Assignment:
Social/Behavioural Trend Analysis
Locate an article concerning a social and/or behavioral trend that impacts research methods in the field of psychology. Examples of trends that affect how research is conducted include increasing use of the internet, increasing use of cell phones, increased public availability of large data sets, and so on. (We cannot use ethical issues as a topic)
Prepare a 700- to 1,050-word analysis of your selected article in which you do the following items:
Summarize your selected article.
Explain the how psychological research methodology has been impacted by the trend discussed in your selected article. (Note: we are not talking about library research; we are talking about how data might be collected and analyzed).
This assignment is not about research on a particular trend (for example, it is not about research on use of cell phones, or research about use of the internet); the important question is how the trend has changed the way that research is conducted. In other words, before the trend occurred research was conducted one way; after the trend occurred research is conducted differently. The vast majority of your paper should be about research methods in psychology - selecting the sample, administering an intervention, collecting the data, analyzing the data and so on.
Pick a social trend, something that impacts our everyday lives. Now ask, has this trend changed the way psychologists conduct research? Has it changed the way we recruit participants? conduct studies? control variables? collect and analyze data? If yes, you are on the right track; write about how the trend has changed research methods in these ways.