Assignment: Essays Part I:

Your writing should illustrate knowledge of the concepts through an original personal and/or professional integration of the assigned text material. All assignments MUST be typed, double-spaced, in APA style, and must be written at graduate level English. The content, conciseness, and clarity of your answers will be considered in the evaluation of your work. You must integrate the material presented in the text and cite your work according to APA format. Legal, ethical, and cultural considerations must be included when applicable.

Please discuss each question "in your own understanding" using and citing the course text to support your discussions.

Your answers to each question should be approx. 1 page per question.

Your entire assignment must be 4-5 pages total plus a title and reference page.

1. Research suggests that most people have "positive illusions." Explain what positive illusions are, identify the general function of positive illusions, and identify the three different types of positive illusions that people have. Then give an original example [not from the text] of each.

2. What does research suggest about the mindset of people who are suicidal? In particular, where do suicidal people stand in terms of their self-awareness, their level of emotionality, and the levels of meaning at which they are thinking?

3. Define scripts and schemas, explain how they enable us to better process information. Give an original example [not one from the text] of each.

4. Briefly describe the different ways in which emotions can improve or hinder judgments, decision-making, and performance. When and why are they helpful and when and why are they harmful?

5. Much research suggests that people's attitudes are not predictive of their behaviors. However, in some cases, people's attitudes ARE highly predictive of their behaviors. Identify at least three factors that increase attitude-behavior consistency.

Assignment Outcomes: 1. Compare and contrast major theorists and the concepts of social perception and social cognition

2. Formulate the concepts of group function, social influence, interpersonal conflict, and pro-social behavior

3. Discriminate and assess the determinants of aggression

4. Integrate cultural, legal, and ethical issues of social psychology

5. Analyze some of the major contemporary research trends in social psychology