Applied Social Psychology – Opinion-Editorial Article Assignment Custom Essay

An “Op-Ed” (short for “Opposite the Editorial Page”) is an article of about 800 words (about 3 pages, double-spaced) in length that often appears on the page opposite a newspaper’s editorial. Op-Ed’s frequently comment on current social issues or concerns. For this component of your grade, you are required to write an Op-Ed article on a CURRENT social issue or problem. Any social issue or problem will do; it can relate to health care (e.g., caring for the elderly), stereotypes and prejudice (e.g., how adults view young people), aggression (e.g., youth violence), politics (e.g., trust of politicians), the environment (e.g., recycling), or any other current social issue. A perusal of the newspaper or a recent news magazine should suggest several possible topics.
The defining feature of an Op-Ed is that it expresses your opinion about a matter, so you should make sure that you convey a clear opinion in the article. Your article should also include a discussion of social psychological research or theory that relates to the issue you’ve selected. You should discuss at least one study from the research literature, or one social psychological theory (taken from your text book for the course, from any recent social psychology text, or from the research literature). You should provide a reference (in APA format) for the research or theory you have described in your article.

Your Op-Ed will be evaluated in terms of
• how clearly you’ve described the social issue that your editorial addresses
• the extent to which you’ve expressed a clear opinion with regard to this issue
• the evidence or logic that you have used to support your opinion
• the relevance of the social psychological research or theory that you have discussed in the article
• the accuracy and clarity with which you’ve described the relevant research and/or theory
• the extent to which your paper is clear, well-written, well-organized, interesting and engaging
• the extent to which your paper is free of grammatical and typographical errors
• proper use of APA format in citing and listing references