This assignment provides an opportunity to apply psychological theory in the exploration of a book or film. Choose a film or book of special interest. The book or film should have content that can be meaningfully explored through application of psychological theory and research. You may want to look at some of the later sections in the course that deal with emotion, motivation, personality, the development of the individual over the life span, health and stress, and psychological disorders and treatment, so that you have a more complete idea of different concepts that might apply.

This paragraph provides you with some example topics and guidelines to help you consider how to approach this task. First, you could pick a movie or book in which the main character suffers from a psychological disorder or is merely trying to cope with the everyday stress of life. In doing so, you could discuss defense mechanisms or refer to developmental stages in the person's life that might have been important, or consider the effects of abuse, alcoholism and addiction, etc. Or you could approach the subject matter from different perspectives—psychoanalytical, biological, behavioral, cognitive, and/or sociocultural. Additionally, you could discuss the role emotion, memory, or motivation plays in the character's development, or the importance of the environment, and influences such as racism and sexism. A sample paper is provided as well to guide you in formatting, organizing, and writing your paper.

This is a research-based paper, and the film or book provides only the backdrop for research on a psychological topic. You should use at least two psychological, peer-reviewed references (textbook can be used but does not count towards the peer-reviewed references required). The paper should be 1,200 to 1,500 words, about 5 double-spaced pages.