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Towards a more social social psychology?
Author(s) -
Taylor Donald M.,
Brown Rupert J.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
british journal of social and clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.479
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 2044-8260
pISSN - 0007-1293
DOI - 10.1111/j.2044-8260.1979.tb00322.x
Subject(s) - focus (optics) , individualism , psychology , criticism , social psychology , position (finance) , epistemology , sociology , psychoanalysis , law , philosophy , physics , finance , political science , optics , economics
Social psychology has been criticized by several American and European writers for being too individualistic in its treatment of social behaviour. The various positions appear to focus on two major issues. First, that at the empirical level, the individual rather than the group has been the focus of research. Second, that individually oriented theories must give way to a new level of theorizing emphasizing group processes. Our own position is that the first type of criticism is entirely justified but that the second is somewhat misleading. The position is illustrated by reference to recent group‐oriented theories of Tajfel and Moscovici.