Passion in your SoP?

[Perfectionist08]

So, I've sent out 8 out of 11 of my statement of purposes, and one of my recommendrs recommended that I include more of my passion about the field of psychology. I included a couple sentences about how I got into psychology and why I like my research interest. Since most (if not all) of the schools didn't specifically ask that I talk about my passion for the field, I didn't talk much about it. I wrote what they asked about, which was clinical experience, research experience, research interests, and future goals. I didn't want to talk too much about why I love psychology because (1) it's implied and (2) it always sounds generic. What do you think?

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[cara susanna]

I dunno, I think there's a way to imply passion through describing your experiences.

But I shouldn't say anything until my profs have looked mine over.

 

[psychmama]

I'd take your recommender's advice and add some fire to your statement of interest in psych. It may sound trite to your ears, but unless you're given to melodrama (which I doubt from the tone of your post) adding a little more passion will help you come across as the sort of applicant that schools want.

 

[psybee]

I think my SoP showed passion, but I think the key was showing, not telling. I showed how certian essential questions underlied my academic, work, research and volunteer expereinces, and how those expereinces (focusing on the directly psych related ones, my RA jobs and advocacy work) had in turn not only taught me about the field, but raised new questions and interests, ones that would best be explored via doctoral education, and best of all at thier school, which had great resources to pursue my interests and contribute to thier research program. at the end i did a sentence or two summary, winding it up, and underscoring my commitment to the field and my rightness for thier program. i don't think i ever used the word passion outright, but it wasn't really necessary.

 

[greenmac]

How specific do you guys get in describing your research interests?

For example, which of the two options below is closer to how you should sound in your statement?

A) I am very interested in researching ________ disorders/treatments in ________ populations. I believe that this line of research would complement the ongoing work in Professor _________'s lab and I would also love to work with her on her related projects on ________.

B) I am specifically interested in the relationship between ________ disorders and ______. I would like to show that ________ moderates the efficacy of _________ treatments, and to explore how ______ influences the development of __________. I hypothesize that ______ increases the likelihood of developing ________, especially in ______ populations, based on related research in _________ and ________. I think that this line of research would complement the ongoing work in Professor ____________'s lab and I would also love to work with her on her related projects on ______.


Do you get the point of my question? Should we already have experimental procedures and hypotheses ready to go or just describe general research interest areas?

 

[KillerDiller]

How specific do you guys get in describing your research interests?

For example, which of the two options below is closer to how you should sound in your statement?

A) I am very interested in researching ________ disorders/treatments in ________ populations. I believe that this line of research would complement the ongoing work in Professor _________'s lab and I would also love to work with her on her related projects on ________.

B) I am specifically interested in the relationship between ________ disorders and ______. I would like to show that ________ moderates the efficacy of _________ treatments, and to explore how ______ influences the development of __________. I hypothesize that ______ increases the likelihood of developing ________, especially in ______ populations, based on related research in _________ and ________. I think that this line of research would complement the ongoing work in Professor ____________'s lab and I would also love to work with her on her related projects on ______.


Do you get the point of my question? Should we already have experimental procedures and hypotheses ready to go or just describe general research interest areas?

I think B sounds better and more at the level of specificity I would personally go for (and did go for when I applied to programs). However, I would change phrases like "show that" to "investigate whether" and phrase your potential outcomes more as possibilities rather than making a specific directional hypothesis. I think the way it is now comes off as a little heavy handed, even though I like the inclusion of potential moderator variables, etc. Just my personal style, I guess.