Method and Theory in Psychology - 830:255
Spring, 2008
Instructor: (Almost Dr.) Gary Allen
Lecture: T
& Th, 3:00 - 4:20
Classroom: FA242
e-mail: gmallen629@comcast.net
(
Office:
Armitage Hall, room to
be announced
Office hours: T & Th, 2:00 - 3:00
Course Description and Objectives
This course provides an introduction to research methods in the field of
psychology. We will be talking about the
role of scientific inquiry in psychology; research questions; ethics in
research; writing in psychology; reliability; validity; research designs; and
research conducted in the laboratory versus that in the field (i.e., the “real
world”). At the end of this class, you
should possess an understanding of the fundamental principles and procedures of
psychological research and an ability to critically evaluate the research you
read (i.e., you will become an “educated consumer” of research). In addition, you will have the opportunity to
work on developing your writing skills this semester.
Required
1) MacLin, M. K., and Solso, R. L. (2008). Experimental Psychology: A Case Approach (8th Ed).
2) Perrin,
R. (2007). Pocket Guide to APA Style (2nd Ed).
These books are available in the bookstore or on-line at Amazon.com or
BarnesandNoble.com.
3) Articles will be assigned in class and will
either be handed out in class, or left on reserve in the library…and YES, they
will be on the test!
Please read all assigned readings before we talk about them in
class.
General Course Requirements
Attendance and Class Participation: Class attendance and participation is
expected, however you are adults and will make that decision on your own; I
will tell you that my experience teaching this class has shown me that there is
a correlation between attendance and grade…take that for what it’s worth. Most classes will include discussions and/ or
exercises designed to increase your understanding of the material and assure
your success in this course. And since I
intend to have fun in the class (YES you read that right…fun in experimental
psych? go figure…) you will be missing out if you miss class. You may also need to meet with me during the
semester to discuss progress on your research papers; you should come to these
meetings prepared.
Thus, this component of your grade (5%)
will be based on the following criteria:
1) Did you attend class? 2) Did
you contribute to the intellectual climate in class (by listening and
participating in discussions and exercises)?
Exams: You will be evaluated on your
understanding of the material by taking three exams, each worth 20% of your final grade.
Each exam will include questions based on the readings and lectures;
these exams will be multiple choice and short answer in format. While these exams are not EXPLICITLY
cumulative, it will become apparent to you that everything we talk about will
build on previous material, so…I think you get my drift about cumulativeness
(cumulativnation???)…if not, I’m saying you should review all material as you
prepare for the exams. IF you need to
miss a test, please let me know or tell someone in the Psychology office
(856-225-6520) in advance; do not come in the next class period and tell me
that something came up (l do realize that emergencies happen, but I will be
asking for MAJOR evidence of the
emergency before accepting your version of events…I mean, it’s not that I’m not
a trusting person or anything, it’s just that…oh…never mind). Tests will be
made-up the next class day, and will be exclusively short-answer/essay.
Research critiques: One of the primary ways we contribute to our
discipline is by serving as a reviewer for our colleagues, either for
publications or convention / conference papers.
In order to give you experience in this endeavour, show off your
understanding of research and your writing skills, you will be assigned two
research papers to be critiqued, based on the principles discussed in
class. I will provide explicit criteria
for this critique in class and your grade will be based on the quality of your
paper as well as how closely you match the criteria. Each critique will be between 2-4 pages in
length; we will discuss the first one in class to help you understand the
nature of this process. Each critique
will be worth 5% of your grade.
Research Paper: Research is an APPLIED skill, so all the book
learnin’ in the world will not make you a good researcher. However, given the limited time we have
(i.e., about 14 weeks), thee is no time to have you complete a research
project. However, you will be asked to
complete a research proposal. This will
consist of two parts, and three explicit tasks.
The first task will require you to decide on a topic area, which MUST be
approved by your instructor (uh, that would be me). This will be due on February 7th. The
second task will involve your writing a literature review paper on the topic of
your choosing. We will talk about the
best way to approach writing a literature review in class and there will be
resources provided in your text and other handouts. This part of your paper should be 2-3 pages long
and will be due April 1st in class; this part will be worth 10%.
This part of the paper will be graded and turned back to you so that it
can be revised and included as the introduction to the second part of your
paper. The third task, and second part
of your paper will be a proposal for a research project addressing the topic
discussed in the literature review paper you already completed; this should be
4-5 pages in length; this part will be
worth 15%. Thus, the final research
paper that you turn in on May 1st (in class) will include your first
paper (with revisions) as an introduction, a new section discussing the aims of
your research project, and a new section discussing the proposed methodology to
complete this research project. The
final research paper should be in APA style and will be approximately 6-8 pages
long (12 font, double spaced, not including the title page and reference
page). Additional information about the
research paper will be made available in class and in separate handouts.
Grading:
Attendance and participation: 5%
1st Exam: 20%
2nd Exam: 20%
3rd Exam (Final): 20%
Research Critiques: 5% each
Research Paper (includes all parts): 25%
TOTAL 100%
Policy on Academic Honesty
The discipline of Psychology is built on the belief and requirements
that those in the field will act in an ethical manner at all times. This includes the requirement that we treat
patients, research subjects and other professionals in a manner consistent with
the ethical principles espoused by our field (you can see these principles at http://www.apa.org/ethics/code2002.pdf). I will expect that everyone in this class, as
a future professional, will follow these principles, including and especially the
principles relating to plagiarism (Standard 8.11). The university also has a policy on academic
honesty (http://ctaar.rutgers.edu/integrity/policy.html) and I encourage you to
familiarize yourself with this policy - we
will be following these policies in this class.
Class Schedule
|
Date |
Topic(s) O’ The Day |
|
|
1/22 |
Introduction to me and the class |
|
|
1/24 |
Scientific Inquiry: what is it, why do we do it, who do we blame it on
and how did they get off so easily? |
M & S, |
|
1/29 |
Empiricism vs. Rationalism |
Handout |
|
1/31 |
Planning Your Research - where do you start? What should you study? |
M & S, |
|
2/5 |
The research paper - format and expectations |
M & S, |
|
2/7 |
Reading psychological research - foundation of the research critique
process Research paper topic
due |
M & S, |
|
2/12 |
Types of Research typically seen in Psychology |
M & S, |
|
2/14 |
Basic experimental / research design |
M & S, |
|
2/19 |
More on experimental and research design |
M & S, |
|
2/21 |
TEST 1 |
|
|
2/26 |
Advanced research designs Critique 1 Assigned |
M & S, |
|
2/28 |
More on advanced research designs |
M & S, |
|
3/4 |
The logic of experimental control |
M & S, |
|
3/6 |
The logic of experimental control (continued) |
M & S, |
|
3/11 |
Quasi-experimental research - working in the “real world” |
Handout |
Date |
Topic(s) O’ The Day |
|
|
3/13 |
Critique 1 Due - Review
of Critique 1 |
|
|
3/18 - 3/20 |
SPRING BREAK - No
classes (BOO, HISS!!!!) |
Follett’s guide to |
|
3/25 |
Case study and other small ‘n’ research |
Handout |
|
3/27 |
Research validity - how do we know our findings are legitimate? |
Handout |
|
4/1 |
Research validity - do our findings generalize? Literature Review Due |
Handout |
|
4/3 |
TEST 2 Critique 2 Assigned |
|
|
4/8 |
Control of subject variables in research |
M & S, |
|
4/10 |
More subject controls - what’s the difference between random
assignment and selection? |
M & S, |
|
4/15 |
Use of data - how can we show that our findings are meaningful? |
Handouts |
|
4/17 |
Using graphical data presentation - beyond histograms and pie charts Critique 2 Due |
Handouts |
|
4/22 |
Research Ethics |
M & S, |
|
4/24 |
Research Ethics again |
M & S, |
|
4/29 |
Putting this all together |
|
|
5/1 |
Putting more of this all together Final Paper Version Due |
|
|
5/8 - 5/14 |
FINAL EXAM |
|
MY
PROMISES TO YOU:
1)
I will provide details about the criteria for assessment of your
Critiques and research proposal paper prior to assigning each.
2)
Feedback is a KEY component to the assessment process and its success…as
such, ALL materials pertinent to calculating your final grade will be marked
and returned within one week, with the exception of the final papers which will
be made available at school -- details to follow.