Sociology Scientific Case Study 2022

Running head: SOCIOLOGY
Sociology
Name of Student:
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Author Note

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SOCIOLOGY
1. What is Social Psychology and how is pop culture defined and explained?
The scientific study which deals with behavior, thoughts and feelings of people
and how they get influenced by others and imagination is referred to as social
psychology. The psychological variables are behavior, thoughts and feelings which are
measured in people (Fiske & Shibutani, 2018). These get effected in people by actual,
implied and imagined presence of human beings. It is the scientific study which deals and
understands the effect made on people by their social environment and there are
manifestations of the same in their behavior.
There can be significant difference in responses of people when they get caught
up in some crisis alone as compared to being in presence of others. The behavior reflect
how they get affected by the situation (Thibaut, 2017). Some people get influenced
dramatically as it does not entirely depend on how people one is surrounded by, but on
who (s)he is surrounded with. People are often conditioned to follow cultural norms
which define and effect their behavior and actions. These norms and cultural codes have
significant role in how they respond to social situations (McDougall, 2015). Social
psychology aim at examining the factors which play significant roles in how people’s
behavior unfold. The circumstances under which a person’s beliefs and intentions get
cognitively constructed are studied. Psychological constructions in people influence their
way of interacting with other people they are associated with or strangers in general.
Social Psychology makes attempt at answering questions by hypothesis testing
and by paying careful attention to the responses which conjure the result. Social
psychology must be differentiated from a few other subjects which are often confused to
be same or related. It is distinctly different from sociology, personality psychology and

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SOCIOLOGY
subjects like folk wisdom. The difference is that social psychology employ methods
which are scientific rather than interpretations and observations. Scientists and
researchers who conduct the studies trace out relationships between the variables What
interests the social psychologists is mainly how the social environment and interactions
with others impact and affect the responses, behavior and attitudes of people concerned.
It is most important to distinguish between sociology and social psychology as the latter
is more intricate in its study unlike the other as it is broader. Both the subject study
analyses similar topics but from varying perspectives.
The two very important components of pop culture is individualism and
conformity. Pop culture tends to encompass our lives and invade into all aspects of it. It
demands us to conform to its cultural codes. The choice is in between individualism and
conformity but it is confusing when we are made to face the choice because it is mostly
disillusion. The unique setting we intend to embrace in order to rebel and not conform to
the codes of pop culture is actually conforming to another culture (Strauss, 2017). It leads
people to cognitive dissonance. Everyone conforms to rules and norms which are
unwritten in order to blend in and get accepted in society. Friends, family and people
with whom association are shared become influential in the process of conformity when
they have already conformed to popular cultural forces of the society.
Conformity take place when people fear not being accepted and get insecure
about their position among others in a large group (Pennebaker & Banasik 2013). The
idea of conformity also come with individualism. This is regardless of the actions of
others and about the freedom of choosing individual action. When one identifies the self
as a non conformist or a rebel by rejecting the pop culture, (s)he is conforming to a