Social Psychology

Welcome to the BSc in Social Psychology at Loughborough.

The undergraduate degree in Social Psychology has been running, in its various incarnations, since 1974. The programme aims to give you a broad introduction to all aspects of psychology, although with an emphasis on the personal and social aspects of psychology rather than the biological and comparative. Our focus is on how people develop and think, how they interact with one another as individuals or groups, and how they affect, and are affected by, the cultures in which they live.

Our teaching is inspired by our research. Members of the Social Psychology group have researched topics as diverse as the way recovery from a heart bypass operation is related to one’s family circumstances, the factors that lead one person to be attracted to another, the way bargaining can be carried out effectively, how nationalism has been presented as normal, the impact of mastectomy, racism, the psychology of paedophilia, what causes neighbour disputes, how people argue in relationships, lesbianism, and how identities are constructed in interaction. You may come across some or all of these topics somewhere over the next three years, along with many more.

The Social Psychology staff group currently comprises twelve lecturing staff: seven professors, two readers, two senior lecturers and a lecturer. It is one of Britain’s largest concentrations of social psychologists and it has an international reputation. Social psychological research at Loughborough is at the cutting edge of new developments in the discipline. Our social emphasis is enriched by close research and teaching links with the other groups in the Department of Social Sciences: Sociology, Criminology and Social Policy, and Communication and Media Studies.

We hope that our teaching conveys the excitement of Social Psychology at a time when it is undergoing widespread and dynamic changes. Social Psychologists are asking exactly what it means for Social Psychology to be scientific and what its role in society should be. Loughborough is at the forefront of these debates.