ALC8001 : The Social Psychology of Communication
- Offered for Year: 2024/25
- Module Leader(s): Professor Tony Young
- Owning School: Education, Communication & Language Sci
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 1 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
To introduce students to key social psychological frameworks and models, and what they can tell us about how and why people communicate with each other in the ways that they do.
Social Psychology is concerned with individuals as social beings. Much of our social behaviour, and the relationship between our social environment and individual self, involves communication. This module therefore introduces and explores how social, situational and structural factors affect communication of various kinds. Topics and issues concerned with attitudinal, motivational and cognitive aspects of communication will be explored using social psychological models and frameworks such as Social Identity Theory and Communication Accommodation Theory. These will also be illustrated and exemplified by the examination of recent empirical literature, especially that relating to cross-cultural communication.
Outline Of Syllabus
1. Module outline, assessment and introduction to SPC – the importance of groups and group identities
2. Conceptual background – Communication Accommodation and Social Identity Theories
3. Learning styles
4. Personality
5. Non-verbal Communication
6. The effects of the study of CCC
7. Migration: Adjustment and adaptation
8. Dementia communication (Research Case Study 1)
9. Which English? (Research Case Study 2)
10. Reintegration of refugee professionals (Research Case Study 3)
11. Drop-in session - module review, questions arising and module assessment workshop
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 50:00 | 50:00 | N/A |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 11 | 2:00 | 22:00 | N/A |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 1 | 30:00 | 30:00 | N/A |
| Structured Guided Learning | Structured non-synchronous discussion | 11 | 1:00 | 11:00 | N/A |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 87:00 | 87:00 | N/A |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
Lectures provide an introduction to the weekly content, establish a basic level of understanding of the topic, provide opportunities for discussion and personal reflections, and signal areas for individual further study and essential and further reading. Group activities are often linked to pre-class weekly reading
Structured Guided Learning activities provide students with weekly opportunities to consolidate learning through guided tasks linked to the weekly topic.
Independent study will enable wider reading, further personal self-reflection and assignment preparation.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 1 | A | 100 | 3,500 words. |
Formative Assessments
Formative Assessment is an assessment which develops your skills in being assessed, allows for you to receive feedback, and prepares you for being assessed. However, it does not count to your final mark.
| Description | Semester | When Set | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral Presentation | 1 | M | Group research presentation |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
All skills and knowledge will be assessed through an end of module essay, in which students will produce a critical evaluation of some aspect of social psychological theory and how this relates to communicative practices.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- ALC8001's Timetable