Psychology Essay Questions

Study methods to test attitude towards Americans

Select five questions from the list below, and answer them to the best of your ability. Each answer must be at least one full page in length (12 point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, one-inch margins). The questions will involve material from your text and the lecture material, but may require you to branch out and engage with other scholarly literature. A reference section is not necessary for each question. Spelling and grammar do count. Each question is worth four points.

1. Suppose I wanted to test the statement “Canadians tend to have anti-American attitudes.”  There are many possible methods that I could use to test this claim.  Design and describe two studies, one using a correlational method and one using an experimental method, that could test this claim.

2. In the early 2000s, neuroscientist Vilanyur Ramachandran studied the case of John Sharon, a young man with temporal lobe epilepsy. When John experienced a seizure, he would have intense and highly-emotional religious feelings. Sometimes he would believe that he completely understood the meaning of existence, or that he was a prophet. At one point, he believed himself to be God. Using the relevant theoretical and empirical work in the neuropsychology of religion, explain why John’s epilepsy could cause these phenomena.

3. In Chapter Three of your textbook, we see several misconceptions about behavioural genetics. Suppose I were to make the claim that, since researchers have found a strong genetic influence on aggressiveness, I should not be held responsible for attacking my next-door neighbour last week. Explain why my claim is invalid.

4. Using the relevant empirical research presented in Chapter Four of your textbook, explain why subliminal self-help products do not work.

5. On February 14th, 2007, the Seattle Times reported that 38-year-old Barry Millsap was shot and killed by a Tacoma police officer.  Mr. Millsap’s wife had called the police, saying that she had been attacked by her husband, and when officers arrived at the scene, Mr. Millsap threatened to shoot any of them who entered the house.  When officers eventually did enter the house, Mr. Millsap ran and hid behind a couch.  Mr. Millsap then stood up from behind the couch and pointed an object at the police, who shot and killed him.  The object turned out to be a black cordless drill.  Approximately a month later, the Pierce County Prosecutor ruled that the officer’s shooting was justified.  

Using the relevant theory and research from Chapter Four of your textbook, explain why the officer’s shooting of a man who was not holding a weapon might be considered justified?  Be specific in your answer.

6. Hypnosis has a wide range of clinical applications; however, there are also many misconceptions about hypnosis, as we saw in Chapter Five of your textbook. Find four examples on the internet (include links in your essay) of claims made about hypnosis (these can include articles about hypnosis, self-help sites, or websites of people offering hypnosis services) and explain whether or not each one is an accurate portrayal of hypnosis.

7. This question is not a one-page essay. Using the image below, identify what lobe of the brain is marked by each letter, and provide one fact about a function that is associated with each lobe.