Social Norms, Social Change
Coursera
This is a course on social norms, the rules that glue societies together. It teaches how to diagnose social norms, and how to distinguish them from other social constructs, like customs or conventions. These distinctions are crucial for effective policy interventions aimed to create new, beneficial norms or eliminate harmful ones. The course teaches how to measure social norms and the expectations that support them, and how to decide whether they cause specific behaviors. The course is a joint Penn-UNICEF project, and it includes many examples of norms that sustain behaviors like child marriage, gender violence and sanitation practices. This is Part 1 of the Social Norms, Social Change series. In these lectures, I introduce all the basic concepts and definitions, such as social expectations and conditional preferences, that help us distinguish between different types of social practices like customs, descriptive norms and social norms. Expectations and preferences can be measured, and these lectures explain how to measure them. Measurement is crucial to understanding the nature of the practice you are facing, as well as whether an intervention was or was not successful, and why. In Part 2, we will put into practice all we have learned in Part 1. New! Please use this link for a 30% discount on the recommended book that accompanies this course! https://global.oup.com/academic/product/9780190622053/?cc=us&lang=en&promocode=AAFLYG6
More resources on Social Psychology
The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion
Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt argues that moral judgments come from intuition first and reasoning second, and presents moral foundations theory to explain why liberals, conservatives and religious groups disagree. Readers gain a research-based framework for understanding political polarization and moral conflict.
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Robert Cialdini's research-based account of six principles of persuasion: reciprocity, commitment and consistency, social proof, liking, authority and scarcity. Drawing on experiments and his fieldwork among salespeople and fundraisers, it teaches readers to recognise compliance tactics and resist unwanted influence.
Social Psychology
Ever wonder why people do what they do? This course—which includes more than $1,000 of video and reading materials—offers some answers based on the latest research from social psychology. Students taking the course for a Certificate will also receive free membership in Social Psychology Network (SocialPsychology.org). COURSE DESCRIPTION FROM PROFESSOR PLOUS: Each of us is dealt a different hand in life, but we all face similar questions when it comes to human behavior: What leads us to like one person and dislike another? How do conflicts and prejudices develop, and how can they be reduced? Can psychological research help protect the environment, and if so, how? This course offers a brief introduction to classic and contemporary social psychology, covering topics such as decision making, persuasion, group behavior, personal attraction, and factors that promote health and well-being. Our focus will be on surprising, entertaining, and intriguing research findings that are easy to apply in daily life. The course will also draw from the websites of Social Psychology Network, the world's largest online community devoted to social psychology. I hope you'll join me for this course, have fun, and learn some useful information that enriches your life.
socialpsychology.org
Socialpsychology.org is the hub of the Social Psychology Network, offering articles, teaching resources, and up-to-date research and news in social psychology. It also provides directories, job listings, and professional resources for students, educators, and researchers.
greatergood.berkeley.edu
From UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center, this site offers science-based articles, videos, podcasts, quizzes, and practical guides on social and emotional well-being. It covers empathy, compassion, mindfulness, resilience, and emotional intelligence with actionable tips for daily life.
Introduction to Psychology
What are people most afraid of? What do our dreams mean? Are we natural-born racists? What makes us happy? What are the causes and cures of mental illness? This course tries to answer these questions and many others, providing a comprehensive overview of the scientific study of thought and behavior. It explores topics such as perception, communication, learning, memory, decision-making, persuasion, emotions, and social behavior. We will look at how these aspects of the mind develop in children, how they differ across people, how they are wired-up in the brain, and how they break down due to illness and injury.