APA Results & Discussion Psychology 290 November 23 – 25, 2015

APA Rules to Keep in Mind Write in Past Tense First-level headings are centered and bold Remember to follow other APA rules (page layout, font, etc.), as well as consult the manual on-line Check APA format for Number formatting – All numbers zero through nine are written in word form unless they are followed by a unit of measure – All decimal numbers and numbers greater than 10 are written in Arabic numerals – Any number that begins a sentence must be in written form – Back to back numbers are written in word and number form: Twenty 20 inch monitors

Results Results section is “all about the data” – All data and results (even those that run counter to hypotheses) must be reported here Summarizes data collected and stats that were run Should begin with a description of the statistical test that was used May direct reader to Tables and/or Figures Do not interpret or discuss the results

Types of Results Descriptive Statistics – Means, Standard Deviations, Ranges… – Tables & Figures Inferential Statistics – Results of Statistical Analysis – e.g. ANOVA, t Test, Correlation, Chi Square …

Reporting Central Tendency & Dispersion Measures of Central Tendency and Dispersion (e.g. means and standard deviations) are often given in the Results section If you are reporting a mean, it should always be accompanied by a measure of dispersion Often presented in Tables to simplify presentation and when there are too many values to reasonably relay (See Table 1) Example in text: – The mean score for men on the verbal test was 23.6, with a standard deviation of Example following text: – Women (M = 26.94, SD = 1.98) had a slightly higher score than men (M = 23.61, SD = 2.10) on the verbal test.

Inferential Statistics The type of statistical test that you will choose depends on: – The type of data collected Nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio – The type of research design Experimental Differential Correlational

What is this “α” value thing? Every conclusion we draw has the potential to be the wrong one – i.e. due to chance rather than our manipulation or a true relationship The alpha (α) value is our “acceptable risk” Commonly used α levels are 0.01 and 0.05 If we set α =.01 we accept a 1 in 100 chance of making the wrong decision If we set α =.05 we accept a 1 in 20 chance of making the wrong decision

Reporting Inferential Statistics Needs to include: The type of test that was performed A statement of significance or non-significance Statistics evidence to support your decision A decision to reject or fail to reject the null hypothesis If we decide to reject the null hypothesis, explain what that decision means in context of the variables – E.g. Explain what a positive or negative correlation means – E.g. Explain what the direction of the difference is between two or more groups

Reporting Statistical Evidence t (81) = 2.598, p < 0.05 The letter of the test (t, F, r, etc. and p) and M and SD all need to be italicized but not the numbers or symbols (=, <, etc.) Statistics must be part of a sentence Type of Test Degrees of Freedom Obtained Valued P value tells you if the test is significant or not. P means probability.

P values and the Null Hypothesis The p value is way we report the significance of the test (based on the α level) If the p value is less than (<) α – The test is significant – Reject the null hypothesis If the p value is greater than (>) α – The test is not significant – Fail to reject the null hypothesis

Correlational Design* lab as.#4 A Pearson correlation revealed a significant positive correlation between the amount of fun anticipated and number of alcoholic beverages participants intended to consume, r(74) =.466, p <.01. Therefore reject the null hypothesis and conclude as number of alcoholic beverages consumed increased, so did the amount of fun anticipated, and vice versa.

Differential Design An Independent Samples t-test was performed and no significant difference was found, t(14) = , p >.05. We therefore fail to reject the null hypothesis and conclude there is no significant difference in pessimism scores between males and females.

Experimental Design A One-Way ANOVA was performed and significant differences were found between at least two groups, F(2,44) = 3.835, p <.05. Therefore reject the null hypothesis. Tukey’s post hoc test revealed that participants in the Alcoholic Beverage Condition (M= 63.75, SD= 7.19) and the Non-Alcoholic Beverage Condition (M= 53.13, SD= 7.93) had significantly longer reaction times (in ms) than participants in the Water condition (M= 39.33, SD= 16.68). ANOVA ReactionTime Sum of SquaresdfMean SquareFSig. Between Groups Within Groups Total

Practice Results Section Type of analysis: Dependent Samples t test α = 0.05 r obtained Value: 4.78 df: 35 p: Pre-test: Means= 46.92, Standard Deviation=5.63 Post-test: M= 39.14, SD=4.98 See slides 7 and 8 for instructions

Results for Assignment 4 Type of analysis: Pearson’s correlation α = 0.05 r obtained: df: 70 p: A negative correlation means, as one variable increases, the other decreases. A positive correlation means that both variables change in the same direction.

Tables and Figures Tables and Figures may be used to clarify data being presented in a Results section however they should never appear in the body of your text – Tables are often used to report means and standard deviations – Figures are used to represent interactions between variables and emphasize differences between groups Direct readers by adding (Table 1) or (Figure 1) at the end of sentences in your Results section They should not repeat information presented in the Results section

Tables Tables are used to present data when it would be unmanageable to present them in the results section (i.e. too many M & SD) Are presented in the a sans serif font (e.g. Arial) size 12 Contain no vertical lines Contain minimal horizontal lines Begin with a Table number and description Follow after References and Appendices

SAMPLE APA PAPER 13 Table 1. Response time of participants (ms) after consuming different beverages. ConditionM (SD) Alcoholic Beverage63.75 (7.19) Non-alcoholic Beverage53.13 (7.93) Water39.33 (16.68)

Figures Greyscale (no colours) Label Axes but do not include a title Legends (if applicable) must fall within the axis lines Figure presented in a sans serif font (e.g. Arial) between size Figure Caption presented in serif font (same as body of text) size 12 – Goes below the figure and describes the what is being shown No gridlines or borders (the only lines will be the axes) Follow after References, Appendices, and Tables Figure should fill the width of the page If presenting means, SD or SEM should be included as error bars

SAMPLE APA PAPER 14 Figure 1. A comparison of the amount of fun anticipated by participants either wearing or not wearing a costume on Halloween. (Error bars represent +/- SEM) *

APA Format Discussion

APA Rules to Keep in Mind Past Tense First-level headings are centered and bold “Method”; “Results”, “Discussion” Remember to follow other APA rules (page layout, font, etc.), as well as consult the manual on-line

General Discussion Info In this section, the goal is to discuss and evaluate your results, and whether or not the results support your hypotheses. Relate your findings to literature from Intro. – You may NOT introduce new sources; use only sources from your Intro Start Specific and end General

Discussion must begin with: A clear statement of support or non-support for your original hypotheses – Note: You do not prove your hypotheses; you support or fail to support them Similarities and differences between your results and those of previous research – Relate to research from Introduction

Implications Implication (noun): the conclusion that can be drawn from something although it is not explicitly stated Evaluate and interpret the implications of the results with respect to your hypotheses Include a discussion of the theoretical, clinical or practical implications of your results (i.e. why are your results important?) Implication. (2005). In Oxford Reference Online. Retrieved from

Limitations Limitation (noun): a limiting rule or circumstance; a restriction; a condition of limited ability; a defect or failing Highlight the shortcomings of your study Suggest explanations to account for hypotheses that were not supported – Methodological (examine methodology critically) – Conceptual Sources of error or bias that may have affected the results You must include limitations even if you supported your hypotheses Limitation. (2005). In Oxford Reference Online. Retrieved from

Future Research Suggestions for future research should always be made Indicate future directions this research could take Indicate improvements to methodology that may benefit future attempts to replicate What problems remain unresolved or were raised as a result of your research?