Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POC3051: Political Psychology of Masses

This module descriptor refers to the 2017/8 academic year.

Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

1. An Introduction to Political Psychology & Mass Decision-Making

Key concepts in mass political psychology

2. Political Socialization

Where do political attitudes come from?

How stable are political attitudes?

3. Obedience and Authoritarianism

The Milgram experiments

Theories of authoritarianism and their implications for democratic citizenship

4. Atrocities

From Norman atrocities in Yorkshire through Rwanda to Syria in 2014. What makes ordinary people participate in atrocities?

5. Terrorism

Is there a ‘terrorist personality’?

6. Racism

How can political psychologists measure racism?

What causes racism?

Stereotype threat and the effects of racism on its targets

7. Tolerance

Theories of political tolerance and the implications of intolerance

8. Affect and Emotion

Traditional views of the detrimental effects of affect on decision-making

Contemporary views of ‘affective intelligence’ and the role of emotion in rational decision-making

9. Media

How do individuals process information from media?

What are the effects of media? Looking at agenda setting, priming, and framing

10. Participation, Deliberation and Influence of Peers

Deliberative polls, explanation of their effects, and what they imply

Why people vote and the influence of social pressure

11. Neuroscience and Genetics

The neuroscientific turn in political psychology. The promise and limitation of fMRI

Contemporary research into genetic influences on political attitudes and behaviours and its implications for political psychology

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
22	128	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching activity	22	11 x 2 hour seminars
Guided Independent study	66	Reading and preparing for seminars.
Guided Independent Study	45	researching and writing essay
Guided independent study	17	researching, planning, and describing the experiment

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).