Solent University Coursework Assessment Brief Assessment Details Module Title:Psychological ResearchModule Code:PSY502Module Leader:Imogen TijouLevel:5Assessment Title:Research reportAssessment Number:1Assessment Type:ReportRestrictions on Time/Word Count:2000 + 200 word reflection (+/-10%)Consequence of not meeting time/word count limit:There is no penalty for submitting below the word/count limit, but students should be aware that there is a risk they may not maximise their potential mark.It is essential that assignments keep within the word count limit stated above. Any work beyond the maximum time/word length permitted will be disregarded and not accounted for in the final grade.Individual/Group:IndividualAssessment Weighting:50%Issue Date:27.9.21Hand In Date:15.11.21Planned Feedback Date:13.12.21Mode of Submission:on-lineNumber of copies to be submitted:N/AAnonymous MarkingThis assessment: Will be marked anonymously Assessment Task Your task is conduct a thematic analysis on pre-published data on a topic related to your course and write this up in a 2,000 word report (with 200 word reflection). You will be provided with some background literature via the reading list and topic introductions in SOL. Support will be provided as to the format and content expected for the report. There will be opportunities to clarify expectations in sessions and using the module SOL page. During the course of the practical, you will work with data to address the research question(s) under investigation. The analysis for this report will consist of using and presenting appropriate qualitative analyses, i.e. thematic analysis. You will be expected to complete background reading, your own research and to write up a 2,000 word individual report that includes the following subsections; title, abstract, introduction, method, analysis (qualitative), discussion, references* and appendices*. (* these sections do not count to the 2,000 word limit). As part of the assessment, you are required to write a 200 word reflection on your learning experiences whilst conducting and writing up the report. This reflection will be based on your individual learning appraisal and development plan that will be submitted formatively. You are strongly encouraged to attend all sessions and complete all the related tasks for the practical as these are designed to help you complete the assessment. You will be asked to submit the output from some of these tasks formatively. You will receive feedback on these submissions. For example, you will need to submit a reference list with a brief explanation of how each paper relates to your practical. You will need to submit your completed report with reflection online via turnitin. Assessment criteria Students will be assessed on the demonstration of their knowledge and understanding of: psychological theory and research (such as explanation of a particular theory and research evidence to support/ refute the theory including critical ability);psychological research methods and analysis (such as accurate description of the method used and correct interpretation of the results);presentation of the study (written; use of the standard report format; abstract, introduction, method, analysis, and discussion The feedback form (attached) will be used to indicate how well the students have done on each aspect of the practical. Defer/ Refer information If you are submitting this assessment for the first time, you need to follow the instructions provided above. If you have previously submitted the assessment and not passed; you need to follow the instructions provided above but you must substantially re-write your report based on feedback on your previous attempt(s). You must also reflect on what you have learned in your reflection. Learning Outcomes This assessment will enable students to demonstrate in full or in part the learning outcomes identified in the Module descriptors. Late Submissions Students are reminded that: If this assessment is submitted late i.e. within 5 working days of the submission deadline, the mark will be capped at 40% if a pass mark is achieved;If this assessment is submitted later than 5 working days after the submission deadline, the work will be regarded as a non-submission and will be awarded a zero;If this assessment is being submitted as a referred piece of work then it must be submitted by the deadline date; any Refer assessment submitted late will be regarded as a non-submission and will be awarded a zero. Click to access 2o-assessment-principles-regulations-temporary-amendments-for-covid-19-contingency-plans.pdf Extenuating Circumstances The University’s Extenuating Circumstances procedure is in place if there are genuine circumstances that may prevent a student submitting an assessment. If students are not ‘fit to study’, they can either request an extension to the submission deadline of 5 working days or they can request to submit the assessment at the next opportunity (Defer). In both instances students must submit an EC application with relevant evidence. If accepted by the EC Panel there will be no academic penalty for late submission or non-submission dependent on what is requested. Students are reminded that EC covers only short term issues (20 working days) and that if they experience longer term matters that impact on learning then they must contact the Student Hub for advice. Please find a link to the EC policy below: Click to access 2p-extenuating-circumstances.pdf Academic Misconduct Any submission must be students’ own work and, where facts or ideas have been used from other sources, these sources must be appropriately referenced. The University’s Academic Handbook includes the definitions of all practices that will be deemed to constitute academic misconduct. Students should check this link before submitting their work. Procedures relating to student academic misconduct are given below: Click to access 4l-student-academic-misconduct-procedure.pdf Ethics Policy The work being carried out by students must be in compliance with the Ethics Policy. Where there is an ethical issue, as specified within the Ethics Policy, then students will need an ethics release or an ethical approval prior to the start of the project. The Ethics Policy is contained within Section 2S of the Academic Handbook: Click to access 2s-solent-university-ethics-policy.pdf Grade marking The University uses a letter grade scale for the marking of assessments. Unless students have been specifically informed otherwise their marked assignment will be awarded a letter grade. More detailed information on grade marking and the grade scale can be found on the portal and in the Student Handbook. https://students.solent.ac.uk/official-documents/quality-management/academic-handbook/2o-annex-3-assessment-regulations-grade-marking-scale.docx Guidance for online submission through Solent Online Learning (SOL) http://learn.solent.ac.uk/onlinesubmission Level 5 Qualitative Practical Grading Guide The following feedback is not used to directly calculate your grade; it simply gives an indication of the relative strengths & weakness of different aspects your work. The grid below gives an indication of the level required to attain each grade. Your work may not fall neatly into one cell, in which case your marker will indicate which grade the majority of each section reaches. They may also indicate which aspects of other grades are demonstrated in your work. Level 5 practicals use more complex theory & / or investigative techniques than those in level 4. A large amount of the challenge of level 5 practicals is understanding & explaining these more advanced theories & techniques & the more complex analyses they bring with them in the context of a practical assessment. SectionA 1 & 2A 3 & 4BCDF 1-4TitleClearly & concisely represents all aspects of studyClearly & concisely represents studyAccurate & clearly represents studyCaptures key aspects of studyCaptures key aspect of study but may have some inaccuracyBears little or no resemblance to studyAbstractExceptionally clear & concise. All sections represented.Accurate, concise & all sections represented.All key information is clear, present & accurate.Most key information is present & accurate.Some key information is present. May be some inaccuracy.Substantially incomplete or inaccurate overview of studyIntroductionExceptionally well written, research clearly evaluated & synthesised. All aspects of relevant theory explained & evaluated in relation to current study. Excellent use of wide range of relevant, extra reading, inc. primary sources. Purpose of study fully justified & clear explanation of why method is suitable. Research question is appropriate & progress naturally from material discussedWell written & researched. Relevant theory accurately described & evaluated. Use of wide range of extra reading, including primary sources. Synthesises material & explains justification for study, including choice of method. Research question is appropriate, which progress from material discussed.Clearly written using relevant research. Some extra reading in evidence. Clear understanding of theory & methods used. Competently links previous research to current study. Research question is appropriate and are grounded in research discussed.Satisfactory discussion of relevant theory & research evidence. Some analysis of previous research. Applies some aspect of theory to current study. Method satisfactorily described. Competently describes appropriate research question.Largely accurate description & understanding of theory & methods used. Acceptable use of reading, mostly from reading list. Some evidence of engaging with previous research. Limited application of previous research to current study. Tendency to rely on information provided in class. Research question present.Substantial inaccuracies in understanding theory &/or method. Limited/no use of references. Research question absent, not appropriate or not relevant to study. Method (quantitative)DesignType of design correctly identified, clearly & concisely stated & explained. Complete & accurate description of topic, data, data collection and type of analysis (where appropriate). Full justification of all aspects of design.Type of design correctly identified & clearly stated. Complete & accurate description of topic, data, data collection and type of analysis (where appropriate).Type of design correctly identified & stated. Complete & accurate description of topic, data, data collection and type of analysis (where appropriate).Design correctly identified. Competently describes topic, data, data collection and type of analysis.Design & description of design is mostly present & accurate.Incomplete/ inaccurate description of design.ParticipantsAll participants’ relevant characteristics fully & concisely described. Includes recruitment method, total N & any subgroup n. Any incentive accurately described & justified.Thorough description of participants’ relevant characteristics. Sample & recruitment method accurately described. Any incentive described.Clear & accurate description of sample including recruitment methods & any incentive.Satisfactory description of total sample & subgroups (if necessary). Most relevant aspects included.Description of sample is largely complete & accurate. May contain some irrelevant information.Sample not described in sufficient accurate detailMaterialsAll materials / data collection tools accurately & fully described and referenced. Each tool described with reference to (where appropriate): author(s) / designer; description of response format; sample questions; & justification for its selection; including how collection tools were developed; interview schedules, coding systems, etc. includes own reliability & / or validity in relation to qualitative researchAll materials / data collection tools accurately & fully described & referenced. Each tool described with reference to (where appropriate): author(s) / designer; description of response format; sample questions; & justification for its selection; including how collection tools were developed; interview schedules, coding systems, etc. May include own reliability & / or validity in relation to qualitative researchAll materials / data collection tools mentioned & referenced. Each tool used accurately described, making reference to most of the following (where appropriate): author(s) / designer; description of response format; sample questions; & justification for its selection; including how collection tools were developed; interview schedules, coding systems, etc.All materials / data collection tools mentioned, described & referenced. Descriptions will be mostly complete & accurate.All materials / data collection tools mentioned. Adequate description of most materials / tools. May have some mistakes or irrelevant information.Description of materials / data collection tools substantially inaccurate or absent ProcedureExemplary chronological description of all relevant parts of study. Includes all steps to conducting the study such as ethical approval, participant recruitment, consent, data collection to debriefing.Thorough chronological description of all relevant parts of study. Includes all steps to conducting the study such as ethical approval, participant recruitment, consent, data collection to debriefing.Accurate description of study in chronological order. Competently describes study from ethical approval to debriefing.Satisfactory description of study largely in chronological order. Includes most key aspects to study.Largely accurate description of how study was conducted. Tendency to rely on information provided in class. Chronological order largely present. There may be some mistakes, omissions or irrelevant information.Low likelihood of study being repeatable. Chronological order not present, key information missing/ inaccurateEthical considerationsExceptional demonstration of understanding of ethical principles & how they relate to current study. Full explanation of how these guidelines have influenced the design of the study & researchers’ conduct.Accurate demonstration of understanding of how ethical guidelines have influenced the design of the study & researchers’ conduct.Appropriate description of how ethical guidelines have influenced the design of the study & researchers’ conduct.Satisfactory description of ethical guidelines & how they apply to the study & researchers’ conduct.Tendency to describe ethical principles rather than directly apply to current study & researchers’ conduct.Shows little or no awareness of ethical issues or demonstrates serious misunderstanding of BPS &/or university policyAnalysis (qualitative)Exceptionally clearly laid out & explained. All relevant notable aspects explained. Appropriate analysis(es) conducted & all necessary techniques reported & clearly explained. All findings linked to relevant literature and research question.Clearly laid out & explained. Presents & explains notable aspects to findings. Appropriate analysis(es) conducted, reported & explained. All findings linked to relevant literature and research question.Good description of summary data, analysis(es) & findings. Analysis(es) conducted are appropriate and link to literature and research question.Satisfactory description of data, analysis(es) & what they mean. Appropriate analysis(es) conducted.A basic, largely accurate description of data, analysis(es) & what they mean. There may be some inaccuracies. Analysis(es) largely relevant to research question.Presents very basic / inaccurate analyses & results with little or no demonstration of what they mean. Analyses may not be relevant to research question.DiscussionExemplary restatement of results & demonstrates excellent understanding of what they mean in relation to research question(s). Exceptional judgement in selection, analysis & evaluation of key aspects of study & theoretical background. Excellent use of previous research to back up points throughout. Offers excellent, insightful ways to improve & also further study. Implications of findings clearly explained & appropriate. Well founded & evidenced conclusion(s) clearly based on earlier discussion.Excellent description of results & how they relate to the research question. Excellent judgement in selection, analysis & evaluation of key aspects of study & linkage to theoretical background. Excellent use of additional (including primary) reading to back up points throughout. Offers appropriate, insightful ways to improve & further study. Clear & appropriate implications of results given. Conclusion(s) appropriate to previous discussion & well focussed.Good description of results & how they relate to research question. Exercises judgement in selection & analysis of study & linkage to theoretical background. Competent use of appropriate suggested & extra reading (including primary) to back up points throughout. Appropriate suggestions made for improvements, implications & suggestions for further research. Conclusion(s) focussed & appropriate.Satisfactory description of results & their relation to research question. Offers some appropriate evaluation of study & linkage to theoretical background. Some evidence of reading (including primary)beyond reading list. Some suggestions for improvements, implications & further research. Conclusion(s) appropriate & largely focussed.Adequate description of results & relation to research question. Tendency to rely on references provided in class. Largely accurate understanding of study & linkage to theoretical background. Limited evidence of evaluation of study, its implications & appropriate suggestions for further research. Conclusion(s) adequate.Relies on superficial /inaccurate description of results with little use of reading. Lacks appropriate analysis of study & linkage to theoretical background. Superficial/ inaccurate/ absent conclusion(s).References & AppendicesExemplary referencing & citation. Appendices complete & extremely well labelled & organised.Extensive, accurate referencing & citations. Appendices labelled, complete & well organised.Referencing & citations consistent & accurate. Appendices labelled, complete & organised.Referencing & citations mostly consistent/ accurate. Appendices mostly complete & organised.Some errors in referencing & citations. Appendices present, but poorly organised/ incomplete.Little or no use of referencing or citations. Appendices not present, substantially incomplete or very disorganisedReflection present?YES NO Overall GradeA1 A2 A3 A4 B1 B2 B3 C1 C2 C3 D1 D2 D3 F1 F2 F3
