Sociology/Psychology 530
Introductory Social Psychology
Spring 2008
Prof. John DeLamater
TA:
Jaewoon Bang
2432
Sewell
Social Science
2438 Sewell Social Science
262-4357
263-4522
delamate@ssc.wisc.edu
jbang@ssc.wisc.edu
Exercises
The requirements for the
course include
completing four exercises, designed to help you engage and apply the
course
material. In each, you collect information
about some
aspect of social behavior, and analyze that information using some
concepts
or a theory from the course. The
assignments identify
the aspects of social behavior you are to study/observe, and give you
some
direction or questions to guide your analysis of the information you
collected.
You should prepare a brief,
written report for each exercise. The
report should offer an
argument that 1) describes the information/data you collected,
and 2) analyzes that data using some concepts, a theory, or general
principles from the course. Don’t
select the concepts or theory
arbitrarily; some will fit your data and others will not.
If you think the suggested or obvious concepts or theory are not
helpful,
tell us why, and suggest an alternative.
Each student should complete
four of the exercises.
Instructions
for Write-Ups:
1.
Each exercise should be typed,
double-spaced, carefully proof-read, and no more than three
pages in length.[1] The TA will not read the assignment beyond the
end of the
third page. Feel free to print your
assignments double-sided. Please
put your name only on the last page
of the essay.
2.
Completed assignments should
take the form of an argument: they should
contain an introduction that includes a clear thesis, a body of
evidence (data and relevant theoretical material) that supports the
thesis, and a brief conclusion.[2]
3.
Please acknowledge relevant
course material with citations in the text of the essay.
If you are citing information from one of the course books or
lecture material, you may simply use an abbreviated citation, like this
(DM: 265) or (Lecture:
4.
Turn in each write-up stapled
or paper-clipped to the data you collected for the exercise.
5.
Exercises are due on the day
indicated on the syllabus, in class.
6.
Each exercise is graded
according to the following 10 point scale:
10 points - exercises that are
creative, insightful and impeccably written (completing the
Extra Mile opportunity does not guarantee a 10—though it may get you
closer to one).
8 points - exercises that are
complete and on-time.
6 points - exercises that are
on-time but significantly flawed or incomplete.
4 points - exercises that are
complete but late (no matter how terrific they are).[3]
7.
Exercises will not be
accepted after the Monday following the due date. In
the interest of fairness to all students in the course, exceptions to
this rule cannot be made.
The TA is more than happy to offer assistance with these assignments when needed. However, it is always the student’s responsibility to seek assistance in time for the TA to provide it. It is difficult, if not impossible, for a TA to be of much help with an assignment that is due in less than forty-eight hours. Please keep this constraint in mind as you plan your semester. Read each assignment carefully, well in advance of the due date, and gather the data at least a week in advance, so that we have plenty of time to solve any problems that may arise.
Sociology/Psychology 530
Lecture 1: DeLamater
Exercise 1: Who am I?
Due
on February 15th
We have talked in class about
how everyone is a “social object” for everyone else, and that each of
us is also a social object to ourselves. In
this exercise, we would like you first to take yourself as a social
object and, looking at that
object, to answer the question “Who am I?” ten times.
That
is, ask the question ten times and give ten discrete answers to it. Do it quickly, writing down words and phrases
as they
come into your mind without censoring them, until you have ten
statements. Please do this without
considering the other parts of the
exercise.
After you have done that,
“take the
role of the other”, with that other being one of your parents (choose
one),
and repeat the task. In other words,
taking yourself
as a social object from your parent’s perspective, list how your parent
would
answer the question, “Who is your name here?” Again, assume
that your
parent was asked to do this task quickly, listing the words and phrases
as
they come to his or her mind, without censorship, he or she had
completed
a list of ten answers.
Finally, take the role of your
best friend and do the same.
The Extra Mile
Ask one of the significant
others themselves to answer the question “Who is your name here?” Compare his or her list to the list you made
when you tried
the same task while taking his or her role.
Begin by examining your
data (the lists you have generated). Consider
some of the following:
-How are the three lists
similar? What words and phrases do all
three people (in your opinion, of course) use to describe you? How might you explain the similarities?
-How are the three lists
different? How do you see yourself in ways
that are different from the way you think these significant others see
you? Again, how do you explain this? To what extent do you think the differences
lie in how you may act differently with them? To
what extent is it their needs that lead them to see you differently
from the way you see yourself, or from the ways different significant
others see you? To what extent might the
differences artifacts of your, and your significant others’, places in
larger social structures and institutions?
Consider the data in light
of available theoretical constructs and explanations:
-How do theories of the self
discussed in Chapter 4 of the textbook and in lecture help you to
understand the image of yourself that you hold? To
what extent do you believe that your self-image is the result of direct
personal experience? To what extent is it
a “looking glass self,” as symbolic interaction would explain it? With how much of it
were you born?
Draw some conclusions about
the relationship
of your data to the explanations offered in the course material. Select one central point around which to write
your essay. The essay should make
references to specific points or concepts from the course material, as
well as specific references to relevant points of data.
Sociology/Psychology 530
Lecture 1: DeLamater
Exercise 2: Observing Subcultures
Due
on February 29th
A major influence on our
behavior is the subcultures to which we belong. A
subculture is characterized by somewhat distinctive cognitive
and evaluative beliefs/norms; these beliefs/norms often lead to
distinctive language and behavior. Many
organizations and businesses create a subculture within
which its members work.
The purpose of this assignment
is for you to learn about subcultures by observing one.
One set of subcultures that is easy to observe in our society is
fast-food restaurants. First, read Chapter
7 in the textbook. Then, select a
fast-food restaurant. Observe activity in
that restaurant for a minimum of two hours.
Try to place yourself so that you can observe the workers; you
may want to buy coffee, a milkshake or a soft drink to sip while you
watch.
Take a notebook, and record your observations
in it. Carefully record your observations
of the group and its members. In
particular, you’ll want to observe what group members say (to others in
the group and to non-members), how they look/dress, what they do.
The Extra Mile
Observe a comparison
subculture, either in another food-service venue, or elsewhere. Again, observe for at least two hours and take
record what you see.
Examine your data:
Read through your notes once. When you are done, jot down a couple of
observations about them. Were there any
recurring incidents or themes?
Analyze
your data in light of relevant theory:
Reread your notes several more
times, considering what you’ve learned about subcultures.
For example,
1. What
is the language of the group?
2. What
symbolic indicators, in addition to language, are used by the
group?
3. Describe
the symbolic dress of group members.
4. What
is the status ranking among group members? How
can you tell?
5. What
official and unofficial norms can you observe?
6. In
what ways are the various parts of the culture integrated? Are there parts that don’t seem to fit?
7. How
is the culture learned by members?
8. What
are the functions or benefits of this subculture? What
would the restaurant be like without these shared elements?
9. What
are the dysfunctions or costs of this subculture - on members, on
customers?
Once you have formulated an
argument around one specific point you’d like to make about the
subculture you observed, make sure you include some basic information
in your essay, as it becomes relevant.
1. Which
fast-food
restaurant did you observe? What day and
time did
you carry out your observation(s)?
2. Briefly
describe the culture of the group-norms, language, other symbols, dress. How well are the parts integrated?
The Extra Mile
The key to your write-up will
be to find connections to make between the function of the two
subcultural groups you observed. If you
have observed a comparison group, it may help you begin your analysis
to ask yourself questions like
-are both of these groups in
workplaces? What do the
similarities/differences between the groups say about the kinds of
businesses you observed, or about the “customer service” norms therein?
-if the comparison group is
not a
workplace group, how did you know it was a subculture?
Do
any of the subcultural mechanisms that apply to workplace groups apply
outside
them? Which ones do not?
For
example, perhaps there is a comparison to be made between the ways that
uniforms
are used in a group like McDonalds employees, and a group of goth
teenagers.
Sociology/Psychology 530
Lecture 1: DeLamater
Exercise 3: How did you know it was love?
Due on April 11th
The goal of this project is to
explore the nature of love.
First, we will identify the
different dimensions of the experience of love through an introspective
look at your own first “real” love. Try to
recall as much as you can about that love, focusing on your own
experience of love rather than the
unique characteristics of the loved person. How
did
you know it was love?
Fill
in the blanks in the
third column.
Dimensions
Possible Variables
Personal Experience_____________
Physical What
did you experience physically in the presence of
___________________________________
symptoms your loved
one (e.g., pounding heart, blushing, great
___________________________________
anxiety or
excitement)?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
Changed How did you
perceive your loved one? What attributes
___________________________________
perceptions made him or her
worthy of your love (e.g., good looks,
___________________________________
intelligence, poise,
kindness, sexiness)?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
Behavioral What unusual
behaviors made you realize you were in
___________________________________
symptoms love (e.g.,
thought about him or her all the time, started
___________________________________
to stutter or
stammer when talking to him/her)?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
Next, think about how your
unique experience relates to the theories of love discussed in class. In Chap. 13 of the textbook, two theories are
discussed: Sternberg's theory of love as a story, and
Hatfield’s theory of passionate love.
The
Extra Mile
Consider the ways love is portrayed in a movie, work of art or literature with which you are familiar. What are some ways that authors, filmmakers, and others, convey to an audience that characters are experiencing love? How do these representations match up with your experiences and with the theories offered by social psychology? OR, talk to someone over the age of sixty-five, or from a non-western culture, about how he or she experienced love. Fill in a table like the one above for this person. To what degrees are your narratives similar or different from your respondent’s? What can we learn from the comparison? Are the theories offered in the text applicable to the experience of love in other times and places?
The
Write-Up
Think
about
the degree to which your experience was similar to and different from
liking,
loving, and passionate love.
In
writing your report, consider some of the following:
1.
Summarize your experience of love. What
physical, cognitive and behavioral symptoms did you experience?
2.
In what ways was your experience like Sternberg"s conception of
liking and loving? In what ways was it
different?
3.
In what ways was your experience like Hatfield’s conception of
passionate love? In what ways was it
different? You may want to complete the
Passionate Love Scale as reproduced in
4.
How similar is love to other positive emotions?
In what ways was your experience of love similar to and
different from the way you feel before an exciting trip?
Sociology/Psychology 530
Lecture 1: DeLamater
Exercise 4: The Power of Advertising
Due
on April 25th
The purpose of this exercise
is to
increase your awareness of the influence techniques used by advertisers.
For this project, you will be collecting data on persuasive appeals - specifically, television ads. Watch three hours of television programming and record the content of each ad on the data sheet below. You may want to record the ads you watch so you can refer to them later. First, note the product being sold (soap, beer, cars, cereal, etc.). Next, describe the primary person(s) making the pitch (sex, age, social role - e.g., mother, doctor, celebrity). Third, analyze the type of persuasive appeal(s) being used in the ad. Common appeals include:
1) appeals to the desire to be healthy;
2) appeals
to the desire to be physically/sexually attractive;
3) appeals to the desire to fulfill a role well (to be a good mother, father, spouse, student, or professor);
4) appeals to the desire to save money;
5) appeals
to the desire to have fun, adventure, to let yourself go;
6) appeals
to the desire for social status and recognition.
Note that these types of appeals are not mutually exclusive, and one ad may include a number of them simultaneously. In addition, keep in mind that a persuasive appeal is not limited to the words that are actually spoken, but includes the way the product is displayed or used by characters in the ad.
The Extra Mile
Start with the same data collection steps described above. After you’ve watched your three hours of TV, identify a type of product (e.g. cars, or frozen dinners) or message (e.g. “smoking is bad for you”) that was promoted in several of the ads you saw. Then, seek out ads promoting similar products or messages in other types of media (magazines, newspapers, junk mail, billboards, etc.). What can you learn by comparing ads for similar products/messages across different media?
Before you write your report,
read Chapter 8 in the textbook, especially
Analyze your data, considering the following:
1.
What day, time, and station/network did you watch?
2.
What types of persuasive appeals were used in the ads you saw? Was one or two types used more often than the
others?
3.
What patterns did you observe in these appeals?
Were the appeals different if the persuader was a man or a woman? Were
the appeals different if the target audience was young or old, children
or
adults, men or women? What kinds of
strategies did
ads use to convince you that the person making the appeal was credible?
4.
In your opinion, which persuasive appeals were most effective? Why? (Make sure
you consider what social psychological research would say in response
to this question.)
You will have more data here
than you can reasonably write about in a three-page argument. Make
sure that you identify a central point (your thesis) around which to
base
your essay. You do not need to write about
each and
every ad you saw. Instead, make sure you
identify
an pattern in some of the ads, and discuss it in light of course
material,
giving examples from the ads that are relevant.
[1] Introduction to Social
Psychology is an upper-division, university course.
The expectation at this level is that completed work contains no
grammatical or stylistic errors. If you
are not a crackerjack speller or proofreader, complete the assignment
in time to allow someone else to proofread it for you.
You may want to invest in a style and usage reference book, or
make use of a dictionary or style guide reference available on-line.
[2] If you are unfamiliar with
this kind
of writing, the TA has handouts that may help you.
The campus
[3] Make arrangements to turn
assignments in on-time if you know in advance that you will be missing
class.