Society of Experimental Social Psychology

The Society of Experimental Social Psychology (SESP) is a scientific professional organization of social psychologists

Social psychology

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. By this definition, scientific refers to the empirical method of investigation. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all...

. SESP has over 700 members worldwide.

History

The organization was founded in 1965 with a goal of advancing and communicating theories

Scientific theory

A scientific theory comprises a collection of concepts, including abstractions of observable phenomena expressed as quantifiable properties, together with rules that express relationships between observations of such concepts...

in social psychology. Its first chairperson

Chair (official)

The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...

was Edwin P. Hollander.

Membership

Membership is by nomination only and is typically exclusive. Nominees are limited to psychologist

Psychologist

Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...

s who are at least five-years post-PhD

PHD

PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

and have authored at least five papers in top social psychology journals

Academic journal

An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...

(e.g., the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...

). Notable early members included Solomon Asch

Solomon Asch

Solomon Eliot Asch , also known as Shlaym, was an American Gestalt psychologist and pioneer in social psychology.-Early life and education:...

, Leon Festinger, Harold Kelley

Harold Kelley

Harold Kelley was an American social psychologist and professor of psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles...

, and Stanley Schachter. Its current executive officer is Charles Stangor.

Activities

The official journal of SESP is the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology is a scientific journal covering Psychology published by Elsevier, and is distributed as part of dues to the membership of the Society of Experimental Social Psychology...

, one of the field's top journals. It is published by Elsevier

Elsevier

Elsevier is a publishing company which publishes medical and scientific literature. It is a part of the Reed Elsevier group. Based in Amsterdam, the company has operations in the United Kingdom, USA and elsewhere....

and its current editor is Joel Cooper

Princeton University Department of Psychology

The Princeton University Department of Psychology, located in Green Hall, is an academic department of Princeton University on the corner of Washington St. and William St. in Princeton, New Jersey. For over a century, the department has been one of the most notable psychology departments in the...

. In 2009 they announced the publication of a new journal, Social Psychological and Personality Science, a short report journal modelled after journals like Science

Science

Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...

and Psychological Science

Psychological science

Psychological Science is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the Association for Psychological Science , published by SAGE Publications. It is one of the most influential journals in psychology.-Publishings:...

. Publication is slated to begin in January 2010.

SESP also holds an annual conference

Academic conference

An academic conference or symposium is a conference for researchers to present and discuss their work. Together with academic or scientific journals, conferences provide an important channel for exchange of information between researchers.-Overview:Conferences are usually composed of various...

History

Membership

Activities

See also