Department of Psychology Trent University. PSYC 2016H: Basic Research Methods and Statistics I 2010FA PTBO

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1 Department of Psychology Trent University PSYC 2016H: Basic Research Methods and Statistics I 2010FA PTBO Instructor: Professor Jocelyn B. Aubrey, EC (Eaton College office suite) jaubrey@trentu.ca Office hours: Mondays, 16:00 17:00; Fridays, 11:00-12:00 OR to book an appointment call Tracy Flaherty at x-6285 Teaching Assistants: Mr. Rick Toth, DNA C x rtoth@trentu.ca Office hours: Mon.12:00-14:00, Tues, 12:0016:00, Wed. 9:00-12:00 or by appointment. Ms. Linda Ward, DNA C x lindaward@trentu.ca Office hours: Mon.10:00-12:00, Thurs. 14:00-16:00 or by appointment. Course Description: Course Learning Goals: Prerequisite: Course Format: Required: PSYC 2016H provides an introduction to methodological, statistical and computer techniques in psychological research and the application of these techniques to empirical research in the discipline. The focus is on descriptive statistics, basic probability, bivariate correlation and regression procedures, the Chi Square statistic and research ethics in relation to principles of research design. By the time you have successfully completed this course you should be able to evaluate a simple research scenario, identify the variables under investigation, describe the data both statistically and in graphical form, and interpret the results of statistical computations completed both by hand and by computer for the procedures taught in the course. 60% or higher in PSYC 1010Y (101) or each of 1020H (102H) and 1030H (103H) Weekly two-hour lectures on Mondays (14:00 15:50) in Wenjack Theatre (OC W101.2), weekly one-hour labs (Mondays in BL or GCS 108) and computer workshops (Tuesdays, OCA 219) for completion of online quizzes and training sessions on the use of statistical analysis software. Students are assigned times for attendance at labs and workshops see myacademicrecord. Nolan, S. A. & Heinzen, T. E. (2008). Statistics for the behavioural sciences. New York: Worth Publishers. St. Jean, R. (2001). Ethics in research. In R. St. Jean, Understanding psychological research: An introduction to methods (pp ). Toronto, ON: Pearson Education Canada Inc. On reserve in Bata Library. Mitchell, M.L., Jolley, J.M., & O Shea, R.P. (2010). Writing for psychology (3 rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Note: 2 nd edition also acceptable. iclicker, Classroom Response System available from the Trent Bookstore A calculator that performs only simple functions must be brought to all lab sessions as well as to quizzes and exams. Calculators that perform statistical tests such as SD, r, t, F, or χ 2, or have alphanumeric capability will NOT be allowed. Hint - if you have the following symbols printed on the calculator keys, you will not be allowed to use that calculator: δ, δ 2 mylearningsystem: Statistical Software: A PSYC 2016H mylearningsystem (MLS) website provides supporting documentation, including access to notes, quizzes and grades. In the computer workshops, students will be taught how to access and use the statistical software, WebStatistica.

2 J. Aubrey, PSYC 2016H-A Peterborough, 2010FA 2 Sources of Evaluation: Assignments (2 x 3%): 6% reports 15%; 19%): 34% Online Quizzes (best 3 of 4 at 10% ea.): 30% Final exam (2 hr.): 25% Class Participation (iclicker, see Notes) 5% Bonus option for participation in research (see below) 4% Assignments: Assigned problems will be posted on the class MLS site two weeks before the due dates. Assignments must be handwritten (not typed or printed). Assignments that require you to solve specified problems using the WebStatistica program should include the appropriate printouts from the program. Assignments are to be submitted to your TA at the beginning of the lab session on the due date. The correct answers for assignments will be posted on the class website one week after each assignment due date; submitted assignments will be returned in lab. Assignments will be graded as complete and submitted in the format specified above (3 points); correct format but incomplete (up to 2 points), or not submitted/incorrect format (0 points). Reports: The purpose of the lab reports is to give hands on experience in the application of statistical techniques to real psychological data, to develop lab report writing skills, to demonstrate the power of the scientific method for the study of diverse psychological questions, and to encourage analytical thinking with respect to statistical and psychological issues. Students are expected to participate in the data collection session for the lab reports. reports must represent independent work. Highly similar (or identical) submissions are unacceptable and will be penalized, as will reports that plagiarize from published works (see University Policy 1 below). reports are to be submitted to the TA at your assigned lab session on the due date. In this course you will gain experience with writing lab reports in two related assignments. Report 1: You will review the assigned empirical articles, find and review another related article, and write an Introduction that provides the background rationale, hypotheses and predictions for a study based on data collected during the first computer workshop. Report 2: You will analyze the data using WebStatistica and write a report consisting of abstract, results and discussion (methods section will be provided). Combining the introduction completed in Report 1 with these sections constitutes a completed report that conforms to the style of research articles published in a typical empirical Psychology journal. Quizzes to be completed online through mylearningsystem in the computer workshop consist of twenty-five (25) multiple-choice questions. There is a 40-minute time limit. A formula sheet will be provided at each terminal; textbooks and notes will not be permitted. The best 3 of 4 quizzes will be counted, thus allowing one to be missed due to illness. Students would be wise not to skip doing a quiz for reasons other than illness or personal crisis. There will be no opportunities to make up a missed quiz. A calculator (see above) will be required for most quizzes. Students must attend the computer workshop that they have been assigned to and must be on time. Final exam will consist of multiple choice questions and will cover all material learned throughout the course. Students may bring a onepage cheat-sheet to the Final exam. Practice questions for quizzes and exams are available on the textbook website (link provided on mylearningsystem). Clicker questions (see below) are also good examples of test questions. Participation grade will be based on number of clicker responses made during lectures. Details are posted on the class mylearningsystem site. Course Policy on Late Submissions. Requests for extensions must be made PRIOR to the due date and will only be granted due to illness or personal crisis; supporting documentation is required (see Departmental policy C. below). Assignments - If an extension has not been granted, late assignments will be penalized 0.5 marks per day. Late assignments will not be accepted after answers are posted. Reports - If an extension has not been granted, late lab reports will be penalized 5% per day. Note, if the report has not been handed in by 16:00h on the Friday after the due date, a weekend penalty of 10% will be included in the total penalty.

3 J. Aubrey, PSYC 2016H-A Peterborough, 2010FA 3 Course Policy on attendance in class/labs: Students are expected to attend all lectures, lab sessions (attendance will be taken) and computer workshops. The 5% participation mark is based on number of clicker responses made during lectures (see class mylearningsystem site for details). Webcasts of Lectures: Webcasts (includes video, audio, captioning and Power Point slides) are being provided to support your individual learning and are not to be distributed to anyone not registered in PSYC 2017H (includes past and future registration). A link to the webcasts is available on the class MLS site. Class Notes: Abbreviated lecture notes in outline form are provided on the class MLS site prior to each lecture. You are expected to print out these notes, bring them to lecture, and use them as a basis for your own note-taking. University Policies: 1. Academic Integrity. Academic dishonesty, which includes plagiarism and cheating, is an extremely serious academic offence and carries penalties varying from a 0 grade on an assignment to expulsion from the University. Definitions, penalties, and procedures for dealing with plagiarism and cheating are set out in Trent University s Academic Integrity Policy. You have a responsibility to educate yourself unfamiliarity with the policy is not an excuse. You are strongly encouraged to visit Trent s Academic Integrity website to learn more 2. Access to Instruction. It is Trent University's intent to create an inclusive learning environment. If a student has a disability and/or health consideration and feels that he/she may need accommodations to succeed in this course, the student should contact the Disability Services Office (BL Suite 109, , disabilityservices@trentu.ca) as soon as possible. Complete text can be found under Access to Instruction in the Academic Calendar. Departmental Policy on Tests, Exams, and Assignments: A. MIDTERMS & FINAL EXAMINATIONS Midterm examinations for half courses within the Psychology Department are scheduled by the instructor of the course. Midterm examinations for full courses and final examination for all courses are scheduled by the Registrar s Office. Students are strongly urged NOT to make any commitments (i.e., vacation, job related, or other travel plans) during either the term as a whole or the final examination period. Students are required to be available for all examinations during the periods for which they are scheduled (as published in course syllabi). B. DEFERRAL OF MIDTERM / FINAL EXAMINATIONS and/or TERM WORK Extensions of deadlines for completion of assignments or writing of midterms/final examinations may be granted to students on the basis of illness, accident, or other extreme and legitimate circumstances beyond their control. Consideration for deferrals will not normally be granted on the basis of vacation/travel plans or job-related obligations. C. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION Students should expect that supporting documentation will be required and must be submitted before a deferral is approved. For illness or accident, supporting documentation will take the form of: (1) the Trent University Medical Certificate from Health Services: ( or (2) a certificate or letter from the attending physician clearly indicating the start and end dates of the illness and the student s inability to write an examination, complete assignments, and/or attend classes, as relevant to the particular request. For other circumstances, students should consult the individual Psychology faculty member about acceptable forms of documentation. D. The Psychology Department will NOT accept faxed assignments. Notes: 1. Use of Classroom Response System, iclicker: A classroom response system, commonly known as a clicker, is a small radiofrequency transmitter that resembles a TV remote. Students purchase their iclicker in the Trent Bookstore and register it on the PSYC 2016H mylearningsystem site. During lecture, the course instructor can ask a variety of structured questions to which students may respond by pressing the appropriate button on their respective clickers. Individual responses are collected and displayed as a graph

4 J. Aubrey, PSYC 2016H-A Peterborough, 2010FA 4 at the front of the room. If the instructor chooses, these responses may also be saved for future analysis. In PSYC 2016H, clickers will be used primarily to provide you with feedback on your understanding of course material and to give you credit for class participation. For further information on the use of the iclicker in PSYC 2016H and for details on how response patterns will be used to determine participation credit, see the iclicker fact sheet on the PSYC 2016H mylearningsystem site. As clicker records are used in this course to compute a portion of course grades, the use of a clicker other than your own is an academic offence. In lecture or tutorial, possession of more than one clicker, or that of another student, may be interpreted as intent to commit an academic offence. 2. Academic Integrity: For the purpose of interpreting and applying the University policy on academic dishonesty, the Department of Psychology has adopted the following: When a student submits a piece of written work in fulfillment of an assignment, he/she implicitly acknowledges the following: a) that she/he is the sole author of the work; b) that the wording and organization of the work, apart from acknowledged quotations, is her/his own; and c) that she/he has not and will not submit this work, either as a whole or in part, to satisfy another course requirement. These basic assumptions will be reasonably interpreted. They do not preclude collaboration between students upon a single project, by prior arrangement with the instructor, for shared academic credit (either for written or oral presentation). For an elaboration of the Department s policy on, and for specific examples of, plagiarism, students should consult the sections on academic honesty (pp. 6-8), and appropriate citing and referencing (pp , 169) in Mitchell et al. (2010). Students who have doubts about what might be considered academic dishonesty are urged to consult the instructor of the course. Ignorance of the University or Department policy does not excuse academic dishonesty. Submissions that fail to meet one or more of these considerations will be subject to procedures laid down in the policy on academic dishonesty as stated in the University calendar. 3. All correspondence with students in this course will be sent to the student s Trent University address. 4. The same assignment cannot be submitted in more than one course without the prior written permission of all instructors concerned. The written approval must be attached to the work when it is submitted. 5. Students are required to use American Psychological Association style (5 th edition), as described in Mitchell et al. (2010), for all written assignments. 6. Opportunity to earn extra bonus marks: A. Participation in Research - Sona System. Voluntary participation in departmental research provides an opportunity to earn up to an additional 4% to be added to your final grade. See details on the class mylearningsystem site. Additional information can be referenced on the Psychology Departmental website at: B. As an alternative to participation in research, students can complete one or more of the writing assignments (each worth 2%) posted on the class mylearningsystem site to earn bonus marks. Assignments must be submitted as an electronic file (.doc or.pdf formats only) to jaubrey@trentu.ca by December 10, Students may complete any combination of research or assignments to acquire the bonus 4% credit. 7. Please see the Trent University academic calendar for University Diary dates, Academic Information and Regulations, and University and departmental degree requirements. 8. Last date to withdraw from Fall term half-courses without academic penalty is November 12, 2010; last date to withdraw from Fall/Winter full-courses without academic penalty is February 8, 2011; last date to withdraw from Winter term half-courses without academic penalty is March 11, 2011.

5 J. Aubrey, PSYC 2016H-A Peterborough, 2010FA 5 Week of Lecture Topic Reading Session Computer Workshop Sept. 13 L1 Overview of course; Research in Psychology No Sept. 20 Sept. 27 L2 Elements of statistical reasoning; Basics of research design L3 Descriptive statistics N & H Ch. 1 Math Skills; Data Collection for lab report Bring calculator N & H Ch. 2 Quiz 1 (L1, L2; also Ch. 1 & 3 in Mitchell et al.) Oct. 4 L4 Descriptive stats cont d; Graphing N & H Ch. 2, 3 (omit pp ) Assignment 1 Due Intro to WebStatistica Oct. 11 THANKSGIVING; NO LECTURE No Quiz 2 (L3, L4) Oct. 18 L5 Sampling methods; Probability; statistical decision errors N & H Ch. 4 Report 1 Due Oct. 25 READING WEEK Nov. 1 L6 Z-scores; Pearson Correlation N & H Ch. 5 Data distributed Assignment 2 Due WebStatistica tutorial Nov. 8 L7 Pearson Correlation cont d; Spearman Rank-Order Correlation N & H Ch. 5; pp from Ch. 14 Nov. 15 L8 Bivariate regression & prediction; Intro to Multiple Regression N & H Ch. 6 (omit pp ) Quiz 3 (L5, L6, L7) Nov. 22 L9 Chi Square tests N & H Ch. 13 Report 2 Due Nov. 29 L10 Research ethics St. Jean (2001) article Dec. 6 L11 Review Quiz 4 (L8, L9, L10)