Explain your topic. Make a case for why this topic is important to the field of psychology.
Dependent and independent variables: Operationally define the dependent and independent variables for each hypothesis.
Describe detailed information about how your study will be conducted. Include the following in your method sections:
Participant Selection: Explain who your participants will be and what method you will use to select them. Be specific as possible as if you were giving directions to someone on how to choose and obtain the participants. Include instructions on how to get informed consent from the participants. Be sure to discuss how informed consent, privacy, anonymity, and confidentiality will be addressed in the study.
Discuss how you will collect the data (observations, surveys, documents, etc.). Thus, who will be collecting the data, where will the data collection occur, what measures are you using to collect the data, how will the data be recorded, etc.? Include a copy of the survey or systematic observation you developed in an Appendix.
Discuss the research design (either experimental, factorial, quasi-experimental, or non experimental), that you will use to examine your variables.
Provide a discussion of the following information:
Validity: Describe any potential threats to the internal and external validity of your proposed study. Do you believe the results can be generalized to other populations?
Strengths and Weaknesses: Describe any strengths or weaknesses with respect to the proposed sampling, design, and data collection methods. What will not be “proven” though your study?
Ethical Considerations: What impact might participation in this study have on participants in the short and long-term? If there are relevant ethical issues, discuss them along with possible solutions.
