The research process Psych 231: Research Methods in Psychology

Labs this week Poster presentations Turn in group ratings sheets Turn in results and reference section for group project

Different kinds of talks Research Presentations (typically 10 to 30 mins) Paper with respondent Panel Presentation Workshop

Talk Content Create a logical progression to the talk Hourglass shape Work on the transitions between slides Be brief, but include enough details so that the audience can follow the arguments Use slides to help simplify/clarify points Include tables, graphs, pictures, etc. Don’t just read the slides but do “walk through” those that need it (e.g. graphs of results) Be careful of jargon, explain terms (if in fact you really need them)

Presentation of the talk Make it smooth (lots of practice will help) Watch your speaking rate (again, practice) Maintain eye contact with whole audience Emphasize the key points, make sure that the audience can identify these Point to the slides if it helps Beware jokes, can be a double-edged sword Don’t go over your time

Dealing with questions Repeat the question in your own words so that the rest of the audience can hear it to make sure that you understood the question to buy yourself some time to think about the answer Try not to be nervous you know your study better than anyone else When preparing, try to think of likely questions and prepare answers

Checklist for the talk Preparation Analyze the audience Choose your main points etc. Prepare the Final Outline fix any problems/loose ends Construct your “speaking” outline e.g., the note cards that you’ll read Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse

Course Review: The Research Process Get an idea Presenting your work  A set of skills leading to knowledge  A way of thinking  A way of life?

The Research Process  Get an idea – Often the hardest part – No firm rules for how to do this – Observations – Past research – Review the literature

The Research Process Review the literature What has already been done? What variables have people looked at What hasn’t been looked at How are other experiments in the area done? What methods are used To measure the dependent variable To manipulate the independent variable To control extraneous variables

 Formulate a testable hypothesis – What is a hypothesis? – A predicted relationship between variables – What does it mean to be testable? – Must be falsifiable – Must be able to measure (and manipulate for experiments) the variables – Directly – Indirectly – Operational definitions The Research Process

Design the research – What method? – Experiment,Survey, Small N designs, Developmental designs, … – What kind of comparisons are used –Control groups –Baseline conditions – What are your variables? –How many levels of your Independent variable(s) –How do you measure your dependent vairable(s) The Research Process

Collect Data May include pilot research Who do you test? What’s your population Your sample Your sampling method The Research Process

Analyze the data Variables and variability Descriptive statistics (summarizing) Means, standard deviations Graphs, tables Inferential statistics (drawing conclusions) What kind of analysis is appropriate for your design T-tests ANOVA Between or within versions The Research Process

Interpret the results Reject or fail to reject null hypotheses Statistical vs. theoretical significance Support or refute the theory (or revise) Generalizability of the results The Research Process

Present the results Getting the research “out there” Conference presentations Posters Talks Written reports APA style Supports clarity The Research Process

Repeat Each set of results leads to more research questions Refine the theory Test a refined theory Test alternative explanations The Research Process

Labs this week Poster presentations Turn in group ratings sheets Turn in results and reference section for group project