Readings

Required Textbook

[SA] = Aronson, Elliot. The Social Animal. Worth Publishers, 2011. ISBN: 9781429233415.

SA has been the main text for this class for many years. A consistent student favorite and an up-to-date book about the psychology of human interaction, written from the author's own particular personal and social (e.g. academic and professional) point of view.

He is an acknowledged authority on the experimental study of social psychology and a master at making the relevant substantive and technical complexities of the modern scientific literature in the field intelligible to an undergraduate audience.

Aronson will lead us through the scientific literature relating to the dynamics of social influence in a wide range of both routine and problematical situations. He will also provide us with some theoretically sound and practically useful answers to questions of a kind that most of us will keep on asking about ourselves and other people throughout our lives:

"What makes us who and what we are?" "Why do we like or dislike each other?" "Does watching violence on TV or playing virtually violent video games make children (adults?) more (or less?) overtly aggressive?" "What are "cults?" "What is "terrorism?" "Are there ways to reduce or overcome human aggressiveness, violence, prejudice and discrimination?" "How can basically ordinary people who know right from wrong, blindly follow the commands of someone ostensibly in a position of legitimate authority who directs them to engage in punitive, hurtful, destructive and violent acts aimed at other people and or property, even to the point of committing acts of torture, mass murder and suicide?" "How can basically ordinary people who know right from wrong...collaborate with others in organizing and carrying out such acts?"

In effect, Professor Aronson will introduce us to some key substantive, procedural, and ethical issues in experimental social psychology and take us on an up-to-date tour of its varied literature.

Pertinently, this SA 11^th is the latest (2011). It integrates relevant developments since the 10^th edition back in 2008, including a discussion of recent fMRI evidence about the effects of social support on brain activity related to fear and references to the 2008 presidential election and its aftermath. It is, of course, silent on some significant events that have occurred since then, and we will surely want to consider some of them.

Much of the material that you will encounter via the text and otherwise in this class is perpetually timely and drawn from classical experiments—some of them decades old. Don't expect the conclusions to be drawn to be outdated and of merely historical interest. The experiments are "classical" precisely because they speak eloquently on matters highly relevant to understanding current events.

Readings and Viewings

All readings and viewings are best done "solo". Comprehension is key! Take notes, and try to complete the assignments before you meet with group-mates to discuss the week's work.

Whether studying materials on line or reading texts or watching films: Please do so closely, carefully, critically, attentively, and conscientiously. Remember, for you this is not mere "entertainment". Watch with a view to issues previously or concurrently arising in 9.70. The sequencing of assignments has been done advisedly. Generally speaking, the ordering of items in the assignments below has been arranged to facilitate comprehension. Please make an effort to do the assignments in the order that they are listed in this syllabus.

Some of the material is difficult and dense. Some of it is quite harsh and unpalatable. At times, you may find it necessary to take a break, and get away from it. At other times you may need to read, watch and / or listen to a given selection more than once before you can fully take it in. The acquisition of learnable knowledge and skills is a cumulative process. If, after going through the material and giving it the most careful and sustained consideration of which you are capable, you still "don't get it," then discuss it with your group-mates and / or bring it to the attention of the class and the instructors in person or via group minutes.

As you do the readings and watch the films, try to adopt and retain a perspective that is true to your role as a beginning student of the subject before us. Be constantly mindful of differences and similarities in the context in which the material you are reading and watching was produced and the one in which you are encountering it. Focus on the social psychological significance of the issues being raised and their meaning in terms of your 9.70 learning experience. Consider both the media and the messages. Keep track of points on which you strongly agree or disagree with the message or the manner in which it is presented. Don't be unduly surprised or put off by the fact that some of the material is "old," or that much of the video imagery is dated and many of the videos are of low production value or poor audiovisual quality. Furthermore, the people and situations portrayed may look different than today's—characters may sport passé haircuts and outmoded dress styles. But don't let that distract you from your main task.

In years past, many 9.70 students reported finding some of the assigned readings and videos mildly (and sometimes powerfully) disturbing. They complained that the conclusions to be drawn (e.g. about "human nature") were generally very depressing. In recent years, we've aimed to counteract this effect by "deconstructing" the concept of "human nature" and by including some recent findings from the emerging subfield of "positive psychology." This year we will try to build further on this experience by exploring what it means to be a specifically human being and searching for a humanecologically sustainable definition of the boundaries of human "personhood" in terms of (e.g.) corporate "constitutional rights".

That being said, it must be added that some important social psychological lessons can be learned from a closer examination of the ways in which disturbing information affects us.

Pay close attention to the way you respond when some item of information (e.g. something in this syllabus or the material it refers to) disturbs your sense of what is true and important. Try to figure out precisely what it is about the information (message and / or medium) that makes you feel uncomfortable. Take a few minutes to observe your way of handling the situation (laughter, dismissal, denial, defection, etc.?). As you encounter such material and endeavor to come mentally and behaviorally "to grips with it", lots of things may happen. You may experience feelings of disbelief, revulsion, or alienation that make it difficult for you to "take in" the information. If this happens, please understand that your strong affective (fight / flight) reactions are entirely natural and normal. All of us are inclined to defend ourselves against or distance ourselves from unpleasant information and generally tend to prefer to avoid situations in which we find the behavior (and thoughts and feelings) of others to be intellectually and emotionally disturbing. But for present purposes it would be best to endeavor to overcome this tendency, lest it impede your understanding of the material.

Viewing Films and Videos

Some of the videos that have to be viewed (and subsequently discussed in study groups and class) may be accessible via the course Web site.

Feel free to watch videos alone or better yet, with groupmates / classmates. In the latter case, you will be able to share your immediate impressions with others. However, the time spent viewing–like the time spent reading—should be allocated to "homework" and may not be used to even partially fulfill the weekly study group meeting requirement).