Instructions for Paper Assignment for PSY 1013
Paper 1 – Research Article Reflection
The paper should be 4 pages in length, DOUBLE-SPACED, font = Times New Roman, size= 12. Page margins should be 1 inch (top, bottom, right, and left)
THIS PAPER SHOULD BE WRITTEN IN APA STYLE- see provided links
• Summary of the article (this should be less than half of the paper)
o Summarize the author(s)’ hypotheses and purpose for the study
o Describe the sample of participants in the study (number, age, gender, etc)
o Describe the measures/materials used and the how the study was conducted.
o Describe the results/findings of the study
• Critical reflection
o What assumptions did the author(s) make in designing the study, and were these assumptions appropriate?
o Was the sample appropriately diverse? Is the research design appropriately inclusive and/or sensitive to the cultural context?
o Comment on the authors’ adherence to the ethical principles for conducting psychological research. Do you think adequate protections for the research participants were in place?
o What limitations did the authors state? What are the additional limitations that the authors did not acknowledge?
▪ Do you think the method appropriately tested the research question?
▪ Are the authors’ conclusions supported by the research findings? Are alternative interpretations possible? Were there causal conclusions that were inappropriate?
o What future research directions did the authors outline? Discuss additional future research directions that you see.
o What are the implications of this study for psychology and/or public policy?
OTHER COMMENTS:
Write objectively, i.e., do not use first person language (“I think”, “I believe”, etc.)
THE REFERENCE PAGE – should be in alphabetical order
AVOID overuse of quotations
It is OK to use more citations that just the Werner paper, but do not let this get out of hand – do not cite more than 10 sources (that is a lot for a 4 page double-spaced paper!). The MINIMUM number of citations is ONE (the Werner paper)
NO “KEYWORDS” in the abstract
Do not use any figures (if you need to reference a table or figure from the paper just state that in the text (for example: “See table 1 for the results of…”.etc)
The main body of your paper should be at least 4, but not more than 6, pages. The title page, abstract, and reference page are not included in the main body and do not count toward the 4 page requirement.
