Capella University Trait Oriented Personality & Developmental Psychology Discussion and Reflection

Capella University Trait Oriented Personality & Developmental Psychology Discussion and Reflection

Question Description
1. Discussion

Debate the Issues
For this discussion, select either Topic A or Topic B.

TOPIC A
Describe the position of a biologically-oriented or trait-oriented personality theorist and the position of a social learning-oriented theorist. Explore the differences and the implications of the theoretical positions for rehabilitating prisoners.

TOPIC B
Describe the position of a social psychologist who approves of deceptive and stressful research designs (if the stress does no lasting harm), and the position of a social psychologist who does not approve of this type of research. After completing the descriptions, state the values each psychologist (probably) holds, to take the position she or he does.

See the Weekly Due Dates Calendar posted to the Updates and Handouts folder for initial post due date.

2.ASSIGNMENT

Reflection on History of Psychology
Choose an area of psychology covered during the course that is of interest to you or in which you already work, such as developmental, cognitive, neuroscience, et cetera. You will be describing the historical progression of this particular area of psychology. How did it develop as a specialized area of psychology? You will then be illustrating how this area of psychology has both been influenced by social or political events, as well as has influenced social or political events.

To get an idea of the many specializations to choose from, visit the American Psychological Associations divisions (linked in the Resources).

To see an overview of the 56 divisions by topic or number, click Browse Divisions by Topic or Numberunder Quick Links.

You can use information from APA’s Web sites as a professional source for your paper. Note that the information on the Web site does not qualify as a scholarly source.
In a well-written 4–5 page scholarly paper please address the following:

Begin with a discussion of the historical progression of your chosen area of psychology. Describe how this area of psychology evolved into a specialization.
For the body of your paper, provide discussion on the relationship between your chosen field in psychology and society through social and political influences. Within the context of your chosen field, your paper must address:
How the particular area of psychology that you chose influences social and political events. Provide specific examples supported by your readings.
How social and political events have influenced this area of psychology. Provide specific examples supported by your readings.
How two areas in practice and research that apply to your chosen field in psychology affect society in a helpful and a harmful manner. For example, two areas you might focus on in cognitive psychology are the use of brain scanning technology and research in the area of attention processes. Use specific “real world” examples, and support your examples with information from your readings.
Conclude your paper with a reflection on how and why knowledge of the history of psychology is necessary for those who want to work in your chosen field.
In addition to other professional sources, such as your textbook, use a minimum of two scholarly sources to support your ideas. Please note that popular websites are not acceptable sources of support.

 

You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.
Weekly Participation

Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.
APA Format and Writing Quality

Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.
Use of Direct Quotes

I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.
LopesWrite Policy

For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.
Late Policy

The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.
Communication

Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.