Running Head: EFFECTS OF ELITISM ON SOCIAL PSCYHOLOGY 1

Effects of Elitism on Social Psychology

Deborah Thornton

University of Houston Clear Lake

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During the last century the goal of social psychology has seen a remarkable shift from

solving social ills to a more elitist view of controlling individual thought and behavior through

technology. There has been a decisive movement in western culture to focus less on structural

deformities within our society. Current research has been focused on the control and manipula t ion

of an individual’s thoughts, actions, and reactions. As western societies move away from the

altruistic goals of structural pluralism, social psychology has begun to reflect the ideas commonly

found in an elitist societies.

Between the 1940s and the 1950s social psychologists were in agreement that behavior

change techniques should be used to produce a better world. (Kipnis, 1994) While it appears that

these first and second generation social psychologists had honorable intentions, their views became

jaded to meet the more demanding views of the elite majority. During the middle of the twentieth

century, any views that mirrored Marxism or socialism, were considered heresy, and thus had a

significant effect on the course of study that social psychology would take. No longer would the

focus be on social disruptions caused by poverty, discrimination, and violence, but instead, studies

would now focus on changing an individual’s thoughts, and therefore his behavior. With the

development of social classes, the amount of power held by the elite, or bourgeoisie, became the

impetus for all social science research. Federal funding agencies of the 1950s viewed social

research as being “politically left and not having a methodologically rigorous objective . . . and

important for national welfare and defense”. (Johnson, 1992, p 146) These views had a profound

impact on the future study of social psychology. Federal governments’ influence forced social

psychologists to abandon early social theories focused on solving societal inefficiencies and

redirected their attention to producing individuals that would conform to the elitist views of social

order. From this point forward social psychology has no longer been interested in addressing the

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problems that individuals encounter while trying to live and thrive in a culture of elitist values that

are devoid of overall humanitarian goals.

While postulating the current theories being explored in social psychology the author has

formed many salutary theories in direct conflict with the elitist views of current western society.

First, by using laboratories to study social behavior scientists are missing a vital part of the

sociological equation. Social life is consistently changing and shapeshifting, reflecting if you will,

the current political and economic powers that are in place. In the controlled environment of a

laboratory, it would be ludicrous to believe that a true study of individual behavior would ever

produce useful and relative results. Second, behavior technologies that are currently being used

within the field of social psychology are developed to promote the goals and ideals of an elitist

economy. Social psychologist no longer take into account the objectives of the population that are

most affected by the dissipation of organic solidarity within western culture. This specific

population, the lower echelons of our society, are summarily dismissed in modern social

psychological research. Since this portion of western society has little to no effect on the elite and

their continuous search for more power, current research is summarily focused on problem solving

for the dominant social groups. Behavior technologies are currently developed to strengthen the

power of the dominant group. There seems to be little interest in addressing the quality of life for

the proletariat population. Lastly, the power of social psychologist to use behavioral technology to

observe and manipulate how individuals react to society speaks loudly to the cult of personality

theory. Personality cults are related to totalitarian regimes that sought to alter or transform society

according to the radical ideas of a single leader. Research that advocates displacing more power

into the dominant social groups, belittles the ideals of democracy. While westerners may believe

they have the power of free will, elitist economic and political machines are using science to alter

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our thoughts and actions to conform to their single minded goal to obtain the majority of power

and wealth. The author would propose that under the guise of capitalism western societies are

becoming bourgeois democracies.

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References

Johnson, D. (1992). Psychology in Washington: Next to nothingness and being at the National

Science Foundation. Psychological Science, 3. 145-149.

Kipnis, D. (1994). Accounting for the use of behavior technologies in social psychology. American

Psychologists, Vol 49, No.3, 165-192.

Kreis, S. (2000). Stalin and the cult of personality. The History Guide: Lectures on Twentieth

Century Europe. Retrieved August 30, 2015 http://www.historyguide.org.europe/cult. html

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