self analysis paper

Psych 101: Self-Analysis Paper
Overview: How do our psychological traits and experiences impact our life outcomes? That is the key
question we will be asking in this assignment. You will first complete measures of a variety of important
psychological variables (e.g., Big Five personality traits, self-esteem, social belonging, etc.). Your task will
then be to select one of these variables and write a short paper reflecting on the role you think this
variable has had in your own life. You will also provide a critical analysis of the measure itself.
Purpose: This assignment will give you the opportunity to analyze how psychological variables impact
personal experiences and outcomes in the real world. You will also gain first-hand experience with
psychological measures and get practice considering the strengths and limitations of common
measurement approaches.
Background and Explanation:
Modern psychology suggests that our behaviour and life outcomes are determined, in large part, by both
the type of people we are (our personality, beliefs, goals, etc.) and the experiences we have. For
example, how we adapt to university is shaped by both our individual traits and characteristics and the
environment and experiences we encounter when we get there. However, studying these kinds of
variables is challenging as it often requires “getting into people’s heads” to understand how individuals
think and feel about the world. As a result, research in psychology often uses self-report methods, an
approach which has both strengths and limitations.
For this assignment you will first complete self-report measures of a variety of important psychological
variables to gain first-hand experience with these constructs and how they are typically measured. After
completing the measures and viewing your scores, you will then select one variable you are interested in
exploring in greater depth and write a short paper including: (a) a description of the variable you
selected; (b) a critical evaluation of the accuracy of self-reports for this variable; and (c) an analysis of
this variable and how you think it has personally impacted your life experiences and outcomes. Your
assignment will be evaluated based on your completion of the psychological measures as well as the
quality and depth of your written analysis.
Completing the Survey
All of the measures will be provided in a single, online Qualtrics survey that you can complete any time
before the assignment deadline. Your responses on the survey are completely anonymous and neither
myself nor any of the TAs involved in grading your work will be able to identify which responses belong
to which student. You will be assigned a Project Identification Number (PIN) that you will enter on the
first page of the survey in order to identify yourself and get credit for completing this step. A single TA in
the course who is not involved in grading your work will be the sole person who can identify which PIN
belongs to which student in order to assign credit; however, they will not, at any point in time, look at
your personal responses or survey scores. After completing the survey, you will see a summary of your
scores and you can use this information to pick a single variable that you would like to analyze in depth
for the paper. The measures include: Big Five personality traits, Self-Esteem, Optimism, Happiness, Life
Satisfaction, Implicit Theories of Intelligence, Achievement Motivation, Academic Self-Efficacy, Social
Connectedness, and Belonging.
Paper Requirements
Your paper should include:
• A description of the variable you selected and why it is an important construct to study. For example,
what do we know about how this variable impacts people’s lives or outcomes? You should use at
least two academic sources to support your explanation of the concept and its importance. One of
these can be the textbook or lecture slides, and a second should be from a peer-reviewed
psychological journal.
• A critical analysis of the use of self-report to measure this variable, both generally and for you in
particular. Consider the factors that we know to have an impact on the validity of self-report
measures and apply these principles to the self-report measurement of this variable. Finally, reflect
on whether you think your responses on this measure were accurate, and why or why not.
• A reflective analysis of how this variable has impacted you, your life experiences, and/or your life
outcomes. Do you score low, moderate, or high on this variable, and how has this impacted the way
you feel, the way you see the world, or the type of experiences you have? You may want to consider
one or more life domains such as your experiences or outcomes at school, at work, or in your
relationships. Based on what we know about this variable, why do you think it has impacted your life
in this way? For this analysis, consider at least one way in which this variable has been a strength in
your life or one way in which you can overcome past challenges in this domain to thrive in the future.
Technical and Formatting Requirements:
• 1000 to 1200 words in length or approximately 3 pages, but use the word count
• 1” margins
• Times New Roman, 12 point font OR 11 point Calibri
• APA style for formatting title page, citations, and reference page (no abstract required)
Voluntary Consent to Use Your Data for Scientific Research
Are you interested in sharing your survey responses to contribute to scientific research? After
completing the survey measures, you will have a chance to provide or deny consent for your anonymized
survey data be used for scientific research purposes. The decision is entirely yours and your course grade
will in no way be affected by your decision either way. After completing the surveys, you will see a
consent form asking if you consent to use your data for research. You will also see a separate consent
form asking if you consent to using your course grades for research purposes. You are free to provide or
deny consent, and your course instructor and the TAs who grade your work will never know of your
decision. The data from students who choose not to give consent will be deleted once the term is over,
and data associated with those responses will never be used in any scientific research publications. Your
decision is completely voluntary and just for the good of science should you like to contribute.
Due Date
Your paper is due April 6 by 11:59 pm. Please submit to the appropriate dropbox on LEARN as a Word
document.
Alternative Assignment
If you are not comfortable providing a personal analysis, see your instructor for an alternative
assignment option.
Rubric for Self-Analysis Paper
Completion of Survey Measures (30 points)
Completion of online survey before the assignment deadline ______
Description of Selected Variable (25 points)
Clear and accurate explanation of selected variable and why it is important ______
to study, including effective use of sources (textbook and journal article)
Critical Analysis of Self-Report (25 points)
Strong critical analysis of self-report measures in general, and for this variable in ______
particular, including an analysis of the accuracy of your own responses
Self-Reflection and Analysis (40 points)
Insightful analysis and self-reflection considering the role of the selected variable ______
in at least one life domain, including an analysis of personal strengths and/or
future growth; effective use of sources to support analysis
Quality of Writing (15 points)
Organization and coherence (paragraphs are focused and well organized), ______
clear and engaging prose (precise and effective word choice, varied sentence
structure), and sentence-level editing (spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc.)
Technical and Formatting Requirements (15 points)
Follows formatting and citation style of APA 7th edition; sources are properly ______
referenced and reference list matches in-text citations; word count
TOTAL SCORE (out of 150) ______

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