For the final paper, you will choose a research topic of interest to you and propose a well-supported study design. Using materials from class and additional external research, you identify supporting literature for this question, a thoughtful study design, and reasonable predictions. To ensure this assignment is manageable and you have the chance to get revise and update your project, the final paper will be sequenced.
Goals for this Assignment
1. To give you an opportunity to read more about a topic in psychology that interests you.
2. To gain experience collating, synthesizing, and integrating empirically based research.
3. To try developing your own empirical study design.
4. To practice articulating your point-of-view using scientific evidence.
Final Paper Sequence
● This final paper will have multiple “stages.” This is both to help you make progress incrementally [and to make writing it easier] and to help me provide feedback/guidance to youalong the way.
● The assignment sequenced so that students:
1. Closely evaluate and summarize a peer-reviewed empirical research article
2. Generate a research question, constructs of interest, and annotated bibliography,
3. Complete research ethics training/certification
4. Identify methods including participants, measures, design and specific hypotheses
5. write a first draft and provide peer review edits to a classmate’s draft
6. turn in a complete paper.
The “milestones” en route to completion of the final paper:
1) Article Evaluation
a) Identify a peer-reviewed article relevant to your interests
b) Provide a summary and critique as per the worksheet provided
2) Research Question, Hypotheses and Bibliography
b) 1-2 sentence research question
c) 1-2 sentences describing each construct you believe will be relevant to designing a study that could address the research question you plan to propose
d) 1-2 sentences specifying a potential population of interest
e) At least 5 – 10 citations, including a sentence or two describing why each source is relevant
3) Hypotheses, Methods, Design
a) Identify the targeted participants you aim to recruit, with a rationale for why and details for how you would do this
b) Delineate all independent and dependent variables
c) Write a paragraph describing and stating your hypotheses
d) Choose and describe the relevant measures and procedure for all variables
e) Design a study that addresses the research question and tests the hypotheses
4) First Draft and Peer Review
a) Develops the research question further and begins building a literature review and an organization for the paper.
b) Can be a draft, a structure outline, or some (clear) combination of both
c) Should include:
i) Introduction and Background (3 – 5 sections of supporting evidence)
ii) Method with participants, measures, procedure
iii) Description of design and expected results with visualization
iv) Discussion with summary, limitations, and future directions
d) You can use different or additional references from what you submitted previously
e) Prepare comments and/or notes within your draft to help attune your peer reviewer towards the kind of feedback for which you are looking
5) Final Paper
a) No Minimum Length
b) Maximum length 12 pages Double-spaced
c) One-inch Margins
d) APA format throughout
e) Title Page
f) Abstract
Additional Details
• Who is the Audience? A smart, but uninformed researcher – maybe not a field expert, you should address your audience as though they are familiar with the core principles of empirical, academic research and the basics tenets of psychology. Further, assume that your audience doesn’t know about the specific topic about which you are writing.
• What is your Role as the Writer? To describe the key terms relevant to your research area, to clearly define the key issues, questions, or debates (aka “setting up the question”), and to ultimately provide a concrete test for the questions you raise in the form of a thoughtful empirical study. Your goal is also for readers to walk away with some new insight into a particular research topic.
Actions to Take
• Find something truly interesting and exciting to you
• Establish small working groups. Feel free to set-up small writing groups of three-five students. If interested, we can incorporate some meeting time during class to give you time to comment constructively on each other’s drafts.
• Sign-up for consultations with me. Consult with me or someone in the Writing Center. Good writing often takes many pairs of eyes.
Actions Not to Take
• Start last minute (this should be difficult to do, given how we’ve set it up)
• Work all alone
• Be too broad
• Cite “the whole kitchen sink”
• Summarize each article separately and without integration
• Be too complicated in your design and methods
How will you be evaluated?
Although a more detailed rubric follows below, here are some general competencies to focus on:
• depth of coverage
• organization
• critical thinking
• original thinking
• use of peer-reviewed, empirical research
• appropriate mode of structure and analysis (e.g., comparison, argument)
• thoughtful study design
• consideration of issues in sampling and measurement
• correct use of sources
(I provided an example paper please follow these guidelines!!!!!)