Change Seen Through the Lens of Social Psychology in Europe and the United States

Abstract

In this chapter, the authors consider the theme both by browsing through seminal reference books and scholars’ contributions and by using digital methods, probing all the abstracts published in two key journals: the US Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and the European Journal of Social Psychology. The keyword change is explored in its frequency, concordances, and usage contexts and trends over time in the two journals. The results empirically support Marková’s claim that change has mostly been studied in social psychology as perturbation of patterns of stability and has focused on individuals as surrounded and affected by social contexts. To better understand and foster societal changes, a “more social” social psychology would be helpful, particularly adopting study designs and projects oriented by perspectives that can emphasize the mutual and constitutive relations between the individual and the social.