This is my proposal topic: This week the topic I decided to choose is eyewitness

This is my proposal topic:

This week the topic I decided to choose is eyewitness memory and race. I became in interested in this topic because of the issue of race and how it can intercept with misremembering and memory distortion. Human memory is tricky when it comes to processing events and usually isn’t practically the best for all memory-related needs. Human memory is powerful but is also subject to hazards. We can develop memory diseases even which can be harder to comprehend. In the legal system, this can have serious consequences. A person can be falsely accused and have their life ruined because of the biases of race interacting with unreliable memory

1. Article Presentation

  • With your research proposal topic in mind, do a literature search and pick an article to present to the class.
  • Prepare a PowerPoint presentation summarizing that article and explaining why you chose it.
  • Narrate the presentation (see instructional video for how to do that)
    • Note: You do not have to be on camera for this, but you can if you’d like.
  • Export your narrated slides as a video file – and MP4.
  • Click on “REPLY” to this discussion board and upload it to Panopto by clicking on the green icon
  • After the deadline, circle back to watch 5 article presentations and comment on them.
    • What did you find interesting?
    • What should the next steps be?
    • What did the presenter do well?

(Make the slides I will present it)

2. The first part of the paper you will submit will be the Method section (see rubric for grading details) and an outline of the Introduction that includes your 3 hypotheses). The Method section (2-5 pages in length)

  • The Method section describes how the study would be conducted. It should be detailed enough that a complete stranger could read it and replicate what you did exactly. Describe the anticipated participants, materials, and procedure according to APA guidelines. Be specific. If you say that you are going to give participants a questionnaire, include the items of that questionnaire.
    • Describe the basic information about the participants you expect to recruit/have, you should report any demographic questions (e.g., gender, ethnicity, etc.) included in your survey and the breakdown you expect to have. I know this seem strange, but it is very common. You can use prior papers that you have written to estimate the % breakdown for gender and ethnicity, don’t forget to include age range.
    • In the materials section, thoroughly describe the questions you would ask (if you were giving a survey), including response scales and examples. If you have special equipment (e.g., a polygraph or an interrogation room setup in a certain way), then you would describe it here. This needs to be very detailed; after reading your method section I should be able to replicate your research.
    • In the procedure section, describe how participants were recruited or selected to particpate and what they will do. Again, I should be able to replicate exactly what you did after reading this section. Describe any other relevant information about how data were collected

Introduction Outline (1-2 pages)

  • Please include an outline of your introduction section. I like to think of this outline as the topic sentences of each paragraph I am going to write. Ultimately, the introduction section is going to include 8-10 research articles. You don’t necessarily need to cite them here, but you can if you find it helpful. You are required to have two independent variables and one dependent variable. Accordingly, your introduction section should discuss literature from each IV.. For instance, if your project explored the impact of race (IV1) and gender (IV2) on salary (DV), then I would expect a section on racial differences in salaries and a section on gender differences in salaries.
  • Your introduction should begin with the broad picture (why is this research important?). I often begin mind with a case, especially if it has been in the new recently. It should end (or transition to the method section) with a statement about the purpose of your study, the variables under investigation, and your 3 hypotheses.
    • Hypothesis 1: The main effect of IV1 on DV.
    • Hypothesis 2: The main effect of IV2 on DV.
    • Hypothesis 3: The interaction of IV1 & IV2 on DV.
  • 3. Research Proposal: Complete Introduction Section
  • The introduction section includes a definition of the research question, a literature review describing the background to your study, explicit statement of predictions (hypothesis/hypotheses), and a preview of your study. You should have a literature review of at least 8-10 primary sources (journal articles) that guide your hypotheses; you may also want to include any other references for defining concepts and giving background information about the topic under study. Be sure to cite all paraphrased or quoted sources in APA format—do not plagiarize!

4. FINAL APA Proposal Project Paper Guidelines

General Paper Information: This paper should adhere to all of the rules/guidelines for content, format, and clarity for empirical reports as set by the American Psychological Association’s Publication Manual, 7th edition. Following are general guidelines and suggested questions to answer for each content section of your paper. Note: you may need to include more or other types of information, depending on your specific research topic. If in doubt, it is suggested you consult with the instructor.

The topic of your paper should be relevant to Forensic and Legal Psychology, if not make sure you have instructor approval.

Proposal: A research proposal is similar to a full paper. It contains a Title page, Abstract, Introduction, and Method section. Since a proposal implies that no data has been collected yet, the proposal paper will not include real results section, but will include a section for Expected Results. The paper should end with a brief discussion section and your references (8-10 empirical journal articles). Your final paper should be 15 pages long.

Title Page(page 1)

  • The title should be sufficiently descriptive; include key words where possible. California State University Dominguez Hills is the affiliation. Make sure headers, running head, etc. are all according to APA format.

Abstract (page 2)

  • This is the synopsis/summary of the entire project; follow APA rules in length/format.

Introduction (starts on page 3; 5-8 pages in length)

  • The introduction section includes a definition of the research question, a literature review describing the background to your study, explicit statement of predictions (hypothesis/hypotheses), and a preview of your study. You should have a literature review of at least 8-10 primary sources (journal articles) that guide your hypotheses; you may also want to include any other references for defining concepts and giving background information about the topic under study. Be sure to cite all paraphrased or quoted sources in APA format—do not plagiarize!

Method (starts after introduction; 2-5 pages in length)

  • The Method section describes how the study would be conducted. Describe the anticipated participants, materials, and procedure according to APA guidelines. Be specific. If you say that you are going to give participants a questionnaire, include the items of that questionnaire.
    • Describe the basic information about the participants you expect to recruit/have, you should report any demographic questions (e.g., gender, ethnicity, etc.) included in your survey and the breakdown you expect to have. I know this seem strange, but it is very common. You can use prior papers that you have written to estimate the % breakdown for gender and ethnicity, don’t forget to include age range.
    • In the materials section, thoroughly describe the kinds of questions asked in the survey, including response scales and examples. This needs to be very detailed; after reading your method section I should be able to replicate your research.
    • In the procedure section, describe how participants were recruited or selected to fill out the survey. Describe any other relevant information about how data were collected.

Expected Results (after Method section; 1 page—Tables/Figures are optional, but welcomed!)

  • State each hypothesis (you should have at least 3) and whether you expect it to be supported. If it is support, what are the implications? If it is not supported, what are the implications?
  • What statistical analysis would you use to analyze the results. (Hint: Given the number of variables it will either be an ANOVA or multiple regression, which one depends of the type of variables.)

Discussion (after Expected Results; 2-4 pages)

  • State the purpose of the study. Restate hypotheses and (assuming they are supported) how do they fit into the larger literature. Are they consistent or inconsistent with other research? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this research? Make suggestions for future research.

References (separate page after Discussion; 1+ pages)

  • Make sure every source cited in paper is on reference page—make sure every source listed has been referenced in the text. Make sure format is APA style.
Scroll to Top