T1 - University Library - University of Saskatchewan

copy of several journals and has electronic access to others. About 200 people per term from Psy
213 alone will use those journals. Examples of relevant journals are: Journal of Child
Psychology and Psychiatry, American Journal of Othopsychiatry, Developmental
Psychology, Pediatrics, Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology.
2. Find empirical articles. Empirical means derived from or guided by experiment or by
experience. For an empirical study, one designs an experiment and/or observes variables under
carefully controlled conditions or interviews people first and then analyses the data obtained in
order to determine the effects of the variables.
Use the Library resources to obtain 4 empirical studies. Cut and paste the Abstracts of the 5
studies into Word as part of your assignment. A sample Abstract of an Empirical article (i.e.,
one invented by me) is as follows:
Abstract
Findings are presented of a cross-sectional study of children raised in mother lead single parent
families. Twenty -five boys and 25 girls of mother-lead single parent families matched with the
same in an intact family were interviewed at age 10 years of age. Standardized interviews were
used to obtain data on interpersonal relationship skills, on family characteristics and on the
child's gender role behaviour from both the children and their mother and the Perceived Social
Support (PSS) scale was used to collect data on interpersonal relationship experiences. Although
children from single parent families were more likely to initiate interpersonal interactions as
indicated by the PSS, children from intact families were less likely to report stress or conflict
from their interpersonal interactions. The results support the contention that children from single
parent families are interpersonally less skilled as compared with those from intact families.
Note that the Abstract contained key information which identifies it as an empirical study. First
a population to study was identified. Second a research question was specified. Third methods of
collecting experience were noted (interviews and the PSS). Fourth, results were summarized and
finally a conclusion was presented. Make sure the articles you find have these ingredients in
the Abstract.
3. Create a thesis statement:
Using the definition above and building on your experience with the first two parts of the
assignment above, propose a thesis statement. For example, from the topic area of childhood
cognition, the following illustrate possible thesis statements:
(a) There is very little recent support for specific claims from Psychologists about children's
use of the availability heuristic. (This would indicate that the articles you found do not
support what the psychologists claimed.)
(b) Recent research evidence on the mid-childhood population adds a new understanding to
the availability heuristic which was not covered by current theory. (In this case you would
have found more recent knowledge about adolescent's use of the availability heuristic and
the new evidence questions the existing theory.)
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