Arts and Social Sciences Journal

The Roots of Human Rights and the Role of Social Psychology

Abstract

R. Dean Stalnaker

Since the 1930s the field of social psychology has built a distinctive reputation for its work in understanding human rights and advancement of the cause. The focus of the field is interested in the processes of the way we think and behave in relation to other individuals, in group relationships, one-on-one, and how we think, developing a point of views, and how attitudes impact the way we interrelate with each other. Social psychologists in the 1930s also focused on issues associated with prejudice and discrimination in various locations in Europe and the United States. These factors contributed to many issues associated with human rights. The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (2018) defines human rights as moral principles innate to all humans, whatever their nationality, location, gender, ethnic origins, religion, language, or other statuses.