Introduction to Social Psychology, Individual Differences, and Perception

Overview

This module is designed to introduce students to a range of fundamental subdisciplines in psychology including Social Psychology, Individual Differences, and Perception. Each subdiscipline focuses on the study of human behaviour, offering differing historical contexts and theoretical models. This module will include interactive lectures on relevant topics in the subdisciplines named above and dedicated sessions on critical thinking and effective writing in psychology to enhance essay writing skills for the assessment related to this module. Lecture topics are presented by members of the course team who have a specific interest and knowledge of their topic.
The module contents map onto UN Sustainable Development Goals outlined below.
This module relates to (4) Quality Education— this module encourages and teaches critical reflection on the discipline of psychology which promotes independent and autonomous learning; (5)Gender Equality— this module includes topics on stereotypes and prejudice for students to learn about the importance of gender equality in today’s society; (10) Reduced Inequalities— this module will focus on empowering and promoting social inclusion, fostering inclusive environments and reducing inequalities in the context of group processes.

Learning Objectives

After studying this module, students will be able to:
Discuss key aspects of Social Psychology
Discuss key aspects of Individual Differences
Discuss fundamentals of Perception and its underlying processes
Discuss how situational factors influence individuals' thoughts, feelings and behaviours
Compare and contrast the different theoretical perspectives of personality

Skills

Show competence in certain transferable skills such as essay writing, literature searching, study skills, IT skills, critical thinking and communication skills.

Assessment

Tutorial Attendance (Compulsory 80%): Weeks 1,3,5,8,10,12.
Alternatively, a 2000-word assignment must be submitted and passed, in order to demonstrate achievement of the skills-based learning outcomes.