Social psychology

Assignment 3 – Current Event Analysis
This assignment requires you to apply principles from Social Psychology to understanding a current local, national, or world event. You will use Social Psychology to explain and analyze the event(s) that you choose in a way that (a) demonstrates your mastery of the concepts, and (b) provides a deeper understanding of the events. The best papers will focus on how Social Psychology can help us understand the behaviors and situations involved.
You should start by finding one or more news articles that deal with a particular event or set of events. Free online sources include www.cnn.com, www.npr.org, www.theguardian.com, and www.usatoday.com, but you are not limited to these websites. You may also choose articles from print sources. Whatever you decide, make sure to include a copy of or a web-link to the specific article you are referencing.
Your paper should be 2pages typed, double spaced, with 12-point Times New Roman font and 1-inch margins on all sides. Your paper should be uploaded to Blackboard by 11:59pm on the due date (see syllabus), and should be submitted as a PDF or Word document to Blackboard. If you submit more than one file, the last submission on-time will be graded. Late papers will be penalized 5 points per day late.

Broad Criteria for grading
1. Complete all aspects of the assignment, turn it in on time.
2. Plausibility and insightfulness – Your application of course concepts to current events should be plausible in that your analysis is consistent with theories and evidence discussed in class or in your text, and is also consistent with the nature of the events. Second, apply social psychological concepts in an insightful (i.e., non-obvious) way that increases your reader’s understanding of the events you observed.
3. Clarity, format, and style – use clear writing, do not use slang or text-message style abbreviations. Use correct spelling and grammar, and proofread.