Political Psychology
Critical Perspectives

This book provides an introduction to political psychology through a focus on European politics and topics. It describes a style of doing political psychology in Europe that has developed out of dialogue with as well as critique of North American approaches. By emphasising the theoretical and methodological diversity of political psychology, the book is intended to contribute to a greater understanding of the strength and utility of the field. ? Opens up and extends the study of political psychology to a variety of socio-political contexts and manifestations of political behaviour ? Clearly outlines the usefulness and promises of distinctive critical approaches in social and political psychology ? Explicitly considers the role of language, communication, identity and social representations in the construction of political meanings. Political Psychology will appeal to upper-level students and scholars who seek to extend their knowledge of the complex relationship between psychology, politics and society.

Introduction: political psychology as an interpretative field; 1. Public opinion and the rhetorical complexity of attitudes; 2. Mass subjectivity, values and democracy promotion; 3. The political psychology of intolerance: authoritarianism, extremism and moral exclusion; 4. Social representations of political affairs and beliefs; 5. From social to political identity: understanding self, intergroup relations and collective action; 6. Collective memory and political narratives; 7. Discourse and politics; 8. Political rhetoric; 9. Mediated politics: political discourse and political communication; Epilogue.

Cristian Tileagă is Senior Lecturer in Social Psychology and member of the Discourse and Rhetoric Group at Loughborough University. His research centres on developing critical frameworks for researching social and political behaviour and his research interests include the discursive analysis of political discourse, collective memory, the critical psychology of racism, and social representations of history.