Analytical Lens Paper- Writing through the lens of positive psychology

Linguistics 12 Writing Assignment #2:

Analytical Lens Paper-

Writing through the lens of positive psychology

Purpose of Assignment:

· apply various concepts (disciplinary frameworks) from our readings on positive psychology to a real person/situation

· transfer writing strategies that we have learned to another discipline (positive psychology)

· Use topic specific vocabulary on positive psychology and collocations

Details & requirements:

· 1200-1500 words

· MLA Format

· Source Usage:

· You must use at least 4 sources from our Ling 12 Unit 2 reader compilation

· If you choose to analyze a fictional person or someone you do not know, you may use ONE outside source to introduce them

· This might be the citation of the film, book, show, or news story that discusses your chosen person

· You may NOT use outside sources that discuss positive psychology

· Vocabulary: You must use and put in red bold 10 words from our unit 2 vocabulary handouts

Due Dates:

· Outlines due: Thursday february 18th, @ 11:59pm

· Rough Drafts Due: Thursday, February 25th @ 11:59pm

· Final Drafts Due: Friday, March 12, @ 11:59pm

Background:

By now, you have completed many readings on positive psychology, also known as the science of happiness. By now, you have also learned that in many disciplines, instructors focus on knowledge transformation instead of knowledge display. This means that instructors want to see that you understand course concepts by applying them to the real world. So, in order to apply the disciplinary frameworks that we have learned in positive psychology (Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, materialism, hedonic adaptation, gratitude, physical health, etc) you are going to take on the roll as an expert in psychology, and you will analyze the happiness of a person/character of your choice.

Task Part 1:

Choose one person to analyze. You have 4 options for this part. This person can be*:

1. A real person and someone you know well

a. Example: your mom, dad, another relative, a friend, etc.

2. A fictional (fake) character from a movie, book, or TV show of your choice

a. Example: Harry Potter, a character from your favorite Korean Drama

3. A celebrity who you do not know personally, but know about and are interested in

a. Example: Miley Cyrus, your favorite K-pop singer, Jack Ma

4. A fictional character who you have made up (you decide their persona, culture, job, lifestyle, etc. You will have to get very specific with the details of their personality and background, but you can do it!)

a. Example: a wealthy college student from Los Angeles studying abroad in France who is very homesick but pursuing her passion of fashion design; a software engineer in Silicon Valley who is part of the hustle culture, works out daily, but doesn’t have time for friends

*You may also choose someone who has passed away (died)

Task Part 2 (Prompt & Guiding Questions):

Based on your expert knowledge as a professional psychologist, analyze the happiness levels of your chosen person by using the disciplinary frameworks (key terms/concepts) from our readings. In order to complete this analysis, consider the following questions. You definitely do NOT need to answer all of these questions, but they are meant to help you generate ideas.

1. Is your chosen person more happy or unhappy? Why might this be?

2. What culture does your person come from? How might this contribute to their values or lifestyle choices? How does this in turn affect their happiness?

3. What does your chosen person do for a living (what’s their job)? How might this contribute to their happiness levels? Do they enjoy their job? Do they enjoy a work-life balance?

4. What socioeconomic class does your person belong to? How might this affect their happiness?

5. Does your chosen person express gratitude often? How might this affect their happiness?

6. Does your chosen person fulfill all of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Which needs are met and which needs are unmet?

7. Does your chosen person engage in meaningful relationships? How might this affect their happiness?

Advice: Do not choose too many aspects to analyze. Choose 2-3 disciplinary frameworks and go deep with each one. It is likely that you will spend 2+ paragraphs per aspect!

Structure of your Analytical Lens Paper:

Introduction:

· Provide a brief overview of the person you chose. Get specific with details like name, age, interests, job, class, values, culture, etc. (knowledge display)

· Language note: You will likely use the simple present to talk about these things unless you choose a person who is dead

· Thesis: State to what extent they are happy (very happy? Somewhat happy? Very unhappy?) and provide a reasoning for why based on the concepts that we have covered. (knowledge transformation- arguing)

Body Paragraphs: In your bodies, you will need to combine describing (knowledge display/providing facts) with analysis (knowledge transformation/ application)

· Provide specific evidence from the life of your chosen person. This will likely be stories or anecdotes illustrating the behavior/values/decisions of your chosen person. (knowledge display-describing behavior)

· Apply our course concepts to these behaviors/decisions (Knowledge transformation- applying key concepts to the behavior)

· Some disciplinary frameworks include: hedonic adaptation, materialism, gratitude, health, relationships, money, basic needs, etc

· Answer the question: How does this behavior contribute to their happiness? What would our authors say about this behavior?

· Advice!! you may have 2-3 body paragraphs per disciplinary framework that you discuss! Remember, do not include too many details at once and take it slow.

· I have noticed that some students only briefly describe certain concepts; however, thoroughly introduce the concept that you’re working with. You might have a whole paragraph discussing the disciplinary framework and then another paragraph applying it to your chosen person.

· For example, if you are talking about Rudy Rong and materialism, you will need to explain what materialism is (1 paragraph) and then in another paragraph you might mention how Rudy Rong exemplifies materialism (1 paragraph).

Conclusion:

· End your analysis with some additional insights, not just a summary of your body paragraphs. Questions to develop your conclusion include:

· What can this person do to become happier?

· What can we learn from this person overall?

· How might increasing our happiness affect our own life? Others lives?

· What should we value in life?

· Are any aspects more important in obtaining happiness than others?

· What have you learned from this unit?

· How should we view happiness?

· How do we typically view: money, relationships, work, material wealth, basic needs? And how SHOULD we view them?

· What advice would you give someone in order to be happy?

· Does this advice only apply to your character or a broader audience/group of people?

Criteria: What Amy Joy is Looking For

Assignment Element
Introduction (can be 1-2 paragraphs) Author provides appropriate and enough background information of the chosen person for a reader who is not familiar with them. A complex or working thesis statement is used at the end of the introduction.	10
Body paragraphs support the thesis statement by using appropriate language patterns of describing, arguing, and analyzing based on their chosen person. Body paragraphs are developed using relevant evidence from our readings.	25
The author engages in knowledge transformation. This is accomplished by applying disciplinary frameworks (key concepts) from the readings to the behaviors of the chosen person.	25
Conclusion offers unique insight, applying techniques mentioned in the conclusion video and handout.	10
Language has been proofread and minimal errors are made in verb tenses, word forms, and clauses. Word choices and collocations appear to have been checked using Writefull. At least 10 new vocabulary words are included and bolded in red.	20
Cohesion devices and logical organization are used to express complex relationships between paragraphs and sentences. This helps the reader follow along and goes beyond “adding information” as seen in the cohesion handout.	10

Sources & Citations:

Happiness:

Allen, Summer. “The Science of Gratitude.” Greater Good Science Center, UC Berkeley. May 2018. pp. 1-6, 27-40.

Waldinger, Robert. “What Makes a Good Life? Lessons from the Longest Study on Happiness.” TED.

November 2015. https://www.ted.com/talks/robert_waldinger_what_makes_a_good_life

_lessons_from_the_longest_study_on_happiness?language=en

McLeod, S. A. (2020, March 20). Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Simply Psychology.

https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html

Money:

Ducharme, Jamie. “This Is the Amount of Money You Need to Be Happy, According to Research.” Money.com, 14 Feb. 2018. http://money.com/money/5157625/ideal-income-study/ Accessed 31 Jul. 2019

Norton, Michael. How to Buy Happiness. TED. November 2011. https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_

norton_how_to_buy_happiness?language=en.

Shyong, Frank. “To be young, rich and Chinese in America: Amid all that flashy spending, a sense of loss” LATimes, 13 Aug. 2016, https://www.latimes.com/local/california/ la-me- headlines- chinese-fuerdai-20160707-snap-story.html. Accessed 31 Jul. 2019.

Siebold, Steve. “Interviewing over 1,200 Rich People Has Taught Me Exactly How Money Affects the

Most Important Things in Our Lives. ” Business Insider, 31 Aug. 2015, www.businessinsider.com/ how-money-affects-the-most-important-things-in-life-2015-8. Accessed 31 Jul. 2019.

The Hedonic Treadmill – Are We Forever Chasing Rainbows? Positive Psychology,

https://positivepsychology.com/hedonic-treadmill. Accessed 31 Jul. 2019.

Success:

Bennett, Nick. “The Secret Of Success - Is It Happiness?” Forbes, 18 Nov. 02018.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nickbennett1/ 2018/11/18/ the-secret-of-success-is-it-

happiness/ #4d744c716aa9. Accessed 31 July. 2019.

Covert, Bryce. “The Richest Man in China Is Wrong. 12-Hour Days Are No ‘Blessing. ’” The New

York Times. 21 April 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/21/opinion/jack-ma-996.html

Accessed 31 Jul. 2019.

Qiqing, Lin, and Zhong, Raymond. “‘996’ Is China’s Version of Hustle Culture. Tech Workers Are

Sick of It.” The New York Times. 29 APr. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/

technology/china-996-jack-ma.html?login=smartlock&auth=login-smartlock. Accessed 31 Jul.

2019.