Social Psychology Section
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.
About
The inaugural meeting was held on 06 April 1940 under the Chairmanship of Professor Morris Ginsberg.
The foundation and initial meetings are listed in the first (1948) volume of the Quarterly Bulletin of The British Psychological Society and later volumes include reports from the section up until the point where the BPS started publishing its annual reports as a separate volume in 1955.
In the current socio-political context of education and research fundings cuts, where disciplines compete for the recognition of their societal and academic value, it is more important than ever that social psychology has a strong and distinctive voice.
Contact us
Any queries regarding the Social Psychology Section should be sent to [email protected].
You can also follow us on Twitter at @socialpsychUK or on Facebook.
Our aims
The Social Psychology Section aims to:
- encourage and promote social psychological research
- facilitate contact and communication between social psychologists
- impact positively upon social psychology globally
- publish a referereed publication, the Social Psychological Review
- represent the interests of UK social psychologists within the British Psychological Society and more widely,
- support activities such as workshops and conferences
The section is run by an elected committee. We always welcome any additional help from members.
Achieving our aims:
The Social Psychological section aims to meet the objectives through the following activities:
- an Annual Social Psychology section conference
- establishing awards for a recent PhD, Mid-Career and Distinguised Contribution to Social Psychology
- offering pump priming funds for such events
- responding to consultation documents and/or initiatives relevant to the development of social psychology; for example, the ESRC Psychology Bench marking Exercise and Nomination of REF Panel Members
- supporting policy relevant meetings with government and non-government organisations
- supporting seminars, workshops, and other conferences organised by members of the section
Mission statement
To promote the development and understanding of Social Psychology in the UK via:
- an annual section scientific conference
- disseminating news and views about social psychology and social psychologists through the Section's publication: the Social Psychological Review
- encouraging and helping to support visits to the U.K. by distinguished overseas social psychologists
- encouraging postgraduate participation by postgraduate students through subsidies at Section Annual Conferences and other meetings of the Section
- fostering links with other sections
- other scientific meetings, research seminars and workshops as can be arranged
- participating in other appropriate BPS bodies which further the development of psychology in general and social psychology in particular
- Section-sponsored symposia at the BPS Annual conference
Previous events and presentations
2021
Social Psychology Conference 2021
Wednesday 25th August - Friday 27th August 2021
Location: Online
Social psychology is a vast and diverse field full of research that offers important and unique perspectives on the social aspects of human and animal behaviour. Our 2021 conference will showcase the wide-ranging theories, methods and practices that our discipline has to offer. Embracing our theme of inclusivity, we will adopt a single-stream format that will maximise engagement and celebration of all things social psychology.
We welcome papers, posters and symposia submissions from all areas of social psychology and are keen to represent the full breadth of topics and methods that social psychology comprises. We particularly encourage submissions from under-represented groups, scholars at risk and research projects that have a strong interdisciplinary angle.
Through our 2021 conference, we aim to not only showcase the very best of social psychological research through our keynotes and presentations but to also facilitate a culture where social psychologists across all career stages can learn from one another and develop exciting new collaborations. We therefore strongly encourage symposia submissions that bring together presenters from different career stages and that foreground the work of those earlier in their careers.
2020
Online (due to COVID-19)
2019
Park Inn by Radisson, York
2018
Keele University, Keele
2017
Hilton Brighton Metropole, Brighton
2016
Mercure Holland House, Cardiff
2015
Palace Hotel, Manchester (joint conference with the Developmental Psychology Section)
2014
Canterbury Christ Church University, Canterbury
2013
University of Exeter, Exeter
News
Events
Useful links and resources for Social Psychologists
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- American Psychological Society (APS)
- Psych Web
- Society for Personality and Social Psychology
- Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI)
- Society of Experimental Social Psychology (SESP)
- Social Psychology Network
- Social Psychology Research Groups
Social Psychological Review
A collection of papers that make significant and original contributions to the field of social psychology.
Latest articles - Social Psychological Review
- Periodicals
Notes for Contributors - Social Psychological Review
Volume: 24 Issue: 1
Date of Publication: 01-01-2022
Author(s): Blerina Kellezi, Annayah Prosser
- Periodicals
Chair Column - Social Psychological Review
Volume: 24 Issue: 1
Date of Publication: 01-01-2022
Author(s): Mhairi Bowe
- Periodicals
How does methodological nationalism affect social psychological research? A short reflection - Social Psychological Review
Volume: 24 Issue: 1
Date of Publication: 01-01-2022
Author(s): Yasemin Gülsüm Acar
- Periodicals
In a land far, far, away: Practising transdisciplinarity as a PhD student - Social Psychological Review
Volume: 24 Issue: 1
Date of Publication: 01-01-2022
Author(s): Catherine Naughtie
- Periodicals
Can ‘baby brain’ in pregnancy be explained by social psychology? - Social Psychological Review
Volume: 24 Issue: 1
Date of Publication: 01-01-2022
Author(s): Madeleine Pownall
Awards
Award for Distinguished Contribution to Social Psychology
The 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 Members only; although, nominees do not need to be Section members. Section Members can submit recommendations to Section Committee Members to consider.
- Nominations should be accompanied by a brief supporting statement (approx. 500 words maximum) outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution.
- Previous recipients of the award are not eligible for nomination.
- The award is made biannually (next award in 2024).
- 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 2024 Conference to receive the prize
- will receive one day complimentary registration, alongside UK travel expenses and one night accommodation
Early Career Award 2023
Extended deadline: 19 June 2023
The 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) and a supporting nomination statement. Self-nominations are accepted for this award.
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 including 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 and associated activity 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 a supervisor, colleague, or 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.
Judging process
The nominee will be judged based on the chosen paper and a combination of the following additional criteria:
- Outstanding theoretical/empirical contributions by the candidate (for career stage)
- Outstanding impact within the discipline (commensurate with career stage).
- Outstanding impact shown outside the discipline (e.g., policy, welfare, the general public, school) (commensurate with career stage)
Please note: nominees do not need to meet all criteria.
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 and those with conflicts will be excluded from voting 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.
How to apply
The extended award deadline is 17:00 on Monday 19 June 2023.
The Award winner
- will receive a prize and be invited to the 2023 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
Extended deadline: 19 June 2023
The 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. Self-nominations are accepted for this award.
The award is made bi-annually.
Rules for bi-annual awards
- Nominations should be made by Section 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 maximum) outlining the significance of the nominee’s contribution.
- Nominators should seek the consent of the nominee before nomination (if not a self-nomination)
- Previous recipients of the award are not eligible for nomination.
- The award is made biannually (next award 2023).
- Recipients may be of any nationality but must have studied for their Ph.D or currently be working in a UK institution.
- The Section Committee reserves the right not to make an award in any given year if it judges this to be appropriate.
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
Judging process
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 (commensurate with career stage).
- Outstanding impact also is shown outside the discipline (e.g., policy, welfare, the general public, school) (commensurate with 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. Any committee members with conflicts will be excluded from voting. 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.
How to apply
The extended award deadline is 17:00 on Monday 19 June 2023.
The Award winner
- will receive a prize and be invited to give a talk at the 2023 Section conference
- will receive one day complimentary registration, alongside travel and one night accommodation
Current and Previous Award Winners
Distinguished 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
Pump-Priming and Dissemination Fund
The 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 must answer the following questions (each question is limited to 4,000 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
The deadline for applications is 31 July 2023.
Submit an application for the Pump Priming Dissemination Fund
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.
Previous Pump-Priming Find Recipients
2021
Principal Investigator: Mhairi Bowe
University: Nottingham Trent University
Title of project: Whose history is it anyway? An experimental exploration of the impact of nostalgia contents and national identity threat on political preferences
Principal Investigator: Anastasia Rousaki
University: Nottingham Trent University
Title of project: Adolescent sexting and consent; a discursive approach.
Principal Investigator: Melissa Pavetich
University: University of Greenwich
Title of project: Socio-Political Attitudes between Right- and Left-Wing Partisans
Principal Investigator: Moon Halder
University: Nottingham Trent University
Title of project: The impact of COVID on the social skills of children: A Qualitative study
2020
Principal Investigator: Madeleine Pownall
University: University of Leeds
Title of project: The effects of women’s performance motivation on susceptibility to the ‘baby brain’ stereotype in pregnancy
Principal Investigator: Yasemin Acar
University: University of Dundee
Title of project: Resistance from generation to generation: The case of Saturday Mothers in Istanbul.
Principal Investigator: Meredith Schertzinger
University: University of St. Andrews
Title of project: Exploring the Power of Group Identity and Communication on Psychological Need Fulfilment
Principal Investigator: Bogdana Huma
University: York St John University
Title of project: 'Unresponded' persuasian in broadcast adversarial political debates
Principal Investigator: Clifford Stevenson
University: Nottingham Trent University
Title of project: Exploring Financial Distress and Suicidal Behaviour During COVID-19
Chair: Dr Sara Vestergreen
Dr Sara Vestergren is a lecturer in Social Psychology at Keele University.
Sara’s main research interest and area of expertise is crowds and collective action, more specifically participation in collective action (e.g., protest participation, environmental action).
In her research, Sara mainly uses qualitative methods such as ethnographic interviews and reflexive thematic analysis to explore psychological change through participation in collective action.
She has, together with Prof. John Drury at University of Sussex, developed a theory of emergent and enduring change through participation in collective action.
She has published in outlets such as the British Journal of Social Psychology, Social Movement Studies, and Journal of Social and Political Psychology Sara is currently one of the Consulting Editors for BJSP
Sara has been a committee member since 2020.
You can follow Sara on Twitter (@SwedishProtests).
Chair Elect: Vacant
Past Chair: Dr Mhairi Bowe
Dr Mhairi Bowe is an Assistant Professor of Social Psychology at Heriot-Watt University (since 2022) and was previously an Associate Professor at Nottingham Trent University.
Mhairi’s research focuses on collective and place identities and how they link with health, well-being, and social processes, such as continuity, transition, belonging, and marginalisation.
Mhairi has been an SPS Committee Member since 2020 and was Chair Elect of the Social Section between September 2020 and September 2021. Mhairi became Chair of the Social Psychology Section in September 2021.
Mhairi has published in journals such as European Journal of Social Psychology, British Journal of Social Psychology, Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, BMJ Open, Journal of Family Psychology, and the Journal of Health Psychology and has been funded by the ESRC and NHS
Mhairi is a member of the Centre for Applied Behavioural Sciences at Heriot-Watt University and an associate member (former lead) of the Groups, Identities, and Health Research Group at NTU.
Her recent work has explored social identity in relation to social prescribing, food aid, loneliness reduction, financial stress, stigma, community volunteering, and mutual aid during COVID-19.
Mhairi works closely with third sector partners and has engaged in knowledge exchange with local authorities, the UN and UK Parliament.
You can follow Mhairi on Twitter (@MhairiBowe) and Google Scholar or learn more about her research on her university profile and lab group pages.
Honorary Treasurer: Nihan Albayrak-Aydemir
Nihan Albayrak-Aydemir is a postdoctoral researcher at the Open University and a visiting fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Her research examines social identity dynamics and intergroup relations underlying prosocial attitudes and behaviours. She usually prefers to study these topics using comparative designs in the contexts of migration and academia.
She is also interested in the conceptualisation and contextualisation of prosocial behaviour in social psychology and is working towards building a theoretical framework that offers a more nuanced understanding of this concept.
In her second line of research, she studies meta-science and looks at the ways in which intergroup power dynamics as well as research and teaching practices influence the production of scientific knowledge.
She has published empirical papers in several outlets, including the British Journal of Psychology, PLoS ONE, and Nature Human Behaviour, and received funding from several organisations, including the British Psychological Society, the European Association of Social Psychology, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.
She has been elected in 2022 to serve as a Social Psychology Section Committee Member for three years. She will be working on the section’s programme of events.
You can follow her on Twitter, connect with her on LinkedIn, or learn more about her on her website.
Honorary Secretary: Vacant
Committee Member: Sophie Sutherland
Bio to follow.
Committee Member: Dr Sofia Stathi
Dr Sofia Stathi is Associate Professor of Social Psychology and the Lead for the Centre for Inequalities at the University of Greenwich.
Sofia’s research focuses on intergroup relations, (challenging) prejudice, collective action, and social ideology.
She uses predominantly quantitative methods to conduct basic and applied research that examines processes relating to majority-minority relations and social change.
Sofia has co-authored a monograph and an edited volume on intergroup contact; has published various articles in outlets such as the European Journal of Social Psychology, the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology; and has received funding from research bodies such as the British Academy, the Economic and Social Research Council, and Catedra Real Madrid.
Sofia has been a Committee Member since 2020 and is currently an Events Officer.
You can follow Sofia on Twitter or learn more about her.
Committee Member: Jodi Odgers
Bio to follow.
Committee Member: Rosslyn Kerr
Bio to follow.
Committee Member: Carina Hoerst
Bio to follow.
Committee member: Merve Ozturk
Bio to follow.
Committee member: Dr. Jaysan Charlesford
Dr. Jaysan Charlesford is an Assistant Professor at Plymouth University.
He is currently working on Social Media and Communicartions for the BPS Social Psychology Section.
Previously, Dr. Charlesford held two postdoctoral researcher positions: one at the University of Bristol examining the effects of classroom diversity and the second at Plymouth University exploring the gradient of local oral health inequalities.
Dr. Charlesford’s primary research interests are in prejudice and prejudice-reduction. Presently, he is considering these topics through the lens of intergroup contact theory and intergroup climate.
Specifically, he is exploring the differential effects of individuals’ perceptions of their personal contact with members of different groups and their perceptions of how ingroup (“us”) and outgroup (“them”) typically interact in society.
His wider research interests include intergroup relations more generally, including the sociopolitical antecedents of prejudice (e.g., political identity and ideology), institutional inequality, and the effects of diversity in various organisations.
You can learn more about his research on his university profile page.
Committee member: Sadvansha Munshi
Sadvansha Munshi is a PhD candidate in social psychology with an interest in the use of qualitative research methods for Open Science.
For her doctoral research, she is analysing interactional exchanges between the participants and the experimenter in a cognitive psychology experiment.
Her research aims to open an alternative way of conducting radically Open Science by making the experiment itself available for analysis and inspection.
It is anticipated that the findings from this research will be used to develop training resources aimed at helping researchers to learn about how experiments are conducted.
Sadvansha joined as a Committee Member for the Social Psychology Section in 2022, and works on Social Media and Communications.
You can follow her on Twitter (@Sadvansha).
Committee member: Dr Mioara Cristea
Dr Mioara Cristea is an Associate Professor of Social Psychology at Heriot-Watt University.
Mioara’s research focuses on conspiracy beliefs and collective actions, far-right narratives and group polarization, and social norms and behavioural change. Mioara became SPS Committee Member in 2022 and is currently working on the SPS Monthly Newsletter.
Mioara has published in journals such as Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, Journal of Social and Political Psychology, Journal of Social and Cross-cultural Psychogy, and Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology.
Mioara is a member of the Centre for Applied Behavioural Sciences at Heriot-Watt University and an associate member of the Research Lab on Social Psychology and Interdisciplinary studies “Adrian Neculau” at the University of Alexandru Ioan Cuza (Iasi, Romania).
Her recent work has explored trust in government, mistrust in science, conspiracy beliefs, and prosocial behaviours during COVID-19.
You can follow Mhairi on Twitter (@MioCristea) and Google Scholar or learn more about her research on her university profile and lab group pages.
PsyPAG Representative: Alexander Hunt
Alexander Hunt is a PhD candidate based at Heriot-Watt University’s Centre of Applied Behavioral Sciences.
For his research, Alexander uses discursive and rhetorical approaches to social psychology to analyse political discourse and ideology.
Alexander’s PhD project explores parliamentary debates where politicians discussed the possibility of a second referendum on the United Kingdom’s status as a member of the European Union.
By exploring these debates, Alexander seeks to highlight how political speakers align their positions with norms of democracy to reduce the implication that their positions are motivated by party interest.
Alexander joined the Social Psychology Section as the postgraduate representative in 2022.
You can follow Alexander on Twitter (@Alex_Hunt1995).
QMiP Representative: Philippa Carr
Bio to follow.
QUB Conference Representative: Rhiannon Turner
Bio to follow.
SPR Editor: Dr Blerina Kellezi
Blerina is an Associate Professor in Social and Trauma Psychology and co-Lead of the Trauma, Social Isolation and Mental Health research group at NTU.
Blerina teaches in a range of modules: Psychological Wellbeing, Trauma, Theory and Applications, Social Psychology and supervises undergraduate, postgraduate, PhD and Forensic Doctorate students.
Blerina's research investigates how people collectively deal with and are affected by extreme life events from illness and accidents to war, torture and immigration detention.
This includes the interplay between Social Cure and Social Curse analysis of war, dictatorship, transitional justice, immigration detention, social prescribing, and vocational rehabilitation.
Blerina has been a committee member since 2020, and is currently co-editor of SPR.
You can learn more about Blerina here.
Join
- Apply to join the section (students, affiliates, e-subscribers)
- Apply to join the section (graduate, chartered, and in-training members)
Membership of the Social Psychology Section is only open to members of the British Psychological Society.
If you are not already a member, you can join the Section at the same time as applying for membership of the society.
Benefits of belonging
Benefits of Social Psychology Section Membership
- Alerting members to opportunities for contributing to policy consultation calls issued by UK government departments.
- Discounted registration for the Section’s Annual Conference.
- Free registration at Section-sponsored workshops.
- News and updates via the Section’s e-mail list. 20% discount on purchases from the Cambridge University Press online store.
- Responding to consultation documents and/or initiatives relevant to the development of social psychology (for example, the ESRC Psychology Benchmarking Exercise and Nomination of REF Panel Members).
- Social Psychological Review, the Section’s peer-reviewed periodical, which is published twice a year and free electronic access to back issues via the Society’s online shop.
- The opportunity to bid for research funding under the Section’s pump-priming scheme.
The Section has also established the following awards:
- The Award for Distinguished Contribution to Social Psychology
- The Early Career (PhD) Award
- The Mid-Career Award
Member Announcement Email List
The Social Psychology Section uses its membership announcement email list to inform its members of activities and initiatives that are relevant to their interests and to make requests for engagement on topical issues.
By becoming a member of the Section you are automatically added to the announcement list.
To receive these emails you will need to:
- become a member of the Social Psychology Section
- opt into receiving email communication and provide a working email address
These preferences can be updated by logging into your member portal.
If you have any queries, please contact Member Network Services.
To assist us in responding to your query please make sure to include your membership number and quote 'Social Psychology Section announcement email' in the subject line.
Getting involved with the Social Psychology Section Committee
The Social Psychology Section relies on a wide range of people getting involved, and the work of the Section is largely achieved through the dedication of unpaid volunteers.
Our volunteers come from a wide range of different backgrounds, whether they be practitioners or academics, or full members or students members, and together form an open and inclusive community.