SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

Instructions for Case Studies

 

General Information

 

·         The case studies are designed to help you apply the concepts presented in the textbook and in lecture. Each case study describes a social situation and is followed by questions about the situation. The questions require you to explain and apply course concepts.

 

·         See the course outline for information about how many case studies will be assigned and how many points they will be worth.  Because the course has a Writing Emphasis (WE) designation, you may be required to complete a minimum number of writing assignments in order to pass the course. 

 

·         Approximately two weeks before each due date, you will be provided with a case study to review.  Each case study will be followed by questions for you to answer.  The due dates for each case study write-up are listed in the course outline.  Late papers are penalized one point for each day they are late (weekends count as two days, Sat. & Sun.).  Even if a case study is late, it is still to your advantage to turn it in, as some points are better than no points.

         

Writing and Typing Instructions

 

1)      Title Page: You should have a title page that has your name, the course (Social Psychology) and the case study number typed on it.  The title page should be typed on a separate sheet of paper. Your name should appear on the title page only.  Your name should not appear on any other page.

 

2)      Paper Format:  Papers must be typed. Double-space each line.  Margins should be approximately 1 inch.  The length of case study write-ups may vary, but most should be 4-5 pages.  The pages should be stapled together.  Please do not use plastic report covers.

 

3)      Use these case studies as an opportunity to show me what you know.  Follow these basic guidelines:  State your answers clearly, use examples, and discuss relevant research.  Write an outline before you begin writing so you know what points you want to make. Your grade is based on your ability to effectively communicate in writing. These guidelines also apply to writing essays on exams.

 

4)      Define all important terms and cite the source of the definition.

 

5)      If a question refers to a theory, you should describe the theory first and then explain how it applies to the case study.

 

6)      You should NOT retype the case study or the questions.  However, you should answer the questions in such a way that a person who has not read the question could understand your answer. Suppose a question asks, "Is Bob planning to conduct archival research?"  An inappropriate answer would be, "No".  Although the answer may be correct, it doesn't reveal how well you understand the material.

 

A better answer would be: "No, Bob is not planning to conduct an archival research study.  Archival research utilizes information that was been previously collected for another purpose.  Bob wants to survey people about their political views.  So Bob is collecting new information for his study, not archival data.”   This answer shows a clear understanding of what archival research is and why Bob's study does not qualify.

 

7)      Correct spelling and grammar are important.  Also use complete sentences to answer the questions.

 

 

8)      Do not plagiarize. Plagiarism is using someone else’s ideas and presenting them as your own.  Do not use another student’s work.  Information from the text or lecture should be cited. Points will be deducted from your grade if you plagiarize. Review the exercise on plagiarism you completed for this course. Ignorance is not an excuse - educate yourself about plagiarism.

 

9)      Although you will be using the text as a source, avoid quoting straight from the textbook. If you do quote, use quotation marks.  Do not use more than 2 quotes per case study.  That is 2 per paper – not per question!

 

10)   As much as possible, rewrite information from the text into your own words. Merely change a few words or rearranging phrases from the text is inadequate.  I want to know if you understand the concepts from the text, not whether you can copy information from the text. You must still cite the text or lecture as the source of ideas, even if you paraphrased (i.e., rewrote in your own words and style).

 

11)   If you use information from the text, the sources must be cited in your write-up. I want you to use the following format to cite a source. Cite the text by simply typing the author’s name and the page number in parentheses after the information, e.g., (Myers, p. 120). To use information from lecture simply type the word “Lecture” in parentheses, followed by the date of the lecture or the relevant page in the lecture outline booklet, e.g., (Lecture, 2/6/07).  You should cite the textbook or lecture whenever you use an idea or information from those sources.  This applies even if you have rewritten the information in you own words. 

 

12)  If a write-up is turned in after the due date, the grade will be reduced by one point for each day after the due date.  Weekends count as two days, that is, Saturday and Sunday.  You are encouraged to turn in all case

studies even if they are late.  Earning some points is better than no points.

 

13)  If you have any questions about a case study, the questions, or the instructions, please ask.

                            

14)  On some case studies, you will be allowed to rewrite one or two questions.  Rewrites
        are recommended, but are voluntary.  You will be given one week after receiving your
        graded case study to submit the rewritten question. 

 

How to gain points

 

·         Answer all questions thoroughly and clearly.

·         When applying a theory to the case study, describe the theory and explicitly explain how it applies to the case.

·         Define terms.

·         Use examples.

·         Discuss relevant research.

·         Use correct grammar and spelling

·         Restate information from the text in your own words.

·         Correctly cite information from text and lecture.

·         Turn work in on time

·         Do rewrite if applicable.

 

 

How to lose points

 

·         Do not follow typing instructions.

·         Write incomplete answers.

·         Answer questions incorrectly.

·         Misspell words and use poor grammar.

·         Quote excessively from the text. No more than 2 quotes per paper are allowed.

·         Only changing a few words, or only changing the order of phrases when taking information from the text.

·         Do not cite or incorrectly cite information from the text and lecture. This is plagiarism.

·         Plagiarism from other sources

·         Turn assignment in late.

·         Don’t do rewrite.