Welcome to the last project of the year. Countless studies have been done to test various hypotheses about the behavior of people in society. It is now your turn.
Objective:
     You will develop a hypothesis specific to Social Psychology and test it by conducting your own experiment. Consistent with the Process of Science (Scientific Method), your hypothesis must be “testable”, and you will collect and organize your data and observations in such a way as to draw a conclusion, backing it up with your findings, not assumptions.
Method:
     Your project will start with an Introduction where you will describe the purpose of your experiment and the reasoning behind your hypothesis. Remember, this is very open-ended so choose something that really interests you. The body of your report will include a Hypothesis, Materials, Procedure, Data/Observations (tables, charts, and organization is highly recommended), and Data Analysis and a valid Conclusion. A conclusion does not always have to support your hypothesis, but it should summarize and explain results from your data/observations, as well as offer suggestions and possible confounds or errors in your experiment. (see Lab Report Format for details)
     Reports must be typed and your topic must be checked by me before you begin. You have 2-3 very informative chapters in your text; I have many other texts in class that you may use (in class) and the internet provides a plethora of resources, but the best research you can do is first-hand.
     There is no word or page limit - I know you hate that! Your report will be long enough to convey your purpose without being extraneous.
Oral Presentation:
     In addition to the written report, you will give a 2-5 minute (that is NOT long at all) oral report to the class about your purpose and your findings. There need not be any formal format to the oral presentation, but remember to keep us intrigued. I’m sure your topics will be interesting enough and your experiments clever and creative enough to keep us enthralled (how’s that for a self-fulfilling prophecy?)
Topics:
     Your syllabus lists such topics as Conformity, Compliance, Norms, Companionship, Needs, Proximity, Attitudes/Actions, Persuasion, Peer Pressure, Approval, Aggression, Altruism, Prejudice, and Stereotypes; but this is just a smidgen (technical term) of what is out there. Hopefully it will give you an idea of what you want to study and feel free to talk to me to get suggestions if you are stumped.

Due Date  / /

Evaluation:
 Grading of this project will be similar to other projects and will be evaluated according to the Project Evaluation Criteria handed out in class. (I'll try to get a copy up soon but if I don't, use the Lab Report format as grading criteria)