Unit VII Article Critique
Instructions
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2019, a new strain of the coronavirus disease was discovered. Also known as COVID-19, this strain of the virus had previously not been identified in humans. A worldwide pandemic ensued as the virus quickly spread across the globe, impacting countless lives, including many individuals in the United States.
In an effort to contain the virus, numerous countries’ leaders encouraged social distancing, which is an infection control strategy aimed to help lessen the spread of a contagious disease. This directive was given by leaders in the United States as well. Two schools of thought emerged. In fact, many people were skeptical about the authenticity of this pandemic due to perplexing and often conflicting messages that were received across social media and news outlets. Therefore, numerous Americans assumed business as usual and maintained their daily living and social rituals. On the other hand, scores of others quickly retreated to their homes, embracing the warning provided by some of the nation’s top infectious disease experts.
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to analyze a real-world, peer-reviewed, psychology journal article that contains research examining the social psychology aspects of motivation and emotion. You will then demonstrate your understanding of the article by relating the research and conclusions contained therein to current events.
Begin by visiting the CSU Online Library to locate and choose a journal article in which motivation and emotion are viewed under the lens of social psychology. The article must be peer-reviewed and should be no older than 7 years.NOTE: You are not required to locate an article about COVID-19; instead, you must find a peer-reviewed journal article concerning research that specifically examines motivation and emotion. You will then be critiquing the article and framing the research and conclusions presented in the article in the context of how they can be applied to behavior and social psychology during such an event as the COVID-19 pandemic.
A good place to start your search is the PsycARTICLES database or the Academic Search Ultimate database. You can access these databases from the Databases box on the library homepage.
For assistance in locating your article, you may find the following tutorial How to Find Journal Articles helpful. Additionally, you may find this tutorial How to Search in PsycARTICLES useful.
Once you have chosen your article about motivation, emotion, and social psychology, you will write an article critique that addresses the following elements.
- Explain the research methodology that was used in the study.
- Discuss social factors that influence people or groups to conform to the actions of others.
- Indicate how behaviors and motivation are impacted by the presence of others. (How does this apply to COVID-19?)
- Indicate the structures of the brain that are involved in emotion and motivation. (How could a person’s emotions related to fear drive their behaviors during this pandemic?)
- Examine the article’s generalizability to various areas of psychology.
- Why would some people choose to follow the orders to avoid social contact and others allow desire for human interaction to be their driving force?
In addition, your article critique should clearly identify the article’s premise and present an insightful and thorough analysis with strong arguments and evidence. You should present your own informed and substantiated opinion on the article’s content and its relation to social psychology during the COVID-19 pandemic. You should use the textbook as your second source to support your analysis and to supplement any information that is not contained in the journal article.
Your article critique must be a minimum of three pages in length, not including the title and reference pages. All sources used must be properly cited. Your article critique, including all references, must be formatted in APA style.
You may view the following CSU Writing Center tutorial Article Critiques for assistance in writing an article critique.
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction:
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted numerous lives globally, bringing along with it the need for leaders to implement infection control strategies such as social distancing. The aim of this assignment is to analyze a peer-reviewed journal article that examines motivation and emotion through the lens of social psychology and relate it to current events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This critique will address the research methodology used in the study, social factors that influence conformity, behaviors and motivation under the presence of others, structures in the brain related to emotion and motivation, generalizability to various areas of psychology, and why some people follow orders to avoid social contact while others allow their desire for interaction to guide their behavior.
Answer to content:
The article chosen for this critique is titled “Social Interdependence, Personal Need for Structure, and Academic Outcomes in Undergraduate STEM Courses” by J. Rick Sparks, Shannon K. Gilmartin, and Kimberly A. Rynearson (2017). The research methodology used in the study involved collecting self-reported demographic data and survey responses from undergraduate students enrolled in STEM courses. Participants answered questions about their social interdependence and need for structure and their academic outcomes were measured through their grade point averages.
Social factors that influence people or groups to conform to the actions of others play a crucial role in shaping behaviors and attitudes during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Sparks et al. (2017), social interdependence refers to the extent to which an individual perceives that their success is related to the success of others in the same situation. Personal need for structure refers to an individual’s preference for clarity, order, and organization in their daily life. These two factors were found to impact academic outcomes in undergraduate STEM courses. In the context of COVID-19, social influence can motivate individuals to conform to social distancing guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus, while the need for structure can help some individuals adapt to a new daily routine at home.
Behaviors and motivation under the presence of others also play an important role during the COVID-19 pandemic. People’s behaviors can be influenced by their perception of what others are doing, such as complying with social distancing guidelines. When individuals perceive that others are following the rules, they are more likely to conform to these actions (Cialdini et al., 2006). In terms of motivation, the presence of others can lead to social facilitation, which enhances performance on well-learned tasks but impairs performance on new or complex tasks (Zajonc, 1965). Therefore, individuals who are motivated to maintain their social relationships during the pandemic may struggle with the change in routine and isolation, while others who are motivated by their personal health and safety may adapt more easily.
Structures in the brain related to emotion and motivation can also influence behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fear is a common emotion experienced during a pandemic, and the amygdala is a key brain structure responsible for processing fear-related stimuli (LeDoux, 2012). Fear can motivate individuals to engage in behaviors that reduce the perceived risk of exposure to the virus, such as wearing masks and washing hands regularly. However, excessive fear can also lead to avoidance behaviors, which can negatively impact mental health and daily functioning.
The article by Sparks et al. (2017) has generalizability to various areas of psychology, such as social influence and motivation. The study’s findings about the impact of social interdependence and need for structure on academic outcomes can be applied to other contexts that involve successful task completion in group settings. Additionally, the study’s use of self-report measures and academic outcomes as dependent measures can inform future studies’ methodologies that aim to measure these constructs.
The decision to follow orders to avoid social contact or allow the desire for human interaction to guide behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic can be influenced by various factors. According to the theory of planned behavior, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control can influence intention, which in turn influences behavior (Ajzen, 1991). Therefore, an individual’s attitude towards social distancing guidelines, subjective norms (such as the compliance of others), and perceived behavioral control (such as the availability of resources to comply) can influence their decision to follow orders to avoid social contact or allow their desire for interaction to guide their behavior.
In conclusion, this article critique has analyzed the research methodology, social factors that influence conformity, behaviors and motivation under the presence of others, structures in the brain related to emotion and motivation, generalizability to various areas of psychology, and factors that influence individual decisions to follow social distancing guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study by Sparks et al. (2017) provides valuable insights into the impact of social interdependence and need for structure on academic outcomes, which can inform our understanding of social influence and motivation during the pandemic.
