Running head: AN ABBEREVIATED TITLE (limited to 50 characters) 1
A Title (No Longer than 12 Words) Summarizing the Main Idea(s)
Author’s Name (without titles)
Institutional Affiliation
The Same Title (No Longer than 12 Words) Summarizing the Main Idea(s)
Open with an operational definition of what it is you will be writing about. If it’s Ancient Astronauts, then tell me what that is – include when the phenomenon was first seen, where it is usually done, who does it/believes in it, who brought it to public attention, and so on. Pretend that the person reading this paper would have no idea about this topic and bring them up to speed on it.
Next, you will want to detail the claims, evidence, and assumptions of this topic. In other words, what do people who believe in Bigfoot, alien abductions, etc. say about this? What evidence do they give to support their beliefs? Is there any scientific evidence out there that supports it?
Third, examine it from a scientifically skeptical viewpoint. Tell me what researchers, scientists, and other skeptics say about it. How do they counter the claims of believers and their evidence? Are there experiments examining this topic? In this section and the section above, be sure to include which of the six principles of critical thinking discussedin class (i.e., extraordinary claims, falsifiability, Occam’s razor, replicability, ruling outrival hypotheses, and correlation vs. causation) are violated/supported for the topic at hand.
Finally, what do you think? What is your reaction to all the evidence presented by both sides? Did your opinion and belief change over the course of doing the paper?
References
Note: The standard procedures for citation ensure that references are accurate, complete, and useful to investigators and readers. Start the reference list on a new page. The word “References” should appear in uppercase and lowercase letters, centered. Double-space all reference entries. APA publishes references in a hanging indent format, meaning that the first line of each reference is set flush left and subsequent lines are indented. Below are several examples.
When referencing these in the text, use the format of citing it in parentheses, using author(s) and date published. For example: “Abramson and colleagues (1978) found that….” Or “It has been found (Abramson et al., 1978)….” Or “It is often good to write properly (Plonksy, 2004).”
Abramson, L. Y., Seligman, M. E. P., & Teasdale, J. D. (1978). Learned helplessness in humans: Critique and reformulation. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 87, 49-74.
Bolling, M., Kohlenberg, R. J., & Parker, C. R. (2000). Depression: A radical behavioral analysis and treatment approach. In Dougher, M. (Ed.), Clinical behavior analysis (pp. 127-152). Reno, NV: Context Press.
Kinsey, A. C., Pomeroy, W. B., Martin, C. E., & Gebhard, P. H. (1953). Sexual behavior in the human female. New York: W. B. Saunders.
Plonsky, M. (2004). Psychology with style: A hypertext writing guide (Version 5). Retrieved from