Experimental PsychologyPSY 433

Chapter 5

Research Reports

Overview of the Process

Science requires communication of results to: Other scientists. The general public.

Ways of communicating results: Oral presentations at conferences – 20 min. Posters at conferences. Peer-reviewed journals.

The media – books, TV, news outlets. Only after communication to scientific

community.

Peer Reviewed Journals

Published by Academic Publishers, frequently in association with psychological organizations.

An editor selects relevant experts to review each submission.

Reviewers critique submissions, suggest changes, recommend publication or not.

Articles do not need to be perfect to be published – just scientifically sound and worth reading.

APA Format

Speeds up literature searches for those doing research by placing information in standard places within a text.

Prevents errors by the publisher because less interpretation must be made of the author’s intentions.

Authors do not need to learn a new format for each journal they wish to submit to.

Parts of the Article

Title page Abstract Text:

Introduction Methods Results Discussion

References Appendix, Tables and Figures

Structure of the Report

Reports go from theory to the experimental model and back to theory again. Theory – Introduction Experimental Model – Methods & Results Theory – Discussion

Theory may be discussed in the present tense but the experiment (model) is always described in the past tense.

Title Page

Detachable for anonymous review. Running head and title serve different

purposes: Title will appear at top of article when printed. Running head will appear at top of each page

when printed. List authors in order of contribution, with

affiliations – your group members names should go on your paper. Your name goes first, so I know who wrote the

paper.

Abstract

Each journal has a different length requirement. Check the “Instructions to Authors”.

For this class, maximum length is 120 words. Use Word Tools menu choice to count them.

One sentence for each main part of the article’s text.

Can be written last. Put the word “Abstract” at the top of the page.

Introduction

Clearly state the research question and its importance to society or to theory.

Describe what has already been done to address this question: Review current theories and state the theory

you hold. Review work done by others in the literature.

In the last paragraph, explain how the question will be addressed and make a prediction about the results.

Methods

This section describes the experimental model that will test the theory’s prediction.

Provide an introductory description of the study (overview). Describe IV, DV, and design. Describe the “rationale” for the experiment.

Provide sufficient detail about participants, apparatus, materials, procedure, to permit someone to replicate your study. Include a figure showing stimuli, setup or apparatus.

Results

Clearly identify the alternative hypothesis. Describe this in terms of the experimental

operationalization, not theory. The null hypothesis is always that there is no

effect, no difference – so it need not be stated. State the kinds of statistical tests used and

justify them (if necessary). Give the results in text if brief, or table and

graph form if lengthy. Explain how the findings relate to your

hypotheses (predictions).

Discussion

Restate the research question and explain how the findings have answered it. Start with a general statement then get specific. Do not repeat statistics or results – interpret them.

Explain how your findings relate to those of others in the literature.

Explain the limitations of the study: Potential threats to validity, confounds, etc. Generalizability.

Conclusion – state importance of the findings.

References

Intended to enable others to find the articles you used as sources.

Use of APA format prevents misunderstandings about dates, page numbers, authorship, etc.

PsycInfo automatically downloads cites in APA format. New media (e.g., web pages, email, DVDs) are

described in the newest APA Manual revision (6th Edition).

Check sources cited in text to be sure they are listed in refs and check refs to be sure every reference is mentioned in text.

Author Notes

Used to provide information about the authors: Current affiliation (affiliation on title page is

where the work was done), contact info. Grants that funded the work.

Acknowledgments of help: Collaborators, students, people who

commented on drafts of the paper, anyone who gave you a good idea or technique.

Figures and Graphs

Use them as necessary to tell your story most effectively.

Must conform to APA format – do not simply attach SPSS output to your paper.

Keep them simple and label groups using words that will be meaningful to the reader.

You can provide additional explanation in captions and text.

Can be reprinted from other people’s studies with permission.

Required for Your Project

Proposal – a description of the project before it is done: Write in future tense Include Title Page, Introduction, Methods, References

Final report – due at end of quarter, will include all parts, written in past tense. Must include at least 1 figure and 1 table Use of APA format is part of your grade Write it as if you are submitting a paper for publication,

not as a student completing an assignment Each student must write an individual proposal and

final report – don’t plagiarize each other. OK to share resources but not writing