History and Theory of Psychology PSY 4391 Research Paper Assignment | Online Assignment

I HAVE ATTTACHED THE ASSIGNMENT PAPER INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION THAT I NEED FOR THE PAPER!!!! BELOW IS JUST THE INTRO. Assignment: You will need to complete one major research paper. The assignment will have you write a research paper that thoroughly reviews and discusses a topic of interest related to the history of psychology using at least seven academic journal articles as source material. A successful paper is able to link the study of the history of psychology to modern issues and topics, or other new ground. Your assignment is to write a 6- to 8-page paper presenting work from at least seven (7) academic journal articles as your source material. This research must be related to your topic of interest and should go beyond what we have covered in class.

History and Theory of Psychology PSY 4391

Research Paper

Assignment:

You will need to complete one major research paper.  The assignment will have you write a research paper that thoroughly reviews and discusses a topic of interest related to the history of psychology using at least seven academic journal articles as source material.  A successful paper is able to link the study of the history of psychology to modern issues and topics, or other new ground.

Your assignment is to write a 6- to 8-page paper presenting work from at least seven (7) academic journal articles as your source material.  This research must be related to your topic of interest and should go beyond what we have covered in class.

Your assignment will be completed in TWO parts:

Part 1:

Early in the semester, you will also be required to turn in a draft research paper assignment consisting of: 1) a concise statement of your research paper topic and your main point (thesis statement), 2) a brief outline of your paper, and 3) an APA-formatted reference page including your seven academic sources.  This assignment is worth 20 points (10% of final grade).

Part 2:

Later in the semester, your final research paper will be a minimum of six complete pages and a maximum of eight pages (double-spaced, one-inch margins, Times New Roman 12 pt. font— in addition to a title page, and an APA-formatted References page).  This assignment is worth 60 points (30% of final grade).  In sum, the research paper assignments account for a total of 80 points, and 40% of your final grade.

Example Paper: If you are interested in the topic of “The Clockwork Universe”, you should go beyond the course material either in your depth of coverage of the topic, or by making new connections to other relevant topics that we have not discussed.  You have room to be creative here and explore connections from this material to your passions in psychology.  Your included research would then be at least 7 studies that, fitting this example, researched the perspective of the universe as a clock-like mechanism and how that belief can be linked to interesting developments that can be traced to psychology’s birth, or another important event.  You would present the relevant research and discuss/argue the contributions of these seven studies to what the field seems to know or believe about this topic.

Summary of Requirements:

• Summarize, discuss, and use as evidence for your argument at least seven academic journal articles.

• You will also write in a formal tone, befitting a research paper and not informal, conversational language.

• Each research paper will be concise— a minimum of six complete pages and a maximum of eight pages.

• Papers must be double-spaced, one-inch margins, Times New Roman 12 pt. font.

• All papers must also include a separate References page (not counted toward page limits)—this reference page is where you will cite your seven journal articles in APA format.

• All papers must include in-text citations for background information and supporting evidence.

• Before discussing the contributions of each article, write an introductory paragraph identifying your topic of interest for the paper and clearly stating your position on the topic (thesis statement).

• After summarizing and integrating all seven (or more) scientific articles as evidence, you should discuss and compare the overall contributions of the journal articles to their topic of study and develop a conclusion (remember: articles must be related in topic!).

Grading:

Assignment 1: Draft Topic, Outline, and References

Each research paper draft is worth 20 points.  Here is how your assignment will be scored:

Assignment 2: Final Research Paper Draft

Each final research paper is worth a total of 60 points.  Here is how your paper will be scored:

TIP:  Use the above grading rubric as a checklist!  Grade your own paper before it is due to find where you may be losing points and fix it!  Also, come see me if you need help before it is due.

Instructions for Your Research Papers

Do:

• Write about an area of interest to you that you developed from material in the lecture and readings of this course, and go beyond what we have covered in class.
• Present research findings in that area of interest from 7 academic journal articles.
• Include the following sections:

1. Title page with your name
2. Your paper: This section is 6-8 pages (double-spaced).
3. APA-format Reference page

• Include an introduction (introducing your topic area of interest and making your case) and a conclusion in your paper (summing up what you’ve learned from your outside sources cited in the paper and restating your argument).
• Use your own words.
• Write coherently and concisely.
• Double-space your text.
• Use 1-inch margins (Left, Right, Top and Bottom should all be 1-inch margins).
• Use 12-point font size, Times New Roman font.
• Document sources within the text of your paper using APA format (Authors last names, Year of Publication): “(Taylor and Brown, 2000).”
• Staple the pages of your paper together.

Don’t:

• Use jargon, quote or paraphrase the article. This needs to be in YOUR own words.
• Write in a free-form style. This is a formal research paper, not a conversation.
• Use a heading on any page other than the title and reference pages.

Websites:

Please visit the following link for APA Formatting Instructions:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Please visit the following link to reach the PsycINFO research database to find academic research to review and include in your research papers:

http://catalog.library.txstate.edu/search/j?Databases+p

Finding journal articles (research) for your Research Summary Paper:

The Texas State Library Databases are organized alphabetically.  To find PsycINFO (the appropriate psychology research database), click on the above link, then scroll down to “PsycINFO” on the letter P’s page.  Once you click on PsycINFO, you will be required to enter your Texas State NetID and password to log on and use the resources.  Once you are logged on, you can search for keywords of interest.  Using the above example, you would perform a single search using the keywords “Social Support” and “Cancer Treatment”.  If you are having trouble using PsycINFO, please come to office hours for help or go to the Texas State Library (or any academic library, really!).  They have librarians available whose job is to help you find research articles!

Help is available to you, but you have to ask for it.  Please let me know if you need help.