SUBJECT

Historical and Narrative Psychology

lecture

master

Faculty of Education and Psychology

4

Semester 3

Autumn semester

Aim of the course:

The most important aim of the course is to introduce students to the empirical social psychological studies of history and historical events. How do historical events influence present day intragroup and intergroup relations? We will cover group-based emotions (intergroup and collective emotions), their antecendents and consequences, and various important accompanying phenomena (e.g. identification modes, exonerating cognitions, forgiveness, social distance). A very important aspect is the identity states which emerge from historical events. One example is collective victimhood mindset. Narrative psychology is a theoretical and practical framework which helps us to understand how „historical tales” can be analyzed and understood.

Learning outcome, competences

knowledge:

• knows the most important empirical social psychological publications about history
• names the antecedents, consequences and functions of group-based emotions, and their revelance in intergroup relations
• understands the symptoms, functions and consequences of collective victimhood
• understands the basic concepts of narrative psychology

attitude:

• open to the notion that intergroup relations can be understood only in their historical depth
• accepts the significance of scientific narrative psychology

skills:

• able to design an empirical social psychology study about the relationship between the past and the present
• able to use the basics of scientific narrative psychological analysis

Content of the course

Topics of the course

• Social identity theory and self-categorization theory
• Models of national identification: uni-, bi-, and multidimensional theories
• Intergroup emotions
• Collective emotions
• Collective victimhood identity: exclusive and inclusive victimhood beliefs, competitive victimhood, dual roles
• „We” and „they”: the representations of intergroup relations in language. Implicit semantics. Infrahumanization and implicit linguistic biases (LCM, LIB, LEB)
• Agency, perspectives, thematization and mental states in language
• The social representations of history
• Historical trajectory: the role of scientific narrative psychological analysis in order to understand the relationship between the past and the present

Learning activities, learning methods

Frontal lectures, document movies, analyses of historical texts, small group activities

Evaluation of outcomes

Learning requirements, mode of evaluation, criteria of evaluation:

requirements

• To know the information which will be covered in the frontal lectures (and the power point slides), compulsory readings

mode of evaluation: written exam in the exam period (minimum 50%). The students will be graded in a five-point scale.

criteria of evaluation:

• The students knowledge about the information which is covered during the course (frontal lectures, power point slides, compulsory readings)

Compulsory reading list

• Bar-Tal, D. – Chernyak-Hai, L. – Schori, N. – Gundar, A. (2009). A sense of self-perceived collective victimhood in intractable conflicts. International Review of the Red Cross, 91(874), 229-258.
• Beukeboom, C.J. (2014). Mechanisms of linguistic bias: How words reflect and maintain stereotypic expectancies? In: Forgas, J., Vincze O., & László, J. (Eds.) Social Cognition and Communication, 313-330. New York, NY: Psychology Press.
• Branscombe, N.R. – Doosje, B.J. – McGarty, C. (2002). Collective guilt: antecedents, correlates and consequences. In Mackie, D.M., Smith E.R. (Eds), From Prejudice to Intergroup Relations: Differentiated Reactions to Social Groups, 49-66. New York, NY: Psychology Press.
• László János (2014). Historical tales and national identity: An introduction to narrative social psychology. Routledge, London.
• Smith, E.R., Seger, C., & Mackie, D.M. (2007). Can emotions be truly good level? Evidence regarding four conceptual criteria. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93, 431-446.
• Vollhardt, J.R. (2012). Collective victimization. In L.R. Tropp (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Intergroup Conflict, 136-157. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Recommended reading list

• Ellemers, N. – Spears, R., – Doosje, B. (Eds.) Social Identity: Context, commitment, content, 6-34. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.