"Social psychologists investigate how we view ourselves and others, how we interact with others, how we influence others, and how we act when we are part of a group. Given the amount of time each of us spend thinking about and interacting with the people we encounter every day, much of our lives are spent with the subject matter of social psychology."

This is a formal research paper 8-10 pages in length. Imagine that this will be used as a reference for someone who is completely unfamiliar with social psychology principles. This paper will provide them with an overview of the field, and explain the key principles associated with its practice.

Include the following components in your research paper:

Discovering the Self - How do we perceive ourselves and our interactions with others?

- Self-concept, awareness, and self-schemas

- The acting self

- Self-esteem and self-efficacy

Thinking About Others - What judgments do we make about other people?

- Attributions: internal, external, explanatory style

- Attitudes and behavior

- Prejudice, stereotypes, discrimination

Influencing Others: Persuasion - How do we use the power of persuasion?

- Persuasion techniques

- Characteristics of the persuader, message, audience

Influencing Others: Obedience and Conformity - What factors lead us to conform and become obedient?

- Aggressive behavior and aggression cues

- Prosocialbehavior

- Relationship building, love, and attraction

Group Dynamics - What are elements of a group?

- Types of groups

- consequences of Groupthink

- Social dilemmas

After addressing the components above, reflect on the future of social psychology. Given the immense changes that our society is experiencing (both nationally and internationally), what do you foresee in the future of social psychology? What ground breaking new research do you anticipate?