Social psychologist: roles and functions

Psychology covers various fields that, in many cases, delimit specialties. In the area of ​​the social environment we find the social psychologist, who is dedicated to studying the behaviors, feelings and thoughts associated with our interaction with others.

Now, the social psychologist helps improve people’s quality of life through their intervention. Thus, he generates greater well-being in the people with whom he works. To do this, he performs various functions. Continue reading this article, we will observe the functions of the social psychologist one by one and we will be able to see the fields in which he develops his work. Thus, you will learn about his valuable work.

1. Evaluation, planning and management

The social psychologist is in charge of carrying out an assessment of the environment in which he is going to intervene, This includes the people you will be working with. For it:

Set an evaluation objective according to the group’s needs. Assess the group’s capabilities. Estimate the prevention and awareness programs. Observe what resources you have to work with and set objectives based on this.

Thus, it is able to detect what the group or person requires and establish goals. So, generates projects to solve those needs that were found and makes evaluations to assess the real changes that the interventions made are producing.

Besides, has the resources and directs the activities to be carried out. To do this, you can intervene at a group or individual level. And, it requires attention throughout the process to reach the objectives you have set.

2. Training

The social psychologist is also responsible for training. Through psychoeducation, it provides the community or the individual with different resources to face the situation that affects the group. That is, it guides them to resolve their needs through teaching. Thus, whether it is the community or the individual, they learn how to manage their emotions, thoughts and behaviors for their well-being. In this way, you improve the quality of life of the people you work with. Wonderful, right?

Besides, carries out social fabric construction programs that improve the well-being of the community. It does this through the creation of inclusive projects, having already carried out an evaluation and set the objectives.

3. Research

Another of the tasks of the social psychologist is to investigate. This professional obtains new knowledge from the analysis of individuals and communities in terms of their social interaction. To do this, he studies both their behaviors and their ideas and emotions.

Research in social psychology is multiple.. Furthermore, they cover various fields. For example, Martínez-Tur, Peiró, Ramos and Tordera show their research on the contributions of social psychology to the study of user and consumer satisfaction in their article for the International Journal of Social Psychology.

There are hundreds of social psychology studies like this. Some of the most explored fields are social psychology within organizations, the social psychology of groups, health, learning, personality or war and trauma.

4. Intervention, an essential task of the social psychologist

The social psychologist intervenes in various ways. Let’s see:

Social. It focuses on group participation. Through: self-help groups, parenting schools, training workshops in specific skills, group psychotherapy, collectives, and health promotion and prevention, among others.Individual. Through psychotherapy or psychoeducation so that the person integrates into their community.Familiar. From psychotherapy and activities such as workshops.Mediation. To help the parties to the conflict reach a satisfactory agreement.Environmental. Through ecological models.

For the intervention, the social psychologist conducts surveys, creates structured groups, evaluates resources and needs, and uses different instruments and techniques for the benefit of the target groups (groups that are affected in one way or another by the intervention).

Areas of action of the social psychologist

The social psychologist can work in the following areas. Let’s observe:

Study, assessment and analysis of the needs of a group or community.Preparation of indices and indicators of the aspects that are related to the interaction within a group.Detection of risk groups within a community.Planning of advertising campaigns.Analysis of the social networks of a group or community. Research on the skills, attitudes and social perceptions of a community or group. Planning of programs, projects and field work in a community or group. Design of social inclusion strategies.Design of psychosocial evaluation tools.Execution of cultural activities.Group psychotherapy.Facilitation of resources.Work with specific groups in society: women, older people, ethnic minorities, LGTBIQ+ community, etc.

Working methods of the social psychologist

The social psychologist has a series of tools to carry out his work and achieve his objectives. Let’s see them one by one:

Social ecology: applied to a specific geographical location, to determine the networks between people in the same location (associations, neighborhood groups, etc.).Institutional intervention: When an organization is not achieving its objectives, the social psychologist is responsible for discovering what is failing and giving them tools to overcome their difficulties.Group intervention: at all levels when it comes to groups of people. Citizen participation, teamwork, solidarity, etc.Family intervention: The family is conceived as a set of dynamic relationships, both internal and external, which is why strategies are provided to improve them.Individual level: social training of the individual, that is, preparing him for social scenarios that are relevant to him.

As you have seen, the social psychologist can work in various fields. To do this, it requires a specialty, although the psychology degree is the beginning of training for social intervention, The specialty helps the professional develop specific skills for thisand have deeper knowledge.

So, The social psychologist is the unparalleled professional who intervenes in groups and communities so that they have greater well-being, not only in relation to them, but also with the environment in which they operate. Through groups and the community, the social psychologist executes wonderful projects that create a more favorable environment for the target community.

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