Montgomery College General Psychology

For this assignment you will be watching the movie A Beautiful Mind (2001) on your own. Be sure to use the questions you were given to guide your attention as you watch the film.

The written portion of this assignment must be computer-generated, double-spaced, 12 point font with 1-inch margins, and written in APA format.

Steps for writing the paper:

1. Create a title page which includes: The title of the assignment, your name and your Instructor’s name. (3 pts).
2. The body of the paper will focus on answering the questions below. Copy and paste the questions into a word document, putting the answers after each set of questions.
3. What differences did you see between the life of John Nash shown in the commercial film A Beautiful Mind (2001) and the life shown in the documentary, A Brilliant Madness (2002)?  Make sure you discuss the differences in family, the differences in hospitalizations, and the differences in the influence of his Math colleagues. (13 pts)
4. If you were the psychologist examining John Nash, what symptoms would you say he exhibited that would lead you to conclude he suffered from schizophrenia (refer to textbook AND cite textbook)? What treatments were utilized with John Nash (in the commercial film and in the documentary) and how effective do you think each were/why?  (20 pts)
5. Refer to your text for current explanations for the causes and biochemical origins of schizophrenia.  Include the nature/nurture issues (diathesis-stress explanation – page 639 in Okami). (12 pts)
6. Analyze the mental health changes in John Nash, both in the development of the disorder and his subsequent recovery shown throughout the commercial film?  Are the changes similar or dissimilar to the changes shown in the documentary?  Is the portrayal of schizophrenia supported by what you have learned from the materials in your textbook? (16 pts)
7. What insights have these films and the textbook given you into the symptoms and treatment of schizophrenia, the stigma associated with it, and the challenges of caring for a person with schizophrenia? (16 pts)
8. Reference page, reference citations, grammar/spelling, written communication (20 pts): Include an APA style reference page which includes the videos and your textbook. (8 pts) You must also cite the movie and textbook using APA style within the body of the paper and your paper will be graded for grammatical and spelling accuracy (7 pts) Finally your paper will be graded for written communication (5 pts)

Citing the movie in APA format:

• If you describe a scene by saying: In the movie A Beautiful Mind (2001) …, the title is italicized and the year is in parentheses.
• If you describe a scene by saying The portrayal of schizophrenia reflected a typical… (A Brilliant Madness, 2002). The title is italicized and both the title and year go in the parentheses before the period at the end of the sentence.

Citing the textbook in APA format:

• In Okami (2014, p. 213), issues surrounding schizophrenia are portrayed … Only the year of publication and the page number go in the parentheses. The page number included if the page number from the book from which the reference comes.

• Treatment issues include… (Okami, 2014, p. 213). The author’s name, year of publication and page number all go in the parentheses before the period at the end of the sentence.

Basic APA reference formats for films and textbook look like this. (Reference page should begin on a separate page!):

References

Grazer, B. (Producer), & Howard, R. (Director). (2001). A Beautiful Mind [Motion picture]. United States: Universal Pictures.

Okami, P. (2014). Psychology: Contemporary perspectives (pp. ??-??). New York: Oxford University Press.

Samels, M. Shea, G., Drain, M., Martin, M., and MacLowry, R. (Producers), & Samels, M. (Director). (2002). A Brilliant Madness [Television documentary]. United States: PBS Home Video.