LAB PROJECT: METHOD ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
The Lab Project: Method Assignment is the second phase of your Lab Project. You will write the Method section of your empirical research paper, collect your data, and organize it in SPSS to prepare for the next phase (Results and Discussion). A Method section is a very important component of an empirical paper. It provides sufficient detail so that the research can be replicated and/or extended. It should be succinct and precise. The skill of moving from surveys (data collection) to data entry is one that is best developed through experience. You will gain that experience when completing this Lab Project: Method Assignment. Being able to create a method section and organize data to prepare for data analysis is essential for any researcher.
INSTRUCTIONS
As previously mentioned, this Lab Project: Method Assignment involves data collection and a written record of what you did using APA conventions for a Professional Paper’s Method section. Please read the following instructions in their entirety before beginning this portion of your Lab Project: Method Assignment.
DATA COLLECTION INSTRUCTIONS
Do not begin data collection until your survey has been approved by the instructor. Before collecting data, please read the Lab Project: Method – Supplement Survey Administration document. Read this document carefully, as it outlines instructions regarding anonymity and rights of the participants, as well as how to administer the survey—it is important that you follow these guidelines while collecting data. The only precondition to participating in the survey is that participants must be at least 15 years old; otherwise, participants can be of any gender, race, religious background, etc. It is important to emphasize that the results of the survey are anonymous by pointing out the instructions at the top of the survey. You should not distribute your survey in public areas, as that would require additional training beyond the scope of this class.
o You will collect data from at least 20 people, using the approved survey submitted with your Introduction (this is similar to a pilot study but is for educational purposes only – which is why you do not have to seek IRB approval but also means you must follow the directions of this overview precisely!).
o Note that although you were required to create a word document for the survey, you may opt to use Google Forms to distribute your survey electronically (either via email or using social media).
o Once you have data from at least 20 individuals (you can have more—in fact, the more the better!), you must score the surveys and enter the data into an SPSS file.
o Every single question must be clearly labeled and entered into SPSS in addition to your final calculated variables.
• For instance, the example survey on the last page of the Discussion: Lab Project – Introduction: Survey Development document has 9 questions. All 9 questions would be individually represented in the SPSS file with descriptive names (NOT Q1, Q2, et cet). Since questions 3 – 9 in this example survey are about anxiety, they could be named Anxiety1, Anxiety2, et cet.
However, as outlined in the Survey Development document, there will need to be a “total anxiety” variable calculated. (You can calculate this within SPSS or in excel – your choice). For anxiety, it states to sum the responses to the 7 questions and multiply by 2. Therefore, the SPSS data file for this Lab Project: Method Assignment would need to have 10 columns of data (1 demographic, 1 for organizational religiosity, and 8 for anxiety). Although all these variables will not be used in the statistical analysis, every question must be represented in your SPSS data file to ensure you have calculated any summarized variable(s) correctly. You will upload your SPSS data file (ending in .sav) as part of the current Lab Project: Method Assignment. (This is the ONLY time you turn in two files within a single submission for PSYC 515!)
• An example of how to go from a survey to an SPSS data file is shown in the Lab Project: Method – Supplement Survey Compilation document. There are three completed example surveys (using the example from the Survey Development document) and then pictures of how the data entry would look in SPSS in both Data and Variable Views.
