From the Paper
"This study will provide a chapter-by-chapter summary of Elliot Aronson's The Social Animal.


In the introductory section, "Why I Wrote This Book," the author declares that too often social psychologists "cop out" by claiming that the field is simply too new to expect much from, and certainly the theories of social psychology, it is too often claimed, cannot be applied meaningfully to "real life" at this early stage. Aronson aims to alter this set of perceptions: "The purpose of this volume is to unashamedly (but with some trepidation) pull out the relevance that sociopsychological research might have for some of the problems besetting contemporary society" (xiv).


The author delineates in this opening section his two primary biases: "The first is that the experimental method is..."

Abstract
The paper analyzes Elliot Aronson's work, "Nobody Left to Hate: Teaching Compassion After Columbine", which deals with the causes of extreme forms of aggressive behavior in schools and, in particular, the horrifying events of the Columbine school massacre. The paper discusses Aronson's ideas on what precipitated such extremes of violent behavior among students and considers Aronson's solutions and methods for dealing with school violence. The paper posits that Aronson's work is an important investigation of the real causes of aggression at school level and among adolescents.

From the Paper
"In brief, Aronson's work finds that there is an atmosphere of fear, intimidation and bullying at many schools. This is exacerbated by extreme competitiveness and an exclusionary and cliquish social atmosphere that pervades many educational institutions and schools. ( Aronson, p. 15) The combined effect of these aspects coalesces to create the atmosphere of alienation and exclusivity at many high schools in the country. The author identifies this as the central cause of violence behavior. In fact, this behavior is seen as reaction to exclusion and alienation."

Tags:aggression, fear, intimidation, bullying

Abstract
This paper is a summary and comment on an article by Aronson called "The Rationalizing Animal", concerning Feistinger's theory of cognitive dissonance, how dissonance develops, how dissonance is resolved through rationalization, the lengths to which the individual will go to resolve dissonance It also discusses how dissonance is involved in the operation of conscience.

From the Paper
"Aronson (1973) examines the concept of rationalization from the point of view of a psychologist examining human behavior and why people believe things that make little sense, suggesting that they may be rationalizing in order to reconcile different ideas they may hold at the same time. The author refers to the theory of cognitive dissonance offered by Feistinger in 1957, a theory that describes and predicts such rationalizing behavior. We receive messages from our surroundings all the time that may challenge our assumptions, our beliefs, or our behaviors, and we may continue behaviors that counter these messages even if we believe the message as well. Aronson notes that the more the individual is committed to a course of action, the more he or she will resist any information that threatens to change that course. This creates cognitive dissonance, and the individual will seek to reduce that dissonance through rationalization."

Tags:cognitive, dissonance, article

Abstract
This paper examines how Anthony Pratkanis and Elliot Aronson's book, "Age of Propaganda: The Everyday Use and Abuse of Persuasion", provides a detailed overview of how persuasive techniques are used by the mass media to manipulate and mislead. It looks at how the authors note that propaganda is used extensively to manipulate our emotions, rather than using logical arguments, thus potentially leading to bad decisions and a decline in public discourse. It also explores how the authors provide a number of strategies for dealing with persuasion, especially for consumers.

From the Paper
"Pratkanis and Aronson note that the meaning of propaganda has gradually shifted over time. At one time, propaganda referred almost solely to disseminating ideas based upon lies. In this definition, propaganda could refer to Nazi Germany's assertions that the Holocaust was not occurring, and that the Jewish people were inferior. However, the meaning of propaganda has gradually moved away from such a firm association with lies. Today, propaganda refers more to influence or suggestion that manipulation the individual. As such, the ultimate goal of propaganda, as it is defined today, is for the recipient to accept the position argued for as their own."

Tags:consumers, emotions, mass, media

Abstract
The paper reviews an article on best practices by D. Aronson. The paper discusses the criteria utilized to identify best practices in managing diversity and complexity. The paper examines which practices (1) have the ability to enable the most success over a designated length of time, (2) produce results that are capable of being measured qualitatively or quantitatively, (3) help develop positive outcomes that include improved customer satisfaction or some other definitive impact on an organization, (4) are innovative and flexible (5) are transferable or replicable to multiple environments with or without modification and (6) provide meaningful improvements and prove meaningful to organizations when benchmarking data.

Table of Contents:
Best Practices Overview
Best Practice #1
(i)Industry example
(ii) Advantages
(iii) Disadvantages
Best Practice #2
(i)Industry example
(ii) Advantages
(iii) Disadvantages
Best Practice #3
(i)Industry example
(ii) Advantages
(iii) Disadvantages
Best Practice #4
(i)Industry example
(ii) Advantages
(iii) Disadvantages
Best Practice #5
(i)Industry example
(ii) Advantages
(iii) Disadvantages

From the Paper
"Companies are currently scrambling to recruit diverse practices (Aronson, 2002). The more diversity is naturally incorporated into the selection and recruitment process, the easier a time corporations will have managing complexity and diversity and establishing an competitive edge in a diverse and international business environment where more and more organizations are promoting multiethnic causes (Aronson, 2002)."

Tags:training, management

Abstract
This paper first gives a complete description of the commercial put out by the National Youth Media against drug abuse. It then describes how the fear-appeal and perceived-efficacy tactics are used in the commercial to persuade the viewer to not use drugs. It closes with a paragraph on whether or not the author found the commercial to be effective.

From the Paper
"This advertisement was an efficacious use of the fear appeal technique. The aim of the spot was to alert potential and current users of the drug meth of the possible effects that using the drug can cause. I doubt that any other technique would have presented this point quite as well. Many of those thinking about using the drug or already using the drug may lack the knowledge necessary about the drug to make conscious, educated decisions about using it. This commercial seeks to instill apprehension and fear in viewers so that they will be discouraged from using the drug."

Tags:meth, Pratkanis, Aronson