ABSTRACT
Like all areas, social psychology presents a unique set of problems and opportunities for its students and instructors. Although the material is usually accessible (students seldom “just can’t get it” as happens more frequently in, say, a statistics course), there is always more to the material than meets the eye. The things that make social psychology attractive to students, such as its accessibility and intuitive appeal, make it a good course to engage students and encourage critical thinking. We discuss some of the unusual opportunities that social psychology provides for the student and instructor, suggest some helpful methods instructors can employ in teaching the course that help it come alive for students, and conclude with some commentary on the nature of the critical thinking outcomes that students can take with them long after they may have forgotten material from the class.
