the Legendary Social Psychologist Elliot Aronson
2017-11-22

Not by Chance Alone with the Legendary Social Psychologist Elliot Aronson

“Life is full of lessons, and ‘playing the hand you’re dealt as well as you can play it’ is a good one.” — Elliot Aronson

Today I’m incredibly excited to welcome the legendary Elliot Aronson to The Psychology Podcast. Aronson is an eminent social psychologist who is best known for his groundbreaking experiments on the theory of cognitive dissonance and for his invention of the Jigsaw Classroom, a highly effective cooperative teaching technique which facilitates learning while reducing interethnic hostility and prejudice. He is the only person in the 120-year history of the American Psychological Association to have won all three of its major awards: for writing, for teaching, and for research, and in 2007 he received the William James Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Association for Psychological Science, in which he was cited as the scientist who “fundamentally changed the way we look at everyday life.”

Over the course of our in-depth and wide-ranging discussion, Aronson:

It was a pleasure to have a legend in the field on the show for such a comprehensive conversation, filled with stories and lessons. Enjoy!

Links:

Elliot Aronson’s memoir, Not By Chance Alone: My Life as a Social Psychologist, is available on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Not-Chance-Alone-Social-Psychologist/dp/0465031390 [Book]

To learn more about Aronson’s highly effective Jigsaw Classroom (from outcomes to implementation) visit https://www.jigsaw.org/ [Resource]

The Social  Animal – Through vivid narrative, lively presentations of important research, and intriguing examples, Aronson’s textbook offers a brief, compelling introduction to modern social psychology https://www.amazon.com/Social-Animal-Elliot-Aronson/dp/1429233419 [Textbook]

(Mentioned) Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003K15IOE [Book]

About the guest

the Legendary Social Psychologist Elliot Aronson

Podcast Guest

Elliot Aronson is an American social psychologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who received his PhD from Stanford University in 1959. He is the author of the influential textbook The Social Animal and is the only psychologist to have received the American Psychological Association's top awards for distinguished research, teaching, and writing.

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