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Social Psychology in India
Social psychology is usually defined as the scientific study of human interactions.
Social behaviour or how people behave in social settings have been of interest to scholars,
social reformers and psychologists throughout history. According to Staat (1983), social can
be both social environment and social behaviour. Social environment is the physical
environment which includes the social groups, organisations, structures, norms etc. within
which an individual functions. Social behaviour on the other hand is the attitudes,
motivations, emotions etc. of the individual in response to the environment. The meaning of
‘social’ can also be different for each school of social psychology. For example, in the
behaviouristic school the term ‘social’ means observable behaviours of an individual,
whereas cognitive psychologists view ‘social’ as the individual’s cognitive representations of
the social world. Regardless of all these differences social psychologists have always been
interested in understanding the interaction between man and society.
Social Psychology in The West
Social psychology is often considered as a Western, more specifically an American
product. The pragmatic tradition, free enquiry and philosophy of the West provided the
perfect atmosphere for the growth of social psychology. The basis of social behaviour in the
West can be dated back to the works of Plato and Aristotle. While Plato talked about the
philosophy of human existence, Aristotle based his work on observation and analysis.
18th century Europe marked a new age of reasoning which gave importance to
empiricism. This was the beginning of modern social psychology. August Comte, French
philosopher, is credited as the founder of social psychology as a science. There was a rise in
the popularity of social psychology during the post-Second World War period. Social
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psychologists were asked to carry out researches on group morale, persuasive communication
and prejudices. During this period social psychologists were influenced by the gestalt school
and their approaches were experimental. In the 1960s experimental social psychology was
criticised for giving less importance to context. However, the European social psychology
started reacting to the significant aspects of social structure in new ways. During the 1960s
and 70s the field of social psychology faced many crises. These included: ethical research
procedures, methodological weaknesses and ideological biases.
Durkheim’s article “Individual and Collective Representations” divided social
psychology into two separate disciplines. He distinguished between sociological social
psychology and psychological social psychology. This distinction paved way for two
different social psychologies. American social psychology focusing on the psychological
aspects and following experimental methods widened this gap between the two disciplines.
However, crises such as demand for relevance, inadequacy of existing theories in explaining
the complex social reality etc. pulled the two disciplines together. This led to the traditional
social psychology branching off into alternative social psychologies. Moghaddam and Harre
(1995) identified six alternative social psychologies: discursive psychology, ethogenics,
narrative psychology, symbolic interactionism, ethnomethodology, cultural psychology and
activity psychology.
Social Psychology in Ancient India
Efforts to analyse and interpret social behaviour in India can be traced back to more
than 1500 B.C. Ancient treaties like the Upanishads, the Puranas, Dharmashastra, the
Ramayana and Mahabharata provide insight into the different aspects of human behaviour. In
the ancient Hindu worldview plants, animals and man are all functionally interrelated and are
part of the same cosmic life-force. Each single phenomenon exists in its place in the universe
Social Psychology in India
Social psychology is usually defined as the scientific study of human interactions.
Social behaviour or how people behave in social settings have been of interest to scholars,
social reformers and psychologists throughout history. According to Staat (1983), social can
be both social environment and social behaviour. Social environment is the physical
environment which includes the social groups, organisations, structures, norms etc. within
which an individual functions. Social behaviour on the other hand is the attitudes,
motivations, emotions etc. of the individual in response to the environment. The meaning of
‘social’ can also be different for each school of social psychology. For example, in the
behaviouristic school the term ‘social’ means observable behaviours of an individual,
whereas cognitive psychologists view ‘social’ as the individual’s cognitive representations of
the social world. Regardless of all these differences social psychologists have always been
interested in understanding the interaction between man and society.
Social Psychology in The West
Social psychology is often considered as a Western, more specifically an American
product. The pragmatic tradition, free enquiry and philosophy of the West provided the
perfect atmosphere for the growth of social psychology. The basis of social behaviour in the
West can be dated back to the works of Plato and Aristotle. While Plato talked about the
philosophy of human existence, Aristotle based his work on observation and analysis.
18th century Europe marked a new age of reasoning which gave importance to
empiricism. This was the beginning of modern social psychology. August Comte, French
philosopher, is credited as the founder of social psychology as a science. There was a rise in
the popularity of social psychology during the post-Second World War period. Social
, 2
psychologists were asked to carry out researches on group morale, persuasive communication
and prejudices. During this period social psychologists were influenced by the gestalt school
and their approaches were experimental. In the 1960s experimental social psychology was
criticised for giving less importance to context. However, the European social psychology
started reacting to the significant aspects of social structure in new ways. During the 1960s
and 70s the field of social psychology faced many crises. These included: ethical research
procedures, methodological weaknesses and ideological biases.
Durkheim’s article “Individual and Collective Representations” divided social
psychology into two separate disciplines. He distinguished between sociological social
psychology and psychological social psychology. This distinction paved way for two
different social psychologies. American social psychology focusing on the psychological
aspects and following experimental methods widened this gap between the two disciplines.
However, crises such as demand for relevance, inadequacy of existing theories in explaining
the complex social reality etc. pulled the two disciplines together. This led to the traditional
social psychology branching off into alternative social psychologies. Moghaddam and Harre
(1995) identified six alternative social psychologies: discursive psychology, ethogenics,
narrative psychology, symbolic interactionism, ethnomethodology, cultural psychology and
activity psychology.
Social Psychology in Ancient India
Efforts to analyse and interpret social behaviour in India can be traced back to more
than 1500 B.C. Ancient treaties like the Upanishads, the Puranas, Dharmashastra, the
Ramayana and Mahabharata provide insight into the different aspects of human behaviour. In
the ancient Hindu worldview plants, animals and man are all functionally interrelated and are
part of the same cosmic life-force. Each single phenomenon exists in its place in the universe
