where to start © 2012 the mcgraw-hill companies, inc
TRANSCRIPT
WHERE TO START
© 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Discuss how a hypothesis differs from a prediction
Describe the different sources of ideas for research
Identify the two functions of a theory
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Summarize the fundamentals of conducting library research in psychology, including the use of PsycINFO
Summarize the information included in the abstract, introduction, method, results, and discussion sections of research articles
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Hypothesis: A tentative question waiting for evidence to support or refute it
Prediction: A statement that makes an assertion concerning what will occur in a particular research investigation
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Participants (APA-preferred term for humans taking part in studies) Subjects Respondents Informants
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Common Sense Observation of personal and social events
What current societal mores and behaviors? Ex: Rap music & sex; cellphone usage
Theories—systematic body of ideas that Organize and explain Generate new knowledge Can be modified by new research
Past Research Practical Problems
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The Nature of Journals It is where researchers publish the results of their studies Much, but not all, research can be conducted on-line from your
school’s library website Peer reviewed
Psychological Abstracts Abstracts published in hardcopy each month
PsycINFO Electronic index of all abstracts from 1800s to present Updated weekly
PsycFIRST Electronic index of all abstracts published in last 3 years
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Some PsychINFO search strategies
Strategy 1: Use fields such as TI and AU.
Example: (divorce) in TI requires that a term appear in the title
Strategy 2: Use AND to limit search
Example: divorce AND child requires both terms to be included
Strategy 3: Use OR to expand search.
Example: divorce OR breakup includes both terms.
Strategy 4: Use NOT to exclude search terms.
Example: shyness NOT therapy excludes shyness with therapyStrategy 5: Use the wildcard asterisk (*)
Example: child* finds any word that begins with these letters
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Other Electronic Search Resources FirstSearch Science Direct Web of Science Sociological Abstracts MEDLINE ERIC PsycARTICLES
http://www.apa.org/psycarticles/
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Other Indexes Science Citation Index (SCI)
Includes biology chemistry, biomedicine, and pharmacology
Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) Includes behavioral and social science such as
sociology and criminal justice
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Internet Searches http://scholar.google.com
Like Google, scholar.google ranks searches Professional meeting searches
Evaluating web information Site sponsor Credentials of the webmaster Timeliness Links (to reputable organizations)
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Abstract Introduction Method Results Discussion
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Abstract A summary of the research report 120 words or less Includes the hypothesis, procedure, and the broad
pattern of results Typically the last part of an article to be written
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Introduction Outlines the problems investigated Past research and theories relevant to the problems
described Formal hypotheses or specific expectations of the
present research are introduced and connected to past research
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Method section Subsections depend upon the complexity of the
design Overview of design Characteristics of participants Procedure Equipment or testing materials
A precise Method section is essential for replication
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Results section Findings presented three ways:
Description in narrative form Description in statistical language Material in table or graphs
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Discussion section Review research from various perspectives Explain how the results compare with past results Include suggestions for practical applications Include suggestions for future research on the topic Present methodological weaknesses and/or
strengths
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The journal pages explaining instructions to authors or submission
guidelines and peer-review process. The article is written by the researchers that
conducted the study. The article includes abstract, introduction,
method, results, discussion and reference sections.
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The editor and/or reviewers decide whether or not to accept the article for publication.
The intended audience is scholars that have knowledge in or are interested in the field.
The article is not written for profit.
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