Program details

• Graduate Handbook for Social Psychology, 2008 [PDF] – In this document you can learn about the social psychology program’s training philosophy and goals as well as the curriculum and requirements for the master’s and Ph.D. programs.

The program faculty members strive to assist students in reaching a number of important educational goals. Students, during their training, develop strengths in a number of areas:

• Knowledge of psychological science. Students are trained in all of the basic areas of psychology, including biological bases of behavior, sensation and perception, personality processes, and learning.  In addition to mastering this subject matter, students develop a professional identity as psychologists.  All students should join a professional association of psychologists, such as the Association for Psychological Science or the American Psychological Association.
  
  
• Knowledge of social psychology. Students are also experts in the social bases of behavior, including such topics as attitudes, attitude change, social perception and social cognition, attribution, attraction, long-term relationships, decision making, identity and the self, stereotyping and prejudice, and the social environment.  Beyond this subject matter, students also develop a professional identity as social psychologists.  All students should join a professional association of social psychologists, such as the Society for Personality and Social Psychology or an interdisciplinary association that includes social psychology such as the Society for Prevention Research.
  
  
• Research skills. The program emphasizes the development of laboratory and field research skills.  In addition to the thesis and dissertation, students are expected to collaborate with faculty on research projects throughout their training, and the results of these research projects are to be published in journals and presented at regional and national conferences.
  
  
• Theoretical and conceptual skills. Social psychology, as science, progresses through both research and theory.  In addition to the mechanics of design, students develop the ability to conceptualize a problem and develop testable explanations of social phenomena.
  
  
• Instructional skills. Many students choose to enter academia when their graduate work is completed, so their training includes opportunities to develop instructional skills.  In addition to presentations of research at departmental functions, students are encouraged to enroll in teaching practicum and to develop the skills needed to teach social psychology to others.  All students are urged to teach or co-teach a section of social psychology once they have earned their Masters degree.
  
  
• Applied skills. Many students choose to enter organizations when their graduate work is completed, so a final goal of the program is the development of research and managerial skills needed to contribute in such settings.