Psychology 102

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Psychology 102

• American Psychological Association
• Publication Style

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APA Format

• Why do we use APA format?
• Clarity in research reports for the reader
• Clarity in writing for efficiency
• To ensure thoroughness
• To achieve a standard of excellence

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APA Format

• Publication Manual of the American Psychological
  Association, 5th Edition
• Keep this text.
• Look for updates at
• www.apastyle.org

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APA Format

• Mastering APA Style Student Workbook
• Gelfand and Walker

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APA Format

• Your resources for learning APA Format-
• Your APA Manual
• Your Mastering APA Style Student Workbook
• Chapter 14 in your Psychologist As Detective text
• The website www.APAstyle.org
• http//www.apastyle.org/whatsnew.html
• Some tutors in the writing center in FH 224
• Heather Adams
• Joe Gonzales

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APA Format

• Ten Parts of the APA Paper, in order
• Abstract
• Introduction new page, not labeled
• Method not on a new page, continuous
• Results continuous
• Discussion continuous
• References new page
• Appendix new page
• Author note new page
• Tables new page
• Figure captions new page
• Figures new page

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Welcome Iris Carroll!

• New library assignment has been uploaded to my
  website
• Complete your library assignment by 10-22-07, but
  earlier helps you
• Term paper mastery test is Wednesday
• Bring your APA manual for use during the test
• Bring a scantron 886 and a pencil
• Your Theoretical Research Proposal is due Wed.
  Attach page 22 from the syllabus

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• Joe Gonzaless study session options
• Tuesdays 1230-200
• 200-330
• 330-430
• Thursdays 1230-200
• 200-330
• 330-530
• Fridays from 430 pm - 530 pm.

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APA Format

• Mastering APA Style Student Workbook
• Teaches you the format step-by-step with
  references to the APA Manual sections
• Cover the left side, read shaded text on the
  right
• Determine if the shaded example is correct or not
• Compare to the correct example on the left side
• Complete the practice test
• Review APA Manual sections for missed items
• Repeat the practice test

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APA Format Mastering APA Workbook Process

• Two types of APA mastery tests
• Term paper mastery
• Research paper mastery
• Four tests each
• Pass first one in class at 70
• Pass second through fourth at 90
• Advice pass the first one by studying very hard.
  No papers can be submitted until you pass both
  mastery tests. Grades diminish over time by 5
  per week late.

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APA Format

• Assignment Peruse and tab your APA manual for
  the next class session.
• Bring your manual to class.
• Prepare for a short practice test in class.

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APA Format Editorial Style

• Margins 1 inch on all sides
• Justification left only
• Line length 6 inches
• Lines per page 27 (not counting the header and
  page number)
• Page numbers start on title page, upper right
  corner at the 1 inch margin, one-half inch from
  the top of the page
• Header first two or three words from title, 5
  spaces to the left of the page number
• Running head shortened title, left margin, below
  the level of the header, all upper case letters,
  maximum 50 letters

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APA Format Editorial Style

• Title
• upper and lower case letters
• centered
• place in upper half of page
• double-space between lines
• includes independent and dependent variables
• Example
• The Effect of Study Sessions on
• Grades in Research Methods in Psychology

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APA Format Editorial Style

• Grades in Research Methods in Psychology as a
  Function of Study Session Participation
• Authors names
• in order of contribution or, if equal,
  alphabetical, separated by and
• One double-space below the title
• Institutional affiliation
• Modesto Junior College
• One double-spaced line below the authors names

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APA Format Editorial Style

• Past tense
• Spacing double space throughout
• Quotations
• Avoid if possible
• If fewer than 40 words, incorporate into text
  with quotation marks
• If longer, double-spaced in a block indented five
  spaces from left margin with no indentation

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APA Format Editorial StyleNumbers

• Generally write out numbers below 10
• Put numbers 10 and above in arabic
• Exceptions numbers grouped for comparison
• 3 of 21 analyses, 4 of the 40 stimulus words, the
  6th group, toys included 14 balloons, 3 stuffed
  animals
• 15 traits on each of four checklists (traits are
  not compared to checklists)
• Exceptions numbers that precede measurements
• A 5-mg dose
• With 10.54 cm of
• Exceptions numbers that represent time, date,
  age, scores, money
• In about 3 years, 2 weeks ago, 2-year-olds,9
  rats, trial 3,page 71
• And many more exceptions see section 3.42

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Abstract

• Purpose a brief description of the entire study,
  placed at the beginning of the paper to let the
  reader know the essence of the research and
  determine whether or not to read the paper
• Start on a new page
• Place the word Abstract in the center at the top
• No indentation
• Limit to 120 words
• Type all numbers in arabic (1,2,3), except those
  that begin a sentence
• One paragraph only

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Abstract

• Content-120 words or less
• Focus of investigation
• Hypothesis
• Results
• Practical implications
• Do not break words at the end of lines
• Type short lines or begin at the right margin
• Do not right justify

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Abstract

• The differences in semantic recall among students
  with either an analytic or a holistic cognitive
  style were investigated. The cognitive style was
  determined by the amount of bilateral alpha
  activity (8-13) Hz) measured from the cerebral
  cortex of the brain during 2 eyes-open baseline
  recordings. The results indicated that the
  analytic group (who produced less bilateral alpha
  activity than did the holistic group) recalled
  more of the logically or semantically important
  information from structured expository text than
  did the holistic group (F 1,58) 29.93,plt.01.
  Holistic individuals recalled more of the
  semantically important information from
  high-imagery poetry than did analytic individuals
  (F 1,58) 15.02, plt.01. The findings are
  congruent with the bimodal theory of conscious
  processing and support the position that
  individual differences are important factors in
  memory research.

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Introduction

• Purpose to inform the reader about the relevant
  research on the topic, set the current research
  in the context of prior research, and state the
  hypothesis.
• Do not write introduction at the top
• Begin with the title
• Indent all paragraphs
• No one-sentence paragraphs
• All cited references in intro are listed on the
  reference page.
• End the intro with the hypothesis, name the
  groups

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Introduction

• Why is this problem important?
• How do the hypothesis and experimental design
  relate to the problem?
• What are the theoretical implications of the
  study, and how does the study relate to previous
  work in the area?
• What theoretical propositions are tested, and how
  were they derived?

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Introduction

• Use a funnel approach
• Wide at the top Begin with a statement of the
  general field of psychology addressed with your
  research.
• Medium Discuss foundational research first
• Next, review related research
• Narrow Finally, focus on your research

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Introduction citations

• Vary the style to make it interesting
• Always give credit to authors
• Examples
• Brewer and Dauber (2007) reported that
• Recent research (Brewer Dauber, 2007)
• In a review of research related to forensic
  investigations of murders committed by those
  diagnosed with a mental illness it was determined
  that approximately 70 of these cases carried a
  diagnosis of anti-social personality disorder
  (Brewer Dauber, 2007).

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Introduction

• Know prior research well enough to describe it
  intelligently
• Know the research well-enough to place it
  appropriately in the funnel
• The number of references included depends on the
  amount of relevant research, usually there are at
  least 5
• Be thorough!

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Hypotheses

• Goes at the end of intro
• Past tense
• Do not use prove ever!
• A prediction of the results in a study
• Includes the independent and dependent variables
• Identifies the groups
• It was predicted that.
• The hypothesis suggested that.
• It was expected that.

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Hypotheses

• It was predicted that research methods students
  participating in study sessions (study session
  group) designed to enhance course material would
  out-perform students who did not attend study
  sessions (non-study session group) on the final
  exam.
• The hypothesis suggested that students
  participating in study sessions (study group) for
  the research methods course would earn higher
  course grades than those students in the same
  course not attending study sessions
• (non-study session group.)

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Hypotheses

• Research methods students attending study
  sessions (study group) were expected to earn
  higher course grades than students in the same
  course not attending study groups (non-study
  group).
• Based on the research of Brewer and Dauber
  (2007), the current study was expected to
  demonstrate that.

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Rational

• Goes near hypothesis
• Why did I expect these results?
• Gives the reader an explanation for why you
  expected the results you expected.
• Be proactive imagine getting results opposite of
  your prediction, how would you explain these
  results?

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Method

• Do not begin on a new page
• Center the word Method
• Not Methods
• Do not underline or italicize
• Contains three sub-headings
• Participants (not subjects)
• Materials, Apparatus or Instruments
• Design and Procedure
• Italicized
• Not indented
• Not underlined
• Paragraph below each heading is indented

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Participants

• Always use participants not subjects unless you
  are using animals
• 1) procedure for selecting them and assigning
  them to groups
• 2) agreements or payments made
• 3) gender, age, ethnicity and relevant
  demographics
• 4) total number and number assigned to each
  experimental condition, label the conditions the
  study group the non-study group
• 5) Participants were treated in accordance with
  the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and code
  of Conduct (American Psychological Association,
  1992a). Find 2000 ref.?

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Apparatus, Materials, or Instrument

• Purpose to describe all items used in the
  experiment in enough detail for replication
• 1) usually its apparatus
• 2) italicized
• 3) left margin
• 4) indent paragraph below
• 5) model numbers of equipment
• 6) ordering information
• 7) standard items are mentioned without detail
• 8) complex equipment can be detailed in an
  appendix

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Procedure

• Purpose to give a chronological description of
  the study in enough detail for replication
• 1) italicized
• 2) left margin
• 3) indent paragraph below
• 4) describe everything you did to prepare for and
  with the participants beginning with how you
  randomly placed them into groups.
• 5) instructions to participants
• 6) control features specific to your design

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Results

• Purpose to describe the outcome of the study in
  relation to the hypothesis using statistics
• 1) Centered, not underlined
• 2) begin with a statement about the hypothesis
• 3) include statistics on all results you
  calculate and everything you plan to bring up in
  discussion including surprise results you did
  not hypothesize
• 4) do not interpret the results here, leave that
  for the discussion section
• 5) Report means for all groups

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Results

• It was expected that research methods students
  who attended study sessions would out-perform
  students (m 7.5) who did not attend study
  sessions (m 3.1). The hypothesis was confirmed,
  t (45) 3.07, plt.05.
• The hypothesis suggesting that study sessions
  would improve the grades of research methods
  students (m7.5) compared to students not
  attending study sessions (m3.1) was supported, t
  (45) 3.07, plt.05.

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Results

• The prediction that research methods students
  attending study sessions (m7.5) would earn
  higher grades than students not participating in
  study sessions (m3.1) was denied t (45) 3.07,
  pgt.05.
• Use support, confirm, accepted
• Or unsupported, unconfirmed, rejected

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Discussion

• Purpose
• To compare your results to results in previously
  published research
• To give explanations for your results
• To suggest improvements on your method
• To offer ideas for further investigation on the
  topic

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Discussion

• Begin with a summary statement of the
  hypothesis(es) and results on each.
• Compare your results to the results of each study
  you cited in introduction
• How could your study be improved?
• Based on your conclusions, what is the next step
  in this line of research?
• What is the practical implication of your
  research?

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References

• Purpose
• To cite every author to give them credit for
  their work
• To provide information so the reader can read the
  cited works
• Always include the APA reference alphabetically
• American Psychological Association. (1992a).
  Ethical principles of psychologists and code of
  conduct. American psychologist, 47, 1597- 1611.

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References

• Alphabetize all references
• Use APA Manual and internet sources for examples,
  google APA style references
• All cited references are included
• No references are listed that are not cited
• Start the list on a new page
• Center References at the top
• Double-space
• First line is flush left
• Second line is indented 5 spaces