Any suggestions for a psychology paper?

Question

Last year in my Social Psychology class at school we had to write a paper concerning a topic in social psych. now i'm talking regular psychology and i'm pretty sure we're gonna have to do a similar paper because that's what the teacher did last year. it was hard enough trying to think of a topic before but now its even harder and i would really like to hear your suggestions......just keep in mind, i've got to be able to find enough information for a 5 page paper.

Ok - we haven't actually started school yet but i wanted to get an idea of what different topics there are to research so i might get a little bit of a headstart on the report.....since i seem to put things off until the last few hours :-\

In the course description, it says: "subject areas to be studied are: personality, identity, attitudes, the life cycle, relating to others, the senses, learning thinking, intelligence, motivation, emotions, mental health, the brain, and sports psychology...but he mainly let us choose from ANYTHING that dealt with social psych so it'll probably be the same thing this year, but just psychology instead

Answer 1

Why don't you write a paper on

"The increasing number of
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren"??

I would love to know why our numbers are increasing !!!!!
there is load of info on the net about it and I bet that no one
has done a paper on that yet.

Answer 2

Write on the Rainbow children. There are some books and studies on these children that have been born in the last 25 or so years that are totally different. They seem to have "old souls". They are sometimes mislabeled as ADD/ADHD etc., but these psychiatrists are saying that they are in fact a new sort of child with different sensibilities and understanding of the world around them. Look it up on the internet - it is fascinating, and I think it would really be an unusual topic for a paper.

Answer 3

it all depends on what sort of work youve covered in class. I've got my degree in psych so if you mention what youve covered in class and what you find most interesting, then suggestions are easier made.
Addition:
In that case, intelligence is a really interesting topic. you can try looking into the theories behind human intelligence, the different theorists cush as Gardner, Spearman, Catell, etc. The also speak of many different kinds of intelligence, such as verbal, linguistic, mathematical, body movement, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, etc. Then theres also the difference between chrystallised intelligence (dynamic) and fluid intelligence (raw). You can even go into discussing various IQ test we have at the moment and how effective they are. PS, intelligence was originally believed as relying solely on reaction rates, this has changed now. You can look up info on these theories and theorist and you'll be able to compose your essay.

Answer 4

Why don't you write about all of the overmedicated children that no one wants to deal with? It seems like it is just easier to put children on meds than to properly diagnose and offer counselling.....maybe it's because drug companies have contracts with doctors.....I was thinking about ADD or ADHD...

Or you could write about paraphilias, spousal abuse victims, home schooled kids and social skills, guilt/shame and obedience, narcissistic personality disorders in corporate america, political skills, school bullies.....
I could think of a million things but I hope this helps!

Answer 5

Oedipus complex. I'm majoring in Psychiarty, so I can relate to the writer's block feeling. It really does depend on the class and teacher, but the Oedipus complex has always facinated me. So twisted... and you could even argue against it! Pshychologists are trying to prove there's no such thing!
Hope you find that perfect topic!
~Mel~

Answer 6

Do some research on Hoarding in relation to OCD. There are so many animal hoarders and people that live in messy conditions who can't seem to either organize or stop shopping. I'd really like to know what makes them tick - it's very strange!

Answer 7

if your school's library has a website, it'd really help
cause my school has one with a database where I can easily find journal articles and it's really great

i feel for you
i just handed in a 20 page paper and got a C....though i didn't put much effort into it

try the effect of retrogade (how do you spell it) if a person suffers brain damage

Answer 8

you could write on sweat surgery and the mind (endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy)

since dr's dont tell anyone of the mental side effects, your paper might blow peoples minds. ETS is even used by Privatix clinic for mental/social disorders.

It kills flight/fight syndrome

It can also accelerate alzheimers

Answer 9

Schizophrenia (youth's greatest disabler)..easy to find info. & an interesting topic. The one I wrote a paper on was Cerebral Palsy, most of the students didn't know what it was.

Answer 10

although it may be overplayed, i still find articles on how birth-order effects personality interesting.

good job on getting a head start... God bless! :)