Writing Assignment 1: Due 2/27/97

• Correlation study
• Case study
• Naturalistic observation

Case study -- Find a child with whom you do not have a close relationship (an acquaintance is fine). Interview the child's parent(s) and other adults that are close to the child (e.g., grandparents, teachers), and, if possible, observe the child in as many contexts as possible (e.g., home, school, playground). Then, pick a theory of child development (e.g., Erickson) and apply it to "your" child.

Naturalistic observation -- Observe a specific behavior (e.g., nonverbal communication) at the mall, zoo, family gathering, restaurant, etc.

All research papers should have the sections listed below. The length guidelines are suggestions. They do not need to be followed to the letter, especially if you are doing a case-study.
 

Introduction (1/2 page)

In most cases, researchers do not start from scratch. That is, there is usually an already existing body of knowledge, before the researcher designs his/her study. In fact, studies usually build on previous studies and are designed to answer questions raised by previous research. For example, if you wanted to examine gender differences in nonverbal communication, your study may be motivated by 1) previous studies that showed that people do, in fact, communicate without speaking and 2) previous studies that showed that there are gender differences in verbal communication.

The introduction should, therefore, contain a brief summary of related research that has already been done, and explain how your study will add to the existing body of knowledge. The hypothesis of your study should be found in this section.
 

Method (2-3 pages total) Each of the following should be a subheading:

• Study participants -- who are you studying: # of people, gender, age, and other relevant demographic information should be included here.
• Instrument -- If you are using a questionnaire, it should be described here. What kind of questions are you asking (e.g., true-false, multiple-choice) Give a few sample questions. If you are doing a case study, this is the place to describe the method you used to collect your information (e.g., interviews, observations). If you are doing an observation, what specific behaviors are you looking for and how are you measuring them?
• Procedure -- This is where you describe exactly how you collected the information. Be specific here. If you did interviews: Did you ask everyone the same questions? What sorts of questions did you ask? If you did an observation: where were you located? Did the study participants know they were being observed? If you did a questionnaire: Was it administered individually or to an entire group? Was it read to the participants or did they have to read it themselves? These are just examples. You probably will need to include some other information as well.

Results (1/2 - 1 page)

What did your research reveal? Just state the findings. Do not interpret or evaluate anything. You will do this in the next section. This section should be brief and to the point.
 

Discussion (1/2 - 1 page)

This is typically the most enjoyable part to write, but it is also often the hardest. This is where you should interpret and evaluate your study. What do your results mean? You should discuss your findings in reference to your hypothesis. If you did an observational or correlational study: Did your study support your hypothesis? Theorize why it did or did not. If you did a case study: Did your findings fit into the theory of development that you picked? Explain why you think they did or did not. For everyone, did anything surprise you or did everything come out just as you expected? Are there any follow-up studies that you think should be done?

The paper should be 4-5 pages in length. It must be typed and double-spaced with standard margins. You should have a cover sheet with your name, the course, date, my name, and the title of the paper. You must photocopy the article and attach it to the paper. You must also have a reference section (i.e., bibliography), properly citing the article and any other sources you use (e.g., your textbook). It is expected that you use additional sources, beyond your textbook.

This assignment is worth 75 points and will be evaluated according to the criteria below. Please note that this information is identical to that in your syllabus and is only included here for your convenience.

• Writing quality and style (Approximately 20% of the grade) -- You must precisely follow the assignment requirements outlined in the preceding pages. Your ideas should be expressed clearly and specifically, and the paper must be free of grammatical errors and typos. Overall neatness is important.
• Content accuracy and depth (Approximately 80% of the grade) -- What you write should be accurate, based on the current psychological literature. Be sure to give credit to others through citations and references.

Any assignment that is not handed in on the due date will be marked down 25% of the allotted points for each class period that the assignment is outstanding. Late means anytime past the end of the class period that the assignment is due. Thus, a paper handed in two class periods after it is due is marked down 50%. I will not accept papers after the second class period following the due date. All papers not handed in by that time will receive zero points.

I encourage you to submit drafts of your papers to me, prior to the due date. I will review your draft and return it to you with comments and suggestions. This will often improve your grade.