47.361 DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

Spring 2011

Instructions for Proposals

Your proposal has two parts.  The first outlines the topic you have chosen for the mini-research review due in early March, before break.  The second identifies the individual who will be the subject for your interview project due at the end of the semester; for confidentiality, you do not have to use the individual's real name.  More information follows. 

I. Research Review

Your proposal for the mini-research review will consist of at least:

1. One paragraph stating specifically what question you will be answering in your research review,

2. One primary source, empirical journal article relevant to the topic identified, and

3. APA citation style used to list the reference.

The question needs to have disorder of childhood or adolescence as its focus.  

• Do not focus on physical or medical issues (e.g., physical effects of bulimia)

• Focus on psychological or psychosocial aspects of the disorder with clear relevance developmental psychology

• This paper must go beyond simple description of symptoms

• You may focus, for example, on causes, effects on social contexts such as family or school, or treatments.

• Your question should have a single focus so that you can integrate the findings of three articles around a single question, and not have one article addressing, for example, causes, one addressing symptoms, and one addressing treatment. Pick one.

If you are able to provide any additional information about your plans, it would be helpful to do so.  If you have any resources, please list them.  Remember that you need three empirical journal articles from peer-reviewed journals; note the emphasis on empirical.  You are writing a review so you don't want to use review articles.  It is a review of research, so you do not want to use an article that is already a review.

Make sure you use your own work and provide credit for any ideas or direct quotes you have taken from others.  Use APA citation style.  Whatever you do, DO NOT plagiarize.  Check these resources if any of these terms are not familiar to you.

• What is a peer reviewed journal?

• What is an empirical article?

• What is plagiarism?

II. Interview Project

For this proposal, indicate who you think you will be interviewing and why--i.e., what his or her connection is to Developmental Psychopathology. For more information, see Guidelines for Interview project.