{"id":118,"date":"2024-08-21T12:06:27","date_gmt":"2024-08-21T12:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/researchmethods\/?post_type=content&p=118"},"modified":"2024-09-13T13:56:53","modified_gmt":"2024-09-13T13:56:53","slug":"chapter-26-planning-your-practical-and-writing-up-your-report","status":"publish","type":"content","link":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/researchmethods\/student-resources\/chapter-26-planning-your-practical-and-writing-up-your-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 26 – Planning your practical and writing up your report"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Chapter 26 – Planning your practical and writing up your report<\/h1>\n\n\n

If you are devising and running your own practical work in psychology, good luck! It is highly satisfying to complete a project that was your own initial idea and that you have followed through to the presentation stage; it usually feels a whole lot more fulfilling than simply writing up a practical set by your tutor. However, beware! You really don\u2019t want to find yourself running a project with hopeless snags, completely inappropriate design or gathering useless data. So read this chapter, other relevant sections and always consult with your tutors before getting too far.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Exercises<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Exercise 26.1<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Identifying problematic report statements<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the extracts from students\u2019 psychology practical reports below try to describe what is dubious about the statement before checking the answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Title: An experiment to see whether giving people coffee, decaffeinated coffee or water will have an effect on their memory of 20 items in a list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Far too long-winded and could be stripped nicely down to: \u2018The experimental effect of caffeine on recall memory\u2019.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

2. The design was an experiment using different types of drink \u2026<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

What kind of experiment (independent samples, repeated measures, quasi- etc.)? It\u2019s true that we might be told later what kinds of drink were used but why not just explicitly state the levels of the independent variable straight away?<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

3. 20 students were selected at random and asked \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Hardly likely that they were selected truly at random. Probably \u2018haphazardly\u2019. Explain exactly<\/em> how participants were selected.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

4. Materials used were a distraction task, a questionnaire, mirrors \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Never list materials, use normal prose description.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

5. The results were tested with a t test \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Which results? In the simplest studies there are always several ways in which the data could be tested. We could, for instance test the difference between standard deviations rather than means. Usually though the reader needs to know explicitly which means were tested \u2013 there are usually more than just two, and anyway \u2018results\u2019 is just vague.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

6. Miller (2008) stated that \u201cThere is no such thing as a loving smack. The term is an oxymoron. No child feels love as they are being beaten or slapped.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

No page number for the quotation.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

7. The result proved that \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

We never use \u2018prove\u2019 in psychology, or in most practical sciences for that matter. Findings usually support a hypothesis or theory, or they challenge it.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

8. The experimental group scored higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Higher than what, whom? Might mean \u2018higher than<\/em> in the first condition\u2019 or \u2018higher than<\/em> the control group\u2019 etc. ALWAYS complete a comparative phrase in anything you write. E.g.: \u2018Extroverts are more outgoing than introverts\u2019; \u2018Individuals who were intrinsically motivated showed deeper engagement and greater persistence than those who were extrinsically motivated\u2019.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

9. The experiment was not ecologically valid as it was conducted in a laboratory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

It is findings or conclusions from results that have validity not whole studies. b. Faults in the design, materials, procedure or statistical processes are threats to validity<\/em>. Findings usually have a certain degree of validity; it is not an all-or-none concept. More threats tend to lower<\/em> validity. c. Why<\/em> should the use of a laboratory lower validity? Don\u2019t assume your reader will agree with you automatically. You have to justify<\/em> all criticisms that you make.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

10. More research is needed<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

What kind<\/em> of research exactly? That more is needed is always true. Try to specify the research most immediately needed by following up on your critical points and answer them by suggesting appropriate relevant research.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

11. More participants should have been tested<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Why? There may well have been plenty of participants to support statistical significance. This has to do with power so if you must make this point try to show how much more power would have been involved with a greater number of participants. In a well designed and controlled experiment though, 20 or 30 participants per condition is usually ample so be careful with this one.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

12. More males\/females should have been tested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Why? You must justify. Is there any reason to believe that males and females perform differently on this task? If not don\u2019t use this kneejerk criticism.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

13. More people from other cultures should have been tested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show answer<\/summary>\n

Another kneejerk criticism but this one has deeper problems the first being that the writer is assuming that all participants came from one culture \u2013 if that is possible. Unless you are living in a highly isolated part of the world, \u2018one culture\u2019 of origin is quite unlikely (e.g. British is not one culture but many). Besides this, and assuming there is a dominant culture involved, why should culture make any difference? This must be explained and the claim therefore justified.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

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Weblinks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Planning your practical and writing up your report<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A set of links, with brief descriptions, to databases, literature review aids, data analysis packages and so on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

36 Online Research Tools for Students: Best Academic Software for Free (custom-writing.org)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A similar page:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.broadbandsearch.net\/blog\/students-internet-research-guide<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The above two research helping sites are not subject specific. This one is<\/em> specific to psychology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.psychology.org\/resources\/online-research-guide\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Style guides<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Useful guidance on the APA style guide including how to make citations, write references and format your text. It also contains directions to other resources that will help you with writing reports<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

www.apastyle.org\/index.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The APA guide for qualitative article writing: https:\/\/apastyle.apa.org\/jars\/qualitative?_ga=2.189461547.1075486692.1641563953-455101524.1636974918<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

APA Writing guide by M. Plonsky at University of Wisconsin. An excellent resource, very detailed and very useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

APA Style Guide – M. Plonsky, Ph.D. (uwsp.edu)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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On this page<\/h2>\n\n\n