Experimental Psychology

Purpose: The purpose of the course is seven-fold:

1) To introduce students to the methods and uses of experimental design

2) to enable students to critically evaluate experimental research

3) to teach students to design and carry out experimental research

4) to reinforce statistical concepts mastered in Psychology 201

5) to introduce students to more advanced statistical methods, especially factorial analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, multivariate analysis of variance, and regression analysis

6) to introduce students to nonparametric statistical methods, especially the Chi Square test

7) to reinforce and develop students' knowledge of SPSS for Windows

Prerequisite:

Students must have completed both Psychology 201 and Psychology 303 with final grades of C or better.

Text:

Doing Psychology Experiments, Martin, 1995.

Writing Empirical Research Reports, Pyrczak, Bruce, 1998.

Statistical Analysis, Sprinthall, 1997.

Objectives:

At the end of the course, students will be able to:

1. Explain the purpose of experimental research and understand its place among other research methodologies. Chapter one.

2. Understand the requisites of an experimental design and be able to create a true experimental design and recognize a flawed design. Chapters two and seven.

3. Know how to decide on a Between-Subjects versus a Within-Subject design. Chapter eight.

4. Be able to isolate the effects of nuisance variables using partial counterbalancing, complete counterbalancing, and analysis of covariance. Chapter eight.

5. Be able to calculate and interpret the independent and the correlated t tests. Statistics text and Appendix A.

6. Understand how to increase the power of the statistic. Statistics text.

7. Understand one-way analysis of variance and Tukey's Posthoc test. Statistics text.

8. Understand how to calculate and interpret a factorial design, including main effects and interaction effects. Chapter 9.

9. Be able to explain variance using a multiple regression analysis. Statistics text.

10. Understand quasi-experimental procedures. Chapter 10.

11. Distinguish between parametric and nonparametric statistics. Statistics text and Appendix A.

12. Identify the nonparametric equivalent to the t-Test, the F ratio, and Pearson r. Appendix A.

13. Know when and how to use the Chi Square test to analyze data. Statistics text and Appendix A.

14. Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of an experimental design. Handout.

15. Understand ethical issues relevant to experimental research. Chapters four and five.

16. Use APA format to write a paper that explains original research. Chapter 13.

17. Practice presenting research results in small group settings.

Course requirements:

1. Read assigned materials and participate in class activities.

2. Complete three quizzes.

3. Write a critical analysis of an experimental research article selected by your instructor.

4. Design and implement one original study, and describe findings in a paper using APA format.

5. Complete 5 lab activities. Labs are designed to guide students through the process of writing an original experimental research paper.

Evaluation:

Each course requirement will have the following value:

Final grades will be based on an absolute percentage scale in which 90% equals an A, 80% equals a B, and so on. Attendance and class participation will be used to make decisions regarding borderline grades.

Quizzes and Other Evaluative Activities:

Quiz questions will ask students to apply what they have learned. Students will be asked to create examples, critique experimental briefs, select appropriate statistics, and interpret research results. There will not be a cumulative final exam in this class. The experimental study will serve as an evaluation of students' cumulative knowledge.

Attendance:

This class is designed to enable students to integrate knowledge in psychology 201 and 303 and to further develop research skills. Attendance in this class is critical. Students should be aware that they are expected to attend and participate actively in classes. Failure to attend may result in excluding the student from the course with a grade of "W".

Make-up Policy:

Students are encouraged to hand in homework assignments, complete lab exercises, and take quizzes on time. Make-up tests will be permitted only with the written permission of the department chair.

Honor Code:

This instructor supports the University of Virginia honor code.