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Social Psychology and Politics
‘This is a terrific collection of papers by an impressive group that includes many of the most creative and exciting scholars working on psychology and politics. The book offers a fascinating assortment of viewpoints and topics on issues that are fundamental to our society and civilization. It offers a tremendous overview of the field, both for the novice seeking an introduction to this important area of work and for the expert wanting an up-to-date reference.’ Roy F. Baumeister, Francis Eppes Eminent Scholar, Florida State University ‘The application of social psychology to political phenomena illuminates the forces that mold voting patterns in democracies, allow dictatorships to hold populations hostage, and incite terrorism and political violence. This volume presents cutting edge contributions by leading theorists and investigators that demonstrate how critical the social psychological level of analysis is to the understanding of political events that shape the course of world history. A truly essential volume that highlights the nexus between macro level political phenomena and the fundamental features of our psyche.’ Arie W. Kruglanski, Distinguished University Professor, University of Maryland, College Park Social psychology and politics are intricately related, and understanding how humans manage power and govern themselves is one of the key issues in psychology. This volume surveys the latest theoretical and empirical work on the social psychology of politics, featuring cutting-edge research from a stellar group of international researchers. It is organized into four main sections that deal with political attitudes and values; political communication and impressions; social cognitive processes in political decisions; and the politics of identity and intergroup behavior. The book explores such exciting questions as how do political attitudes and values develop and change? What role do emotions and moral values play in political behavior? How do political communication and the media influence voters? How are
political decisions made, and why do democracies sometimes fail? What is the role of social identity and intergroup perceptions in the political process? Thus, this book reviews and integrates the role of various psychological processes in political behavior. It provides essential reading for students, teachers, researchers and practitioners interested in all areas related to power, social influence and political behavior. Joseph P. Forgas is Scientia Professor of Psychology at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He received his D.Phil. degree from the University of Oxford, and a D.Sc degree also from Oxford. His research investigates affective influences on social cognition, motivation and behavior. He has published 26 books and over 200 journal articles and book chapters. In recognition of his scientific contribution, he received the Order of Australia in 2012, as well as the APS’s Distinguished Scientific contribution Award, the Humboldt Research Prize, a Rockefeller Fellowship and is Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, the Association for Psychological Science, Society of Personality and Social Psychology and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Klaus Fiedler is Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Heidelberg. He is a Fellow of the Association of Psychological Science and of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, a member of the German National Academy of Science Leopoldina, and he has received several prestigious awards, such as the Leibniz-Award and a generous personal grant in the Reinhard-Koselleck program of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Klaus Fiedler has been an Executive Board member of the European Association of Social Psychology. He published various monographs and edited volumes in his major areas of research: language and