Reading week Tue: Coursework deadline 8 Tue: Social identity and togetherness Thu: Intergroup relations and protest 9 Tue: Categorization and social cognition Thu: Representativeness and availability 10 Tue: Simulation and anchoring Thu: Theories of attribution 11 Tue: Attributional biases Thu: Communication and stereotyping 12 Tue: Discourse Thu: Revision session (Exam in January. See Blackboard for detailed schedule) 3 1 09/12/2022 Today Part 1 • Critical perspectives on social cognition • A focus on categorization Part 2 • Constructing categories in discourse • Claims about social reality • Justifications for arguments 4 1930: Pluto is discovered – a new planet! Then – its satellites also discovered; these were not considered planets. Later something bigger than Pluto was discovered. Not a planet. In time, more discoveries, further understanding. Basis for categorization of Pluto as “planet” becomes less coherent 2006: astronomers voted to redefine categories: Pluto no longer a planet, but a dwarf planet (International Astronomical Union definition at www.iau.org/public/themes/pluto/) 5 “In the 30 years since behaviourists released their rats back to the wild there had been cognitive psychology, cognitive science and social cognition. . . . If there was a cognitivism, in the same way that there was a behaviourism, then there could be psychology outside of it. . .” (Potter, 2000, p. 31) John T 6 2 09/12/2022 “Social psychologists once knew who they were and where they were going.” (Elms, 1975, p. 967) …critiques of individualism method theory Hepburn (2003) 7 Two sides of social psychology: Experimental social psychology Social constructionism “Discourse and social psychology” Potter and Wetherell (1987) Jost and Kruglanski (2002) 8 We can examine the assumptions of mainstream social psychology Try to think critically about how concepts from (e.g.) cognitive psychology may oversimplify how things actually are Potter (2000) 9 3 09/12/2022 “Cognitivists are so used to pre-defining the world – in stimulus materials, in vignettes, in fixed-choice questionnaires – that they never have to address the flexibility and rhetorically contested nature of everyday life (. . . )” Potter (2000), p. 35 10 Potter: • cognitivist assumptions are so embedded into our subject of Psychology it’s difficult to see beyond them (your discipline gives you a set of tools to think about people’s activities) • focusing on cognitive representation means actual human activity gets demoted to a minor role • discourse analysts can say they are interested in human activity itself, not merely behaviour as “output” or something to tell us about the supposed representations Victor Barrios 11 Ben Green Tallis: • Why is it appealing to see the mind as a computer? • Note our tendency to anthropomorphize • Linguistic issues in the ways we describe acts of conscious beings vs. the functions of machines • What is “information” if it does not “inform”? Tallis (2011) 12 4 09/12/2022 (categories here) Abstracted cognitive representation How is it used? ? What’s being done? Social consequences (categories here) Social consequences following Edwards (1991) Kelly Sikkema 13 (categories here) What’s being done? Social consequences following Edwards (1991) 14 “Categorization is something we do, in talk, in order to accomplish social actions (persuasion, blamings, denials, refutations, accusations, etc.)” Edwards, 1991, p. 517 (categories here) What’s being done? Social consequences following Edwards (1991) 15 5 09/12/2022 “People do not go around uttering abstracted propositions like ‘apples and oranges are typical fruit’, but then people do not say anything out of context.” (p. 524) • Not categories “in the mind” but rather categories “in use” • Why categorize? • Understand what “typicality” achieves by studying talk-incontext • Categorize to blame, or refute, or explain Edwards (1991) 16 Billig presented a critique of the central role of categorization in prejudice. An incomplete appreciation of the role of categories in prejudice would mean we fail to fully understand prejudice itself. Can we find an alternative to a “mechanistic” model of thinking? Working with a particular model of mind has implications for: • what we determine to be the essential origins of prejudiced thinking and acting • conclusions we might draw regarding prejudice’s inevitability Billig (1985) 17 Consider: stimulus S1 has attributes a b c d e and another situation: S2 efghi S1 S2 ax bx ax bx in order to group S1 and S2 , “e-ness” must be given special status (particularization) here, imagine someone who believes two groups are different; given S1 and S2 from the respective groups, they use the a/b dimension to differentiate …but what about x, a basis for similarity? Prejudiced observer assumes a and b have a different effect on x so maintains category distinction Billig (1985), p. 91, 93 18 6 09/12/2022 Billig: by selecting particular categorizations, we are taking a side in argument – and the category itself can be contested Billig (1996) 19 Billig: Imagine question: “Are both these countries democratic”? (i.e., do they belong to the category “democracies”?) Cognitive approach: categorization will be based on similarity to the “democratic prototype”. Though note your answer to this question depends on: what you think a democracy is – an argument to be had here; which might depend on: what freedom is – another argument; what democratic participation is – …and so on… Two people with different ideological positions could easily categorize differently Billig (1996) 20 Interim summary • We can critically examine social cognition research and reflect upon its: • ability to adequately capture social phenomena • capacity to provide solutions for issues that matter to us • Work with discourse offers an alternative, with its own strengths and limitations, and has a heritage in approaches not tied to core assumptions of cognitive psychology. 21 7 09/12/2022 Break 22 Today Part 2 • Constructing categories in discourse • Claims about social reality • Justifications for arguments 23 Monday: Attitude x (say, +) Tuesday: Attitude y (say, -) Individual Attitude object Dan Keavey Potter and Wetherell (1987) 24 8 09/12/2022 On what occasions do we see attitude x rather than y? How are these attitudes constructed? What is their function? Monday: Attitude x Tuesday: Attitude y Individual Attitude object Dan Keavey Potter and Wetherell (1987), p. 35 Potter and Wetherell (1987) 25 Speaker 1 Independent Responsibility in family gone Mature Worldly Lost their culture Stirring Speaker 3 Proud Wonderful Don’t want to share their culture Busy reestablishing themselves Trendy No motivation Speaker 2 Passive Not interested in language revival Don’t take advantage of education Dirty Scruffy Evil-looking Speaker 4 Feel disadvantaged Slow Feel they have no self-esteem Need to take a positive view of their life Must look at selves and decide strengths and weaknesses Feeling money will put disadvantages right Selected text from Figure 6.2, Potter and Wetherell (1987), p. 124 26 Inconsistencies Lazy race They’re proud Proud of all their background Want to split this society They really know how to put a story across, to get the message across, are orators Great respect of older folks Less materialistic and more diverting in their culture Relaxed friendly manner Such hard-working people Lost their pride and dignity Humble Passive They come across as clueless they don’t know how to express their views Very good at taking advantage of their old Quite selfish and greedy Ill at ease Figure 6.3, Potter and Wetherell (1987), p. 125 27 9 09/12/2022 St. Paul’s, Bristol April 2nd, 1980 See: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-55493050 Potter and Reicher (1987) 28 Data: TV and radio reporting; newspapers; interviews community communities communal 29 Paradigmatic alternatives Local residents or Local residents with specific social organization Sample predicates Black community or White community or Mixed community Currently exists or Existed in past or May exist in future Metaphors (where relevant) Friendly Warm Happy Harmonious Close-knit Integrated Tight Spatial Mature Grows Evolves Organic Acts Knows Feels Agency “The community repertoire”, Table 1, Potter and Reicher (1987), p. 32 30 10 09/12/2022 1. (1) The Billingtons began trading in St Paul’s about 22 years ago—but last night has driven them away. (2) ‘We are packing up—this community is finished. (3) We won’t be coming back’, said Brian Billington. 2. (1) I say it doesn’t matter how much money you spend within our community if you are not going to let us take an active part in it ourself. (2) And at the end of the day we own what we have, and it is ours, and we can use it for the best ethnic . . . in our culture there. (3) Then we can live alongside in a community. Potter and Reicher (1987), p. 28 31 1. Denial of prejudice 2. Appearing to use reason 3. Positive self, negative other 4. “Deracialization” 5. Using “liberal” arguments Augoustinos and Every (2007) 32 Racism in Australia: students’ arguments on the subject of affirmative action (e.g. increasing educational access for disadvantaged groups) Affirmative action Equality, Merit Augoustinos, Tuffin and Every (2005) 33 11 09/12/2022 Extract 1, Augoustinos, Tuffin and Every (2005), p. 322 34 Summary • Discourse analysts: talk is where we should be focused to understand prejudice and intergroup relations. • Concepts relating to prejudice and discrimination are established, maintained and justified in talk – prejudice is about more than just simple overgeneralizations. • Examining the ways members of majority groups speak about minority groups: • offers further insight into minorities’ treatment by others in society • shows how individuals manage potential challenges to their own objectivity or impartiality 35 Recommended reading Textbook Hogg and Vaughan 630-633 (609-612 in 7th ed.) Conversation and discourse 24-26 (23-25 in 7th ed.) Social psychology in crisis; reductionism and levels of explanation; positivism and post-positivism 36 12 09/12/2022 References Augoustinos, M., & Every, D. (2007). The language of “race” and prejudice: A discourse of denial, reason, and liberal-practical politics. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 26, 123-141. Augoustinos, M., Tuffin, K., & Every, D. (2005). New racism, meritocracy and individualism: Constraining affirmative action in education. Discourse & Society, 16, 315-340. Billig, M. (1985). Prejudice, categorization and particularization: From a perceptual to a rhetorical approach. European Journal of Social Psychology, 15, 79-103. Billig, M. (1996). Arguing and thinking: A rhetorical approach to social psychology. Cambridge University Press. Edwards, D. (1991). Categories are for talking: On the cognitive and discursive bases of categorization. Theory & Psychology, 1, 515–542. Elms, A. C. (1975). The crisis of confidence in social psychology. American Psychologist, 30, 967-976. Hepburn, A. (2003). An introduction to critical social psychology. Sage Jost, J. T., & Kruglanski, A. W. (2002). The estrangement of social constructionism and experimental social psychology: History of the rift and prospects for reconciliation. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6, 168-187. Potter, J. (2000). Post-cognitive psychology. Theory & Psychology, 10, 31-37. Potter, J., & Reicher, S. (1987), Discourses of community and conflict: The organization of social categories in accounts of a ‘riot’. British Journal of Social Psychology, 26, 25-40. Potter, J., & Wetherell, M. (1987). Discourse and social psychology: Beyond attitudes and behaviour. Sage Tallis, R. (2011). Aping mankind: Neuromania, Darwinitis and the misrepresentation of humanity. Acumen. Images John T* Victor Barrios* Shane Aldendorff* Jorge Percival* Dan Keavey* * / Unsplash 37 13

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