Undergraduate Course: Critical Social Psychology (PSYL10018)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 10 |
| Home subject area | Psychology |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | The course is divided into four sections. The first, concerned with Crises in Social Psychology, will introduce three main 'crises' within Social Psychology which we will trace in their early and more recent forms. These are the paradigm crisis (relating to methods), the conceptual crisis (individualism and the concept of self), and the moral/political crisis (relating to power and psychology's effects). In Part Two, some critical tools are introduced (studies of science, the turn to language, poststructuralist thought). These arguments will be put to use in mounting a more thorough critique of social psychology in Part Three where social psychology will be deconstructed (taken apart, to see how it works). This will include an examination of the history and politics of the emergence of modern psychology; how psychology contributed to the government of individuals' lives; and the dependence of knowledge on discourse and writing techniques. Finally, the assumptions about the self that underpin psychological theory and research will be examined and questioned. Part Four addresses issues such as the possibility of a postmodern (discursive or political) social psychology, and the limitations of discourse analysis. Alternative concepts of self, and the possibility or desirability of a non-cognitive social psychology will also be discussed. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Degree major in Psychology and passes in Psychology courses at least to the equivalent of Junior Honours level in Edinburgh. Prior agreement with the 4th Year Honours Course Organiser |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2011/12 Block 1 (Sem 1), Available to all students (SV1)
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WebCT enabled: Yes |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| Central | Lecture | | 1-5 | 14:00 - 15:50 | | | | |
| First Class |
Week 1, Monday, 14:00 - 15:50, Zone: Central. Room S1, 7 George Square |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours:Minutes |
|
|
| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | | 1:30 | | |
|
| Delivery period: 2011/12 Block 1 (Sem 1), Part-year visiting students only (VV1)
|
WebCT enabled: Yes |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| Central | Lecture | | 1-5 | 14:00 - 15:50 | | | | |
| First Class |
Week 1, Monday, 14:00 - 15:50, Zone: Central. Room S1, 7 George Square |
| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
You should be able to do at least three of the following:
- Describe and assess social psychology's claim to be a science, and evaluate its use of experiments.
- Discuss social psychology's paradigm, conceptual and moral/political crises.
- Apply arguments from science studies, Foucault's work, and 'the turn to language' to evaluate psychology's methods.
- Describe psychology's contribution to the 'government of individuals'.
- Assess efforts to reconstruct social psychology's practice and/or subject. |
Assessment Information
(1) 80% exam and (2) a choice of two out of the three following course work options (20%): (i) essay plan (max. 300 words); (ii) critical summary of a key article (300 words); and (iii) group presentation write-up (max. 500 words)
Visiting Student Variant Assessment
Long essay (3,000 words) to be set by the course organiser and due Friday 4pm, Week 13, Semester 1. |
Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Not entered |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Not entered |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Sue Widdicombe
Tel: (0131 6)50 3411
Email: S.Widdicombe@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Elizabeth Wright
Tel: (0131 6)50 9870
Email: E.Wright@ed.ac.uk |
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© Copyright 2011 The University of Edinburgh - 16 January 2012 6:42 am
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