Academic Catalog

PSYC 51: APPLIED RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Foothill College Course Outline of Record

Foothill College Course Outline of Record
Heading Value
Effective Term: Summer 2024
Units: 1
Hours: 1 lecture per week (12 total per quarter)
Advisory: Students must meet with the instructor during the first week of the quarter to schedule hours and responsibilities.
Degree & Credit Status: Degree-Applicable Credit Course
Foothill GE: Non-GE
Transferable: CSU
Grade Type: Letter Grade Only
Repeatability: Not Repeatable

Student Learning Outcomes

  • The student will be able to critically analyze and discuss various primary source articles and research designs and methodologies.
  • The student will be able to demonstrate knowledge in a particular topic in the social sciences by conducting a search for primary sources and by leading a class discussion.
  • The student will be able to comprehend and analyze the benefits and challenges of conducting empirical research at four-year institutions.

Description

Provides an opportunity for students to gain advanced reflection from research skills gained through their volunteer research assistant activities in other academic settings. Trainings will be provided in conducting research with human participants and safety procedures. Additional requirements include participation in online and/or in-person workshop trainings on developing research skills, submission of a writing assignment on an assigned reading, and completion of an exit survey regarding their experience as a research assistant.

Course Objectives

The student will be able to:

  1. Reflect and discuss the research process at four-year academic institutions
  2. Demonstrate an awareness of the various research designs, methodologies, and data analyses used in psychological research, and an understanding of how the researcher's worldview affects research designs, methodologies, and data analyses
  3. Discuss the benefits of being a research assistant in a laboratory setting and how it has affected their future academic and career goals
  4. Demonstrate knowledge of conducting research on human participants and safety procedures

Course Content

  1. Human participation training in laboratory settings
  2. Safety training in laboratory settings
  3. Workshops focused on topics, such as learning survey computer programs (Qualtrics), career choices in the social sciences, the research process at four-year institutions
  4. Different research designs (e.g., correlational, experimental, participatory action)
  5. Various research methodologies (e.g., quantitative, qualitative), data collection, and coding data
  6. Different statistical analyses used in research
  7. Benefits and challenges of conducting academic research

Lab Content

Not applicable.

Special Facilities and/or Equipment

For the online workshops for the class, students must have computer access to the internet.

Method(s) of Evaluation

Methods of Evaluation may include but are not limited to the following:

Writing a 1-2 page reflection paper based on an empirical article provided by the research lab supervisor where the student serves as a research assistant
Attending an in-person or online workshop on research topics, such as learning about Qualtrics, career choices in the social sciences, and the research process
Completing a qualitative and quantitative exit survey on their experience as a research assistant
Completing human participation and safety trainings
Participating in class discussions

Method(s) of Instruction

Methods of Instruction may include but are not limited to the following:

Short lectures
Discussions
Classroom exercises
Workshops (provided both in-person and online)
Leading a class discussion based on the empirical article that the student submitted

Representative Text(s) and Other Materials

Empirical articles provided by the supervisors of the research laboratories, for example:

Ostic, D., S.A. Qalati, B. Barbosa, S.M.M. Shah, E. Galvan Vela, A.M. Herzallah, and F. Liu. "Effects of Social Media Use on Psychological Well-Being: A Mediated Model." Frontiers in Psychology. (2021) 12:678766. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.678766.

Types and/or Examples of Required Reading, Writing, and Outside of Class Assignments

  1. Reading an empirical article provided by the research lab supervisor where the student serves as a research assistant
  2. Writing a 1-2 page reflection paper on the empirical article
  3. Completing a qualitative and quantitative exit survey on their experience as a research assistant
  4. Completion of human participation and safety trainings

Discipline(s)

Psychology