Dynamical Social Psychology is a new branch of Social Psychology. It is based on idea of dynamical system which refers to a set of elements that interact in complex, often nonlinear ways to form coherent patterns. Because of the complexity of these interactions, the system as a whole may evolve over time in seemingly unpredictable ways as new patterns of behavior emerge. This metatheory has proven useful in understanding diverse phenomena in meteorology, population biology, statistical mechanics, economics, and cosmology. The module demonstrates how the dynamical systems perspective can be applied to theory construction and research in social psychology, and in doing so, provides fresh insight into such complex phenomena as interpersonal behavior, social relations, attitudes, and social cognition.

The module is structured in 2 parts. Part 1 focuses on the delivery of lecture materials indelivering the dynamical perspective on social psychology, in specific topics such as attitudes andjudgments, action and control, self-structure, social relations, social influence and social change,and psychology in cyberspace. The second part is delivered as a practical workshop, giving in-depth knowledge on thedynamical systems, properties and models. The following specific topics are covered: nonlineardynamics: discrete systems, nonlinear dynamics: continous systems, cellular automata, networks,emergence.

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to: - demonstrate knowledge of the terminology used in psychology and its sub-disciplines at a higher level, understands its sources and application within related research disciplines. - exhibit deeper knowledge about creating, reviewing and applying tools for acquiring data related to social units and structures, phenomena relevant to them and processes occurring in them. - observe, identify, interpret and explain social phenomena and relations between them in terms of psychological health and pathologies in that context using any available sources of information and research methods. - demonstrate integrated knowledge in the field of psychology and related areas for a detailed analysis of complex social phenomena such as psychological, educational, assistance and therapeutic problems. - have the ability to use integrated knowledge in the field of psychology and related areas to evaluate complex social phenomena such as psychological, educational, assistance and therapeutic problems.

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to: exhibit a more holistic perspective of larger systems and networks, in the understanding of individual psychology.

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In Part 1 of the module, the interaction of students and teacher will happen predominantly during lectures. In part 2, practical workshops ensure a more interactive and participative learning experience. The assessments include individual and group coursework.