Suggested General Format for a First-Year Psychology Paper

I - Title page (This is a must.) Do NOT include your name, only your COLLEGE NUMBER.

II - Table of Contents (This is also a must.) Include headings and sub-headings that are contained in the body. The Table of Contents has no page number.

III - Introduction (10-20% of total length of paper.) Page numbering starts here. Page numbers are to be placed on the upper right-hand corner.

You may:
Begin general and become more and more specific.
Explain why your topic is important.
Briefly introduce the main themes of your topic and how they fit together.

You must:
Describe the specific organization in your paper in the last paragraph of your introduction: what will be presented and in what order.

IV - Main body (with sub-headings.) Sub-headings must be informative. For instance, “Study no 1” is not an acceptable sub-heading!

You may:
Describe journal articles according to the following model. Take only what is relevant to you. You need not write a paragraph for each aspect of an article; a few sentences may suffice:

A. Identify what type of article it is:

Correlational study: Usually done with questionnaires or survey, but not always. Measures at least two variables (without intervention or manipulation) and verifies whether there is a relationship between them. Cannot identify cause and effect.
Observational: Systematic observation of behaviour.
Experiment: At least two groups, on the basis of artificial manipulation of a variable set by the experimenter. Can draw conclusions about cause and effect.
Review paper: Update of what we know about the topic. Usually descriptive.
Meta-analysis: Summary of the results of many studies conducted on the same topic and using similar hypotheses and methods. Finds an average effect. Pay attention to exclusion/inclusion criteria.
Longitudinal study: Same participants, tested more than once at different times, usually
over several years.
Case study: The article focuses on one participant only.
Survey: Descriptive information obtained from many participants.

B. Identify the goal(s)/objective(s) of the study.

What did the authors want to demonstrate? The effect of which variable on which other variable? The relation between two variables? What results were expected? What is the relation between these objectives and the theme of your paper?
Note: Do not describe past studies mentioned in the article you are reading, unless you have read the originals. Rather, focus on the study described in the article.

C. How was the study done?

Who were the participants? How many? How were the variables measured? Be very brief. Do not give much details: for instance, simply say that a questionnaire was used, but don’t give the name of the questionnaire.
Note: Only give the information that is necessary to understand the results. For example, if you give the average age of the participants, then the reader will expect that the results depend on the age of the participants.

D. What are the results?

Mention only the most important or most relevant results. Which group has the highest mean? Is the correlation positive or negative? What does it mean?

E. Discussion

Did the authors obtain the results they expected? What are the implications of the results? How generalizable are the results? Are the results well interpreted or is there an error in the interpretation? What did the study demonstrate that we didn’t already know?

Discussing theories

You may:
Present each theory (or issue) separately.
Discuss recent changes in one theory.
Present a topic from a historical perspective.

Comparison of studies/theories

Did the studies measure the same variables? Are the theories considering the same aspects or perspectives of the questions? Did the studies use similar participants and a similar method? If not, in what way were they different? Are results and conclusions similar? different? complementary? Explain.

Discuss the studies/theories in general with respect to the main theme of your paper.

V - Conclusion (about 2/3 of the length of the introduction—no subtitles)

The conclusion must contain an overview of your paper, with an emphasis on the important points that the reader should remember. In addition, you may include the following:

A. Personal opinion (clearly indicate that it is an opinion: “The author of this paper thinks that...”)

B. Explain the importance of these studies for everyday life or for the military.

C. Make suggestions for future research. (What more is there to learn in this domain? Make general recommendations.)

VI - References (This is a must.) Follow the American Psychological Association (APA) style.

VII - Appendices: Figures and Tables (You must refer to them in the main body. If not, Figures and Tables are useless. You must indicate the source and provide the following information: author, year of publication, and page number.)

You must hand in all the articles you have used in an appendix. The articles will be returned to you with the paper. Your paper will not be marked if the articles are not attached to the paper.

Note: Do not forget transition sentences or paragraphs when you are switching topics or articles. Transitions should be smooth, not abrupt. Using your own words is a sure sign that you have understood the material. Remember that one of your objectives is to convince the reader that you have understood the information contained in your paper.

Tips on writing a term paper in Psychology Collect and skim your references, reading to focus on a specific topic area. Journal articles are very specific and, therefore, may be difficult to understand at first if you have little knowledge about the topic. Should this be the case, you may want to read a summary article or a book chapter on the topic to give you an overview of the topic. You may also consult with your professor. He or she may be able to clarify some issues. Be specific in your topic areas. Depth is preferable to breadth. That is, rather than “aggression,” select a sub-topic such as“the effects of television viewing on aggression.” Define the key terms in your paper. Develop a theme. Attempt to establish an argument or prove a point. Or discuss both sides of a controversial issue. Write a general outline before you begin your paper, based on the articles you have collected. This outline may change as your paper progresses, but it should help to provide direction. Begin your paper by introducing your topic and your approach to that topic. Start general and move to more specific issues. Finish your paper by summarizing any conclusions you have come to on the topic and by suggesting future directions. Write clearly and precisely. Report on what you have read, rather than your opinion (except in the conclusion). If you do report your opinion, clearly state that it is your opinion. Try to back it up as much as possible.