PSYC- 8101                Research Methods in Psychology

Course Description and Objectives: This course provides an in-depth theoretical and practical understanding of psychological research techniques and methodology. All the topics covered during the course will address the methodological issues in deciding how to study various psychological phenomena in the indigenous context. In addition to lectures and presentations, the students will also prepare a research proposal and conduct independent research study in the style mostly used by research psychologists. Main objectives of this course are to Distinguish between qualitative and quantitative research methods and their relationships, understand the qualitative and quantitative orientations that are important to viewing and interpreting research situations, recognize and apply the appropriate qualitative and quantitative research techniques including experiments, survey, observations, literature reviews, content analysis, in-depth interviews and focus groups; and develop grounded theory, analyze and interpret findings from qualitative and quantitative research, conduct research that demonstrates respect for human rights and professional ethical values and standards, and conduct research protecting the privacy, confidentiality and when necessary, anonymity of the participants.

Learning Outcomes: Successful completion of this Course students will enable students to:

• Understand and correctly apply qualitative and quantitative methods in research settings with ethical protocols
• Discuss and explain the philosophical and practical differences between the qualitative and quantitative methods
• Examine and discuss strengths and weaknesses of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods.

Contents

1. Orientation to the Basic Concepts of research in Psychology
2. Types of Research: Scientific and Non-scientific Research.
3. Sampling and Data Collection. Probability and Non-probability samples.
4. Research Designs: Qualitative and Quantitative. Data Collection Techniques. Recent Trends in psychology Research all over the world and in Pakistan
5. Quantitative Research Design: What is Quantitative Research? Quantitative Research Methods: Types with Examples, Primary Quantitative Research Methods, Techniques and Types of Studies (survey, correlational, casual-comparative, experimental research), Data Collection Methodologies, Data Analysis Techniques, Secondary Quantitative Research Methods, Quantitative Research Characteristics, Quantitative Research Examples, Advantages of Quantitative Research
6. Qualitative Research Design: History and Archival Research; Interview based research; Narratives and Diary Based Research; Biographical Research; Focus Group Discussion; Grounded Theory; Discourse Analysis; Ethnographic Research; Phenomenological Research; Participant Observation; Case studies; Qualitative Evaluation Research.
7. Ethical Issues in research with humans: Ethical standards in conducting and reporting research.

Recommended Text

1. Goodwin, K. A., & Goodwin, J. C.  (2016). Research methods in psychology (8th ed.). New York: John Willy & Sons

1. American Psychological Association (2019). Publication manual of APA (7th ed.). Washington DC: APA
2. Neuman, W. L. (2014). Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches (7th ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
3. Smith, J. A. (2015). Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods (3rd ed.). London: SAGE Publications.

Suggested Readings

1. Levitt, H. M., Bamberg, M., Creswell, J. W., Frost, D. M., Josselson, R., & Suárez-Orozco, C. (2018). Journal article reporting standards for qualitative primary, qualitative meta-analytic, and mixed methods research in psychology: The APA Publications and Communications Board task force report. American Psychologist, 73(1), 26-46.
2. Appelbaum, M., Cooper, H., Kline, R. B., Mayo-Wilson, E., Nezu, A. M., & Rao, S. M. (2018). Journal article reporting standards for quantitative research in psychology: The APA Publications and Communications Board task force report. American Psychologist, 73(1), 3-25.
3. Barker, C., Pistrang, N., & Elliott, R. (2016). Research Methods in Clinical Psychology: An Introduction for Students and Practitioners, (3rd ed.). John Willey and Sons, UK
4. Punch, K. F. (2016). Developing Effective Research Proposal (3rd ed.), London, Thousand Oaks. New Delhi: Sage Publications
5. Coolican, H., Coolican, H. (2014). Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology. London: Psychology Press.
6. Gravetter, F. J., & Forzano, L.-A. B. (2012). Research methods for the behavioral sciences. Australia: Wadsworth.
7.  Levitt, H. M., Bamberg, M., Creswell, J. W., Frost, D. M., Josselson, R., & Suárez-Orozco, C. (2018). Journal article reporting standards for qualitative primary, qualitative meta-analytic, and mixed methods research in psychology: The APA Publications and Communications Board task force report. American Psychologist, 73(1), 26-46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/amp0000151
8. Appelbaum, M., Cooper, H., Kline, R. B., Mayo-Wilson, E., Nezu, A. M., & Rao, S. M. (2018). Journal article reporting standards for quantitative research in psychology: The APA Publications and Communications Board task force report. American Psychologist, 73(1), 3-25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/amp0000191
9. Scott O Lilienfeld, Dean McKay & Steven D Hollon (2018). Why randomised controlled trials of psychological treatments are still essential. The Lancet Psychiatry, 5(7), 536-538

WEEK PLAN:

RESEARCH PROJECT/PRACTICAL/LABS/ASSIGNMENTS & ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

Sessional: 20 %

• Project & presentation: (Assignment 1= 10 + Assignment 2= 10) {Every student will select a topic of research study write a synopsis, execute the study and submit an individual report followed by the presentation.

Midterms: 30%

Final exam: 50%

Course start date: 11-10-2021

Class schedule: as per time table (Wednesday to Thursday: 02:00- 03:30 pm)

The mid and final terms will be held as per the academic calendar

Rules and Regulations

• 75% class attendance are standards for the university therefore make the best effort to arrive on time!
• Please be respectful of the teacher and classmates.
• Participate actively and refrain from side conversations.
• Refrain from using social media apps during class, turn off cell phones upon arrival to class
• Submit assignments before deadlines