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Research Committee on
Social Psychology RC42
Programme Coordinator
Cecilia Ridgeway, Stanford University, USA, ridgeway@stanford.edu
Sessions
For exact date/time schedule of each session, please contact directly session chair.
Session 1: Social psychological impacts of worldwide economic crisis
Organizer: Jeylan T. Mortimer, University of Minnesota, USA, morti002@umn.edu
While a long tradition of research has documented the stressors associated with unemployment and financial loss, the current economic crisis is unusual in its severity, its pervasiveness across social class, occupational, and age groups, and its rapidly-spreading, global character. To enhance understanding of macro-micro linkages and to inform social policy, we need continuing study of the social psychological implications of economic dislocation. For this session, papers are welcome that address the broad social psychological consequences of economic decline, including (but not limited to) its effects on individual self-concepts and identities; attitudes and aspirations; emotions; self-efficacy, and mental health; social interaction and interpersonal relationships; socialization processes; stereotyping and intergroup conflict.
Session 2: Globalization, social inequality and status characteristics
Organizer: Deepak Kumar Verma, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar National Institute of Social Sciences, India, dkvmhow@rediffmail.com
The world is experiencing tremendous changes through the economic and political empowerment of people under the process of globalization accelerated by technological development. However, empirical studies still suggest that people at large still face more or less similar kinds of social discrimination and inequalities in their respective societies. Albeit, a Dalit ex-President in India, Women as Heads of several countries and CEOs in multinational companies and recently a Black as President-elect in United States of America are such examples that reflect upon the eliminating mode of racial, caste and gender based social inequalities.
Therefore, it would be of much interest to know about the changed/emerging status characteristics of erstwhile socially discriminated people. The proposed session is expected to discuss empirical studies from various parts of the world on the impact of globalization on social equality and resultant status characteristics. A collective wisdom deliberating upon the social status characteristics of people due to their race, caste and gender is expected to work-out/recommend an agenda for their social empowerment.
Session 3: Renegotiating citizenship and social capital
Organizer: Tina Uys, University of Johannesburg, South Africa, tuys@uj.ac.za
Citizenship rights are often conferred or denied by the State. Sociologically speaking, there are a plethora of diverse contexts within which particular groups have lost privileges that were previously protected by the State or a similar institution. This session is focused upon the subjective experience of this perceived loss and how different social groups renegotiate, in particular through resuscitating old networks and allegiances and/or forming new ones. Those previously included, when feeling excluded, seek new ways of asserting their citizenship. The fascinating tension between the dynamics of inclusion, and the desire not to be included, but rather to be a distinct entity, will also receive attention (Kymlicka & Norman,1994). Papers focusing on subjective exclusion and the process of renegotiated inclusion as related to social capital are welcome in this session.
Session 4: Human motives and social cooperation
Organizer: Clara Sabbagh, University of Haifa, Israel, csabbagh@construct.haifa.ac.il
This session looks at how human motives are associated with different patterns of social cooperation and their potential valued outcomes (e.g. trust, low rates of crime, happiness and economic wealth). The study of social cooperation has long suffered from a structural and cultural bias, looking primarily at self-regarding preferences which have been mainly examined under experimental conditions among Western university students' populations. By doing so, this body of literature has largely neglected the role of a wide range of motives, such as strong reciprocity and the justice motive that may encourage people to cooperate. Recent studies, which have employed different quantitative and qualitative research methods across different societies, have sought to redress this bias by paying more attention to other-regarding preferences and to the socio-cultural factors under which these preferences develop. The purpose of this session is thus to further explore and contextualize the association between motives, different patterns of social collaboration and their outcomes. In order to achieve this purpose, the session encourages the inclusion of different theoretical approaches and methods as well as the examination of the role played by social structure and culture in explaining variation in this regard.
Session 5: Social sciences and natural sciences: Together or apart?
Organizer: Tadeusz Sozanski, Pedagogical University, Krakow, Poland, ussozans@cyf-kr.edu.pl
The aim of this session is to help bridge the communication gap between structural social psychologists and sociophysicists or other natural scientists who consider social phenomena. I assume that both groups believe in the methodological unity of natural and social sciences and the importance of mathematical modeling. What is problematic and worth discussing are the prospects for bringing together the paradigms which have their roots in the social sciences and those imported from physics or other natural sciences.
Session 6: Work, occupations, and the well-being of workers
Organizer: Dahlia Moore, Rishon LeZion, Israel, dmoore@colman.ac.il
This session will deal with how different occupations and work characteristics influence the well-being of workers. Possible issues to be considered are health, team-work, leadership, pay and benefits, and workplace conflict.
Session 7: Status in groups, networks, and organizations
Organizers: Robert Shelley, Ohio University, USA, and Ann Shelly, Ashland University, USA, shelly@ohio.edu
This session considers status processes among individuals in groups, in social networks, and in organizations of all types.
Session 8: Open topics in social psychology
Organizer: Cecilia Ridgeway, Stanford University, USA, ridgeway@stanford.edu
This session is open to papers in social psychology whose topics do not fit well into the other sessions described above. If possible, papers accepted for this session will be grouped together by topic for additional sessions on the final program.
Session 9: Business Meeting
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International Sociological Association |