PSYC 865 Survey Research Methods

The course is designed to provide an advanced exploration of the major issues associated with survey research methods and to prepare the student with the essential skills necessary to design and conduct survey research projects, including survey research design, survey construction and evaluation, scientific sampling, and communication within the scientific community. This course emphasizes the practical process of developing, administering, and evaluating an original survey instrument. Finally, this course will allow the student the opportunity to integrate scientific theory and practice with a Biblical perspective and a Christ-centered approach to the role of researcher in professional psychology.

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After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview. 

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student is required to post an original thread of at least 750 to 1,000 words using course-related knowledge to address the assigned topic as well as to post replies of at least 350 words to two other classmates’ threads. For each thread, the student must support his/her assertions with at least 3 scholarly citations in APA format as well as one scriptural citation. Each reply also must incorporate at least 2 scholarly citations as well as one scriptural citation. (CLO: A, B, C, D)

Throughout the course, the student will complete 6 cumulative assignments that are designed to guide him/her in developing and evaluating a survey instrument that measures a psychological variable/construct of his/her choosing. The 6 elements of the Survey Project must adhere to current APA formatting guidelines and are described below. (CLO: A, B, C)

Survey Project: Part 1 – Variable Selection and Test Identification Assignment

The student will write a current APA-formatted assignment that provides a general overview of the psychological variable/construct that he/she intends to measure with the survey instrument that he/she designs. Additionally, the student will identify two other published instruments that have been designed to measure this same construct and provide a summary of the psychometric properties of each. This assignment will be 3-5 pages in length and include at least 2 scholarly references.

Survey Project: Part 2 – Draft Survey and List of References Assignment

The student will write a draft of his/her survey questions. The student also will provide a current APA-formatted working references page that contains the bibliographic information for 5-8 potential peer-reviewed, scholarly sources that directly address the proposed variable/construct being assessed by the draft survey.

Survey Project: Part 3 – Survey Administration and Data Entry Assignment

The student will administer his/her survey, and another already-published survey designed to measure the same latent construct in a field test to a pilot sample of at least 20 participants and then enter the data into an SPSS Data file. The student also will write an APA-formatted Method section describing the participants, apparatus/materials, and procedure of his/her field test.

Survey Project: Part 4 – Reliability and Validity Analysis Assignment

The student will conduct a reliability and validity analysis of his/her survey using SPSS. Then the student will write a 3–5-page APA-formatted summary of that analysis.

Survey Project: Part 5 – Empirical Report Assignment

The student will write an original Empirical Report that describes the variable/construct being measured, summarizes the sampling method, participants, and administration method of the data collection process, presents the survey data, and summarizes the psychometric properties of the survey. All elements of the Empirical Report must adhere to current APA formatting guidelines.

Discussion: Survey Project: Part 6 – Virtual Conference Presentation