PSYC 1010 – 211
Fall 2022
Paper Assignment
This assignment is split into 2 parts and there will be 2 separate uploads to Blackboard.
Part 1. Finding a research article (2 points).
The MAIN purpose of the paper is for you to become familiar with reading and synthesizing academic literature. You should plan on doing a substantial amount of background reading to make sure you really know your topic and the research work that has been done in this area. You are required to provide a summary of an empirical research article relevant to your topic. This will be a journal article and therefore primary source material. This cannot be a review paper, and you cannot use the article as a secondary source (i.e. take information from it where that article is actually talking about someone elses work). Do not use books, just journal articles. As they are research articles they will have these sections: Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results and Discussion. If the paper you found does not have those sections, then choose a different paper.
The first thing you should do once you decide your topic, is go in to the PsychINFO database (through UML library website, click on Databases, select Psychology, select PsychInfo) and begin researching your topic (use search terms relevant to your topic, e.g. music AND memory; musical memory). Make sure you can find a journal article that is relevant to your topic that you will enjoy and benefit from reading. This research cannot be done at the last minute. Based on your PsychINFO search, you may decide to change your topic, or you may need to request an interlibrary loan.
Once you have decided on the article you would like to use for your paper you will need to upload the article to Blackboard for approval . You will be given feedback as to whether or not your article meets the requirements for the assignment. If not, then you will need to go back to your search to find an appropriate article. Once your article is approved you will then be able to continue to Step 2 of writing your paper.
Part 2. Writing your paper (48 points).
The paper itself will be 1-2 pages. You will upload your paper through a link on the Blackboard website (so it can be automatically checked for plagiarism)
Your summary of the article, MUST include:
a) a description of the research question.
b) a description of their methodology.
c) a description of their results.
d) a description of what their results mean, the implications of their results.
Your paper should include a clear introductory paragraph where you introduce the topic and any relevant background information. This will be followed by the body of the paper which should be well structured, with appropriate length paragraphs. The main body will be the summary of the research journal article you have found. During the summary you should try to make connections between the article and concepts discussed in your book and in lecture. The paper should end with a conclusion paragraph where you succinctly synthesize the points and arguments presented in the body of the paper.
Papers will be typed in 12 size Times New Roman font, double spaced, with standard margins.
You will lose 5% from your grade for each day your paper is late. I will not accept emailed copies.
Points will be deducted for poor spelling, grammatical errors, and poor sentence and paragraph structure.
Do not include any quotes.
Do not include your own personal experience. Do not use the word I.
Points will be deducted for not following APA formatting. This includes a cover page, in-text references, and the reference section at the end of the paper. The reference section should list any sources you have referred to in the paper (it is not a bibliography). More information on APA can be found on the library website. The following website is also a good source for example papers in APA: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html
You MUST NOT reference any internet sites. While it is OK to refer to the internet for early, basic, background reading, it is not OK to use an internet site as a source for your paper. I want you to become familiar with academic literature that has been peer-reviewed and therefore can be considered credible.
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