Social psychology (psychology)/Assessment/Essay/Topics

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Topic	Question	Categories	Notes	Author
Adolescence and social pressure	In what ways do social pressures contribute to adolescent mental health and well being issues?	Adolescence		Plst
Affluenza	What is "affluenza" and what are its socio-psychological risks and effects?	Culture	[1] [2] [3]	Oscar.Bell
Albert Bandura	What has he contributed to our understanding of social psychology? Draw on examples to illustrate key theories and principles in action.	Social learning	[4]	Sari
Alcohol	What are the short-term and longer-term socio-psychological causes and effects of alcohol consumption?	Drug use	[5]	Bryony
Altruism	Do genuinely altruistic acts ever occur? (Note: In answering this question, consider the difference between prosocial behaviour and altruism. You might also consider social psychological aspects of evolutionary theory and related research.)	Altruism	[6],[7]	Tegan H
Attitude change programs	What factors determine the success of attitude change programs? Describe theoretical bases and research evidence. Include examples from a current or recent social change program (e.g., SUNSMART, anti-smoking, exercise, drink driving, cancer screening, safe sex campaigns).	Attitude	[8]	Jenna K, Lizbennett
Attractiveness	What makes some people more attractive than others and why?	Attractiveness	[9], [10]	Misscourt
Bystander effect	What is bystander effect? When is it most likely to occur? How can its effects be minimised? (e.g., if you are looking for help?)	Prosocial behaviour	[11]	Teall McQueen
Bullying	What are the socio-psychological causes and consequences of childhood bullying?	Aggression, Relationships		Jodes
Caffeine culture	What are the socio-psychological contributors to, and consequences of, 'caffeine-cultures'?	Culture, Drugs		Breona duncan
Career status	How is one's career related to one's social status? Which careers are socially unacceptable (or "low status") and why?	Social comparison		E.wigmore
Caregiving	What are the psychological impacts of extended caregiving (e.g., those providing primary, live-in care for children, elderly, and/or sick/disabled people)	Family psychology	[12]	Cynnapier
Charismatic leadership	What is charismatic leadership and how does it influence relations between leaders and followers?	Attraction, Leadership, Social influence		Tim Malysiak
Children and happiness	Why do people have children? Does it make them happy? Review the psychological literature related to this article: Happiness is ... not having children	Family, Parenting		u3012675
Climate change	Consider socio-psychological aspects of "climate change", including causes and consequences (e.g., what social influence techniques are evident in discussions about the causes and consequences of possible climate change?).	Environmental psychology	[13]	U3006567
Contact hypothesis	What is it, and to what extent is it effective in reducing prejudice?	Prejudice	[14]	Kathryn L
Cooperation	What strategies can facilitate human cooperation and what conditions undermine human cooperation? Answer with respect to group identity theory(ies).	Category:Social cooperation	[15]	Mimosa Forsyth
Cross-cultural relationships	What are the advantages and disadvantages of cross-cultural intimate relationships?	Interpersonal relationships, Cross-cultural psychology	[16], [17]	Kate Hulme
Cult of the self	Has the notion of "self" been culturally constructed over the past 500 or so years, and is the "cult of the self" now out of control?	Self	[18], [19]	Sandy
Cults	What is a cult? Explore and explain the social psychological aspects of cults, with examples.	Psychology of religion	[20]	Katrina Fry
Cultural adaptation	What could a person going to live and work overseas do to help acculturate successful?	Culture	1	Matthew M
Culture of fear	To what extent are we currently living within a 'culture of fear' (is our culture becoming increasingly fearful, risk-averse, suspicious, even paranoid?) and why? What social psychology theory and research speaks to this question? What are the trends and what do you think should be done?	Culture	[21]	Mitchacho
Culture shock	What is culture shock, when is it likely to occur, and what advice can be given to people entering new cultures to help them deal with culture shock?	Culture	[22]	Anastasia
Employee satisfaction	What are the main socio-psychological predictors of employee satisfaction?	Organisational psychology		Rebeccasutton
Food	What is the role of food (or more particularly, the socio-cultural practices around food) in meeting human's social needs and how does society influence food choices?	Culture		U126268
Free culture	What is free culture (Lessig)? Explore the social psychological aspects and implications of the free culture movement.	Culture	[23]	Lauten
Gangs	What are gangs (in socio-psychological terms)? Why do some people choose to join gangs?	Group processes		CC
Gender differences in perceptions of female sexual promiscuity	What are the gender differences in the way that female sexual promiscuity is perceived and why?	Relationships		Reido
Gender roles in relationships	What is gender role theory and what has been found from gender role research concerning intimate relationship quality between men and women?	Relationships		Bel
Genetic sexual attraction	What are the socio-psychological causes and consequences of genetic sexual attraction (in which closely-genetically related adults form consenting intimate relationships)?	Relationships	[24]	Melissadedrick
Genocide antecedents	What are the most typical socio-psychological pre-cursors to genocide and how might this knowledge be useful in preventing genocides in the future?	Genocide		Awilson
Group productivity	Are people more or less productive when they work in groups? What can be done to increase productivity in groups?	Group processes	[25]	PsychUser12
Guilt	What is it and what does it stem from?	Social cognition		Nicbroto
Hidden curriculum	What is it? Explore the social psychological dimensions of the notion of hidden curriculum.	Educational psychology	[26]	Nicole Merchant
Homophily	What is it? Explain and consider from a socio-psychological perspective.	Interpersonal relationships	[27]	Blackballoon86
Human sexuality: Nature or nurture?	To what extent is human sexuality the result of nature or nurture?	Relationships	[28]	Nikkihiggins
Immigration	What kinds of socio-psychological challenges and issues are encountered by immigrants?	Intergroup relations, Prejudice	[29]	Chicco
Immigration detention	What are the psychological effects of prolonged detention of immigrants to Australia, and why do these effects occur?	Australia, Cross-cultural, Incarceration		Intransient
Individualism-collectivism	What is individualism versus collectivism? Consider with respect to socio-psychological theory and research (e.g., to what extent do cultures and individuals vary along an individualist-collectivist continuum and why?)	Culture		Dskrzecz
Interpersonal attraction	What attracts some individuals to one another? In essence, what are the "rules" of attraction?	Attraction, Relationships		Cat1986
Leadership characteristics	What are the characteristics of successful leaders. What are the socio-psychological ingredients for effective leadership? e.g., consider whether 'great' leaders born that way or can people be trained to be leaders?	Leadership	[30]	Amy86
Long-term intimate relationships	Approximately 50% of marriages in Western culture currently end in separation (source unknown). What are the secrets of a "good marriage" (or long-term intimate relationship)?	Relationships	[31]	Khayne
Loss of indigenous culture	What effect does a loss of indigenous culture (such as the Australian aboriginals' or Tibetans') have on indigenous peoples and why?	Culture	[32]	Gulita
Marketing	How are social psychological principles applied in marketing, advertising and branding?	Marketing	[33]	L.Harriott
Media violence	Discuss the role of violence within mass media, such as television and video games. What effects can this have on viewers, especially children? Should violence in the media be more controlled - or is the role of violence in the media often overstated?	Aggression	[34], [[35]	SteveHenry
Mental health illness disclosure	What effect does disclosure of a mental health illness have on a person's social status and interactions?	Mental health		Angela f
Mental health illness stigma	What is mental health illness stigma (or psychiatric stigma)? What kinds of mental health illnesses tend to carry the greatest social stigma and why?	Prejudice, Mental health		Leonie B
Military social psychology	What is the role of social psychology in warfare? What related ethical dilemmas are faced by psychologists working for or advising the military?	Social influence	[36]	Kellyknight138
Need to belong	Do we need to belong? What do we need to belong to?	General		Kristina
Minority groups	How can minority groups achieve desired social changes? Discuss this with respect to examples of 'real world' minority group impacts.	Group processes	[37]	ThomasH
New technology and communication	To what extent are new technologies facilitating or undermining our capacity for interpersonal communication?	Communication, Technology	[38], [39]	Sarah Q
Open marriage	What shortfall(s) in traditional marriage does this practice try to overcome or eliminate? What are the pitfalls of an open marriage?	Relationships		Paula
Peace promotion	How can peace be promoted and developed between conflicting groups?	Conflict resolution		Starcaster88
Person-situation debate	Summarise the person-situation debate and put forward your own view with reference to research and theory.	Evolutionary psychology, Social behaviour, General		Kim Crocker
Post secret	Analyse the http://postscret.com phenomenon from a socio-psychological viewpoint. Include examples.	Social cognition		Gerard
Prison culture	What social structures/social order evolve in prisons and why?	Social behaviour		CVaughan
Religiousity	What socio-psychological factors predict religiousity?	Psychology of religion		Socialpsych
Social constructionism	What is it? Explain with your own examples (e.g., by attempting to deconstruct some of your own social thinking).	Social constructionism	[40]	Alex Topfer
Pets	What psychological effects do animals, and particularly pets, have on humans and why? What recommendations about contact with animals and pets would you make to someone who wants to maximise their psychological health?	Environmental psychology	[41]	Lukem 1411
Population density	Human population density has rapidly increased in recent centuries and decades. What are the socio-psychological effects of crowding and high population density?	Crowding		Betsy
Resistance	What social psychological processes can cause the social influence of group norms and powerful others to be resisted?	Social influence		Rayleem
Restorative justice	What are the social psychological principles of restorative justice? What does research evidence suggest about the effectiveness of restorative justice? What are the prospects for restorative justice?	Conflict resolution		Boris
Self-fulfilling prophecy and stereotypes	What is the relationship between self-fulfilling prophecy and stereotype formation and maintenance?	Stereotypes		Catherine117377
Serial killers	What socio-psychological factors contribute to serial killing?	Aggression		Eaglesgirl
Social capital	What is it, how can it be fostered, and how can it be measured?	Social capital		JD Hawk
Social psychology of clergy	Discuss the socio-psychological principles used by clergy to influence their congregations.	Psychology of religion, Religion, Social influence	[42]	Brent Holgate
Teamwork	What is teamwork and what social psychological principles can be used to help develop effective teams?	Group processes	[43]	Jane D
Virtual vs. real worlds	How is the social psychology of 3-D virtual worlds (such as Second Life) and/or online gaming similar to, and different from, the social psychology of the 'real' world?	Psychology of technology		Rinna
Weather	How does the weather influence human social behavior? (e.g., does heat increase violence?)	Environmental psychology	[44]	Amy Tipler
Western domination of social psychology	To what extent is social psychology theory and research dominated by Western perspectives?	Culture, General		Jenny O
Youth delinquency	What socio-psychological factors contribute to youth delinquency?	Antisocial behaviour		MandaG
World War II	What were the main impacts and legacies of World War II on the discipline of social psychology?	General		JennaC

See also

• Other topics (not included)