Foundations of social psychology

Studying the history of social psychology helps demonstrate the different approaches that major contributors have introduced through the field, including:

• Early pioneers like Edwin Ross (1919) and William McDougall (1919) explored social psychology as a means to understand human social behavior.
• Introducing theoretical rigor and experimental precision from a behavioral psychology perspective, Floyd Allport (1920) ushered in an age where social psychologists would see social psychology as a means for controlling human behavior.
• Kurt Lewin (1951; 1947) would blend science with practice so social psychologists could apply research-based technologies to solve practical problems, spawning applied psychology movements in intergroup relations, leadership, organizational behavior, teamwork, consumer behavior, and environmental psychology.
• As the founding father of contemporary psychology, Gordon Allport (1947) would proclaim that the purpose of social psychology is to create a utopian society applying social psychology to solve the perpetual problems of humanity, including war, discrimination, violence, and hopelessness. Social psychologists carry Allport's torch to engineer a society free of sexism, homophobia, racism, conflict, social injustice, and global warming.