Thematic Literature Review

Research Assignment
(Thematic Literature Review)

This assignment is worth 25% of the final grade.

– The assignment is about your ability to identify scientific literature, conduct a literature search using appropriate scientific database(s), and to demonstrate that you can reference articles accurately. First you need to come up with a topic relating to Psychology, this can be something personal to yourself or it can be just an area of Psychology that you are interested in i.e. culture, social life, health, obesity, body image, feeding behavior, exercise behavior, memory, education or something else.
– Once you have an idea of your topic area, you will need to write a 200-word introduction about the topic area, state why you have chosen it, and then state the databases that you searched. You will then need to perform a scientific literature search using a scientific, academic database(s).
– Once you have performed your literature search and noted the database(s) that you have used along with your search terms, you need to identify 3 articles related to the topic area that you have decided on (obesity, sleep, substance abuse, diabetes, memory etc.) and write a 200-word summary for each of the 3 articles that you have found including the point of the study, what was found (interpretation of the results), and a brief conclusion.

You then need to generate a reference list which follows the American Psychological Association referencing guidelines.
You will also be expected to attach the 3 full-text articles that you found.
Research Assignment details.pptxAssignment 1 Approximate but not perfect Example 2.docxAssignment 1 Not a great Example 2.docxRubric Assignment 1.pdf
Use ZU resources: http://zu.libguides.com/az.php

– Purpose of Assignment
o To demonstrate your ability to identify, read and understand scientific literature
o To demonstrate your ability to conduct a literature search using appropriate scientific database(s)
o To demonstrate that you can reference articles accurately.
– Step 1
o Identify a topic
o It must be related to Psychology
o It can be something personal to yourself or it can be just an area of Psychology that you are interested in
o For example: culture, social life, health, obesity, body image, feeding behavior, exercise behavior, memory, education or something else.
– Step 2
o Write a 200-word introduction about the topic area you have chosen.
o You must state why you have chosen it to use scientific language, and then state the databases that you have searched.
– Step 3
o Perform a scientific literature search using a scientific academic database(s)
o For example, PubMed, EBSCO, PsycINFO, also Google Scholar is okay
o Chose three articles relevant to the topic area you have chosen
o Avoid choosing articles which are reviews, systematic reviews or meta analyses. Choose actual original research studies!
– Step 4
o Write a 200-word summary of each article including (please use your own words and scientific language!)
1. The point of the study (research question and hypothesis)
2. Methods used – how many participants recruited, how were they recruited, age, gender %, procedures, how did they measure the main variables and outcome
3. What was found (interpretation of the results)
4. Strengths and limitations of the study
5. A brief conclusion
6. Write your reference in APA Style
– Your Assignment will include:
1. Cover page – please use template attached
2. One 200-word summary/introduction of your topic and your rationale for choosing this topic
3. Information about your search including the database searched, keywords used in the search, databases(s) searched and number of articles found (see sample assignment for details)
4. Three 200-word summaries of three articles about your topic
5. A reference list in APA style
6. PDFs of the three full-text articles you summarized
o Please note: Word limits are flexible by +/- 10% (approximately 180-220 words for all sections are oaky) and that references are not included in the word count
– Deadline
o Deadline for submitting via BB (1 pdf document including all of the above) is 11 June 2020
o Late submissions (any time after the deadline, even if it is 1 minute late) will automatically be deducted 5% off the score; if 1-2 weeks late then 10% will be deducted
o Failure to submit your work after two or more weeks will result in a F grade (0%)
o Feedback opportunity and questions and answers during the class on Tuesday and Thursday after we covered content.