Effective Writing in Psychology

Master the art of APA-style writing with this newly updated and accessible resource

The newly and thoroughly revised Third Edition of Effective Writing in Psychology: Papers, Posters, and Presentations offers compelling and comprehensive guidance to readers who want to create powerful and persuasive prose in a rigorous, scientific, and APA-compliant framework. Distinguished academics and authors Bernard and Agatha Beins walk readers through the foundational and advanced topics they must grasp to generate convincing and credible APA-stye writing.

The book combines an accessible and approachable guide to effective writing with the most current best practices from the 7th edition of the American Psychological Association's publication manual. New writers and experienced authors alike will benefit from Effective Writing in Psychology's descriptions of the most frequently used and important aspects of APA-style writing.

The authors minimize their use of technical jargon and include explanations of how to create effective posters, deliver high-quality oral presentations, and publish electronically. The book also includes:

• An up-to-date presentation of ethical, inclusive writing and proper use of modern pronouns

• Step-by-step guidance on the use of APA formatting in scholarly papers

• Explanations of how to create effective posters for poster sessions

• Descriptions of how to organize convincing and credible oral presentations that leave listeners and conference attendees impressed and edified

• The basics of creating and formatting electronic documents for publication on the web

Effective Writing in Psychology: Papers, Posters, and Presentations is an invaluable resource for psychology and social, and behavioral science students at any level. It also belongs on the bookshelves of practicing psychology professionals, researchers, and academics who would like to brush up on their technical writing abilities.

Auteur

Bernard C. Beins is Professor of Psychology at Ithaca College. He has received the Charles L. Brewer Distinguished Teaching Award from the American Psychological Foundation. He was President of the Society for the Teaching of Psychology, the Eastern Psychological Association, and the New England Psychological Association. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Psychological Science, the New England Psychological Association, and the Eastern Psychological Association. Agatha M. Beins is Associate Professor in Multicultural Women's and Gender Studies at Texas Woman's University. She is editor of the online open-access journal Films for the Feminist Classroom and coeditor of the anthology Women's Studies for the Future: Foundations, Interrogations, Politics.

Contenu
Preface to the Third Edition xii

Preface to the Second Edition xiv

Preface to the First Edition xv

1 Writing Professionally 1

Introduction to Writing in Psychology 1

How Does Professional Writing Differ From Other Kinds of Writing? 3

Using APA Style 4

Making a Credible Argument 5

Different Types of Communication 6

Effective Communication 8

How to Begin 9

Part I Organizing and Developing Your Ideas and Writing 11

2 Formulating Your Ideas 13

Identifying Your Focal Question 13

Locating Relevant Sources 16

Recognizing Multiple Viewpoints 19

Ethical Writing 20

3 Assessing Your Sources 25

The Difference Between Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Literature 26

The Difference Between Popular and Scholarly Sources 27

Evaluating Sources 29

Evaluating Internet Sources 31

4 How to Conduct a Literature Search 39

Understanding the Purpose of a Literature Search 39

Understanding Library Resources 41

Using Article Databases 46

Using the internet 48

Using Sources to Find Sources 50

5 How to Read and Summarize a Journal Article 51

Understanding Journal Articles 51

Overview of the Researchthe Abstract 53

Identifying the IssuesIntroduction Section 53

Understanding What Was DoneMethod Section 54

What HappenedResults Section 56

What It MeansDiscussion Section 59

Where the Ideas OriginatedReferences Section 61

Figuring out What It Means 61

6 Organizing a Paper 63

Organization 64

Using the Work of Others to Support Your Argument 66

Editing and Revising 71

Mechanics 73

7 Elements of Style 75

Recognizing the Importance of Grammar and Style 76

Choosing Effective Wording 78

Using Inclusive and Appropriate Language 81

Deciding on the Use of Technical Language 83

Avoiding Common Problems 84

Verb Forms 86

Spelling 88

Specific Word Use 88

8 Communicating Statistics 95

Importance of Understanding Statistics 95

Why Do We Use Statistics? 96

What Point Are You Trying to Make? 97

Understanding Your Numbers 99

Helping Readers Understand Your Statistics 101

Differentiating Results and Interpretations 104

Part II Preparing APAStyle Papers 105

9 Writing a Thesis or a Term Paper 107

Framework for Writing a Term Paper 107

Developing Your Idea 108

Organizing Your Paper Around the Central Questions 112

Finding Different Perspectives About Your Idea 114

Developing the Logic of Your Argument 117

10 The Introduction Section 121

Introducing the Topic 122

Different Approaches to Starting the Introduction 122

How to Begin 126

Reviewing What Others Have Already Done 126

Reasons for Reviewing the Literature 127

Clarifying Terms in the Research 128

Introducing Your Research: Generating a Hypothesis 129

11 The Method Section 131

Participants and Subjects 132

Materials and Apparatus 140

Procedure 142

Design 143

12 The Results Section 145

Providing a Good Ending 145

Your Hypotheses 146

Deciding What to Present 147

Reporting Significant and Nonsignificant Results 148

Marginally Significant Effects 150

APA Style and Presentation of Your Results 151

Creating Tables 154

Creating Figures 159

The Connection Between the Text and the Tables and Figures 162 <p&...