Final Paper:
You are required to write a 4-5 pages, double-spaced type-written paper. The writing assignment is intended to give you an opportunity to integrate course material with your own interests. In this paper, you should incorporate a developmental theory learned in class and/or from your textbook with observations and/or interviews conducted of children, adolescents, adults, friends, or yourself. Write this paper as if you were going to have your friend read it. (In other words, do not assume that the reader understands the developmental concepts and/or theories). Have fun with this paper!
Deadline: June 21 (Friday), but extended until June 23 (Sunday) by 11:59 pm if you need a couple of extra days
The assignment should include:
1) a statement of your topic (introductory paragraph)
2) reference to a relevant developmental theory & give a brief description of the theory (e.g., social learning theory)
3) an objective description of your observations/findings
4) a conclusion concerning whether your observations/findings supported or failed to support the theory
5) reference/citation page in APA format
Please write as much of your paper in your own words! Your paper needs to be in essay format, and it should read as if you are describing and explaining this study to a family member or friend who does not have a background in psychology. Do not separate your paper with headings for each section. Plagiarism and the use of Generative AI (e.g., Chat GPT) will not be tolerated and it will result in a ZERO on your paper.
Potential paper topics:
1. What are the gender stereotypes that are depicted in children’s and adolescents’ programming and advertising? (Be specific about the TV programming that you are watching). What gender differences are there in kinds of activities and style of action? What differences are shown in the ways in which boys and girls relate to others, and the strategies they employ to obtain goals? How do these theories discussed in the text or in lecture explain these differences?
** If you prefer, you can substitute books aimed at children and/or adolescents (rather than TV programs)
** You can also choose to focus on adults’ programming and advertising
2. Observe sharing and other helpful behavior among children or adolescents. Note if you find any age or gender differences. What are the circumstances and consequences for prosocial behavior? To what extent may the behaviors you observed be accounted for by compliance with conventional or moral “rules,” social reciprocity responses, and/or empathic responses? How do altruistic theories apply to your observations?
3. What are the triggers for peer aggression? How do children and/or adolescents respond to aggressiveness of their peers? Does it work or does it lead to rejection? Are there any age differences? Gender differences? Observe children or adolescents in school/daycare settings (e.g., playground for children) if you have access to schools or daycares. Explain how these behaviors would be explained by the various theories of aggression.
** You can also focus on cyber-bullying
4. Observe interactions in girls’ groups and boys’ groups. What, if any, are the differences in their style of conversation, interaction goals, play styles, etc.? How might these differences be accounted for by biological, learning, and/or cognitive theories?
5. How do adults talk to children of different ages? How do children respond to baby-talk versus adult speech? You could observe how adults talk to children in public situations (e.g., grocery store). How may one account for these patterns theoretically?
6. Observe how parents interact with their children, OR reflect on how you were raised by your parents. Do your observations support Baumrind’s and Maccoby’s parenting styles (i.e., authoritarian, authoritative, permissive, uninvolved)? Do these types of parenting styles influence the way that their children turn out? Friendly? Aggressive? Delinquent? In addition, what if one parent is one style, but the other parent uses a different parenting style? How does this affect their children?
7. Observe how same-sex parents are raising their children. Is it two mothers or two fathers? Is there confusion with “gender roles?” Do people tend to treat them differently? Do other children treat their children in a negative way (e.g., teasing, bullying)? Integrate your observations with the research on same-sex parenting.
8. Conduct one of Piaget’s cognitive developmental experiments (e.g., conservation tasks, egocentrism, object permanence) with children or adolescents of different ages. Do your findings support or disconfirm Piaget’s findings? If your results do not confirm Piaget’s findings, how else can you account for your data?
9. Conduct an informal experiment utilizing Ainsworth’s Strange Situation. Observe how children and parents interact with each other, particularly during the separation and reunion episodes. You may also want to observe how the children respond to a stranger. Explain your results (A, B, C, D babies), and whether they are consistent with past research findings.
10. Observe a child or adolescent that has a psychological disorder (e.g., ADHD, autism, conduct disorders). Describe the disorder, the child’s/adolescent’s history, as well as his/her behavior and treatment of the disorder. Which theoretical perspective(s) can account for this type of disorder? Do you agree with it/them? How about the treatment? Does it work? Do you have any problems with the type of treatment that is being utilized?
11. Interviewing College-Age Students About Emerging Adulthood
Ask the following questions to four or five college-age friends:
(a) Do you consider yourself to have reached adulthood? Why or why not?
(b) What criteria would you use to determine whether a person has become fully adult?
After recording the answers, students can compare them with research presented in the text, considering the following questions:
(c) Did any respondents give ambiguous answers? Explain.
(d) Did any respondents view themselves as having reached adulthood? If so, what were their reasons for thinking so?
(e) Did criteria for reaching adulthood vary among respondents? If so, what might explain that variation?
12. Preferred Characteristics of Romantic Partners Found through Online Dating Services
You can examine preferred characteristics of potential romantic partners by analyzing the characteristics emphasized in online dating profiles. You can systematically sample the profiles by reading, for example, every fifth one, every tenth one, or another selected number.
After you have had some time to read the profiles, compare the preferred characteristics described on dating sites with the findings of research on mate selection. Discussion questions might include the following:
(a) Are there age and sex differences in preferred characteristics?
(b) What characteristics do men typically reveal about themselves? How about women?
(c) Do students notice cultural differences in the qualities people are seeking in a mate?
(d) Do individuals who advertise on dating sites mostly seem to be seeking long-term or short-term relationships?
(e) Do your observations match research findings on mate selection in the text?
13. Interviewing Friends or Relatives About Experiences with Leaving Home
Interview three or four friends or relatives about experiences with leaving home, using the following questions as a guide:
(a) At what age did the individual first leave home?
(b) What were the circumstances surrounding the departure (for example, did they leave for work, college, marriage)?
(c) Has the individual returned home since the initial departure? If so, why?
(d) Was leaving home a stressful event, or did the individual feel prepared and ready to depart? Explain.
(e) Compare the answers with research presented in the text. Did timing of departure vary with the reason for leaving? Did individuals return home at least once after their initial departure?
(f) What do you surmise from your interviews? Where there any patterns? How does it fit the research findings?
14. Completing a Marriage Contract
Reflect on the multitude of decisions and accommodations married couples must make, and draw up an imaginary marriage contract with a significant other or friend. The goal of the contract is for you and your partners to clearly define both of your expectations about marriage and identify areas of disagreement. Some questions to address in the contract include:
Where will you live? Where do you plan to work? If one of you is promoted, what circumstances will affect your decision to take the promotion (including willingness to move far away)?
Do you plan to affiliate with a church, synagogue, or mosque? Do you and your partner agree on religion and religious affiliation?
Do you plan to pursue more education or vocational training?
How will you divide household chores? Will your finances be combined or kept separate?
How will you spend holidays (for example, will you split holidays between the two sides of the family)? How much time will you spend with each other’s families?
Do you plan to rent or buy a house?
Do you plan to have children? If so, how many? Will both parents continue to work after a baby is born? If so, who will take care of the child while you’re at work? If not, who will stay home? How will you compensate for the decline in income if one parent stays home?
Do you agree on the best approach to disciplining children? Where will your children go to school? Do you plan to send your children to college? If so, how will you finance college?
What leisure-time activities do you expect to pursue, both together and separately?
How will you handle marital conflict? Will you have a prenuptial agreement? If so, what would you like it to include?
Once you have completed their contracts, reflect on the activity. Did you learn anything new about your partner? Did you discuss areas of disagreement as you were completing the contract? Was this a challenging activity? Would students use a contract like this? Explain.
15. Midlife Questioning: Crisis, Turning Points, and Life Regrets
Interview a middle-aged adult, using the following questions:
Tell me about a turning point in your life. Was it positive or negative, or a mixture of both positive and negative elements?
Have you ever experienced something you would describe as a midlife crisis? Was age the major factor involved, or were there causes unrelated to age?
Tell me about one or more life regrets that you have experienced. Did the regret center on romantic or family life, education or career, or another aspect of life?
If you have experienced lost opportunities, how do you feel about them now?
Record their answers and compare them with research presented in the text. Did participants make changes that might be described as turning points in their lives? Did any participants report experiencing a midlife crisis? If so, how did they define it? For participants who described experiencing life regrets, how did they interpret these regrets? Were they able to disengage from their regrets, or did some of their disappointments remain unresolved?
16. Conducting an Interview on Physical Changes in Late Adulthood
Interview a grandparent, a friend’s grandparent, or another older adult about physical changes in late adulthood. Here are some questions to ask:
(a) What changes have been most noticeable to you? Which do you think have been most noticeable to others?
(b) Have your sleep habits or your diet changed since middle adulthood? In what ways, and what do you think the effects have been?
(c) How have you adapted to the physical changes you have experienced?
Next, compare the answers with research presented in the text and to answer the following questions:
(d) Did the interviewee mention physical changes that are common in late adulthood?
(e) In your opinion, has this individual adapted favorably to the physical changes of late adulthood? Why or why not?
(f) Were you surprised by any of the answers? If so, explain.
17. The Right-to-Die Controversy
Pose the following questions to two or three friends or family members:
(a) “Who should make end-of-life decisions, such as stopping treatment when a patient is near death or has no hope of recovery, when the patient’s wishes are unclear? Why?”
(b) “Is medical aid-in-dying ever ethically justifiable? If so, under what conditions?”
Record the answers and to consider cultural, religious, and personal influences on those answers. Summarize your findings. Share your thoughts on these issues and to reflect on the factors affecting your reasoning.
18. Propose your own topic and chat with me about it first!
