Lab 1: PSY 450
Spring 2011
Dr. Dwight Hennessy
The purpose of Lab 1 is to have you go to the library, find key articles in specific fields of psychology and do a critical review of those articles. In total you will read a minimum of THREE articles (the main article and 2 follow up articles). The key article is the following:
Liebert, R. M., & Baron, R. A. (1972). Some immediate effects of televised violence on children.
Developmental Psychology, 6, 469 – 475.
Find TWO more articles in that area using PsychINFO (an article containing more than one study is only ONE article). NOTE: these must come from peer reviewed journals or books. If in doubt ask me. “Electronic” journals are not acceptable for this assignment. This sounds easy, but one problem often faced by researchers is that key articles are read by many, so it can be difficult sometimes to find them (e.g. the journal is not on the shelf or the articles is missing from the journal etc.).
You will then write a literature review paper (similar to Psychological Bulletin and Psychological Review articles) and arrive at some conclusion about a particular research question you find in the three articles. This should flow in a logical sequence from one article to the next. The point is not to present three separate reviews, but to get you to think about linking an idea that you find from the main article throughout the three research papers (similar to your task in an Introduction section of a research paper).
There is no minimum or maximum length. You are being judged on the quality, not the quantity of your work. You will be graded on clarity, flow, sentence structure, and the ability to tell me what you think. There should be no typos or grammatical mistakes. APA format citations and references should be used, just like in the key articles above. APA also dictates that past tense is used in all papers.
Your paper should be double spaced, with a 12 point Times New Roman Font and 1 inch margins. They are due February 16 at the beginning of class. A late report (any time after the beginning of class) will result in a letter grade reduction for each day it is late (note: at 12:01 it is considered 1 day late – at 12:01 the next day it is 2 days late etc.). Failure to hand in any lab report will result in an automatic failure of the class.
Tips For Writing Your Assignments
Commonly Asked Questions:
1. Does the follow up article have to refer directly to the classic article?
· No, as long as you can make a link between the idea you select from the classic article.
2. What if I can’t find the journal/book on the shelf?
§ Check the library catalog system to see if the library does carry it
§ Check if the University of Buffalo library carries it
§ Check the photocopy rooms—sometimes people leave them in the re-shelving areas
§ Come back another day
§ Check if someone else has a copy
§ Check the electronic formats for full text of your article
§ Switch to another article (as a last resort)
3. What if I have difficulties finding two follow up articles?
§ Combine key words in PsychInfo
§ Check the thesaurus on PsychInfo
§ ASK FOR HELP
4. How do I shorten my paper?
§ Write your paper and let it sit for a day if possible. Then re-read it. Often, people find sentences that are too long and contain extra and irrelevant information.
§ Have someone else proof read your paper and point out the information that does not directly relate to your summaries and conclusion.
§ Contact the writing center.
What to Focus on When Reading Articles:
Focus on what the author is trying to say to you the reader (i.e. what theoretical position is being argued? What is the hypothesis being tested?). Pay special attention to the introduction, method, and discussion/conclusions sections. Make notes on the major points as you go.
Tips for Writing:
· You don’t need to write the title of the article in the text (only the author and publication year—see the APA manual). All relevant information is in the reference section.
· Don’t be too general where you just presenting (or simply state) conclusions without providing enough of the methodology and results to show you understood what you read or to be able to explain the details of your theme.
· You also shouldn’t provide excessive details – especially of things that are not really all that relevant to understanding the study or to explain your theme (e.g. the number of participants, institution the research took place etc.)
· In most cases, people construct sentences that are too long and contain irrelevant information. For example, instead of writing “the data was collected by means of a questionnaire and cognitive tests. Subjects were college students. The tests were….” you could write “College students were administered questionnaires and cognitive tests.”
· Remember…I don’t want any quotations. I want to read your interpretations, not the literal replication of the original authors’ work.
· Use past tense to talk about research that has already been done.
· REMEMBER THAT THIS IS A SCIENTIFIC REVIEW THAT IS MEANT TO BE OBJECTIVE – IT IS NOT AN ESSAY FOR YOUR ENGLISH CLASS. It shouldn’t be written first person or contain your personal opinion (e.g. “I’m going to do this or that in my paper…..” or “I think this is wrong….”).
· You need an introduction to let the reader know what the topic is about and to introduce the problem. However, an introduction is not a paragraph that says “In paragraph 1 you will read about this article that says this thing. In paragraph 2 you will read about article 2 that says that thing…..”. You don’t need to sum up what they’ll read because…..they’ll read it. Introduce the topic and your theme.
· Similarly, your conclusion should NOT simply re-sum what they read. Remember they just read it and can likely remember the information. Rather, this is a time for you to sum up your theme and show that you are adding something intelligent to the conversation rather than summing it all up.