Your paper should explore the intersection of biology and psychology, so the topic you propose should explicitly denote both a psychological and a biological component. To decide on a topic, I recommend starting with a psychological construct that you're interested in, then doing a brief literature review to look for biological components of that construct for which you won't have trouble finding sources.

EXAMPLE: If you're interested in writing about PTSD (which is a psychological construct), do a quick search of the scientific literature to find a topic (or topics) of interest from current research on the biology of PTSD (please do not simply use a Google search, as it does not restrict results to primary peer-reviewed scientific literature). Example topics might include research on the brain structures involved in PTSD, neurotransmitters that mediate PTSD, genetic or biochemical links to the propensity for developing PTSD, drug treatments for PTSD and their mechanism of action, among many other possibilities– any research related to the biological mechanisms underlying the psychological manifestation of PTSD. Propose a topic that explicitly states both the psychological construct and the biological mechanism(s) you will explore– for example, "Current Drug Treatments for PTSD and How They Change Brain Chemistry to Alleviate Symptoms", or "PTSD: How it Changes the Brain to Produce its Symptoms", or similar. 

Please do not submit a topic proposal that says simply, for example, "I'd like to write my paper on PTSD", as this only satisfies HALF of the requirement (you are only stating a psychological component). 

Once the assignment due date has passed, I will review your topics and approve them, or make recommendations for revision. If I ask you to revise your topic, please do so via email as soon as possible.

Please also note that you may change or adjust your topic later, for whatever reason, but you should clear any changes with me right away to ensure that I agree the new topic is appropriate.

Due Date

Nov 2, 2021 11:59 PM

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Instructions

Note that all final papers in this class will be automatically evaluated by TurnItIn for similarity to other sources (ie, plagiarism) upon submission! 

The TurnItIn database includes published scientific literature, textbooks, and student papers submitted to universities across the globe, including UMGC. For more information about this and the paper requirements, please review the syllabus.

While there is no set requirement for similarity scores, you should shoot for well below 40%, as anything above this score will trigger a one-on-one discussion with me to determine whether you have plagiarized your sources, even if inadvertently.

*You may also revise and re-submit your paper multiple times to improve your similarity score, if needed. I will only evaluate the similarity score of your final submission. 

Please review the following information carefully before submitting your paper:

The class project for this course is a written report, that addresses the biological study of a specific behavioral or mental phenomenon (normal or pathological) covered in the readings and videos. Please select a behavioral or mental phenomenon such as language or schizophrenia and then select a biological strategy for investigating it, such as hormonal or genetic mechanisms, neurotransmitters, drug treatments, or localization of brain processes by imaging. The project will be worth a maximum of 100 points.

Written paper. As an example, the theme of your report might be imaging approaches to the study of schizophrenia. Your paper should summarize fundamental issues, questions, and controversies and provide a general overview of the topic using the biological line of investigation you chose. It should also elaborate on your understanding of the brain processes that are revealed through imaging research in schizophrenia. To accomplish this, you will have to use recent research articles (published within the last five years) to illustrate relevant points. You may use any of a number of electronic databases to find research articles that deal with your topic, including the library and the Internet. The one requirement for the research articles that you select is that two of them must have appeared in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. You may wish to consult with the library staff or your faculty member to confirm whether a particular journal is peer-reviewed. 

Newspaper or magazine articles should not be used as your major reference, but they are sometimes useful when they lead you to the appropriate research article. You should avoid simply repeating the articles in summary form, but rather use them within the text of your paper to illustrate important points. You are welcome to discuss your choice of topic with your faculty member to make sure you are on the right track.