The Social Psychology of Good and Evil, First Edition

by Miller, Arthur G.

• ISBN13: 9781572309890
• ISBN10: 157230989X
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-02-10
• Publisher: The Guilford Press

Summary

This compelling text brings together an array of distinguished scholars to explore key concepts, theories, and findings pertaining to some of the most fundamental issues in social life: the conditions under which people are kind and helpful to others or, conversely, under which they commit harmful, even murderous acts. Covered are such topics as the complex interaction of individual, societal, and situational factors underpinning good or evil behavior; the role of guilt and the self-concept; and issues of responsibility and motivation, including why good people do bad things. The volume also examines whether aggression and violence are inescapable aspects of human nature, and how cooperative interaction can break down stereotyping and discrimination.

Author Biography

Arthur G. Miller, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He received his doctorate in social psychology from Indiana University in 1967 and spent 1979/n-/1980 at Princeton University on a National Institute of Mental Health fellowship, studying with Ned Jones. Dr. Miller’s professional affiliations include the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, the Society of Experimental Social Psychology, and the Society for Personality and Social Psychology. He is the editor of [i]In the Eye of the Beholder: Contemporary Issues in Stereotyping[/i] and the author of [i]The Obedience Experiments: A Case Study of Controversy in Social Science[/i]. Dr. Miller’s primary teaching and research interests include stereotyping and stigma, biases in attribution and social judgment, and judgmental reactions to diverse explanations of evil and violence.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction and Overview	1	(20)
Arthur G. Miller
I. CONCEPTUAL PERSPECTIVES ON GOOD AND EVIL
2. A Situationist Perspective on the Psychology of Evil: Understanding How Good People Are Transformed into Perpetrators	21	(30)
Philip G. Zimbardo
3. Basic Human Needs, Altruism, and Aggression	51	(34)
Ervin Staub
4. Four Roots of Evil	85	(17)
Roy F. Baumeister and Kathleen D. Vohs
5. The Evolution of Evil	102	(25)
Joshua D. Duntley and David M. Buss
II. HARMING OTHERS: CONTEXTS, CAUSES, AND IMPLICATIONS
6. What's in a Category?: Responsibility, Intent, and the Avoidability of Bias against Outgroups	127	(14)
Susan T. Fiske
7. Contemporary Racial Bias: When Good People Do Bad Things	141	(27)
John F. Dovidio, Samuel L. Gaertner, Jason A. Nier, Kerry Kawakami, and Gordon Hodson
8. Violent Evil and the General Aggression Model	168	(25)
Craig A. Anderson and Nicholas L. Carnagey
9. What Can the Milgram Obedience Experiments Tell Us about the Holocaust?: Generalizing from the Social Psychology Laboratory	193	(47)
Arthur G. Miller
10. Conceptualizing Sexual Violence: Socially Acceptable Coercion and Other Controversies	240	(31)
Charlene L. Muehlenhard and Zoe D. Peterson
III. THE SELF-CONCEPT IN RELATION TO GOOD AND EVIL ACTS
11. The Pursuit of Self-Esteem: Implications for Good and Evil	271	(32)
Jennifer Crocker, Shawna J. Lee, and Lora E. Park
12. The Many Faces of Lies	303	(24)
Bella M. DePaulo
13. A Moral-Emotional Perspective on Evil Persons and Evil Deeds	327	(32)
June Price Tangney and Jeff Stuewig
IV. THE POSSIBILITIES FOR KINDNESS
14. Benefits and Liabilities of Empathy-Induced Altruism	359	(27)
C. Daniel Batson, Nadia Ahmad, and E.L. Stocks
15. Empathy-Related Responding: Moral, Social, and Socialization Correlates	386	(30)
Nancy Eisenberg, Carlos Valiente, and Claire Champion
16. Social Support and Behavior toward Others: Some Paradoxes and Some Directions	416	(28)
Thomas Ashby Wills and Jody A. Resko
17. Sacrificing Time and Effort for the Good of Others: The Benefits and Costs of Volunteerism	444	(25)
Mark Snyder, Allen M. Omoto, and James J. Lindsay
18. Reducing Hostility and Building Compassion: Lessons from the Jigsaw Classroom	469	(20)
Elliot Aronson
Index	489