PSY 520 Short Paper 1 Guidelines and Rubric

Refer to the following excerpt from a hypothetical research article that compared memory test performance between two groups of participants: those who consumed a caffeinated beverage before the test and those who consumed a non-caffeinated beverage:

An independent samples t-test was conducted to examine the difference between experimental conditions on test performance. The results indicated a significant difference between participants who consumed the caffeinated beverage and participants who did not, with participants in the caffeinated group (M = 7.64, SD = 2.41) performing worse than participants in the non-caffeinated group (M = 9.81, SD = 3.16), t(97) = 2.14, p < .05.

Write a brief paper explaining what the author means when she says that the results were statistically significant. In other words, what does it mean to say that results are statistically significant? Be sure to explain what a p value is and how it relates to statistical significance.

As a reminder, M stands for mean, SD stands for standard deviation, the t indicates that this was a t-test, and the p represents the p value. You can refer to page 353 of your textbook, Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics, for help interpreting the statistical results listed in the excerpt, but that may not be necessary.

Guidelines for Submission: Submit a 1–2-page document with double spacing, 12-point font, and one-inch margins, with any sources referenced cited in APA format.

Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (90%) Needs Improvement (70%) Not Evident (0%) Value

Description of Statistical Significance Meets “Proficient” criteria, and explanation succinct and needs

no clarification

Clearly and accurately describes the meaning of statistical significance

Understanding is evident, though some confusion or lack of clarity is also evident

No explanation, or it is evident that the writer does not understand statistical significance

40

Explanation of P Value Meets “Proficient” criteria, and explanation is succinct and needs no clarification

Clearly and accurately describes the meaning of p-value

Understanding is evident, though some confusion or lack of clarity is also evident

No explanation, or it is evident that writer does not understand p-values

40

Articulation of

Response

Submission is free of errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, and

organization and is presented

in a professional and easy-toread format

Submission has no major errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

Submission has major errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

that negatively impact

readability and articulation of

main ideas

Submission has critical errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

that prevent understanding of

ideas

20

Earned Total 100%