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PSY-150 Research Proposal Project

Psychology is a science and the scientific method is used to design experiments that test hypotheses, produce empirical evidence, and allow us to understand the human mind and behavior. What we know about psychology comes from scientific studies and observations. Much of what we know comes from experiments and we have only scratched the surface of all that could be learned about human behavior.

Your assignment is to choose one of the following topics and design a research proposal that will add to what we know about that topic. This is a research proposal only; you will not actually conduct the experiment. You will create and submit an APA style research proposal (please see attached example) detailing your experiment.

Please choose one of the following topics:

1. The impact of sleep on grades in 8:00 am classes

2. The impact of taking notes in class on quiz grades

3. The impact of stress on overall GPA

Getting Started:

1. Once you have chosen your topic you will begin by completing a Literature Review. A literature review is background research that gives you an idea about what studies have already been done on your chosen topic. Start your literature review in your textbook. If you chose topic #1, review chapter 4 for information on sleep: how much is required, the consequences of not getting enough, theories of sleep, etc. Throughout the chapter, existing research is cited. Full reference information is listed in the References section in the back of your textbook. From there, you can look up the original research (journal articles and academic literature/books) through the FTCC Library Page. If you chose topic #2, a good place to start is the information on Ebbinghaus and his “curve of forgetting” in chapter 6. If you chose topic #3, start in chapter 11.

2. The information you find in your literature review will help you develop your research question and hypothesis. The goal is to ask a research question that is not completely answered by the studies that have been done before. Your hypothesis is based on your research question and is a statement that makes predictions about your research question based on what you found in your literature review.

3. Next, you will design your experiment. You should design an experiment that will collect the data you need to answer your research question and test your hypothesis. Make sure your research design matches your research question and hypothesis. You will also need to ensure your research design is ethical and valid.

Completing the Proposal Draft (20 points)

Students will complete and submit the Proposal Draft Worksheet for review. Students in face-to-face sections will review their peers’ worksheets and provide constructive comments in class. Online sections will submit their worksheet to the Discussion Board for review by peers.

Completing the Final Proposal (80 points)

The Final Proposal will be submitted in the form of an APA style paper and must include the following:

1. Mechanics: 12-pt Times New Roman font; double-spaced, 1-inch margins all around

2. Title Page: The first page of the proposal; must include a running head, page numbers begin on the Title Page.

3. Abstract: The Abstract is the second page of the proposal and should briefly introduce your topic, explain your hypothesis and why you predict a particular outcome (see example proposal).

4. Introduction: The Introduction begins on the third page of the paper and includes the information you gathered during your literature review. Specifically, the introduction addresses the following:

   1. Importance of the topic: Why is this topic important or interesting?

   2. Summary of research: Summarize and cite your research, explaining how the studies you looked at and the deficiency in those studies relate to your research question.

   3. Hypothesis: What is your hypothesis? Why do you think it is true? The hypothesis should be stated clearly. The logic supporting the hypothesis should be explained in a thorough and persuasive way.

   4. Operational definitions: Include operational definitions for all key terms in your hypothesis.

5. Method: The Method section explains the details of your proposed experiment and should include the following:

   1. Variables: The independent and dependent variables are defined. What is the factor that you will manipulate (the independent variable) that you predict will affect the outcome?

   2. Participant/s selection: How will you select your participants? Will there be multiple groups? How will you assign participants to groups? Clearly define the experimental and control groups. How will you assure a representative sample?

   3. Procedure: How will you measure the dependent variable?

   4. Experimental bias: how will you address and reduce bias?

   5. Informed consent: Explain how you will obtain informed consent from subjects to ensure no ethical violations will occur.

6. Results: The Results section includes a discussion of the numbers/variables that you will compare. Use statements like “The researcher will compare the scores of group X and group Y to determine if they differ.”

   1. Possible Outcomes: The outcome of your procedure is predicted and discussed. Evaluation of that outcome is described.

7. Discussion: What does the predicted outcome mean?

   1. Possible Modification/s: Possible modifications for future research are discussed.

   2. Ethical considerations: Is anything about this experiment ethically questionable? Describe how you would deal with ethical concerns pertaining to your research.

   3. Potential confounds: Can another factor explain your findings? Is your internal and external validity strong?

8. References: The following criteria must be met:

   1. References are presented in APA format (in-text citations and the Reference page)