This is a Research Methods class and the proffessor is asking for a research proposal and we discussed my topic and here is the disscusion;
ME; I have come to the decision that my topic will be ” Effects of Getting Married Early”, I will create a questionnaire for women and men between the ages of 18-21 that are married in the army. This questionnaire will ask questions that will show how long he/she has known this person, resons of marriage, conflicts after getting marriage, and if they think the marriage is going to last more than 5 years from now. This topic seems to be a little rough but its comng a longas research more and more on the topic.
PROFESSOR: That is an interesting idea. Perhaps you could propose a study in which you examine the personalities of people age 17-21 who are getting married to someone they have not known for more than 6 months.
There is a common theory of personality known as the Five Factor Model that is commonly used in personality research. I have attached a paper that described it. Personality is measured with questionnaires, so this would be a pretty easy study to propose. Also, because getting married to someone rather quickly could be considered an impulsive behavior, so I have also attached an article linking the Five Factor Model of personality to impulsivity in people. Feel free to use both of these papers as references.
I hope this helps.
I will attach the two references that he gave me to use and I will attach the rubric as well as a sample paper that he issued out to us.
Grading Rubric
PSYC B200
Research Proposal Grading Rubric (total: 100 points)
I. Turn topic in on time (10 points)
II. Title page (3 points total)
a. Running head (1 point)
b. Title (1 point)
c. Name (1 point)
III. Abstract (12 points)
a. Summarizes the paper adequately (8 points)
b. 100 word limit (maximum) (2 points)
c. Writing everything in APA format (2 points)
IV. Introduction (40 points)
a. Reviews literature adequately and has minimum of6 references(25 points)
b. Grammar, Organization, and Flow (5 points)
c. Your Hypothesis (5 points)
d. Citing everything in APA format (5 points)
V. Method (25 points)
a. Participants (5 points)
b. Materials & Design (5 points)
c. Procedure (15 points)
VI. Reference section(10 points total)
a. Has full citation for every reference mentioned in paper
b. Has minimum of 6 references
c. All references are in APA format
I couldn’t attach my files so this is how I have to give you my sample paper and two references.
SAMPLE PAPER
Effects of Artificial Light on Mood
Author Name
Abstract
There has been a lot of speculation on whether artificial light has any affect on a person’s mood. This experiment will take 100 participants (50 male and 50 female) and expose them to bright or dim light, depending on the group they are randomly selected to be in. There have been numerous studies done on the matter including those of Lewis’s (2013) article on the effect of light on the circadian rhythm of mice. Lewis’s (2013) results turned up being that artificial light has depression lifting effects. Not only has this study been done with mice; Iwata, Ichii and Egashira (1997) used bright artificial light on shift work nurses and yielded similar results, improvement of mood. This paper aims to strengthen the claim of artificial light improving the mood of human beings and to further progress in support of use of artificial light in treatment of mood disorders.
Effects of Artificial Light on Mood
In the past there have been studies conducted on the effects of Artificial Light on the mood of any given person. Many of those studies have been in relation to recovery in hospitals, tanning, mood of workers, and many other aspects of one’s mood. Of those studies, most of them revealed positive effects of light on the mood. However, some research done on the subject show that artificial light in forms of electronics (computers, phones, and television) can have a negative effect on the mood and the body as a whole. Lewis (2013) suggests that certain levels of light directly influence mood, behavior and learning. Lewis (2013) also suggests that light can affect our Circadian Rhythms, or our 24 hour cycle that is strongly affected by light. A question that is brought up is does lack of Artificial Light bring upon seasonal affective disorder? Another question would be can mood actually be altered by the use of bright artificial light and could it be used as a treatment?I would predict that Artificial Light has a positive effect on a person’s mood regardless of the season and could possibly serve as a type of treatment.This paper not only examines the research of others research to figure out whether Artificial Light actually has an impact on a person’s mood but of conducting a new method of research on this matter.
Lewis (2013) investigated the effects of inappropriately timed light exposure by using mice and exposing them to certain light cycles. Lewis specifically looked at intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) which project to the brain regions such as the suprachiasmatic nucleus and limbic areas which deals with circadian rhythms and regulation of mood respectively (Lewis 2013).Lewis’s (2013) journal entry discovered that the mice had normal sleep and a normal circadian rhythm cycle, although they had decreased levels of learning. More importantly, the animals displayed depression-like behaviors and increased serum corticosterone, which is associated with depression in humans (Lewis 2013). Lewis’s study brings up possibly an important correlation between light and mood; if this study would apply to humans then we could know whether or not artificial light can in fact affect mood.
An clinical article by Parry and Maurer (2003) takes multiple studies from over the past thirty or so years and applies them to the research of light treatment of mood disorders. Multiple studies in Parry and Maurer’s (2003) articles suggest that light treatment is very effective on those with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).
In a study done by Iwata, Ichii and Egashira (1997) female nurses were exposed to different intensities of light. In this study there were two series of five work shifts. The nurses were exposed to light brighter than 3,000 lux for 30 minutes each work shift for the second series, for the first series they worked under normal lighting (approximately 250 lux) (Iwata, Ichii and Egashira 1997). A three-way layout ANOVA, which repeated measures, revealed that bright light tended to improve eagerness and reduce tension during the night shifts, but not the evening shifts (Iwata et al., 1997).
Another study with the involvement of nurses in a hospital by Kakooei et al. (2010) yielded similar results. The 34 nurses were exposed to bright light at 4,500 lux or dim light at 300 lux and were studied under 24 hour realistic conditions at which there plasma cortisol and melatonin were measured (Kakooei et al., 2010). A one-way ANOVA revealed that bright light tends to increase cortisol levels and body temperature as well as improved alertness (Kakooei et al., 2010).
An article dealing with “Midwinter Insomnia” (MI) by Hansen, Bratlid, Lingjarde and Brenn(1987) tests a group of people north of the arctic circle during the “dark period.” A group of MI participants were compared to eight controls in the study where as the MI participants, before light exposure, had significantly lower plasma melatonin levels than the controls (Hansen, Bratlid, Lingjarde and Brenn 1987). The results of the study revealed that after light exposure the MI group’s sleep latency was significantly shortened and their plasma melatonin levels increased to that of the controls (Hansen et al., 1987).
Wever, Polasek and Wildgruber (1983) did an experiments with the use of external zeitgebers or lights to alter human circadian rhythms. Like other studies the exposed groups to higher intensities of light. In dim light of 100 lux or less the results were approximately 27 hours of upper entrainment limit, whereas of higher intensity (400 lux) the upper entrainment was beyond 29 hours (Wever, Polasek, and Wildgruber 1983). “This means that bright light has an effect on the human circadian system which is qualitatively different from that of dim light, and which is similar to the effect of light in most animal experiments” (Wever et al., 1983).
Method
Participants
One-hundred participants (50 men and 50 women) will be randomly selected from the undergraduate study body at the University of Michigan. Any participants who have gone tanning at any time during the two weeks prior to the experiment will be excluded, due to possible mood enhancement. Participants must also turn off all electronics that emit blue light in their room at night during sleep to avoid any potential effects of blue light on circadian rhythms.
Materials
The required materials for this experiment are two rooms with two different sets of lighting – One of which (Group B: the bright lighting) at 4,500 lux, and the other (Group D: the dim lighting) at 300 lux. Lastly, a survey program on a computer will be used to gather mood results using a Profile of Mood States (POMS) design.
Design
Participants randomly assigned to either group B or group D, standing for Bright and Dim respectively. Participantsare to be measured over a week of being exposed to their given light at a certain time each day. The exposure would come in the form of group B experiencing the room with 4,500 lux lighting, and group D would experience the room with 300 lux lighting. Each day after exposure they will report their mood and attitude via POMS survey. This scale asked the following mood states: Anger, Confusion, Depression, Fatigue, Tension, Vigor, and Friendliness. The mood states would be rated with this scale: 0= none, 1= slightly, 2= moderately, 3= quite a bit, 4= extremely.
Procedure
All participants will be gathered in a room and assigned to either group B or group D randomly. Each group will consist of 25 males and 25 females. Once they are selected they will be given times of the week that they have to report to a room that has their given light, group B with 4,500 lux room or group D with 300 lux room. The participants are to report to their rooms every morning between the times of 7a.m. – 9a.m.for a week. Roughly 12 people from each group will have a 30 minute time block in their assigned rooms and be exposed to their light during that time. That pattern would continue with 12 different participants going every 30 minutes starting at 7AM going till 9AM. After exposure, each day at a time between 12p.m. – 3p.m., the participants will complete the POMS survey as a self report method. This process would be repeated for 7 consecutive days. After those 7 days, all of the participants will be debriefed and told the purpose of the experiment
