Research Projects for Psyc 220, Spring 2005
Walter vom Saal
updated 4/20/05
The items referred to below contain assignments and information regarding research projects. More details for certain assignments are available by clicking the appropriate links in the left column below.
General notes on research assignments:
- All research reports submitted must be printed.
- All research reports submitted must have an accompanying page that is folded over and stapled together, and placed in the right pocket of your folder. It must contain the following information:
- The paper title, date, course name, course number, and section number, and your (real) names;
- On that same page, a table or chart that lists each section of the report and shows, for each section: name of primary author, name of secondary author (if any), and name of reviewer. Use real names in this chart. Be sure to fold this page so names don’t show.
- On that same page, a statement saying "I have read this entire report and accept responsibility for its contents" which is signed by all group members.
- When minimum and maximum numbers of pages are given, this refers to printed pages with spacing set to 1-1/2, and standard margins. I use Times New Roman 12-point font. You are not required to use this font, but please do use spacing set to 1-1/2 if possible.
- Research reports will have different sections that should be clearly labeled. ALL sections, including cover pages, written sections, figures, tables, references, acknowledgements, footnotes, etc. should be submitted together as a single document that is stapled together (not paper-clipped).
- Reports should follow the guidelines in the text unless exceptions have been described in class. Three exceptions that have been described are:
- Include a title page with the information described above;
- It is acceptable to start each section on a separate page;
- For figures, include the figure caption at the bottom of the figure itself instead of on a separate page.
- Research reports must be submitted in a folder that also contains additional documents and information, such as raw data, statistical analyses, etc. Further details will be provided in class.
- In some cases, I may also require a separate submission of the spreadsheet or other document containing raw data and containing your statistical analyses. This will be announced in class.
Research assignments |
||
title |
description |
due date |
| Research Project #1 | Observational study. |
pre 3/05 |
| Report on Research Project #1 | Follow APA format. Follow guidelines discussed in class. Review the handout give out in class and available on the website, on guidelines and grading for APA reports. This initial report may be less sophisticated than future reports. | final report due Tuesday, 3/8/05 |
| Interview #1: Carry out first interview | Carry out an initial pilot interview with at least one person on the topic of happiness. We discussed this as a “pilot study" for a slightly more sophisticated second interview to be conducted later. Follow guidelines discussed in class. | conduct interview before Tuesday 3/8/05 |
| Interview #2: Carry out second interview | Conduct a second interview with at least one person.Follow the guideines discussed in class. This interview should be somewhat more thoughtfully planned than the first interview, based on our class discussion. | Conduct interview by Thursday 3/10/05 |
| Oral report on second interview. | Be prepared to make a brief oral report Thu 3/10. Your report should be only 1-2 minutes long. It is intended to be on your second interview, but if you found the first one more interesting, you may report on that one. You may use file cards or note cards, but you may NOT read from them. Your model should be the sections of an APA report. There is nothing to hand in for this assignment: just be prepared to give your oral report. [This is assignment “C” discussed on Tuesday, 3/8/05] |
Due Thursday 3/10/05 |
| Interview #1: First interview report. |
Submit a one-page brief informal report. Include what you planned, what happened, and any conclusions you formed. This report can be very brief and very informal. [This is assignment “B” discussed on Tuesday, 3/8/05] |
Written report due Tuesday 3/15/05 |
| Interview #2: Second interview report. | Submit a one-to two-page written interview report on your second interview. This report should be slightly more sophisticated than your report on your first interview, but should still be only two pages long. It should include what you planned, what happened, and any conclusions you formed. This report should be divided into sections based on the APA report structure.You should include as an appendix any planning material (notes, outline, etc.) you prepared in advance and brought to the interview, and any notes you made during or after the interview. [This is assignment “D” discussed on Tuesday, 3/8/05] |
Written report due Tuesday 3/15/05 |
Handouts relevant to group research
projects |
|
| Guidelines for effective group work | This is a document prepared in a previous class. Although rough in some spots, it contains some good things to think about. We may refer to this as we begin group projects. |
| APA Report Grading Sheet | Use this document in preparing and reviewing your APA research reports. This handout may be updated or modified. |
| APA Report Grading Sheet REVISED | This is the same as the grading sheet above, but with the additions described in class on 4/19/05 and earlier. The revisions are a substantial addition to the section near the end of the form labeled "Separate Information Pages." A filled-in copy of this form, OR the previous form with the additions noted on it, should be submitted with your report on Research Project #2 and another one with your report on Research Project #3. |
| Original form for assessment of group members' contributions to group projects | Use this form when submitting final group project. Each group member must separately and confidentially fill out the form. The form should be submitted directly to me on the same day the project is submitted. |
| APA reference format for citing internet sources | Refer to this when citing internet sources. This handout may be updated or modified. |
| Guidelines for Research Report #2 | A summary of some of the guidelines discussed in class on 4/7/05 and 4/14/05. |
| Data for research report #2 and selected data analysis | This sheet contains the data you were provided that summarizes the responses we got to the questionnaire used in Research Report #2. It also includes the data analysis of that data that was required in Homework #10. |
| Data for research report #3 | This sheet contains the happiness questionnaire data from the full set of 75 participants. |
3/9/05