Psychology Lab Report

A psychology lab report is a paper that describes an experiment organized

and written according to the same format used in professional journal
articles. These are the essential elements of a psychology lab report and
what each should include.

Title Page
This will be the first page of your lab report. It should include important
information such as the name of your paper, your name, and your
academic affiliation.

Abstract
Page two of your lab report will be an abstract—a brief description of what
you set out to find in your research, how you went about it, and a general
statement describing your findings. According to the American
Psychological Association (APA) style guide, for most lab reports, the
abstract should be between 150 and 200 words. However, the specific
word count and format of abstract could vary depending on your instructor
or the academic journal in which you plan to publish.

Introduction
Your paper should begin with an introduction that describes previous
findings regarding your topic of interest, explains the goals of your current
research, and describes your hypothesis—what you expect to discover as
a result of your research. In order to provide a thorough and sufficient
overview of past research, your introduction will likely be several pages
long. Be sure to cite all sources using proper APA style.

Method
The next section of your lab report will be the method section. In this
portion of your report, you will describe the procedures you used in your
research. You'll include specific information such as the number of
participants in your study, the background of each individual, your
independent and dependent variables, and the type of experimental design
you used.

Results
In the results section of your lab report, you'll describe the statistical data
you gathered from your research. This section will likely be quite short; you
don't need to include any interpretation of your results. Use tables and
figures to display statistical data and results.

Discussion
Next, your lab report should include a discussion section. Here you'll
interpret the results of your experiment and state whether your findings
support your hypothesis. You also should offer possible explanations for
your findings and what they might mean in terms of future research on the
topic.

References
After your discussion section, your lab report should include a list of the
references you used in your experiment and lab report. Remember, all
references cited in the text must be listed in the references section and vice
versa. All references should be in APA format.

Tables and Figures

Any tables or figures used to display your results should be included in this
final section of your lab report. For more detailed descriptions and
examples of tables and figures, consult the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association.

Introduction for a Psychology Paper

The purpose of an introduction in a psychology paper is to justify the
reasons for writing about your topic. Your goal in this section is to introduce
the topic to the reader, provide an overview of previous research on the
topic and identify your own hypothesis. Before you even begin.

Start Your Psychology Paper Introduction by Researching Your Topic

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Search a journal database, such as PsychInfo or ERIC, to find articles on
your subject. Once you have located an article, look at the reference
section to locate other studies cited in the article. As you take notes from
these articles, be sure to write down where you found the information.

A simple note detailing the author's name, journal, and date of publication
can help you keep track of sources and avoid plagiarism.

Create a Detailed Outline

This is often one of the most boring and onerous steps, so students tend to
skip outlining and go straight to writing. Creating an outline might seem
tedious, but it can be an enormous time-saver down the road and will make
the writing process much easier. Start by looking over the notes you made
during the research process and consider how you want to present all of
your ideas and research.

Introduce the Topic

Once you are ready to write your introduction, your first task is to provide a
brief description of the research question. What is the experiment or study
attempting to demonstrate? What phenomena are you studying? Provide a
brief history of your topic and explain how it relates to your current
research.

As you are introducing your topic, consider what makes it important? Why
should it matter to your reader? The goal of your introduction is not only to
let your reader know what your paper is about, but also to justify why it is
important for them to learn more.

If your paper tackles a controversial subject and is focused on resolving the

issue, it is important to summarize both sides of the controversy in a fair
and impartial way. Consider how your paper fits in with the relevant
research on the topic.

Summarize Previous Research

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The second task of your introduction is to provide a well-rounded summary
of previous research that is relevant to your topic. So, before you begin to
write this summary, it is important to research your topic thoroughly.

Finding appropriate sources amid thousands of journal articles can be a

daunting task, but there are several steps you can take to simplify your
research. If you have completed the initial steps of researching and
keeping detailed notes, writing your introduction will come much easier.

It is important to give the reader a good overview of the historical context of

the issue you are writing about, but do not feel like you have to provide an
exhaustive review of the subject. Focus on hitting the main points and try to
include the most relevant studies. You might describe the findings of
previous research and then explain how the current study differs or
expands upon earlier research.

Provide Your Hypothesis

Once you have summarized the previous research, explain areas where
the research is lacking or potentially flawed. What is missing from previous
studies on your topic? What research questions have yet to be answered?
Your hypothesis should lead to these questions.

At the end of your introduction, offer your hypothesis and describe what
you expected to find in your experiment or study.

Tips for Writing Your Psychology Paper Intro

Use 3x5 inch note cards to write down notes and sources.
Look in professional psychology journals for examples of introductions.
Remember to cite your sources.
Maintain a working bibliography with all of the sources you might use in
your final paper. This will make it much easier to prepare your reference
section later on.
Use a copy of the APA style manual to ensure that your introduction and
references are in proper APA format.

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____________________________________________________________
__

Could a person's taste in music offer

hints about their personality?
Previous research has suggested that people who prefer certain styles of
music tend to exhibit similar personality traits.

Questionnaire

Q1.Do you listen to music?

Yes
No

Q2.How often do you listen to music per day?

Less than an hour per day
1-2 hours per day
3-4 hours per day

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 5 or more hours per day

Q3.What is your favourite song at the moment?

Q4.When do you normally listen to music?

*For the Respondent - The different possible answer choices are presented
in random order.

When I’m working out / gym

At home when I’m relaxing
Whilst I’m working
When travelling / driving
Public transport
Other, please specify:

Q5.What music genres do you listen to?

*For the Respondent - The different possible answer choices are presented
in random order.

Classical
Opera
Electronic
Popular Blues
Country
Jazz
Hip Hop
R&B
Pop
Reggae
Rock
Traditional
Rap
Grime
R&B/Soul
Other , please specify:

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Q6.Which genre is your favourite?

Q7.Out of the following music genre, which do you find most relaxing?
*For the Respondent - The different possible answer choices are presented
in random order.

Opera
Electronic
Ambient
Popular Blues
Country
Jazz
Hip Hop
R&B
Pop
Reggae
Rock
Traditional
Rap
Grime
R&B/Soul
Other, please specify:

Q8.Do you stream music online?

Yes
No

Q9.What websites do you use to stream music online?

*For the Respondent - The different possible answer choices are presented
in random order.

YouTube
Sound cloud
Jango

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 Spotify
Musichub
Apple music
IHeart radio
Other, please specify:

Q10.How often do you stream music online?

At least once every day
At least once every 2-5 days
At least once every week
At least once every 2 weeks
At least once every 3 weeks
At least once every month

Q11.What do you think of the following genres?

I like this genre I don't mind this genre I do not like this genre

R&B

Rap

Hip Hop

Pop

Rock

Q12.Do you pay for your music?

Yes
No

Q13.How do you buy music?

*For the Respondent - The different possible answer choices are presented
in random order.

Online (Amazon, etc.)

Online services (Spotify, Apple music, Itunes etc.)

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 Retail shops (HMV etc.)
Other, please specify:

Q14.Do you download music from file-sharing websites?

Yes
No

Q15.How often do you download music from file-sharing websites?

At least once every day
At least once every 2-5 days
At least once every week
At least once every 2 weeks
At least once every 3 weeks
At least once every month

Q16.Do you have a favourite Singer/writer/band etc.?

Yes, please specify:
No

Q17.Have you been to any of their concerts?

Yes
No