The Social Psychology Section was founded in 1940 and is now a thriving community of social psychologists. It receives financial support from the society and it is represented on major BPS committees and at BPS conferences.
Awards & Funding
Awards
-
Award for Distinguished Contribution to Social Psychology
Show contentThe award is given in recognition of a distinguished contribution to research in social psychology over the duration of one’s career. Typically, nominees will have had a sustained career in social psychology that has resulted in a body of scholarship that has led to a significant change in understanding of a social psychological phenomenon. Recipients may be of any nationality but must currently be working in a UK institution at the time of nomination.
The award is made bi-annually.
Rules for bi-annual awards:
- Nominations should be made by Section Committee Members only; although, nominees do not need to be Section members. Section Members can submit recommendations to Committee Members to consider.
- Nominations should be accompanied by a brief supporting statement (approx. 500 words) outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution.
- Previous recipients of the award are not eligible for nomination.
- The award is made biannually.
- The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
The nominee will be judged on meeting the following:
- Outstanding theoretical/empirical contributions by the candidate (for career stage)
- Candidate having an outstanding impact to the discipline (for career stage).
- Outstanding impact also is shown outside the discipline (e.g., policy, welfare, the general public, school) (for career stage).
The award will be judged by the Section Committee. Committee members must declare any conflict of interests prior to participating in the decision making process. The Committee’s decision is final.
The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
The Award winner
- will receive a prize and be invited to the 2022 Conference to receive the prize
- will receive one day complimentary registration, alongside UK travel expenses and one night accommodation
-
Early Career Award 2022
Show contentThe award is given in recognition of outstanding research in social psychology by an early-career scholar and is determined by the submission of a single published paper where the nominee has led that piece of research (e.g., 1st author).
This award is made annually.
Criteria
-
- Early Career is defined to scholars awarded their doctorate within 5 years of successful completion of the viva voce examination and any required corrections. We encourage nominations to reflect the diversity of social psychology and under-represented groups and will consider periods of leave (e.g., parental leave) in our consideration of eligibility.
- Nominations should be accompanied by a supporting statement outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution to research more broadly as well as in the submitted paper. This may be from any individual who is able to comment on the contribution of the nominee, such as an External Examiner of their Ph.D. Self-nominations are also welcome.
- Nominators must themselves be Section members, although nominees do not need to be Section members (unless they are self-nominating).
- Nominators should seek the consent of the nominee before nomination (if not a self-nomination)
- Papers in press and published online in advance of final publication are counted as published for the purpose of the award (pre-prints will not be considered). The only criteria are that the work has been conducted during the PhD itself, or within 5 years of the nominee receiving their doctorate.
- Previous recipients of the award are not eligible for nomination.
- Recipients may be of any nationality but must have studied for their Ph.D or currently be working in a UK institution.
Guidance for nominations
You will need the following information
Nominee (self-nominations are accepted)
- Name (and Title)
- Organisation/affiliation
- BPS membership number (if applicable)
- Contact email address
Nominator (if not a self-nomination)
- Name (and Title)
- Organisation/affiliation
- BPS membership number (if applicable)
A supporting statement outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution to research more broadly as well as in the submitted paper
The paper
This should be a typeset copy of the published paper (in PDF format). If a typeset copy (i.e. the final published version or page proofs) is not available, then the nominee should include notification of the article’s acceptance with the manuscript in a word or combined PDF file.
How to apply
- Submit a nomination (link is external)
The deadline has been extended to 11.59pm on 15 April 2022
Judging process
The award will be judged by the Section Committee. Committee members will declare any conflict of interests prior to participating in the decision making process. The Committee’s decision is final.
The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
The Award winner
- will receive a prize and be invited to the 2022 Section Conference to receive the prize
- will receive one day complimentary registration, alongside UK travel expenses and one night accommodation for an in-person conference.
-
-
Mid-Career Award
Show contentThe award is given in recognition of outstanding research in social psychology by a mid-career scholar. Indicators of outstanding research might include: contribution to theory development, methodological innovation, and/or contribution to society (e.g., policy or practice). Recipients may be of any nationality but must be working in a UK institution at the time of nomination. Mid-Career is defined loosely and might typically apply to scholars awarded their doctorate between 5 and 20 years ago
The award is made bi-annually.
Rules for bi-annual awards
- Nominations should be made by Section Committee Members only; although, nominees do not need to be Section members. Section Members can submit recommendations to Committee Members to consider.
- Nominations should be accompanied by a brief supporting statement (approx. 500 words) outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution.
- Previous recipients of the award are not eligible for nomination.
- The award is made biannually.
- The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
The nominee will be judged on meeting the following:
- Outstanding theoretical/empirical contributions by the candidate (for career stage)
- Candidate having an outstanding impact to the discipline (for career stage).
- Outstanding impact also is shown outside the discipline (e.g., policy, welfare, the general public, school) (for career stage)
Judging process
The award will be judged by the Section Committee. Committee members must declare any conflict of interests prior to participating in the decision making process. The Committee’s decision is final.
The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
The Award winner
- will receive a prize and be invited to give a talk at the 2021 Section conference
- will receive one day complimentary registration, alongside travel and one night accommodation
-
Current and Previous Award Winners
Show contentDistinguished Contribution Award
2020 Professor Sonia Livingstone 2018 Prof Constantine Sedikides 2016 Prof Rupert Brown 2014 Professor Catherine Campbell 2012 Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell 2010 Professor Michael Billig Early Career Award (PhD Award)
2021 Dr Paul Hanel 2020 Dr Julie Van de Vyver 2019 Dr Nils Reimer 2018 Dr Amanda Williams 2017 Non awarded 2016 Non awarded 2015 Non awarded 2014 Dr Shelley McKeown-Jones 2013 Dr Steve Kirkwood 2012 Dr Annelies Vredeveldt 2011 Dr David Novelli Mid-Career Award
2021 Prof Michelle Ryan 2019 Prof John Drury 2017 Dr Tim Wildschut 2015 Professor David De Cremer 2013 Professor Richard Crisp 2011 Professor Liz Stokoe
Funding
-
Pump-Priming and Dissemination Fund
Show contentThe BPS Social Psychology Section awards small grants for the purpose of pump priming and dissemination. The aim of these grants is to enable Section members to conduct research studies or organise events that may lead to a larger research project or similar outcome, or the further dissemination of work already conducted. Funds may be requested for the purposes of activities such as primary research activities (e.g., the payment of research assistances or participant remuneration), the development of a network of potential research collaborators, the organization of workshops, or the organization of public engagement events. Applicants are encouraged to seek matched funding wherever possible, although it is not a requirement that proposals include matched funding. Whilst there is no theme for this call, the committee will favour applications that prioritize global challenges and those that have an interdisciplinary dimension, alongside focusing on the current campaigns of the BPS.
Criteria
- Applications answer the following questions (each question is limited to 4000 characters):
- Aims & objectives
- Anticipated outcomes (e.g. publications; further research proposals; presentations; ‘impact’)
- Costings (please be as detailed as possible)
- Timeframe (including proposed start and end dates)
- Work Planned (this section should include the details of the activities planned)
- For events, applicants are free to decide whether to charge a delegate fee, or to use the funds to make the event free to delegates. A clear justification for this decision must be provided in the proposal. If charging a fee, applicants should bear in mind that different fees can be charged for different grades of Section membership (e.g. full members; postgraduate members; non-members). If costs are to be recovered through delegate fees, the Section would ordinarily expect to be reimbursed up to a maximum of the sum awarded.
- Eligible costs include any costs associated with the project, with two major exceptions:
- The Section does not cover costs associated with academic staff time or replacement teaching costs.
- The Section does not cover institutional overheads.
- Grant holders are expected to provide a report of around 1000 words (suitable for publication in Social Psychological Review and on the Section’s website), together with a final budgetary report, within three months of the end of the funding period.
- Grant holders must be members of the British Psychological Society, Social Psychology Section (although non-Section members can be co-applicants).
- The maximum grant available under this scheme is £1000 per applicant, however, we anticipate most projects will be budgeted for £500 with a strong justification if applicants wish to request the full amount. The duration of projects funded under the scheme is typically no longer than 12 months. Funds must be invoiced to the BPS by Year End.
Guidance for nominations
You will need the following information
Nominee
- Name
- Title
- Organisation/affiliation
- BPS membership number
Information should be included on the following (where each question is limited to 4000 characters)
- Aims and objectives
- Anticipated outcomes (e.g. publications; further research proposals; presentations; ‘impact’)
- Costings (please be as detailed as possible)
- Timeframe (including proposed start and end dates)
- Work Planned (this section should include the details of the activities planned)
How to apply
Deadline: The deadline is 1 July 2022, 5pm
Judging process
- Committee members must declare any conflicts of interest before participating in the decision making process.
- An Awarding Sub-Committee will review all applications. The Committee’s decision is final.
- The number and level of awards made in any one year may vary.
- The Committee will assess the applications on originality and potential contribution to knowledge, value for money, and outputs and dissemination.
-
Current and Previous Pump-Priming and Dissemination Fund Winners
Show content2020
Principal Investigator
University
Title of project
Madeleine Pownall University of Leeds The effects of women’s performance motivation on susceptibility to the ‘baby brain’ stereotype in pregnancy
Yasemin Acar University of Dundee Resistance from generation to generation: The case of Saturday Mothers in Istanbul. Meredith Schertzinger University of St. Andrews Exploring the Power of Group Identity and Communication on Psychological Need Fulfilment
Bogdana Huma York St John University 'Unresponded' persuasian in broadcast adversarial political debates Clifford Stevenson Nottingham Trent University Exploring Financial Distress and Suicidal Behaviour During COVID-19
2021
Principal Investigator University Title of Project Mhairi Bowe Nottingham Trent University Whose history is it anyway? An experimental exploration of the impact of nostalgia contents and national identity threat on political preferences
Anastasia Rousaki Nottingham Trent University Adolescent sexting and consent; a discursive approach. Melissa Pavetich University of Greenwich Socio-Political Attitudes between Right- and Left-Wing Partisans
Moon Halder Nottingham Trent University The impact of COVID on the social skills of children: A Qualitative study
-
BPS Social Psychology Section Conference Bursaries
Show contentBursary Applications are welcome for the 2022 Social Psychology Section Annual Conference.
The Section is offering bursaries to cover 1-day registration costs of the Social Psychology Section Annual Conference on 5 – 7 September 2022. This year we are offering:
- PhD student bursaries
- Early Career Researcher bursaries
Applications must be received by 5pm on Friday 29th July 2022.
Eligibility Criteria:
- You need to be a PhD Student or an Early Career Researcher (within 5 years of being awarded your PhD).
- Applications welcome from presenters and non-presenters
- You must be a member of the Social Psychology Section, as we will be covering the Section membership rate only for 1-day registration.
We strongly encourage applications from individuals with protected characteristics (for example, ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability, age, etc.).
How your application will be reviewed:
- Eligibility checks will be carried out by the BPS office. Ineligible submissions will not be sent out for review.
- Your submission will be anonymised before sending to the panel.
- The panel, compromised of members of the Social Psychology Section committee, will review your application. Applications for PhD student bursaries and Early Career Researcher bursaries will be evaluated separately. Applications will be reviewed on the following criteria:
- Enthusiasm for attending and presenting at a Social Psychology Section Annual Conference.
- Reasons provided of benefits of attending.
- For Early Career Researchers, career level will also be taken into account within the scoring.
- The highest rated submissions will receive bursaries. In the event of equal ratings, the panel will discuss and agree awards.
You will be informed of the outcome of your application in August 2022.