Social Psychology

Social psychology tells us that daily behaviors and attitudes stem from the influences of social factors on the individual. In other words, all of our daily actions are fueled from social influences in our daily lives. Social psychology is a branch of psychology concerned with how social phenomena influence us and how people interact with others. There are some basic aspects of social behavior that play a large role in our actions and how we see ourselves. There have been many different theorists who have attempted to explain and understand this idea. After studying and learning about most the theories and ideas, I have come to the conclusion along with the author Kenneth Allan that George Herbert Mead is the only true social psychological theorist.
When trying to compare three social theorists to each other, you must first try to understand the details that are included within each theory itself. Theorists, by nature, create theories that can be debated from all angles but must be a tight fit in order to be considered applicable to society. Theology as a single entity is constructed from deep intellectual thought. When social theorists begin to develop each their own theoretical perspectives, they seem to have an overwhelming grasp on the concepts they try to convey to us. Since it is extremely difficult to have such a complete strong hold on social issues such as self, behaviors and society, it is important to know and understand the basic principles that underline the theories we study. Some of the big contributors to contemporary psychology include Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, George Simmel, and of course George Mead. Each has there own small contribution to help make the theory whole.
Simmel was a conflict theorist who sought to investigate pure or formal sociology by trying to understand the societal forms themselves. Pure sociology refers to the investigation of the forms of interaction that underlie political, economic, religious, and sexual