This textbook serves as an introduction to the field of applied social psychology, which focuses on understanding social and practical problems and on developing intervention strategies directed at the amelioration of such problems. A core feature of the book is attaining a balance among theory, research, and application. In the Second Edition, the contributing authors have updated the text with the latest research and incorporated current examples to which students can relate. This book introduces new research and intervention strategies relevant to the application of social psychology in different areas of life, such as the effects of embedded sexual content in the media, team goal-setting and cohesion, and the inducement of pro-environment behavior. In addition, there are new sections on the values and approaches of community psychology, sense of community, diversity versus prejudice and discrimination, and achievement of social change. Key Features: The book is written for students with upper-level undergraduate and lower-level graduate backgrounds. The content and emphases of the book are guided by the assumption that at the core of applied social psychology is the development of intervention strategies for improving the functioning of individuals, groups, organizations, communities, and societies. Both student and instructor are encouraged to keep their attention on the promise of the field in addressing social and practical problems. The book is unique among applied social psychology books in that it contains chapters that focus on personal interventions (i.e., how readers can apply social psychology to their own lives) as well as chapters that focus on structured programs. This discussion recognizes that it cannot be assumed that theoretical principles, research findings, and intervention practices that are well established in the North American context would necessarily hold true or be successful in significantly different cultures.
class="Biography"spanFrank W. Schneiderspanbspan (PhD, University of Florida) is Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of Windsor. He is a cofounder of the doctoral program in Applied Social Psychology at the University of Windsor. He coauthored a textbook on differential psychology and has published articles related to a variety of topics, including policing, group dynamics, organizational effectiveness, evaluation research, social psychology of education, gender roles, domestic violence, helping behavior, race relations, nonverbal communication, attribution theory, and adjustment of the elderly. His current research interests are in the areas of community policing and police organization effectiveness.span
p class="Biography"spanJamie A. Grumanspanspan, (PhD, University of Windsor) earned his doctorate in Applied Social Psychology with a specialization in organizational psychology. He is currently an Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, and has previously taught in both the psychology departments and business schools at the University of Toronto and the University of Windsor. An award-winning researcher, he has published articles in such journals as iBasic and Applied Social Psychologyi, iHuman Resource Managementi, the iJournal of Vocational Behaviori, iIndustrial and Organizational Psychologyi, iHuman Resource Management Reviewi, iHuman Resource Development Quarterly,i and the iJournal of Managerial Psychologyi. His current research interests pertain largely to positive organizational psychology and his point of entry into this topic is often the organizational socialization process. He is also the founding Chair of the Canadian Positive Psychology Association. span
spanLarry M. Couttsspanspan (PhD, University of Windsor) is the president of L. M. Coutts & Associates, an organizational and human resource management consulting firm, and teaches part-time in the Sprott School of Business, Carleton University. Larry is a former Director of Research and Development for the human resource consulting company EPSI Inc. and a former Assistant Professor in the Applied Social Psychology division at the University of Windsor. He also has held positions with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as director of the Organizational Design and Job Evaluation Branch and as a senior research principal with both the Personnel Research Branch and the Canadian Police College. His research interests include industrial and organizational psychology, specifically personnel selection (assessment centers, simulation exercises, structured interviews, and testing) and organizational change and development. Much of his published research has focused around law enforcement settings (personnel selection in law enforcement, police hiring and promotion, senior police executive development, etc.).span
