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Lecture 8

Methodology and results sections

Report structure1. Title page

2. Abstract

3. Introduction

4. Related work

5. Method

6. Results

7. Discussion

8. Conclusion

9. References

10. Appendices

Report StructureReport Structure

Abstract

Introduction

Method

Results

Discussion & Conclusion

References

ParticipantsDesignApparatus/MaterialsProcedure

Methodology Section

Methodology Section

• The methods section is the most important part of aresearch paper .

•It provides a clear description of :

•how the research was done.•what was done to answer the research question•how the results were analyzed.

Methodology SectionIt must be written with enough information so that:

(1) the research could be repeated by others to evaluate whether the results are reproducible, and (2) the audience can judge whether the results and conclusions are valid.

Methodology Section

• The method starts directly below the introduction.

•It is typically divided into three subsections:

•Participants•Materials•Procedure

Methodology: Methodology: ParticipantsParticipants• Information on participants

includes:– Number of participants.– Procedures for selecting

participants or the sampling method (random, opportunistic etc.).

– Demographic information (age, gender, occupation, educational level).

– If some participants did not complete the experiment, state how many and why they did not continue

Example

Method

Participants

20 male and 20 female participants from Birmingham City University participated in the current study. No other demographic information was collected.

Example

Method

Participants

20 male and 20 female participants from Birmingham City University participated in the current study. No other demographic information was collected.

• Describe materials used and their function in enough detail so others can replicate

• For example: in describing word lists, include the number of words, approximate length of words, were they in capital or lowercase letters, etc.

• A copy of the materials can be included in an appendix at the end of the paper; you would refer your reader to that appendix; (see Appendix for a complete list of the words used in this experiment).

Methodology: Methodology: MaterialsMaterials

Methodology: Methodology: ProcedureProcedure• The procedure is like the

instructions for baking a cake or making something from Lego.

• It describes exactly what was done in the study and the order in which things were done.

• Describe the instructions given to participants

• The procedure should be logical, and contain sufficient information for the reader to follow.

Methodology Example

Methodology

Participants

Sixty university students (30 males and 30 females) participated in this

study for extra course credit in a Psychology 100 course at the University of

Victoria....

Materials

Three word lists were created, each of which consisted of 20 words. See

Appendix for a complete list of the words used in this experiment. All words

were written in lowercase letters. The length of each word ranged from 5 to 8

letters...

Procedure

Participants were tested individually in the presence of the experimenter...

Method

Participants

20 male and 20 female participants from Birmingham City University participated in the current study.

Method

Participants

20 male and 20 female participants from Birmingham City University participated in the current study.

Methodology Example

Results Section

ResultsPurpose: To report the key findings and the statistical analyses conductedThe results section is one of the most feared

sections of the report.

The results section should start with descriptive (summary) statistics (e.g. Mean, median, range etc.)

A summary table of descriptive statistics can be provided

Use graphs and graphs and axis are titled and the graph means something to the overall report.

Result Example

Results

The mean number of words was 25.6 and the mean. See

Figure 1 for a summary of descriptive statistics. These

data were analyzed using a t-test and the results were

statistically significant, t(30) = 4.99, p = .002, suggesting

that younger participants were able to recall more words

than older participants.

Successful Report WritingSuccessful Report Writing• Start writing early – important details

about the study may be forgotten if the write-up is left to the last minute.

• Remember – a naive reader should be able to follow your report and replicate your findings.

• Read – reading journal articles will help you with structuring your report and understanding the required style.

• Reflect – reflect upon the comments you receive on your practical reports and essays – these are provided to help you!

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Young Old

Age

Ave

rag

e W

ord

s R

ecal

led

Figure Example:

Figure 1. Average number of words recalled as a function of age.

Aver

age

Wor

ds

Reca

lled

Link to Sample Research Paper

http://camosun.ca/documents/schools/artsci/apa-sample-research.pdf

This sample is a great template and you can follow it closely.