Psych 3125 A F(20)
Assignment 1
This assignment reinforces the spotlight on Physiognomy and Racial Stereotyping. It is designed to have you delve more deeply and critically into the ways reading the body for insights into psychological, behavioral, and intellectual characteristics has functioned, in psychology and in society, both in the past and into the present. Note that reading the body is to be construed broadly and can refer to any practice that uses an assessment of physical, anatomical, or physiological characteristics to make inferences about the psychological or behavioral characteristics of a person, a group, a society, or a population.
You are asked to write a short essay (minimum 1200, maximum 1500 words, not including abstract and reference list) in which you discuss, using a minimum of one up to a maximum of three examples from the history of psychology (e.g. craniometry, anthropometric measurement, phrenology, physiognomy, somatotyping), some of the practices, methods, and classification schemes that have been devised to read the body for signs of internal qualities. After describing them, structure your discussion around the following issues:
*How were they used? *With what effects?
*What assumptions – about gender, race, class, nation, culture, etc. – may have influenced these schemes?
Then, in the conclusion of your essay, consider the following questions:
*What contemporary practices of reading the body persist? Give an example or two.
*What assumptions underlie these practices and what are their intended, and unintended effects?
The essay requires research, reflection, and analysis. You should use APA format (use 12-pt font, one-inch margins, double-spaced, 200-word abstract is required), and cite at least two reputable sources outside your course textbook and the Collins article (journal articles, books, book chapters, or scholarly on-line sources) to flesh out your description and substantiate your analysis.
https://longreads.com/2018/10/03/the-return-of-the-face/ https://medium.com/the-sundial-acmrs/facial-recognition-physiognomy-and-racism-ffc3d232a352
TIP: Look at the reference list in the
Collins (1999) article for additional sources, and look at the articles which are linked at your course
website:
You are encouraged to write in the active, first-person voice. That is, In this essay I will describe….I will then analyze….to argue that…..To conclude, I will outline…
For more resources about writing a strong essay, and using APA format, see SPARK Student Papers and Academic Research Kit:
https://spark.library.yorku.ca/
For more help with APA format:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_ format.html
To submit this essay on October 9th, make sure it is your final version and submit it as a word document (NOT a .pdf) at the Turnitin link for Assignment 1, with the filename as follows: Lastname_Firstname_Assign1
