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Writing For Psychology...

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Howtowritegoodpsychology assignmentsandavoidplagiarism Contents Part1:Howtowriteauniqueandeffectivepsychologyassignment..........................................................2 Havetheattitudeofanauthormakingauniquecontribution................................................................2 Findingsourcesofinformation.................................................................................................................2 Usetheinformationyoufindtowriteeffectively....................................................................................3 Processinginformation,planningandwriting..........................................................................................4 Paraphrasing.............................................................................................................................................4 Citingthesourcesofinformation.............................................................................................................4 Usingtheformatofyourdiscipline...........................................................................................................5 Exemplars..................................................................................................................................................5 Part2:Understandingandavoidingplagiarism............................................................................................5 “Ijustwantanideaofwhattodo”...........................................................................................................5  Decisions...................................................................................................................................................6 DishonestandNegligentPlagiarism......................................................................................................... 6 Plagiarizingideasandstructure................................................................................................................6 Plagiarizingwords.....................................................................................................................................7 Plagiarizingresearch.................................................................................................................................7 DiscussingvsCollaboratingonwriting......................................................................................................8 Part3:Howisplagiarismdetected:Similaritydetectingsoftware...............................................................9 Part4:PlagiarismandthecostsofplagiarismatSydneyUniversityandintheSchoolofPsychology......11 Dishonestplagiarism...............................................................................................................................11 Negligentplagiarism...............................................................................................................................11 Theemotionalcost.................................................................................................................................12 Iwantasecondchance!.........................................................................................................................12 Naturalpenaltiesforplagiarism.............................................................................................................12 References..................................................................................................................................................13 

Part1:Howtowriteauniqueandeffectivepsychologyassignment Writingauniversityassignmentisdifficulttobeginwith,becauseitinvolvesskillswhichareonlytaught anddevelopedatuniversity.SomeoftheshortcutsyouusedinHighSchooltoproducewrittenworks needtobeunlearnt,becauseuniversitywritinginvolvesalotmoreworkandmanymoresteps.

Havetheattitudeofanauthormakingauniquecontribution FreshfromHighSchool,toomanyuniversitystudentsstillwantnothingmorethanasimple‘right answer’,andtheirwritingstyleisthatofascaredjournalist,summarizingsourceaftersourceandadding nothingmore.Atuniversitymanystudentssimplyrephrasewhattheyreadbecausetheyarelazy,but somestudentssubmitderivativesummariesbecausetheythinkthatiswhat’srequired.Whenwritingat universityyouneedtomakethereaderawareofyourpresence,yourviews,andyourcontribution.You donotdothisbygivingyourunsupportedopinion.Howeveryoumustrecognizethatthematerialyou choosetodiscuss,andthewayyoudiscussit,allowsthereadertoseeyourperspectiveandyour contribution.Inotherwordsyouneedtobeanauthorofanoriginalworkwhichdissectsandmelds togetherothersourcessothattheybecomebiggerthanthesumoftheirparts.Theattitudeandidentity ofanauthorshouldunderpinallthestagesinvolvedinyourresearchandwriting.SeeElander,Pittam, Lusher,FoxandPayne(2010)fortheirstudyof‘authorialidentity’.

Findingsourcesofinformation Thebestwaytowritesomethingthatisuniqueandeffectiveistofindgoodsourcesofinformationwith aviewtocombiningtheminacriticalmanner.Researchisanessentialpartofeventhemostbasickind ofuniversityassignment,soyoushouldneverberelyingjustonthe‘set’or‘suggested’references referredtointheassignment.Google(evenGoogleScholar)iscertainlynotthemosteffectivewayto findgood,peerreviewedstudiesinyourfield. Youwillneedtolearnhowtouseadatabase.The UniversityofSydneyLibraryoffersexcellentonlineandoncampuscoursesonusingdatabasestosearch forgoodreferences.ForPsychology,thedatabaseweusethemostiscalledPsycINFO.Aswellas accessingPsycINFOviathelibrarywebsite,youwillalsofindlinktocoursesonhowtouseit,andeven onlinetutorialvideos,onthePsychology‘SubjectGuide’page (http://libguides.library.usyd.edu.au/psychology). Whenyouknowhowtousethem,databaseslikePSYCINFO expandthescopeofyourlearningand researchspectacularly.Trythisexercise: DanielKahneman(oneofthemostfamouspsychologistsintheworldwhowonaNobelPrize),wrotea fascinatingarticlein2006,abouthowtherelationshipbetweenwealthandhappinessislargelyillusory. Itiscalled:“Wouldyoubehappierifyouwerericher?”ThearticlewaspublishedinScience(Volume 312). TofindthisarticleusingPsycINFO,gototheUniversityofSydney’s‘Library’website,clickon“Databases andElectronicResources”onthetopleftofthemainpage,thenin“DatabasesbySubject”clickon “Psychology”,andthenyoucansee“PsycINFO”isthetopchoice.Whenyouclickon“PsycINFO”youwill beaskedtoenteryourunikeyandunipass,andthenfinallyyouwillarriveat“OVID”whichisthesearch engine.IfyouhavewatchedthevideolinkedtoonthePsychologySubjectGuidepagethenyouwill probablycombinesearchesfortheauthor(Kahneman,Daniel)andakeyword(Happiness,Wealth),or

perhapsjustsearchbytitle.NoteimportantlythatwhileyoucanviewtheAbstractsofpapers,Abstracts arenotthesameaspapers(seenextsection),andyouwillhavetoseewhetherthepaperisavailable electronically,orinthelibrary,oratall(itoftenisn’t).

Usetheinformationyoufindtowriteeffectively Thebiggestmistakestudentsmakewhenusinginformationtheyfind,istotreateachsourceasan equallyvalid‘opinion’whichisself‐validatedbythefactthatitispublished.Moreoftenthannot,the causeofthisissimple:manystudentsdonotreadthepaperstheyfind.Ifyouarejustgoingtoreadthe abstract,orafewlinesofadiscussionorconclusion,thenofcourseyouarelimitedtowritingnothing morethanasummaryofwhatotherpeoplethoughtorconcluded.Whilesomepublishedworksarejust opinions,mostinvolveadescriptionofresearchwhichwasderivedfromprevioustheoriesorfindings, thenplanned,conducted,analyzedandinterpreted.Thatisalotofinformationatyourfingertips.Asan authortaskedtowritesomethinguniqueyoushouldreadmostofthepaperandfindouthowthestudy wasconductedandwhytheconclusionsweredrawn.Youmightnotagree,oryoumightsuddenly realizethatanotherpaperwhichcametotheoppositeconclusiondescribedastudywhichwas conductedinaverydifferentmanner.Inscience,distinguishingevidencefromtheinterpretationmade ofitisakeyskill,andyoushouldtakeeveryopportunitytodemonstrateyouhaveit.Experienced markerswillappreciateyourattemptstoactuallyunderstandwhatyouhavereadratherthanfearfully presentingotherresearchersconclusionsbecauseyoudidnoteventrytounderstandwhattheydid. Also,readingabouttheresearchandfindingoutwhatactuallyhappenedgivesyousomanymore opportunitiestointegratedifferentstudiesintoauniqueassignment.Ifyouarejustsummarizing researcher’sconclusions,whatcanyoudobutthis:“ResearchXconcludedthis,Yconcludedsomething similar,andZthoughtsomethingelseentirelywashappening–soum…XandYmostlyagreesowe arguethatWisthesolution!”.Ifhoweveryouhavereadandunderstoodtheresearchyoucanintegrate atalevelwhichactuallycontributes,forexample:“WhileresearchXfoundthatthosepreventedfrom dreamingrememberedless,theywerecomparingthisgroupwithparticipantswhowereneverawoken. InresearchYwhenthecontrolwasagroupwhichwasperiodicallywoken,justnotwhentheywere dreaming,theeffectdisappeared.”Howwellyouareintegratinginformationisveryeasilyspotted because,regardlessofthelevelofdetailyouinclude,youwillessentiallybesummarizingthefirstpaper, thenthesecond,thenthethird. Ifyouwanttouseyourinformationeffectively,planyourparagraphs aroundthemes,concepts,andelementsofyourargument,andyouwillbeforcedto integratethe researchyouhavereadabout. 

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Processinginformation,planningandwriting Itmakesnosensetoincludemany(ifany)quotesinanassignmentwhereyourwritingskillsarebeing assessed;theuseofdirectquotesshowsthemarkeryourinsecurityorinabilitytoputthingsintoyour ownwords.Describinginformationinyourownwordshoweverisverydifficult,andismadeevenmore difficultwhentheinformationisnotunderstood,andwhentheoriginaltextisvisibletoyouasyou attempttorewordit.Thebestwaytoensurethatyourwritingisclearandoriginal,istofirsttakenotes fromthesourceyouarereadinginyourownwords.Yournotesaboutthesourceshouldincludedot pointsaboutfindingsandobservations,andthingsyouhavenoticed(makeitclearinyournoteswhich ideasareyours).Continuetotakenotesforallthekeyreferencesyouintendtouse,andonlywhenyour researchismostlycompleteshouldyoubeginwritingyourassignmentdraft.Thenextstepisofplanning yourassignmentstructure.Intheoldendayswemighthaveshuffledarounddotpointsonpiecesof papertoformparagraphsandexploreparagraphorder,butnowitisjustaseasytoorganizeyour structureonacomputer.Oncethetrajectoryofyourargumentsandthemesarefullyplanned,youcan beginwritingsentences,andyouwillfinditiseasiersinceyouwillhaveaclearideaofwherethingsare leading.

Paraphrasing Paraphrasingisaskillwhichshouldonlybenecessaryasyoumakeyourownnotesdirectlyfromyour sources.(Youshouldneverbewritingyourfinaldraftdirectlyfromsources.)Paraphrasingisaskillwhich enablesyoutoexpressthesameinformationanotherauthorisexpressing,butinyourownwords. Manystudentsincorrectlythinkparaphrasinginvolveschangingeverysecondorthirdword(byusinga thesaurus),butthatwillonlyresultinawkwardlyphrasedandstolensentences.Effectiveparaphrasing reliesonyouunderstandingwhatthetextyouarereadingmeans,turningawayfromit,andthen expressingthingsfromscratchinyourownwords.Justrememberthatwhile paraphrasingasentenceor twoofinformationallowsforintegrationwithyourotherresearch,ifyouparaphraseentireparagraphs fromanotherauthor,youareessentiallystealingalltheirresearchandstructureandaddingnothingof yourown,evenifallthewordshavebeenchanged.

Citingthesourcesofinformation Whenyouarewritingatuniversityitisabsolutelycriticalthatyouarehonestandaccurateaboutwhere yourinformationcamefrom.Academicwritingastaughtatuniversityisnota‘baby’versionofwhatreal researchersdo,itispreciselythesameaswhatrealresearchersdo.Ifyouthinkofyourselfasan importantauthormakingacontribution,thenyouwillunderstandwhyaccuratelycitingthesourceof yourinformationiscritical.Firstlyunderstandthatourknowledgebaseischangingineveryfield.The informationyoupresentmaybeoutofdate,andthecitationrevealsitsage.Secondly,researchitself canbethoroughorpoor,socitingthespecificstudyyourinformationisfromallowsforscrutinyofits source.Also,ifyouhavenotreadtheprimarystudyitself,butarereadingsomeoneelse’sinterpretation ofit,thenbehonest.InpsychologyifyouobtainedyourinformationaboutastudybySmithpublishedin 1962,byreadingamorerecentpaperbyJonespublishedin2009;thenyouwouldparaphrasethe informationandthenput(Smith,1962,ascitedbyJones,2009).ThistellsthereaderthatJones’s interpretation,whichcouldberightorwrong,iswhatyouarepresenting.ItmaybethattheSmith (1962)studywasentirelydifferenttohowitwasdescribed,oritwasneverconductedandJonesmadeit

up.IfyouonlycitetheprimarysourceSmith(1962),thatisbothdangerousanddishonest.Inyour referencessectionyouonlyneedtoincludethesourcesyouactuallyaccessed.Donotstealsomeone else’sresearchandpresentitasyourown.Evenifyouarehonest,butyoufindyourselfusing‘citedby’ repeatedlyinrelationtothesamesource,askyourselfwhyareyourelyingsomuchontheresearchthey didinsteadofdoingyourown?

Usingtheformatofyourdiscipline Thereareseveralacademicreferencingandwritingstylesandyoumayencountermorethanoneat University.Theyareconventions,formedforeaseofcommunicationandprecision.Inpsychologywe useAPAstyle.Youcanfindmultipletextbooksonthisstyle,butalsoonlineguides,forexample: http://www.apastyle.org/learn/tutorials/basics‐tutorial.aspx

Exemplars ThenewassessmentpolicyoftheUniversityrequiresustogivestudentsexamplesofassignmentsof variousstandards.However,ifyourealizethatyouarelearningthefulladultversionofacademic writing,thenitshouldoccurtoyouthatrealresearchpaperspublishedintheformatofyourdiscipline alsoserveasexemplars–usuallyverygoodonessincetheyarepublished.Justbeawarethatwithall exemplars,youwillstillneedtotakenotesfromsources,planyourassignmentstructureandwritefrom scratch.Ourrecentexperienceinpsychologysuggests thatweakorunpreparedstudents‘mimic’the styleandappearanceofexemplars,resultinginassignmentswhichlookimpressivefromadistance,but areincoherentandvacuouswhenread.

Part2:Understandingandavoidingplagiarism Atuniversity,yourachievementsandgradescontributetoanawardwhichisrecognizedbythewider communityasindicativeofyourabilitiesandskills.Ifyoupresentanypartofotherpeople’sworkas yourown,thenyouobtainyourqualificationfraudulently.Karl‐TheodorzuGuttenberghadbeen MinisterofDefenceinGermanyin2011,butresignedandhadhisPhDrevokedwhenitwasdiscovered hisdoctoraldissertationwasplagiarized. Writingoriginalworkishardandrequiresalotofeffort.Thereisnodoubtmuchplagiarismiscausedby lazinessoroutrightdishonesty,butthevastmajorityofplagiarismatUniversityiscausedbypoortime management.Ifyoudonotappreciatejusthowmucheffortandtimeisrequiredtowriteoriginalwork, thenyoufacedangeroustemptationsasyoustruggletomeetyourassignmentduedate.

“Ijustwantanideaofwhattodo” Asastudent,alwaysbewaryofanyotherstudentwhocontactsyouandaskstolookatyourworkso thattheycan‘haveanidea’ofwhattowrite.Ifyouhandoveryourworkyoumaybeaccusedof knowinglyassistinganotherstudenttocheat(aformofacademicmisconduct),and/oryourfriendmay beinserioustroubleiftheyhandinyourworkastheirown.Alwayskeepyourassignmentssafeand private,evenacrossyears,sinceUniversitieskeepoldassignmentsonrecord.Donotsendyour assignmentstoanyone,orleaveanotherstudentinthepresenceofyourassignmentorthenotesyou

usedtowriteyourassignment.Youmighttellyourselfyouarebeingkind,buttemptingadesperate friendisactuallyaverycruelthingtodo.

Decisions Ifyouyourselfareeverinapositionofdesperation,whereyouhavegrosslymiscalculated timeandyour ownabilities,thenyouneedtodecideonastrategy.Hereareyouroptions:    

writeandsubmitanassignmentwhichisperhapsnotyourbestwork,andacceptresponsibility foralessthanidealmark writeanassignmentwhichisyourbestwork,butwillbesubmittedlate(incurringlatepenalties) (ifeligible)applyforSpecialConsiderationforanextension discontinueorwithdrawfromthecourse

Donotevenconsidertheoptiontoquicklycopysectionsofwritingfromotherauthorsoranother studentandsubmitthatwritingasyourown.Plagiarismshouldnotbeoneofyouroptions,ever.Itis particularlywretchedwhenstudentsputpressureoncolleaguestogivethemtogivethem“anideaof whattodo”(seeprevioussection).Ifyouarecaughtplagiarizing,thestudentyoucopiedfromwillbe drawnintothesituationaswellasfriendsandfamilyaroundyou. NotealsothatifyouareeligibleforSpecialConsiderationorhaveregisteredwithDisabilityServices, thoseoptionsonlygiveyouflexibilityinduedatesatmost(i.e.anextension),andifyoustillfeelthat youwillbeunabletocompleteanassignmentwhichaccuratelyreflectsyourability,thenyoushould withdrawfromtheunitofstudyimmediately.Undernocircumstancesshouldyouplagiarize,expecting thatyourmisadventureorconditionwillexcuseit. Kindsofplagiarism

DishonestandNegligentPlagiarism Dishonestplagiarismoccurswhenstudentsknowinglypresentotherpeople’swritingastheirown,and whileitisachallengetoprovesomeone’smotivations,inmostcaseswhereanotherstudent’sworkis stolen,itishardtoclaimignorance.Dishonestplagiaristsoftenunderstandthe ‘rulesofthegame’ betterthanmoststudentsandareattemptingthebeatthesystem(seePerry,2010),sothisformof misconductistreatedmuchmoreseriously.Negligentplagiarismiswhenyoupresentother’sworkas yourownbecauseyouareignorantofitssourceorhowtociteitcorrectly.Negligentplagiarismismuch morecommonthandishonestplagiarism,andinasenseisamuchgreatertragedy,becausestudents whonegligentlyplagiarizearesimplyignorantofreferencingrules,ignorantofmethodsofwriting,or arejustbadatkeepingtrackofwheretheirinformationcomesfrom.

Plagiarizingideasandstructure Youcanplagiarizeideasandthestructureofanassignmentwithoutcopyingasingleword.Oneofour researchmethodsunitsinPsychologyrequiresstudents tocreateamockdesignandpretenddata,and occasionallymarkersnoticeidenticaldesignswithsimilardata,withonlythenamesoftheindepend...