Social Psychology and Neuroscience: Strange Bedfellows or a Healthy Marriage?

@article{citeulike:2719525, abstract = {In this paper, we assess what neuroscience theory and method have contributed to the study of group processes and intergroup relations and what we see as potential future contributions to the discipline. We briefly review the historical relation between neuroscience and social psychology, identify issues that may limit the value of neuroscience to the study of group processes and relations, and then argue that social neuroscience indeed holds significant promise for understanding many key elements of group processes and intergroup relations. Both the potential problems and the potential benefits of bridging neuroscience and social psychology are considered in terms of theoretical considerations, empirical issues, and practical implications. We conclude that, although not all group phenomena may be reducible to neural activity and pathways, there are significant benefits to social psychology by having an even broader multidisciplinary orientation within social psychology, one that incorporates the complementary perspectives, techniques, and knowledge of neuroscience. 10.1177/1368430207088041}, author = {Dovidio, John F. and Pearson, Adam R. and Orr, Patrick }, citeulike-article-id = {2719525}, doi = {10.1177/1368430207088041}, journal = {Group Processes Intergroup Relations}, keywords = {social\_neuro}, month = {April}, number = {2}, pages = {247--263}, posted-at = {2008-04-25 22:37:57}, priority = {4}, title = {Social Psychology and Neuroscience: Strange Bedfellows or a Healthy Marriage?}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1368430207088041}, volume = {11}, year = {2008} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:2719525 L3 - citeulike-article-id:2719525 TI - Social Psychology and Neuroscience: Strange Bedfellows or a Healthy Marriage? JF - Group Processes Intergroup Relations VL - 11 IS - 2 SP - 247 EP - 263 N2 - In this paper, we assess what neuroscience theory and method have contributed to the study of group processes and intergroup relations and what we see as potential future contributions to the discipline. We briefly review the historical relation between neuroscience and social psychology, identify issues that may limit the value of neuroscience to the study of group processes and relations, and then argue that social neuroscience indeed holds significant promise for understanding many key elements of group processes and intergroup relations. Both the potential problems and the potential benefits of bridging neuroscience and social psychology are considered in terms of theoretical considerations, empirical issues, and practical implications. We conclude that, although not all group phenomena may be reducible to neural activity and pathways, there are significant benefits to social psychology by having an even broader multidisciplinary orientation within social psychology, one that incorporates the complementary perspectives, techniques, and knowledge of neuroscience. 10.1177/1368430207088041 KW - social_neuro AU - Dovidio, John AU - Pearson, Adam AU - Orr, Patrick PY - 2008/04/01/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1368430207088041 ER -