The social being as an amateur psychologist

Addressing criticisms that social psychology documents the obvious, Aronson (2008, p. 7) asserted that most people are “amateur social psychologists” (p. 7) who have developed satisfactory models of social psychology through anecdotal experience and observation. However, even when social psychology and folk psychology agree, a fundamental difference is that a layperson is satisfied with the understanding gained through personal experience, while the professional rigorously gathers empirical data to understand how individuals and groups interact (Flick, 1992). Aronson explained this differentiation by saying that conventional wisdom is “based upon shrewd observation that has stood the test of time,” but lacks the “rigor and impartiality of careful scientific investigation” (2008, p. 7).