The social psychology group is a cohesive, well-defined unit, with strong ties to other programs within the department and to other units within the university. Substantively, the group covers many of the major topics within social psychology, and offers a wide array of undergraduate courses that reflect the diversity of its areas of specialization. At the same time, the research interests of individual faculty overlap in very significant ways, providing three areas of concentration that give shape to the graduate program. These foci do not represent formal divisions within the program, but instead reflect areas in which the social psychology group has considerable depth of expertise. Although the faculty cross-cut these areas, the graduate students tend to specialize informally in one of the three. This gives the students an opportunity to work with multiple faculty members and on several different research projects, while, at the same time, carving out a niche for themselves in the field.

One area of concentration is on "social cognition in interaction." The field of social psychology is currently awash with researchers interested in social categorization, stereotyping, and social inference processes. What is distinctive about our approach to the study of these topics is the emphasis a number of people place on understanding them within the context of social interactions. For example, Susan Fiske's research demonstrates that whether and how one person categorizes another depends on whether the two are boss and subordinate, competitors in a zero-sum game, or partners in a three-legged race. Nicole Shelton examines the dynamics of interracial interactions - the ways in which social anxieties, both general and particular to these interactions, shape the course of events and the inferences participants draw from them. Deborah Prentice explores how individuals think about and respond to differences that arise in cross-gender or cross-race interactions. Virginia Kwan and Alex Todorov also share an interest in social perception and inference processes, especially as they are influenced by subtle and not-so-subtle properties of social interactions.

A second focus of the social psychology program is on the "social self." Social psychology has long recognized that the self is socially constituted. What has intrigued several members of the social psychology group is just how true that statement is. Perhaps the best example of this kind of research is Joel Cooper's recent work demonstrating that people actually experience symptoms of cognitive dissonance when they witness attitude-inconsistent behavior enacted by others. Much of Deborah Prentice's research on social norms attests to their power to shape individual identity and experience. And Joan Girgus has linked adherence to traditional gender-role norms to feelings of low self-worth and psychological distress. Additionally, Virginia Kwan's research on self-enhancement and self-verification in a social and cultural context fits into this area of concentration extremely well, as does Emily Pronin's work on identity bifurcation among math-oriented women.

A more recent, third focus of the program is on "morality, conflict, and the law." John Darley has been exploring the relationships between legal codes and the moral intuitions of the community, and what will happen if these two analyses are in conflict. Darley and Pronin, taking a social construal approach, share an interest in the ways the psychological interpretations of the behavior of the other in negotiations can lean toward or away from escalation of conflicts and eventual impasses in those negotiations. Using a dual process attitude change paradigm, Cooper has looked at the degree of "convincingness" that persons in juror roles give to expert testimony in trial settings. Fiske has worked on the role of intent indiscrimination law and, more generally, on the role of social psychological knowledge in the courtroom.

The social program is designed to prepare students for academic careers. The program provides students with courses and research training across a broad range of areas within social psychology. It augments these opportunities with a weekly research meeting and speaker series. Students work closely with faculty and an attempt is made to match students' research interests with those of the faculty members with whom they work.

Research involvement is the key element of the training program. Upon entering the program students become involved in a variety of research projects, typically with more than one faculty member. By the end of their program, students are expected to function as independent investigators.

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