PSY-30061 - Module Specification
School of Psychology
Faculty of Natural Sciences

Programme/Approved Electives for 2020/21

Available as a Free Standing Elective

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2020/21

The Final Year Project module, which runs over Autumn and Spring Semesters, provides final year students with the opportunity to put into practice the scholarship and research methods skills they have developed over the Psychology Course. Successful completion of a Final Year Project is also a prerequisite for a psychology degree that confers the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership of the British Psychological Society, which hugely facilitates pursuing a professional career in Psychology. Students should identify a supervisor from Psychology Academic Staff with research knowledge of an area in which they wish to conduct research. In consultation with their supervisor, students design, conduct and write-up a piece of original empirical work. Students also construct and present a poster about their research project in the first semester. The Project Research Report and Poster marks contribute to the module assessment. The academic, logical, numerical, IT, communication and organizational skills developed and practiced on this module are vital for postgraduate study in psychology and are regarded highly by potential employers.

The aim of this module is to give students the opportunity to carry out and report a sound empirical investigation of a research topic of personal interest to the student.

Intended Learning Outcomes

design research complying with BPS ethical requirements, which is required for study approval by the School of Psychology Student Project Ethics Committee; will be achieved by assessments: 01
critically review and assess contemporary scientific understanding of a chosen area of psychology from which the student can develop hypotheses or research questions that can be tested empirically within the time available; will be achieved by assessments: 02, 03
select, locate and critically review a pertinent research literature to identify gaps in existing knowledge; will be achieved by assessments: 02, 03
initiate and design an empirical study that tests the research hypotheses/questions identified; will be achieved by assessments: 02, 03
develop stimuli/materials pertinent to the research question; will be achieved by assessments: 02, 03
identify and communicate key aspects of their project to an informed audience using visual and verbal presentation skills; will be achieved by assessments: 02, 03
collect data, select and carry out an appropriate form of analysis; will be achieved by assessments: 03
discuss the implications of the results and critically evaluate the quality of the research; will be achieved by assessments: 03
write up their project research following APA report writing conventions. will be achieved by assessments: 03

Study hours

300 hours:
Supervision 10 hours
Poster presentation 1 hour
Skills workshops 4 hours
Independent study (including applying for ethical approval, preparing project poster, private study, data collection and report preparation) 285 hours.

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment