Summary of How to write up an ERA Report

Your report should closely follow the following format:

Title
The title should give a clear indication of the report.
For example, An investigation into concentration in extreme conditions
Abstract
A single paragraph !""#!$" words% that provides a summary of every
section of the report.
&rite this in past tense and pay particular attention to the aim,
hypothesis and conclusion
Introduction
You outline the 'ac(ground information which generally is in the form
of theoretical research
)nsure you reference and reference properly% a num'er of times in
this section
At the end of this section write the aim and then the hypothesis.
The aim is simply to communicate what is 'eing studied.
*t usually 'egins with: To investigate or analyse% +.. one sentence will
suffice
The hypothesis is a testa'le statement that see(s to draw a lin(
'etween the independent varia'le what is manipulated% and the
dependent varia'le measured%.
,uppose for example you were loo(ing into the how well students
concentrate when the temperature gets to an unaccepta'le level. The
independent varia'le would 'e what the experimenter manipulates: the
temperature of the room perhaps 'y means of some heating system%, the
dependent varia'le would 'e what is measured: concentration through say
a test on the wor( covered at the end of the lesson.
The hypothesis would mention 'oth the *- and .-.
An example might 'e: -/) students perform considera'ly 'etter in tas(s
of recollection in a class with temperature at a normal level as compared
to performance under extreme temperature conditions, as measured 'y a
test on memory of the content covered.
0ote how this hypothesis is specific 1 it can 'e tested.
Method
This descri'es exactly how the experiment was conducted. *t should 'e
detailed enough that it can 'e replicated. 2rea( this up into the
following su' headings:
Participants: 3ention the num'er of participants involved and a
'rea(down if possi'le 1 important4influential characteristics of the
participants age groups, male4 female%. *t should also include mention of
the population from which they were selected and how they were selected
selection% and allocated allocation%. This can 'e done in a couple of
sentences and can include a 'rief ta'le
Materials/Apparatus: 5rovide any information on any e6uipment used in
order for others to repeat your study. This should include all
6uestionnaires, o'servation chec(lists and data sheets.
Procedure: .o a step 'y step procedure 7 #$ steps is usually ade6uate%
outlining how you went a'out actually conducting the experiment.
*n this section mention what type of method was used eg. .irect
o'servation, 6uestionnaire etc. 3ention why this method was chosen and
why another method would have 'een less appropriate. 2e sure to include
information a'out the roles of the experimenter and specific instructions
given to the participants
Results
5resent wor( in graph and ta'le form.
5eople should 'e a'le to read and understand your results without
referring to any other section of the report. 3a(e sure that all
graphs and ta'les are 'oth la'eled and have proper titles. 8aw data
should only 'e included in the appendix.
iscussion
,tart 'y stating whether the hypothesis has 'een supported or re!ected .
,trengths and &ea(nesses of the study. This can 'e done in a single
sentence, for example, simply stating: The hypothesis that ++++
include it word for word% has 'een supported. 0ote: never state proven.
,tate and analyse results that are of significance
After that, evaluate any methodological pro'lems that seem to 'e an
issue. ,ome examples of these might include:
&as the method the 'est availa'le one9
*s the test a good measure of what you want to measure9
*s the sample too small or not ade6uately attained9
Are there other explanations for what happened9
*nclude the general relevance of the results to the population.
.raw conclusions.
,uggest ways of effectively controlling specific varia'les if the experiment
were to 'e replicated.
References
,tic( very closely to the information given. 8emem'er, this is a
reference section and not a 'i'liography. A reference section only
states the references cited in the )8A.
3a(e sure you list the 'oo(s alpha'etically. *n addition, put other
references into categories.
"Appendices#
The Appendix is where materials which do not fit into any other
category in the report are placed. There should 'e a different
appendix for each new set or category of materials. )ach appendix
should 'e num'ered and have a title. All material in the appendix
should have 'een referred to prior in the report.
$ommon $oncerns that Psycholo%y students face with ERA&s
!. The :ypothesis should 'e a clear, specific and testa'le statement.
;. The *ntroduction is far too 'rief.
<. You need to reference throughout the *ntroduction referring to texts and
studies%.
7. The *ntroduction is far too general: not ade6uately researched.
$. A need in the 3ethod to ela'orate in more detail
=. The 8esults need to 'e simply and clearly presented in a ta'le or graph
format.
>. ?nsatisfactory presentation or la'eling of the 8esults.
@. *n the .iscussion the first item to cover is whether the hypothesis is
supported or reAected. This hasnBt 'een done. .onBt say proven or not
proven.
C. Answers to some .iscussion 6uestions need developing.
!". You need to ma(e sure you reference properly in your *ntroduction.
!!. You need to 'e follow the correct format with your 8eference Dist
!;. 8e read your draft in order to correct 'asic writing errors.
:ere is how we might put this wor( on homewor( into an )8A
An E'ample Empirical Research Acti(ity
Title: The title should give a clear indication of the report).
An investigation into the psychological effects of homewor( on ,enior ,chool
students at Duther /ollege
A'stract
This is around 120 to 150 words and provides a summary of every section of the
report. It is written in past tense and while placed at the start, it is usually the last
piece to be composed.
Includes
!im
"perational hypothesis
#ain features of the method
#ain results
$onclusion
2esides its productive role, homewor( appears to 'e a frustration for many
students. &hile it is a far from popular activity, many students appear to
accept the value of homewor(. :owever, for a siEea'le num'er, in particular
the underachieving senior secondary students, this study endeavored to
explore its harmful effects. A sample of >; students from an outer eastern
private school participated in a study which showed the clear comparisons in
how homewor( was perceived 'y self descri'ed high achieving and under
achieving students. The results indicate that underachieving students
experienced considera'ly higher stress and frustration levels within
themselves and with their parents.
*ntroduction
%ou outline the bac&ground information which generally is in the form of
theoretical research
'nsure you reference (and reference properly) a number of times in this
section
!gain write this in past tense
!t the end of this section write the aim and then the hypothesis
:ere are a few paragraphs some have 'een left out% from an introduction that
was researched on the topic of homewor(.
5articularly in the primary and lower secondary school years, most parents
will assume responsi'ility for monitoring childrenFs homewor(. 2ut, it is often
understood that homewor( is the child)s responsi'ility, not the parentsF Geith,
!C@=, p.!@%. The parents interviewed in this study expended considera'le
time and emotional energy getting children to complete homewor(
assignments. 2ut, feeling the pressure for their children to do well at school,
parents fre6uently too( on roles that went 'eyond either monitoring homewor(
or helping children with homewor( assignments. :owever, as years of
schooling progressed, the rate of assistance 'y parents significantly lessened.
some of the introduction was ta(en out here% ++++
Furthermore, to add additional pressure, there appears to 'e a convincing
correlation 'etween homewor( and good grades for senior high school
students /ooper, ;""<, p.7%. /ooper ac(nowledges that it is difficult to prove
that homewor( causes 'etter grades. *t may simply 'e that the more
academically a'le students tend to do homewor(. And it may 'e that
performance declines with large amounts of homewor( 'ecause the
underachieving students spend the most time of all struggling with home
study.
*n another study, one parent recalled how she and her hus'and supported
their daughterFs writing assignments 'y helping her to edit her written wor(.
H&e used to help her a lot with editing her writing 'ecause of her spelling. . . .
*n seventh and eighth grade we would edit for her. &e tried everything. 2ut in
later years the wor( 'ecame more detailed and difficult to tac(le for us
parents. This 'ecame an unwanted stress upon us all. .udley#3arling, /.
;""<, p. @%.
some of the introduction was ta(en out here% ++++
The (ey point is of course that the student who struggles 'ecomes the real
casualty. Anxiety levels increase, unwanted stress increases and
relationships at home are adversely affected as 'orne out in this study.
Aim: The aim is simply to communicate what is being studied.
It usually begins with To investigate (or analyse) *.. one sentence will suffice
The aim of this study was to examine how students are negatively affected 'y
the re6uirements of homewor(.
)perational hypothesis: The hypothesis is a testable statement that see&s to
draw a lin& between the independent variable (what is manipulated) and the
dependent variable (measured).
)xcessive amounts of homewor( for ,enior ,chool students who have
difficulties academically, will have significant adverse effects on personal and
family life compared to highly achieving students as measured 'y the use of
surveys for the use of experimental comparison.
Method
This describes e+actly how the e+periment was conducted. ,rea& this up into the
following sub headings
5articipants: #ention the number of participants involved and a brea&down if
possible (age groups, male- female). This can be done in a couple of sentences and
can include a brief table
A total of >; students too( part in the study. These students ranged from
Year !" to Year !!. The 'rea(down of male4female student num'ers was not
considered in this study.
3aterials: Provide any information on any equipment used in order for others to repeat
your study
A survey46uestionnaire was prepared for the study. ,tudents were only
re6uired to provide a pen.
5rocedure: .o a step by step procedure (/ 05 steps is usually ade1uate) outlining
how you went about actually conducting the e+periment.
In this section mention what type of method was used eg. .irect observation,
1uestionnaire etc (see 2rivas 3nit 142 te+t p. 25). #ention why this method was
chosen and why another method would have been less appropriate.
5ere there is often mention made of any ethical considerations such as a need to
provide informed consent or debriefing etc. 6 you will mention this in 7tep / of this
procedure.
,tep !: A 6uestionnaire was devised 'ased on the intention to assess
participantsB su'Aective responses to issues of anxiety and frustration in
relation to how they saw themselves 1 academic achievers or underachievers
see appendix%. A 6uestionnaire approach was devised for ease of attaining
information. *t was considered 'y the researchers that an experimental
method or naturalistic o'servation, whilst they might provide greater accuracy
in some respects, would have 'een impractical for the time availa'le to carry
out the study.
,tep ;: The 6uestionnaire was distri'uted to five particular Year !" and Year
!! classes 'ased on prior agreement with the teachers of these classes. The
sample attained can therefore 'e classified as a convenience sample.
,tep <: The information was attained in a matter of a few minutes and then
used for analysis and interpretation. &hilst students could place themselves
into one of three categories high achieving, middle4average achieving and
underachieving4struggling%, the data attained on the first and the last
categories was the only data utiliEed for analysis.
Results
Iuestion ! related to how the students perceived themselves.
Jverall, * see myself as:
A rather high achieving student: !C responses in ;""@ !! in ;""C%
A middle4average achieving student: 7$ responses in ;""@ ;! in ;""C%
An underachieving4struggling student: > responses in ;""@ 7 in ;""C%
The results pertain to the first and last categories only. The ;""@ results are
listed first and the ;""C results are in 'rac(ets.
*nformation from the 'ul( of the study shown here% was rated on a scale from
" to !", proceeding upwards in terms of anxiety and frustration.
Ta'le !: Amount of homewor(
"n the typical wee& night, roughly how much school wor& do you do at
home8
Hi%h perception students: median of ! to !.$ hours per wee( night. ;
hours%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: median less than ! hour
per wee( night. ! hour%
Ta'le ;: Annoyance levels
#y typical annoyance levels in tac&ling homewor& are
Hi%h perception students: 7.C $.;%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: >.7 >.;%
Ta'le <: Annoyance levels with parents
#y typical annoyance levels with my parents in relation to homewor& issues
are
Hi%h perception students: 7.; 7.@%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: =.@ >.;%
Ta'le 7: Annoyance levels around pea( times
#y typical annoyance levels around pea& times (eg. '+cessive homewor&
periods) are
Hi%h perception students: $.C >."%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: C.> =.>%
Ta'le $: 5ea( time annoyance levels with parents
#y typical annoyance levels with my parents around pea& times (eg.
'+cessive homewor& periods) are
Hi%h perception students: $.< $.;%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: >.$ >.>%
Ta'le =: Frustration levels with understanding wor(
#y typical frustration levels with not being able to understand all of the wor&
re1uired to do are
Hi%h perception students: $.< $.=%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: C.< @.$%
Ta'le >: Frustration levels with parental nagging
#y typical frustration levels at my parents 9nagging: me about homewor& are
Hi%h perception students: 7." 7.!%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: >." =.>%
Ta'le @: 5hysical heath effects
The effect homewor& wor&load and frustrations have on my physical health
are
Hi%h perception students: <.$ 7.@%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: $.$ =.>%
Ta'le C: 3ental health effects
The effect homewor& wor&load and frustrations have on my mental health
are
Hi%h perception students: 7.7 7.>%
*nderachie(in%/stru%%lin% perception students: @." >.;%
iscussion
7tart by stating whether the hypothesis has been supported or rejected. This can
be done in a single sentence, for e+ample, simply stating The hypothesis that
**** (include it word for word) has been supported. ;ote never state 9proven:.
7tate and analyse results that are of significance
!fter that, evaluate any methodological problems that seem to be an issue. 7ome
e+amples of these might include
<as the method the best available one8
Is the test a good measure of what you want to measure8
Is the sample too small or not ade1uately attained8
!re there other e+planations for what happened8
=ist some possible e+traneous or confounding variables.
<hat are some ethical considerations of the study
7um up the main findings and conclusions
The hypothesis that excessive amounts of homewor( for ,enior ,chool
students who have difficulties academically, will have significant adverse
effects on personal and family life compared to highly achieving students has
'een clearly supported.
The results suggest that underachieving students are considera'ly
disadvantaged 'oth physically and mentally 'y homewor( re6uirements.
,ome interesting results to emerge are the following.
Firstly, the typical annoyance level with the amount of homewor( around pea(
times excessive homewor( periods% was much greater for the underachieving
students than the higher achievers. ?nderachieving perception students had a
median of C.>, opposed to higher achieving students with only $.C. A possi'le
explanation might 'e that underachieving students might not understand
homewor( when it is a normal amount, hence, when they receive excessive
amounts, stress increases as they have more wor( they donBt understand
therefore canBt complete.
The typical annoyance level with underta(ing homewor( among higher
achieving students was a median of 7.C, and when there was an excessive
amount, their annoyance levels was a median of $.C. This opposed to
underachieving students wasnBt spread as widely. The underachieving
students had an annoyance median of >.7 which increased to C.> in pea(
times. This suggests the annoyance levels increases greatly for
underachieving students when there is more homewor( as opposed to higher
achieving students. This might 'e due to the levels of organiEation among
each group.
,econdly, lower achieving students have higher frustration level with their
parents nagging than high achieving students. A possi'le explanation for this
is that 'ecause under achieving or lower achieving students feel much more
pressure from their parents. *f the parent was nagging a'out homewor( they
would get frustrated much more easily 'ecause they would feel li(e their
parents are always nagging them to do 'etter at school.
A further point of note is that ta'le @ indicates that higher achieving students
have a 'etter physical health 'y more than $"K than what under
achieving4struggling students have.
A possi'le explanation for this may 'e 'ecause underachieving students
might have to spend more time on completing homewor( as they usually donBt
understand certain pieces of wor( and need to spend time going over it and
over it again. They can 'e up at all hours of the night doing this whereas a
higher achieving student would Aust complete the wor( and have more sleep.
This would give them more energy for the next day.
,ome limitations of the study are as follows.
The 6uestionnaire was very 'rief. :owever, it should 'e pointed out
that it was deli'erately constructed to 'e 'rief and easy to implement.
The study was seen in some respects as an introductory study on the
topic at the /ollege. *f it was felt to 'e 'eneficial, a more detailed
follow up study could 'e underta(en.
The sample siEe was considera'ly small. *n particular, only >
participants placed themselves in the underachieving4struggling
category. The need for a far more extensive sample siEe was
paramount.
The participants come from a single school only. This school is
considered to 'e a middle class private school and hardly reflects
what students from a variety of schools and 'ac(grounds might 'e
experiencing.
The nature of the 6uestionnaire was limited in scope. As a
conse6uence, it would have 'een 6uite easy for participants to provide
responses that would have 'een inaccurate or simply in accordance
with their feeling right at the moment. An extended study which has a
longitudinal component would have 'een helpful. This would have
ena'led the participants to respond at different times throughout the
year 1 in particular at times when they might have 'een personally
experiencing stress and anxiety due to parents or the amount of wor(
re6uired to 'e underta(en.
8eferences: to 'e inserted
Appendix: a copy of the 6uestionnaire to 'e attached%
Psycholo%y sur(ey
Please note: This questionnaire will be treated confidentially.
No one will know who the people are who give particular responses.
Please rate yourself honestly on the following.
Tick the most applicable category.
!. Jverall, * see myself as:
L a rather high achieving student,
L a middle4average achieving student,
L an underachieving4struggling student
;. Jn the typical wee( night, roughly how much school wor( do you do at
home9
Lless than ! hourM L! to !.$ hoursM !.$ to ; hoursM ; to ;.$M ;.$ N
Please circle your response to these questions on the scales below. The
scales range from 0 no concern! "#$ some concern% &#' average
concern% (#) high! *#"0 e+treme%
<. 3y typical annoyance levels in tac(ling homewor( are: "O!O;O<O7O$
O=O>O@OCO!"
7. 3y typical annoyance levels with my parents in relation to homewor( issues
are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
$. 3y typical annoyance levels around pea( times eg. )xcessive homewor(
periods% are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
=. 3y typical annoyance levels with my parents around pea( times eg.
)xcessive homewor( periods% are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
>. 3y typical frustration levels with not 'eing a'le to understand all of the
wor( re6uired to do are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
@. 3y typical frustration levels at my parents nagging me a'out homewor(
are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
C. The effect homewor( wor(load and frustrations have on my physical health
are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"
!". The effect homewor( wor(load and frustrations have on my mental
health are: "O!O;O<O7O$O=O>O@OCO!"

Tas+: In pairs underta+e a Research Report showin% the same
con(entions as presented on pa%es ,-./01
2ou can choose your own topic but here are some that you may li+e to
consider1
.etermining if:
there is gender 'ias in 'ullying !>!%
watching particular cartoons on T- will cause aggressive 'ehaviour in
children
people would o'ey a person who ordered them to hurt another person
'oys and girls in preschool have different preferences for play activities
nicotine is lin(ed to sleep loss C;%
the disorder anorexia is primarily 'iological or socially determined !$C%
fi(e year olds can readily determine between appearance and
reality "34.#
the power of the print media on attitude formation
the status of Ao's
the amount of sleep 'efore an exam affecting exam performance
exercise reduces stress
The areas for you to wor( on and present are as follows:
a suita'le title
a paragraph or two of an introduction and a'stract%
aim and hypothesis
an original method which includes participants, materials and very
importantly% procedure
results
commencement of discussion hypothesis accepted or reAected and
also some strengths and limitations
Elliot and Michael&s ERA Acti(ity
Title 1 An *nvestigation into whether five year olds can readily
determine 'etween appearance and reality.
Aim 1 to ma(e a 'etter purpose how a little 'oy could choose his
own interest in the sport field li(e elliotBs case who cannot decide
his own su'Aection 'y applying a toy infront of him.
0owadays, many children waste their time infront of modern media
and putting aside the traditional stuff such as games, learning
media and school as well. *ts very a 'ad ha'it of a modern child to
do this. The prevention itself depends on the parent supervison.
2ecause thatBs the only (ey to rduce those 'ad ha'its. 3y stay in
that foreign country made me realiEe that its really important to
(eep our traditional environment despite of putting those ha''it
aside. The aim of my writing also purposing to fix and socialiEe the
wrong presception of traditional things and stuff. * wish * could
ma(e a very useful contri'ution for this. 2y introducing those
traditional stuff to people around me and my surrounding. ,tarts
from a very little concept li(e family.