Understanding The Research Process Psychology

Resources: Ch. 1, 2, and & 7 of Psychology

 

This required Portfolio assignment will provide you with the opportunity to practice and hone your research skills.  It has been designed to help you think scientifically about real world problems and issues and to apply your knowledge of the research process to various topics in Psychology.  This assignment accomplishes that goal by challenging you to:

 

·         Differentiate between the common use of the word research and the use of the word research in the social and behavioral sciences

·         Identify the major steps in the research process using a classic study in Psychology as an example.

 

Part I:  Defining Research

The word research is used in many different ways.  Consider the following examples:

·         Your friend tells you that he intends to research different hair products before deciding on one to buy.

·         A real estate agent advises you to research home values in your neighborhood before putting your house on the market.

·         A police officer reports that she is doing ‘some research’ on possible motives for a crime that was committed.

·         A writer states that he does ‘extensive research’ before beginning his fictional works.

 

Answer the questions below:

 

1.     How is research defined in the social and behavioral sciences?

 

 

2.     What makes scientific research different from the examples provided above?   In your response, be sure to address the characteristics of ‘good’ psychological research.

 

 

Part II: Understanding the research process

Researchers in Psychology follow a systematic process of investigation. Carefully read Chapter 2 of your textbook, paying special attention to the section on Experimental Research.  Then go to Chapter 7 in your textbook and read the following section: Research In-Depth: Counterfactuals and “If Only…” Thinking.  Answer the questions below, using Medvec & colleagues’ first study as an example:

1.     What hypothesis did Medvec & colleagues set out to test in their first study of the ‘near miss’ phenomenon?  Describe the theory associated with this hypothesis.

 

 

2.     Identify the variables in the study and describe how they were measured.  How did the researchers operationalize (test or measure) affective response upon winning a bronze or silver medal?

 

 

3.     Who were the participants in the study and what did they do?

 

 

4.     Describe the data that was collected and analyzed.

 

 

5.     Describe the results of the study.  What did the researchers conclude?

 

 

6.     If you were to design a follow-up experiment on this subject, what might it be?

There is not a specific word count…just make sure that you have adequately addressed each question.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

 

LopesWrite Policy

• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: 
  • Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
  • Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.