Module Handbook

Module Title:
Psychology Project

Module Code:
PC6P01

AssessmentCo Report, of which the 85%

ursework section 'Press
Release' is weighed
5% of the total mark
for the report

Module Assessment Cycle

The module assessment cycle shows all assessment related activities of your
module.

Week Activity
Week 20 Friday 25 March: Deadline for submission of draft
report to supervisor for feedback (formative
assessment)

You are entitled to give one and only one draft

report to your supervisor for comments. You
should, at an early stage, arrange with your
 Week Activity
supervisor when to submit a draft copy and when to
expect feedback. Your supervisor will not provide
detailed guidance about how to rewrite your report,
but you will be told which sections need improving
and why, where the argument is unclear, etc. You
should also note that your supervisor will not give
an indicative mark for the draft report.

There is no submission portal for doing this: just

email the draft report to your supervisor with a
meaningful header.

Week 22
Week 23
Week 24

8. Report Marking Criteria

Coursework displays evidence of: Mark range

The report shows an exceptional structure, with clarity of information,
knowledge of own research and critical thinking. There is also evid-
ence of initiative, independence and thoughtfulness in conception, 90 – 100
analysis and interpretation. The report presents substantial new in-
sights and is similar in standard to that for a report publishable in a
first or second tier peer-reviewed journal.
The report shows an outstanding structure, with clarity of information,
knowledge of own research and critical thinking. There is evidence of

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 thoughtfulness in analysis and interpretation. The report presents 80 – 89
somewhat new insights and, with only minor modifications, would be
similar in standard to that for a report publishable in a third tier peer-
reviewed journal.
The report shows very good structure, clarity of information,
knowledge of own research and critical thinking is shown to a large
extent. Thoughtfulness in analysis and interpretation is also shown. 70 – 79

10. Report structure, style, format, and word count range

by section

Introduction

Gold standard

The objective is to produce what might be expected in a typical psychology journal

article. It is a good idea to look at some journal articles in order to get some feel for
their basic style and structure. However, there are some variations from journal to
journal, including word limits for the Abstract and overall length of the article.
Although published journal articles are the gold standard for a psychology project
report, bear in mind that most journal articles are reporting more than one study, and
are often more complex in nature.

Format
The report must be written in the standard format (with the following sections: Title
Page, Press Release, Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion,
References) and conform to the publication guidelines of the American Psychological
Association (APA). The key reference for APA style is the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association (7th ed.)

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However, there are some minor variations in format, which override the guidance
in section 8.03 of the APA manual as follows:
1. Font: Use 11 point Arial
2. Page size: A4
3. Margins: 1 inch
4. Line spacing: Use 1½ spacing
5. Pagination:
a. The first page must be a title page with the following information:
1. Coursework: Report
2. Module code: PC6P01
3. Module Name: Psychology Project
4. Word length for the introduction and discussion: insert the word
length here
5. Title of project: insert the title of project here

a. The second page must contain the Press Release;

b. The third page must contain the Abstract;
c. Start the Introduction on the fourth page;
d. Method, Results and Discussion come on the following pages, but should
not start on new pages;
e. Tables and Figures do not need to be placed on separate pages, but can
do so, if for example the Table or Figure is in landscape orientation;
f. Start a new page for References;
g. Start a new page for each Appendix.
6. Use an odd and even page header with your full name on odd pages and the
report title on even pages.
7. Ensure that all pages are numbered sequentially with the first page as page 1,
with the page number being at the top of the page.

Moreover, the Press Release section, which is described below, is required for the
report even though it is not an APA requirement of journal articles. The report may

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also include specific details of test materials and statistical analyses, more than is
normal in journal articles; this material will be in one or more appendices

The Module Content/Tools/Report Template Weblearn folder contains the Microsoft

Word PC6P01 Report Template for formatting the report according to the above
listed rules 1–7, and a sample report. You are strongly advised to use the
template. If you first write on a different template, and then transfer the written text
to the PC6P01 Report Template, you are advised to first copy and paste your text in
Notepad (or other basic text processor), and then copy your text from Notepad and
paste it in the PC6P01 Report Template. This way the old formatting will not interfere
with that of the PC6P01 Report Template.

Writing style
You should use a clear style of writing, not long-winded, using technical language
only where it is helpful or necessary; your work should be written in your own words
– not closely modelled on written sources (quotations are acceptable, but should be
used sparingly and with proper attribution to the person quoted). Where it is helpful
to do so, you may use subtitles in the Introduction and Discussion sections. Subtitles
are also acceptable in particularly complex Results sections. For example, where
there are multiple hypotheses it sometimes helps to restate the hypotheses as
subtitles in the Results section.

Using other authors’ work

When you mention the work of other authors in your text, those authors must be
properly credited. They should be explicitly mentioned both in the main body of text,
at the point where you refer to their work, and then the full details of their
publications should be given in a section titled “References” following the Discussion.
When you refer to an author(s) in the main body of the text, you should just give their
surname(s) and date(s) of the publication(s) you are referring to. Examples of
different ways to do this can be found in the APA manual and also in various books
on research methods in psychology (e.g., Howitt & Cramer, 2017; Wood, Giles, &

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Percy, 2012). Where there is considerable use of other authors’ words without
attribution, then the work will be sent to the Casework Office as a possible instance
of plagiarism, and marks will be withheld until an independent panel has considered
the charge.

Research ethics
You should conduct your research within accepted ethical guidelines at all times.
Your report should show an awareness of ethical issues, at the very least by
including the nature of your briefing and obtaining of consent and by stating any
relevant debriefing (full briefing and debriefing details should be included in an
appendix). In the unlikely event that your design exposes participants to an unusual
treatment (e.g., deception and elicitation of negative emotions) then this should be
commented upon, with a particular focus on debriefing. Ethical considerations must
not be taken lightly: serious breaches of ethical guidelines and principles will result in
failure and may lead to disciplinary action.

Word count limit for the whole report

There is no overall word count requirement for the report, but there are
required word ranges for specific sections of the report. These required word
ranges are provided in the following section.

Section-specific requirements

Abstract
“A well-prepared abstract can be the most important single paragraph in an
article” (American Psychological Association, 2009, p. 26). Your abstract is a brief
informative summary of the entire report. Small technical details are not normally
reported. You should state the issue being studied, the general nature of your
study (without going into all the design details), your basic findings, and your
main conclusion.

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 Length of Abstract: 150 words minimum – 200 words maximum.

Press Release
The Press Release is not a section required by APA. It has been introduced at
London Met for psychology reports in order to encourage students to think of the
broad, non-technical implications of their projects. The Collins English Dictionary
defines a press release as “an official announcement or account of a news item
circulated to the press”. Findings from scientific studies are often communicated
to the press and hence to the general public in the form of a press release.
Examples in psychology can be found in the Web sites of the British
Psychological Society (http://www.bps.org.uk/press-centre/press-centre) and the
American Psychological Society (http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/).
Moreover, you can find examples of press releases in the library of project
reports from the previous years available on Weblearn.

In writing the press release of your project you should aim at communicating the
take-home and real-life value of your study and its findings to a large audience of
non-psychologists. Therefore, the Press Release is not an Abstract. The goal is
to get the general (not the specialist) reader engaged and interested in learning
more about your study. A practical way to think of it is that the press release of
your project will become the "business card" you will hand out to potential
employers as you leave the university to enter or re-enter the business world.

Please note that you will not be taught how to write a press release. This is
because writing a press release essentially is a creative task, so that we do not
want to make it into a procedural task. This is your opportunity to practice your
perspective taking and creativity.

Length of Press Release: 150 words minimum – 200 words maximum.

Introduction: 1500 – 1000 words

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 The introduction begins by providing accurate descriptions of background
models, theories, and empirical work, showing a good understanding of the topic.
After introducing the background literature, your introduction states the purpose
of your own study and gives a brief overview. Where participants are involved this
means giving an indication of what they were asked to do, but without full
technical details at this point; in the case of other types of study, such as
observational studies or textual analyses, you should give some indication of the
basic setup, but again without going into full technical details.

The hypothesis(-es) or Research question(-s) should be stated toward the end of

the introduction. It is included as a separate item here in order to emphasise its
importance. In most studies you will be investigating a particular hypothesis or a
set of hypotheses. Each hypothesis should be clearly stated. Be clear about
whether your hypothesis is (a) causal or non-causal, and (b) directional or non-
directional, for example:

Causal Non-causal
Directiona More A causes more (or More A is related to more (or
l less B) less) B
Non- A causes B A is related to B
directiona
l
Note. Table adapted from Howitt and Cramer (2017).

Where you are interested in both a broad hypothesis (e.g., applying to all
participants) and some more specific hypotheses (e.g., looking at interactions
between experimental conditions, or looking at individual differences), it is
normally the case that you should specify the broad hypothesis first and then
work down to the most detailed hypotheses.

In the event that your research is purely exploratory then say so.

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 Length of Introduction: 1000 words minimum – 1500 words maximum.

Method
This consists of the following sub-sections, each of which should be given its own
heading:

a. Participants - At minimum, say how many people took part, how and
where they were recruited. If known, state the number of males and
females separately, and give summary details of participants’ age.
b. Materials / apparatus - This includes everything that was used to run
the study, e.g., personal computer, details of written scenarios, and so
on. Where the materials include lengthy questionnaires or multiple
written scenarios, the full details can be put in an appendix at the end
of the report. However, it would normally be a good idea to include a
couple of example questions or scenarios in this section, by way of
illustration.

An alternative subtitle, Measures, is sometimes used with non-

experimental study designs, typically involving the administration of
several questionnaires to all study participants.

c. Procedure - This normally describes the order in which participants

engaged in various behaviours. This might begin, for example, with (1)
being seated at a computer, (2) briefed by the experimenter, (3)
engaging in the first task, and so on. For observational studies, text-
analysis studies, or similar, you should give a clear description of how
you went about your activities.

d. An additional Study design sub-section is required only if the design is

complex, as it is for example the case for experiments involving more

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 than one factor and more than one dependent variable; straightforward
non-experimental studies do not need such sub-section. If you are
uncertain about whether to include such sub-section, discuss with your
supervisor. If included, such sub-section should be the first to appear in
the Method section.

e. Research ethics issues are usually dealt with in the Procedure sub-
section. However, if a study raises complex research ethics issues
(e.g., as it is the case for studies conducted on vulnerable study
participants who may not be able to provide informed consent and for
studies focusing on deviant behaviour and are exposed to the risk of
compromising the anonimity of study participants), a dedicated
Research ethics sub-section should be added after the Procedure sub-
section.

f. An additional Data analysis sub-section is required only if the statistical

techniques used are complex and go beyond the syllabus of module
PC5001 Research Design and Data Analysis in Psychology (e.g.,
complex mediation and/or moderation models that can only be
estimated using Hayes’ PROCESS SPSS macro). If you are uncertain
about whether to include such sub-section, discuss with your
supervisor. If included, such sub-section should be the last to appear in
the Method section.

All the sub-sections of the Method section should be written in continuous prose,
not as a list of items.

Length of Method: no limit, but conciseness is paramount.

Results

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 Results should be presented in the order with which the relevant hypotheses
were stated in the Introduction section. In deciding how much numerical
information should be provided in the text and how much in tables or figures
(graphs), you should ask yourself what is likely to be most easily understood by
the reader – this is a matter of judgment. As a general rule, data that are
presented in figures should not also be presented in tables, and vice versa,
unless there is a very good reason (usually because the data are highly complex,
which is not usually the case in student reports). Tables and figures should be
labelled (e.g., “Table 1”, “Figure 1”) and meaningfully titled (e.g., “Percentage of
participants responding correctly”). Avoid vague titles (e.g., “The descriptive
results”). Regardless of the use of tables and figures, you should also present a
clear textual description of your results.

In case numerous and extensive analyses are reported, the Results section can
be structured in sub-sections, each of which should be given its own heading
(e.g., Data description, Hypothesis testing, and Additional analyses). If you are
uncertain about whether to use sub-sections in the Results section, discuss with
your supervisor.

Length of Results: no limit, but conciseness is paramount.

Discussion
Whereas the Results section is mainly a description of the outcomes, the
discussion should interpret the results in relation to the theoretical/empirical
background described in the Introduction. The discussion should also show your
awareness of any limitations of your study, perhaps arising from the nature of the
methodology or from potentially confounding factors that were not foreseen.
Where appropriate you should indicate outstanding issues and possibilities for
future research. You should also include a concluding paragraph to summarise
the study and its contribution.

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 Sub-sections are sometimes used in the Discussion section to enhance the
structure of presentation. Each sub-section should be given its own heading (e.g.,
Key findings, Additional findings, Potential applications, Study limitations,
Directions for future research, and Conclusion). If you are uncertain about
whether to use sub-sections in the Discussion section, discuss with your
supervisor.

Length of Discussion: 1000 words minimum – 1500 words maximum.

References

In the References section there is a strict format to follow, which differs slightly for
journal articles, books, book chapters, and online sources. Again, you are
advised to check examples from the APA manual, and books on research
methods in psychology (e.g., Howitt & Cramer, 2017; Wood et al., 2012).

Appendix(-ces)
Important information that is not appropriate for the main body of the report
should be included at the end in an appendix or in several appendices. These
should appear in the same order that they are referred to in the main body of the
report. This includes:

g. Any task materials that were too lengthy for the main report;
h. Any statistical calculations done by hand OR the output from statistical
packages such as SPSS.

Start a new page for each Appendix.

Identifying information, such as participants’ consent forms, should not be

included as appendices in order not to compromise confidentiality.

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12. Library of project posters and reports

A library of past students' project posters and reports can be accessed by current
students in the Module Content/Tools/Library of Posters and Reports Weblearn
folder. Upon completion, your project poster and report may be added to this library.
When you submit the project report you will be asked to submit a form with a
checklist for you to confirm that you are submitting all the required items in the
correct format. The form will also ask you whether or not you want your project report
to be included in the library of students' project posters and reports.

13. Submission of the project report and related files

The following material must be submitted in the same submission session:

1. Report
a. You must submit your report in PDF format. PDF stands for 'Portable
Document Format', which means that this is the format that is most readable
across different types of hardware and operating systems. As such, a PDF
submission ensures that your report can be downloaded and read "as is" by
the markers.
b. You must submit the report as a single PDF file.
c. You must name the single PDF file of your report as follows:
PC6P01_2022_Report_????????
Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name). Any variation from
this format will oblige markers to rename your file.
2. Similarity report
a. You must submit the PDF of the similarity report of your project report as
an additional, stand-alone file.
b. You must name the single PDF file of your similarity report as follows:
PC6P01_2022_Similarity_Report_????????

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 Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name). Any variation from
this format will oblige markers to rename your file.
3. Submission Checklist Form
a. You must submit the PC6P01 Psychology Project Report Submission
Checklist Form, which is available in the Online Submission Weblearn folder.
You should download, complete, save, and submit the form when you submit
your final report.
b. You should submit the checklist as a stand-alone Microsoft Word file (e.g., do
not convert it to PDF, nor embed it in your report).
4. Consent forms
a. If you collected informed consent on printed sheets of paper, you should scan
them into a single PDF file and submit them to Weblearn.
You must name the single PDF file of your consent forms as follows:
PC6P01_2022_Consent_Forms_????????
Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name).
b. If you obtained informed consent electronically (i.e., through an online
survey), you should submit the original data set (e.g., the Microsoft Excel file
you downloaded from SurveyMonkey) to Weblearn.
You must name the single file of your original data as follows:
PC6P01_2022_Original_Data_????????
Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name).
c. If you collected informed consent both on printed sheets of paper and
electronically, submit both files as described in points a and b above.
d. Please do not include the consent forms as an appendix of the report
because that would break the confidentiality clause in case you authorise the
School of Social Sciences – Psychology to include your report in the School’s
repository and make it available to future students. Just submit the consent
forms as a separate file.
5. Data set
a. If you collected quantitative data, you should submit the SPSS data set you
used in the analysis, also containing any calculated scale score measuring

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 the variables of your study.
You must name the single file of your SPSS data set as follows:
PC6P01_2022_SPSS_Data_????????
Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name).
b. If you collected qualitative data, you should submit the data set (e.g.,
Microsoft Excel or nVivo file) you used in the analysis, also containing any
coding you performed to conduct the analysis.
You must name the single file of your qualitative data set as follows:
PC6P01_2022_Qualitative_Data_????????
Where ???????? is your surname (only; no first name).

You will have to submit a similarity report together with your Project Outline
and

17. Key books, documents, electronic databases, and

Internet sources

The following book is recommended to use as a guide throughout the various stages
of your project:
 Wood, C., Giles, D., & Percy, C. (2012). Your psychology project: Becoming a
researcher (2nd ed.). Harlow, UK: Pearson.
The following texts are recommended as general background reading; they provide a
useful guide to methods appropriate in different areas of psychology:
 Breakwell, G. M. , Smith J. A., & Wright, D. B. (2016). Research methods in
psychology (5th ed.). London: Sage.
 Hayes, A. F. (2018). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional
process analysis : a regression-based approach. New York: Guilford.
 Howitt, D., & Cramer, D. (2017). Research methods in psychology (5th ed.)
Harlow, UK: Pearson Education Limited.

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The key guide for writing the final report of your psychology project is:
 American Psychological Association (2020). Publication Manual of the American
Psychological Association (7th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Weblearn documents and forms:
 Tools/PC6P01 Report Template
Weblearn folders:
 Module Content/Tools/Library of Posters and Reports
Weblearn organisation Psychology Research Ethics Community
 Psychology Project Proposal and Ethics Application Form
 The DBS Check Procedure for Conducting the Psychology Project on
Children and Adults in the Public Sector
Electronic library databases by the American Psychological Association (APA):
 PsycINFO
 PsycTESTS
Internet sources:
 Research Gate (quite a few full-text articles are available for download directly
from the authors' page under the fair-use clause):
o http://www.researchgate.net/

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