Assignment

I. Assignment
1) One paper is required in this class; the grade that you earn on this paper will constitute 25% of your final grade in PSY441.
2) The paper should be a 7-8-page review of empirical literature on a DISORDER OF BRAIN & BEHAVIOR, written in American
Psychological Association (APA) style (7th ed. [2019]). Note: the 7-8-page limit does NOT include title & reference pages.
A. Use (primarily) original research articles from scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. You may use articles from online
journals (if they are peer-reviewed); the advantage to using them is that they can be reproduced free of cost. However,
keep in mind that some “electronic” articles are only available in abstract form, which is NOT sufficient for your purpose. If
you seek such an article, you should go directly to the source (i.e., a hard copy from the journals at BSC or the UB library,
or a hard copy via the inter-library loan service). Please see me if you have questions about how to get articles.
B. You may use a limited number (max = 3) of review sources (e.g., your textbook, book chapters, or review articles), but
keep in mind that such sources are MOST useful to you only as a starting point from which to locate pertinent original
research. The number of articles that you use should range from 10-15. Be sure to include enough information to paint a
clear & coherent (but succinct!) picture of your topic.
C. Write a review of the empirical research that you have amassed. A good review provides summary & integration of
information.
IV. Organization
Include a(n):
1) Introduction (summarize the existing field of research & state the specific question you willaddress)
2) Definition of important terms, as appropriate
3) Thorough discussion of disorder. At minimum, you should describe the disorder in termsof:
A. Primary symptoms (behavioral/functional manifestation)
B. Pattern in the population (epidemiological characterization)
C. Physiological mechanisms that underlie the pathology
D. Brain areas that are involved
E. Treatment and/or intervention options
F. Recent advances in our understanding of the disorder
*THE DISCUSSION SHOULD CONSIST OF BOTH GENERAL AND SPECIFIC STATEMENTS THAT ARE SUPPORTED BY DATA.
4) Conclusion (summarize the main points & suggest directions for future research)
5) Full list of references
V. Style & Format
6) Use APA-style rules (7th edition [2019]), to format your paper & to credit properly all information sources.
7) Give credit to the source(s) of all of your information; to fail to do so is to commit plagiarism.
VI. Evaluation
Your paper grade will reflect:
8) How clearly you communicated your points
9) How scientifically strong were your points (i.e., whether or not they were supported with evidence)
10) How completely you discussed your topic
4) How closely you followed the above guidelines (e.g., degree of adherence to APA-style guidelines & workshop guidelines).