Course Policies

This course is a review of basic research methods and statistics as applied to clinical research. Increasingly, the field of clinical psychology is recognizing the value of an evidence-based approach to evaluating the effectiveness of available therapies. This course will explore the goals, problems, and techniques for conducting well-designed research studies in clinical settings. The goal of this course is not to train you to do clinical research, but to give you practice in critically evaluating clinical research findings so that you will be able to make good use of research in your future careers. Critical thinking about clinical research, practice in evaluating the content of published research studies, and an understanding of the importance of research to clinical practice are important outcomes for this course. This is a graduate level course and admission to the graduate program or permission of the instructor is required for enrollment.

Textbooks:

Kazdin, A.E. (2003). Research Design in Clinical Psychology (Fourth Edition). Allyn & Bacon. Required.

Lilienfeld, S.O., Lynn, S.J., & Lohr, J.M. (2003). Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology. Guilford Press. Required.

Abelson, R.P. (1995). Statistics as Principled Argument. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Required.

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (Fifth Edition). American Psychological Association. Otherwise known as the APA Style Manual. This is optional but papers will be expected in APA format.

Attendance:

Regular attendance is expected. You are responsible for completing all course requirements and for keeping up with all that goes on in the course even if you are not present.

Exams:

Two exams (one midterm, one final) will be given on the dates noted on the syllabus, each one covering assigned chapters in the textbooks and class discussions from the end of the previous exam. The exams will be a mixture of multiple-choice, short answer, and short essay questions. Activities during class are designed to develop skills that will enable you to do well on the exams. Exam questions may be similar to such activities. It is to your advantage to take class activities seriously and participate fully in them. These exams will count 50% of your course grade (25% for each exam). Make-up exams will be permitted only for extreme, documented emergency (such as hospitalization).

Term Papers:

Two term papers are required for this course. The purpose of these term papers is to give you practice in evaluating research on clinical topics. The first paper consists of a critical evaluation of a research report on a specific clinical topic. Methods for completing this evaluation will be discussed in class. The second paper consists of an evaluative review of the existing empirical support for a specific therapeutic technique or approach, based on library research. Any of the therapies described in the Lilienfeld text may be used or you may select another therapy to evaluate. The therapy you select need not be controversial. The chapters of the Lilienfeld text are models of factors to consider in your review. You should also consider statistical strength, reliability, validity, and quality of research design in your evaluation of the evidence discussed in your paper. In your conclusion, please state whether you would use the selected technique or therapy with clients, and if yes, which clients it would be most suitable for. This project will require substantial library and internet research. If you are unfamiliar with how to do such research, please see me before beginning your paper. Because it may take time to obtain copies of relevant research articles, this project should not be left to the end of the course. Your grade on both papers will be based on the quality of your thinking and the thoroughness of your evaluation. You are expected to have an independent opinion, distinct from that of the sources you cite. Both papers should be written in APA format. Instructions for using APA format for class papers, as opposed to research studies, are provided in the APA Publication Manual.

No student will pass this course without submitting both papers, regardless of the other grades earned. Please do not ask for an extension to the paper deadlines unless you have a documented hospitalization or similarly extreme emergency. Late papers will be reduced in grade.

Grading:

The required coursework for this class includes:

Paper 1 -- Research Report Evaluation	20%
Paper 2 -- Therapy Evidence Review	30%
Midterm and Final Exam (25% each)	50%

Plagiarism:

Students are expected to write their papers independently, clearly identify their own ideas and properly credit the ideas of others, and to cite sources appropriately. A paper containing plagiarized material will be given an F, discussed with the Director of the Master's Program, and reported to the Judicial Affairs Office. If you are not sure what plagiarism consists of, see the professor or consult the APA Publication Manual (pg 349-350). Copying from other students is also considered plagiarism.

Problems:

If you find yourself having difficulty with any aspect of the course, it is your responsibility to seek help early in the quarter. You can do this by asking questions in class, visiting me during office hours, studying with other students, or by using the resources provided by the college to help with learning-related problems. If you have a disability or other difficulty that can be helped by reasonable accommodation, please meet with me early in the quarter and before the exams. No changes to exam grades can be made after the fact.