Research Paper Instructions

 

You will be responsible for writing a Research Paper focusing on a social psychology topic of your choosing. The topic must be one that is discussed in the textbook. The focus of the paper will be to present and review peer-reviewed research regarding your topic as well as provide a Biblical integration discussion for your topic.

 

For your paper, you must thoroughly review and cite 2 peer-reviewed journal articles that demonstrate research regarding your topic. Your articles must present original research studies (e.g., correlational or experimental) in which the authors of the article actually formed hypotheses, collected/analyzed data, and compiled results themselves. Theoretical/review articles and meta-analyses are not permitted to be reviewed for this paper.

 

Some examples include (please note you do not need to choose one of these topics):

1.      For a paper on the Bystander Effect, you could find an article in which the authors manipulated the number of people present and measured helping behavior

2.      For a paper on Relational Aggression, you could find an article in which the authors measured and correlated parenting styles with degree of relational aggression in daughters.

 

Keep in mind that these 2 articles must come from academic, peer-reviewed journals. Articles from newspapers, magazines, and websites will not count. Also, information from unpublished dissertations contained in dissertation or thesis databases should not be used. In addition to your 2 peer-reviewed articles, you must also cite the textbook in your paper. Other book sources will not count toward the source requirements. In the Biblical Integration section of your paper, you will be required to cite 2 different Scriptural references.

 

You will submit your paper as a Microsoft Word document through Safe Assign. A “draft” link is available for you to check the originality of your work, but all papers must be submitted in the “final” link for credit and grading. Your paper must contain original work to this course only (i.e., you cannot reuse a paper or portion of a paper you have written in the past for another course). Papers that do not include a topic covered in the textbook will be returned and you will be asked to submit a new paper. Normal late policies will apply. In addition, the paper should be written mostly in your own words. Excessive use of quotes is not permitted and will result in a score reduction. Be sure you are paraphrasing information from articles well and citing correctly to avoid plagiarism. Paraphrasing that is too close to the original wording is still considered plagiarism. All instances of plagiarism will be reviewed and action taken as necessary (e.g., point reduction, Code of Honor report, a score of 0 for the paper, failure of the course).

 

Your paper must include a current APA-style title page, abstract, body, and reference section. The body of the paper must be at least 5 pages with a maximum of 7 pages (not including the title page, abstract, and references). Papers shorter or longer than this requirement are subject to point deductions. Please note that there is a specific page length requirement for the Biblical Integration section (1 page). Be sure to use current APA-style citations throughout the paper to avoid plagiarism.

The structure of the paper must follow the outline below and all section components must be included for maximum credit.

1. Title Page – current APA style

 

2. Abstract – current APA style

3. Introduction

·         Provide a definition of the social psychology concept you are researching

·         Provide a brief background of why this concept is important

·         To relate your concept to “real life,” provide a specific, real-world example of your concept. This example can be either something you’ve witnessed in your own life, an example you “make up” to illustrate your concept, or an example used in one of your sources. If you use an example from a source, be sure to cite appropriately.

 

4. Review of Article I

·         Introduce the article, including the purpose of the article and any relevant hypotheses.

·         Summarize methods (i.e., type of participants, procedures used to manipulate or measure variables)

·         Summarize study results

·         Explain how study and results demonstrate or support the social psychology topic chosen (you must be able to demonstrate that you can relate the specific study results to the general topic chosen)

 

5. Review of Article II

·         Include all of the same elements listed above

6. Biblical Integration (must be at least one page in length)

·         Discuss your topic from a Biblical standpoint (i.e., what does the Bible say about it). You must use at least two different Scriptural references in this section to support your discussion.

 

7. Conclusion

·         Briefly summarize/define the chosen topic

·         Briefly summarize the major results of each study

·         Briefly summarize the Biblical standpoint discussed

8. Reference Page – Current APA style

·         Include 2 peer-reviewed journal articles describing original research

·         Include textbook reference

·         (Note that the Bible does not need to be included in your reference section)