2008 TOPSS Scholars Essay Competition Winners

The APA Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools (TOPSS) is pleased to announce the winners of 2008 TOPSS Scholars Competition. This year, the winners were Mira Vale from Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, Sudbury, Massachusetts, Rebecca Joy from Arlington Catholic High School, Arlington, Massachusetts, and Rohit Mehta from Colonia High School, Colonia, New Jersey.

This year’s competition generated a record number of entries. A panel of college and university level psychology faculty selected these three students based on their ability to complete a critical analysis and synthesis of empirical research. The essay question posed for this year's competition focused on the portrayal of psychological disorders in movies. The students were asked to choose a psychological disorder and use the DSM-IV-TR to summarize the salient characteristics of the disorder. The psychological disorders were based on three movies, As Good As It Gets (1997)-Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, A Beautiful Mind (2001) – Schizophrenia, and The Mosquito Coast (1986) – Bipolar Disorder.

The APA Education Directorate and TOPSS congratulate the winners of the 2008 competition.