Provides an overview of research design strategies used in psychological research. Topic covered include the scientific method; reviewing literature for hypothesis development; ethical issues in research; the operational definition of variables; observational, self-report and experimental methods; data analysis; inferential hypothesis testing; and the American Psychological Association writing style. The course furnishes students with the fundamentals of research that all psychology majors should be aware of, regardless of whether they plan to pursue a research career. Emphasis is placed on the critical evaluation of psychological research as it is reported in the popular media and research periodicals.
Prerequisites
Grade of C or better in PSY 100
Course Outcomes
- Describe basic research methods for psychology.
- Craft a solid research question
- Identify appropriate variables for a given research question.
- Choose the appropriate methodology to answer a research question.
- Critically analyze the research methodology in scholarly publications and in various other sources.