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Formatting a Practical Report for Submission

Use Times New Roman point 12.

Use 1.5 line spacing with margins of 2.54 on both sides and top and bottom.

Indent the first line of each paragraph.

Note there is no contents page, and there is no bibliography. You should use the correct
format for your writing, based on APA guidelines (see the APA manual for details).

The practical report should have the following sections. Note the correct formatting:

This is the Title it is a Level 1 Heading, Note the Capitalisation

▪ Not on a separate page. Level 1 heading is centred, bold, Uppercase and Lowercase
heading

▪ Is your title 15-20 words long?

▪ Does your title give a brief, but clear indication of the content?

Abstract

▪ Have you stated the aim of the investigation?

▪ Have you mentioned the hypothesis (if appropriate)?

▪ Have you described how the study was carried out?

▪ Have you indicated how the results were analysed and what they showed?

▪ Have you explained what conclusions were drawn?

▪ Does your abstract convey a brief, essential impression of the study in less than 150-200
words?

▪ Is it possible to make sense of the abstract without reading the rest of the report?
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The Introduction starts on new page, it doesn’t have a heading.

▪ Have you given a brief general overview of the issues and concepts that are relevant to
the topic that places the research in context?

▪ Is there an account of similar or related studies?

▪ Does your review:

1. Provide a non-specialist with an account of "the state-of-research" in the area?

2. Tell a coherent 'story' which a non-specialist reader should follow?

3. Acknowledge important review articles (and does not replicate such reviews in
detail)?

4. Include selected studies that are central, the only ones in the area, contradict each
other etc.?

5. Summarise the findings of studies with results that are similar?

6. Review methods used in previous studies?

▪ Have you explained how your study relates to current research?

▪ Have you explained the main aims of your study?

▪ Do these aims arise from the Introduction?

▪ Are your hypotheses clearly stated?

Method

▪ Have you chosen a suitable set of sub-headings that organise the information clearly?

Design

(Level 2 heading, bold, flush left)

▪ Have you stated the design used?

▪ How many groups or conditions were there?

▪ Have you said how the participants were allocated to groups/conditions?

▪ Have you stated the IV and the DV (if appropriate)?

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Participants

▪ Is it clear who they were and how they were chosen or obtained?

▪ Have you stated how many participants were used and how many of them were
male/female?

▪ Have you provided information regarding the participants' ages (i.e. mean and range)?

▪ Have you given additional information that may be relevant to the research (e.g.
handedness)?

Materials

▪ Have you described these in sufficient detail to allow replication?

▪ Have you made use, where necessary of drawings and diagrams?

▪ Have you described any technical apparatus?

▪ Have you described the stimuli, questionnaires etc. and given examples in an Appendix?

Procedure

▪ Have you explained in sequence exactly what the researcher did and what each
participant experienced?

▪ Have you reported in full any important instructions given to participants? (copies in the
Appendix).

▪ Have you given a clear impression of the layout and arrangement of events?

NB. On reading the Method Section will your readers have enough detail to repeat
(replicate) the study?

Results

Remember that when reporting statistics any Greek letters are not italicised but any standard
letters are, e.g. N, p, SD, t etc.

▪ Have you explained how you treated the raw data?

▪ Have you provided a summary table of results giving totals, means, standard deviations
or their equivalents?

▪ Have you put raw data in the Appendix?

▪ Have you exploited opportunities for visual presentation?

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▪ Are all tables, graphs and charts fully and clearly labelled and numbered?

▪ Have you given each table, graph etc. a title and are units clearly shown?

▪ Have you stated what your descriptive statistics appear to be showing?

▪ Have you stated the results of these tests in conventional form?

▪ Are calculations in the Appendix?

▪ Have you stated the outcome of your findings in psychological terms?

▪ Overall, do you consider that you have presented your results in a way that is as clear as
possible to the reader?

Discussion

▪ Have you re-stated the aim(s) of the study?

▪ Have you explained in clear and simple terms what you found in your study (i.e. a verbal
description of the results)?

▪ Have you explained how your results relate to your hypothesis/hypotheses?

▪ Have you explained how these findings fit into previous research and in particular the
research that you outlined in the Introduction?

▪ Have you dealt with these findings in a coherent and systematic way?

▪ Have you attempted to provide reasoned explanations for inconsistencies in your data,
and for findings that were unexpected?

▪ Have you evaluated the design and procedures used?

▪ Have you considered any alternative explanations of the results?

▪ Have you suggested modifications, extensions or new research to deal with these last
three points?

▪ Have you considered any applications of your research?

▪ In general, does the Discussion section provide a full account of what your results mean,
and does it explain how these results fit into the work of previous writers and
researchers?
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References

▪ Start on new page

▪ Have you listed all the studies that you have referred to and none that you haven’t?

▪ Have you used the correct format for references?

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Appendices

▪ Should be numbered in the order they are referred to in text

▪ Start on new page; UPLOAD TO SEPARATE SUBMISSION LINK

▪ Information to clarify the method (e.g. stimuli although there should be a brief
description in the body of the report).

▪ Annotated SPSS print out.