Social Cognitive Development - PSY00059M

«Back to module search

  • Department: Psychology
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: M
  • Academic year of delivery: 2025-26

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Semester 2 2025-26

Module aims

Humans are a deeply social species. In this module, we will examine how children come to understand the social world and interact with others. We will discuss the origins of positive social behaviours such as helping and sharing, as well as the origins of social problems such as prejudice and discrimination.

Module learning outcomes

  • Critically evaluate the major findings in each of the topics covered, including the development of prosocial behaviour, imitation and morality.
  • Evaluate and reflect upon the relative merits of different methods for studying social cognitive development.
  • Demonstrate a deep understanding of the role of learning in bringing about mature social cognitive abilities.
  • Compare and contrast the social behaviour of children from different cultural backgrounds.
  • Critically evaluate the implications of major findings for psychology and society.

Module content

  • Understanding other people: The origins theory of mind in infancy
  • Learning from other people: Imitation in infancy and early childhood
  • Helping other people: Understanding the origins of prosociality
  • Judging other people: The origins of morality in young children
  • Prejudice and discrimination: Investigating intergroup biases in young children
  • Cross cultural approaches to child development

Indicative assessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Module feedback

The marks on all assessed work will be provided on e-vision.

Indicative reading

Indicative reading

  • Dunham, Y., Baron, A.S., & Carey, S. (2011). Consequences of ‘minimal’ group affiliations in children. Child Development, 82(3), 793-811.
  • Martin, A., & Olson, K. R. (2015). Beyond good and evil: What motivations underlie children's prosocial behavior. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10, 159-175.
  • Over, H. (2020). The social function of imitation in development. Annual Review of Developmental Psychology, 2, 93-109.