1 pg Introduction: Importance of the Topic – starts broad and provides a stable foundation for the information to come
-Describe the topic of interest including needed definitions of concepts central to the main body. Also state briefly why investigating this topic is important (i.e., significance to psychological theory, practice or the well-being of humanity). Try to convince your reader that he/she really needs to learn about the topic
-Come right out and say that you are reviewing the contents of your main body. Provide a sentence summarizing the topic of the article. Entice your reader to continue reading.
-Provide your thesis statement at the end of this paragraph. You have 2 basic choices of a thesis statement: the article summarized in your paper makes a valued contribution to Psychology OR the article has questionable value given its challenges. You will provide evidence supporting your thesis statement in your Discussion section.
-APA style prefers that you do not use the word “I” in your paper. It is considered redundant because it is clear that you wrote the paper so any opinions presented in it are yours.
2 pg body: Different Approaches; Summarize each section of typical research articles ( intro, method, results and discussion) each summary in its own paragraph with an appropriate heading Note: Primary goal is to summarize what the author of the article said, NOT to provide an opinion. —- then narrows to its main points
-In the main body (consisting of at least 2 full typed pages), present information that you have learned. Summarize what the author(s) of the article you have read said.
-Do not criticize the information or provide your opinion at this time, save it for the discussion.
-Do not present the title of article nor its author’s full names. Instead, whenever you refer to the article use a correct citation. See the discussion below regarding how to correctly cite author(s)’s ideas.
-Integrate the author’s name into the text, using a citation, so that you give them legitimate credit for the information you are providing. Every paragraph of your main body should have at least one citation in it. You did not do the original work to discover the summarized information; all of the information presented in your main body comes from someone else. So give them credit for it and write from the perspective of summarizing their work. For example, say something like, “Loftus (1979) said that memory for our past is overwritten such that new information is integrated with the old.” Do NOT write something like, “Memory is overwritten such that new information is integrated with the old. (Loftus, 1979)” This statement does not clearly signify that you are summarizing someone else’s work. See more about citing in your text in the APA particulars below.
1-2 pg discussion: summarizes what has been presented – then integrates the material.
give the reader the big picture; The discussion should express the author’s (your) informed opinion of the topic. —- finally broadens again, fanning out into new horizons
Concluding: Tell me what you think about what you have read and summarized in your paper.
-Briefly review and summarize what you have discussed in the main body of your paper. Take at least a hefty paragraph to do so. Provide the most important details of the research article you summarized. Be sure to explicitly describe the
Hypothesis or hypotheses
Sample
Dependent variable
Independent variable
-Restate your thesis. Next provide supporting evidence for your thesis. Provide an academic critical review of what has been discussed and tie your paper together. An academic critical review does not mean a statement of whether you thought the topic was interesting or whether you thought the author(s) expressed themselves well. You should think about issues regarding the topic. Point out problems with the research of which we discussed in class.
To what degree does the sample represent the intended population? Explain.
To what degree does the dependent variable measure its associated concept in the hypothesis? Explain.
If there was an independent variable, to what degree does the independent variable manipulate its associated concept in the hypothesis? Explain.
Did they come to reasonable conclusions given the limitations of their research? Did they come to a cause & effect conclusion though they ran a descriptive or predictive form of research?
Do their findings apply to the real world or do you think they are limited to how they conducted their research?
-Lastly provide a glimpse at the big picture showing how your topic relates to other topics discussed in class, in the book or other areas of psychology. Talk about the assumptions or points of view that the author is taking while writing his/her article (nature-nurture, mind-body, etc.). How do those assumptions or points of view influence his/her conclusions or his/her biases? Also suggest other areas to be studied that would be relevant to a complete understanding of the topic.
-Throughout your discussion, your comments should be tied to the content of the article you summarized and thus the main body of your paper. Don’t get too broad when providing your opinion but instead make comments connected to the specific information discussed. In other words, provide an opinion based on what you’ve learned, an informed opinion. What I will be looking for is evidence that you thought about the specific information (not the general topic) discussed in your main body.
-Remember, APA style prefers that you do not use the word “I” in your paper. It is considered redundant. If an opinion is expressed that is not cited, it is assumed that it comes from you (the author).
Summarize each section of typical research articles ( intro, method, results and discussion)
