PSYCH 381: Advanced Lab in Social Psychology (Malley)   Tags: course:381, instructor:malley, section:001, subject:psych, term:fall, year:2012  

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Please consult these related Research Guides if you'd like to explore more tools and resources for finding information.

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Today's library lab will give you an opportunity to learn searching techniques that will help you to complete your literature review. During the lab, students will learn to:

• gather background information on their topic
• search for scholarly articles using PsycINFO and Google Scholar
• evaluate journal articles in terms of their quality and appropriateness

After today's lab session, please feel free to ask for help at the reference desks at Shapiro Undergrad Library or the Hatcher Graduate Library, via the Ask a Librarian instant messaging service, or direct your questions to the Psychology Librarian (Susan Turkel).

Literature Review Assignment summary

• Pick a psychological topic.  Get it approved by Prof. Malley.
• Gather the most important scholarly literature on the topic, using library resources.
• Focus on peer-reviewed journals; seek out review essays.
• Your literature review will cover "the major issues under discussion by scholars in the field."
• The issues are in the field should each be precisely articulated and illustrated in your paper.
• Your thesis may be either a summary of the issues in the field or a position that you will explore and defend in the course of your literature review.
• Follow APA 6th format, with the exceptions noted in the syllabus.

Consult these guides for ideas on how to select articles for your literature review, and how to organize it.