Psychology 2820E-001 Summer Evening 2019
Research Methods and Statistical Analysis in Psychology
If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.
1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
An introduction to the design, conduct, and statistical analyses of psychological research. The intent is to provide students with knowledge of how to implement and evaluate research in both laboratory and applied settings. Design and statistical analysis will be taught in the context of specific studies and data sets from correlational, experimental, quasi-experimental and qualitative research. Written research projects will be required.
Antirequisite: Biology 2244A/B, Economics 2122A/B, 2222A/B, Geography 2210A/B, Health Sciences 3801A/B, MOS 2242A/B, Psychology 2800E, 2810, 2830A/B, 2840F/G, 2850A/B, 2851A/B, 2855F/G and 2856F/G, the former 2885, Social Work 2207A/B, the former 2205, Sociology 2205A/B, Statistical Sciences 2035, 2141A/B, 2143A/B, 2244A/B, 2858A/B and the former 2122A/B (and Statistical Sciences 2037A/B if taken before Fall 2010)
Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course.
Prerequisite: One full course in mathematics plus at least 60% in a 1000-level Psychology course. To fulfill the mathematics requirement, you must complete a full course equivalent by taking 1.0 courses from among the following courses: Applied Mathematics 1201A/B or the former Calculus 1201A/B, Mathematics 0110A/B, 1120A/B, 1225A/B, 1228A/B, 1229A/B, 1600A/B, Calculus 1000A/B, 1100A/B, 1301A/B, 1500A/B, 1501A/B, the former Linear Algebra 1600A/B, Statistical Sciences 1024A/B, the former Mathematics 030 and 031.
If Mathematics 0110A/B is selected, then either Statistical Sciences 1024A/B or Mathematics 1228A/B must be taken. The combination of Mathematics 1228A/B and Statistical Sciences 1024A/B is strongly recommended.
Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.
2 lecture hours, 2 laboratory/tutorial hours, 1.0 course
2.0 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Krista Macpherson, PhD
Office Hours: By Appointment
Email: kmacphe6@uwo.ca
Time and Location of Classes: Tuesday and Thursday 7-10, UCC 4
If you or someone you know is experiencing distress, there are several resources here at Western to assist you. Please visit: http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for more information on these resources and on mental health.
Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 519-661-2111 ext 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.
3.0 TEXTBOOK
Text (required):
Revel for Introduction to Behavioral Research Methods -- 7th ed.
Author: Mark R. Leary
REVEL Access ISBN: 9780134416939
About REVEL:
-REVEL is a fully digital textbook that has interactive figures and built-in quizzes, so the most current edition of the textbook will be required.
-REVEL has a mobile app; Alerts (i.e., reminders) can be found under the Settings
-REVEL has an audiobook feature that can read you the textbook on all devices
-REVEL Registration Instructions (student invite link) will be posted to OWL and emailed
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
In this course, we will discuss several of the methods used to conduct research in psychology and how to analyze and report data. We will discuss the generation of research ideas, ethical aspects of research, the philosophy of science, experimental design, issues of validity and reliability, and how to form the sample to be used in the research. Additionally, we will examine multiple common analytic procedures for testing hypotheses within each design. These procedures will be taught with the aid of specific examples using real data in class. You will gain first-hand experience in the steps involved in designing and conducting a research project and in writing a journal style paper.4.1 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
|
Outcome |
Evaluation |
|
Access, interpret, and critically evaluate appropriate research in psychology |
Lab assignments |
|
Evaluate the appropriateness of different methodological approaches to address a specific psychological question |
Lab assignments and exams |
|
Formulate a research hypothesis to address a psychological question and design a research project to test that hypothesis |
Research Paper |
|
Apply ethical standards to the practice of their own research |
Research Paper and Lab Assignments |
|
Apply relevant quantitative skills to the analysis and interpretation of psychological phenomena
|
Lab assignments and exams |
|
Use evidence to support claims
|
Lab assignments, Research Paper, and exams |
|
Communicate in writing accurately, clearly and logically, using the discourse of the discipline of psychology |
Research Paper |
5.0 EVALUATION
Lecture:
Midterm Exam (25%)-In class on June 13th
Final Exam (25%)-Scheduled during the final exam period
Lab:
Research Paper (20%)—Due July 25, see section 6.0 for details
Written Assignments (20%)—see section 6.0 for details
Online Quiz (10%)—see section 6.0 for details
PLEASE NOTE: Because this is an essay course, as per Senate Regulations (http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/2017/pg108.html), you must pass the essay component to pass the course. That is, the average mark for your written assignments (ie: the lab portion of the course) must be at least 50%.
Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:
70% 1000-level and 2000-level courses
72% 2190-2990 level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
The Psychology Department follows Western's grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):
A+ 90-100 One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
A 80-89 Superior work that is clearly above average
B 70-79 Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
C 60-69 Competent work, meeting requirements
D 50-59 Fair work, minimally acceptable
F below 50 Fail
6.0 TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE
Midterm Exam: Thursday June 20th (in class)
Final Exam: As scheduled by Registrar
Final Paper: Due July 25th
Online Chapter Quiz: After each lecture, students are to complete an online chapter summary quiz via REVEL. There are 16 chapters, and the 10 highest scores will be taken in calculating the student’s final score for this component. After a lecture for any given chapter, students will have access to the online quiz. The quiz MUST be completed prior to the beginning of the next class. There will BE NO EXTENSIONS OR ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THESE QUIZZES.
Written Assignments: There will be five written assignments, worth 4% each. Each assignment is different and details will be discussed in lab. Once assigned, you will have one week to submit the assignment.
Research Project: Students will develop a research idea and corresponding hypotheses, and using mock data will produce a complete research report in APA format describing their rationale, procedure, and findings.
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE
* Tentative and subject to change. The only way to know what was covered in a particular lecture is to attend lectures. Exams are not cumulative.
Date: Lecture Readings: Lab Assignments:
Tuesday May 7th: Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Quiz
Thursday May 9th: Chapter 2 Chapter 2 Quiz
Tuesday May 14th: Chapters 15/16 Chapter 15 & 16 Quiz
Thursday May 16th: Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Quiz
Tuesday May 21st: Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Quiz
Thursday May 23rd: Chapter 5
Tuesday May 28th: Chapter 5 Chapter 5 Quiz
Thursday May 30th: Chapter 6
Tuesday June 4th: Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Quiz
Tuesday June 6th: Chapter 7
Tuesday June 11th: Chapter 7 Chapter 7 Quiz
Tuesday June 13th: Chapter 8
Tuesday June 18th: Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Quiz
Thursday June 20th: MIDTERM EXAM
Tuesday June 25th: Chapter 9
Thursday June 27th: Chapter 9 Chapter 9 Quiz
Tuesday July 2nd: Chapter 10
Thursday July 4th: Chapter 10 Chapter 10 Quiz
Tuesday July 9th: Chapter 11
Thursday July 11th: Chapter 11 Chapter 11 Quiz
Tuesday July 16th: Chapter 12
Thursday July 18th: Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Quiz
Tuesday July 23rd: Chapter 13/14 Chapter 13/14 Quiz
Thursday July 25th: Coverage of outstanding material and exam review8.0 STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES
Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf
As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com http://www.turnitin.com
Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.
9.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS
Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?Command=showCategory&PolicyCategoryID=1&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
10.0 OTHER INFORMATION
Office of the Registrar web site: http://registrar.uwo.ca
Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca
Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:
http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html
- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences
- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2019 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.
