Psychology 220

Homework Assignment

 

Research Findings in the Popular Press

 

Research findings are very prevalent in the popular press, and are often presented very authoritatively.  To what extent is the authority warranted?  In this assignment, you will be evaluating one article in the popular press. Go to the library and pick up a recent edition of a popular press periodical (e.g., Glamour, Redbook, Jet, Louisville Courier, Self Magazine, Newsweek...) and find one article that talks about something psychological (not biological).  It shouldn’t be hard to thumb through any magazine and find something - short or long (don’t use a search engine). You might typically find articles on how to raise your kids, or the latest on why men do what they do or why women do what they do, or a blurb on what makes a person a good spouse with a self-quiz…...

 

 

1.       At the top of your assignment please include the title of the article and the information on the periodical it came from (the name of the periodical, volume, page numbers).

 

2.       Provide a one or two sentence summary about the topic of the article.

 

*3.  Evaluate the article.  Provide your critique of the “worthiness” of the article.  Does it seem credible, should the reader take it as “truth?”  Be sure to include information about the below points in your critique: 

 

a.  Indicate generally what research the author of the article seems to be citing to support the news he or she is reporting.

b.  Indicate, with your best guess, the variables that were studied in the research cited.

c.  Can you tell whether the research cited was a descriptive, correlational, or experimental research design?  If you can tell, which one was used?  If you can’t tell, which design do you feel would be most appropriate to address the problem presented?

d.  If the design was correlational or experimental, try to guess the research hypothesis and evaluate whether or not it is falsifiable (hypotheses, as well as theories, need to be falsifiable).  If the design was descriptive, or if you can’t identify the researcher’s hypothesis – try to develop one on your own that could be used as a basis for correlational or experimental research.

e.  What other information, if any, did the article provide about the study (e.g., who participated, what they did)?

f.  What, if any,  kinds of data/statistics were reported in the article (e.g., frequency counts, averages, standard deviations)?

g.  Do the author’s conclusions follow logically from the data, AS IT IS reported?

h.  Periodicals are secondary sources of information.  What are the dangers of using these popular sources as though they were primary  sources of information?

 

INCLUDE A COPY OF THE ARTICLE YOU USED TO WRITE YOUR PAPER

Your homework should be about 1- 2 pages long

(TYPED, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font or equivalent)