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Research Methods in Psychology (01:830:355)

Lecture: (Lecture days, meeting time, and place go here.)

Instructor:

Dr. John Ackroff

ackroff@rci.rutgers.edu

Office: Tillett 613 Phone: (732) 445-2635 Fax: (732) 445-0036

Office Hours: Wednesdays, 1:15 – 2:30, and by appointment.

Required Text: Goodwin, C. James. (2010) Research in Psychology – Methods and Design. (Sixth Edition). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-0-470-52278-3.

Course Goals:

Students who successfully complete Research Methods in Psychology (01:830:355) should have an understanding of

• how to design an experiment so that differences can be attributed to experimental manipulation, with no extraneous and/or confounding variables

• how experiments in various sub-disciplines of psychology are designed and performed

• how to decide whether to use a between or within subjects design (or a mixed design), and the trade-offs involved

• what statistics will be used to analyze the data gathered in an experiment, how to perform the analyses, and how to interpret the results

• how to read the published literature critically

Assessment and Grading:

You are expected to comply with Rutgers’ Academic Integrity Policy. (Link to academicintegrity@rutgers.edu/integrity.shtml )

For 01:830:355 (Research Methods in Psychology), the grading is based on the 3 exams, with each weighted equally. Cutoffs for specific grades are determined based on how the combined classes perform on the exams.

If you have a schedule conflict with an exam, you may be allowed to take the exam before the scheduled date at the discretion of the instructor. If you miss an exam, you will be allowed to take a make-up exam only if you provide documentation for a valid reason for missing the exam. For absences due to colds, etc., a note from your Health Center or doctor will be acceptable. For more serious issues such as a death in the family or serious health or personal issues, you may present a note from your Dean's office verifying that you missed the exam due to an excused absence. This note should also indicate a reasonable time frame in which you will be able to make up the exam. You should give this note to the instructor within 1 week of your return to class.

If an exam is cancelled or postponed on the day of the exam, there will be a member of the Psychology Department in the room at the scheduled time to make the announcement. Notices posted on doors or the blackboard are likely to be hoaxes.

Attendance and Correspondence Policies:

(Standard boilerplate goes here.)

Schedule:

|Week |First Lecture |Second Lecture |

|1 |Course overview; intro; pretest |Scientific Thinking in Psychology (Chapter 1) |

|2 |Ethics in Psychological Research (Chapter 2) |Developing Ideas for Research in Psychology (Chapter 3) |

|3 |Design Critiques (Note 1) |Communicating the Results of Research in Psychology (Appendix |

| | |A); Tables and Figures |

|4 |Measurement and Data Analysis (Chapter 4) |Stats Review: distributions, critical intervals, hypothesis |

| | |testing |

|5 |Stats Review: t tests; discussion of Experiment I |Introduction to Experimental Research (Chapter 5) |

| |and alternate/better designs for it | |

|6 |Control Problems in Experimental Research (Chapter |Review |

| |6) | |

|7 |EXAM I |Experimental Design I: Single-Factor Designs (Chapter 7) |

|8 |Stats Review: ANOVA for independent groups |Animal research topics (hopefully a guest lecturer) |

|9 |Experimental Design II: Factorial Designs (Chapter |Factorial Designs, cont’d |

| |8) | |

|10 |Grad Students from two areas |Review |

| |(Note 2) | |

|11 |EXAM II |Correlational Research (Chapter 9) |

|12 |Stats Review: Correlation and regression |Quasi-Experimental Designs and Applied Research (Chapter 10) |

|13 |Small N Designs (Chapter 11) |Observational and Survey Research Methods (Chapter 12) |

|14 |Grad Students from two other areas |Review |

FINAL EXAM: Given according to Registrar’s schedule

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