PYH400-2 Thesis


To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.


Unit Outline: Semester 1 2024, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Unit code:PYH400-2
Credit points:12
Pre-requisite:PYH401. PYH401 can be studied in the same teaching period as PYH400-2
Coordinator:Trish Obst | p.obst@qut.edu.au
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

The thesis component of the Honours program comprises four 12 credit point units which culminate with the submission of a 48 credit point research thesis. PYH400-2 is the second of this sequence of units. The thesis provides an opportunity for you to extend, synthesise and apply the knowledge, skills and digital capabilities gained in your undergraduate degree and the Honours program. Under the guidance of an academic supervisor, you will undertake a research project that makes an original contribution to knowledge in the broad discipline of psychology, which will provide an opportunity for you to engage in all parts of research and scholarship. The thesis provides skill and dispositional development in the critical evaluation of research, research methods, digital tools relevant to your project, and application of research findings, key capabilities in the discipline of psychology. The four thesis units are assessed through the submission of a 10000 word research thesis.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

  1. Source, critically evaluate and synthesise relevant empirical and theoretical information to identify a clear original contribution to the existing literature in your defined area of research, leading to clear well justified original research questions.
  2. Design and execute appropriate research methodologies, and technologies to investigate your research questions and employ appropriate procedures and technologies to analyse data.
  3. Formulate strategies to address the ethical and health and safety implications of your research methodology.
  4. Critically evaluate your research methodology and interpret your research findings and position these within the extant literature and make recommendations for future research in the field.
  5. Communicate research findings with a high standard of scholarship, and present according to current APA formatting guidelines.

Content

The thesis units will involve planning, designing, and executing an original piece of research in the field of psychology under the guidance of a supervisor. This process will culminate in the preparation and presentation of a 10000 word thesis (representing one half of the Honours program). The thesis will include a clearly stated research question, an empirical literature review, data analysis, results and discussion. Full and detailed information about the thesis can be found in the PY09 Handbook. PYH400-2 is the second unit in the sequence of four thesis units and will normally involve the setting up of your methodology and the commencement of data collection.

Learning Approaches

The Honours thesis provides you with the opportunity to use your research, critical analysis and enterprise skills to develop and answer an original research question. You will be allocated to a supervisor by the Course Coordinator to guide and support you in this process. You will need to meet regularly with your supervisor, with the format and frequency of these meetings negotiated between you and your supervisor. A student supervisor checklist is provided to help develop mutual expectations for the student and supervisor relationship in regards to the supervisory process. The supervisor's role will be to guide and assist you through the planning, execution and reporting of the research project.

Your thesis work is supported by workshops and seminars in the Psycholinks Peer Support Program. There are also a range of online resources such as the interactive thesis writing tool available on the Psycholinks Community Canvas site.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will receive formative feedback regarding your progress from your supervisor at your regular meetings. Written feedback on your research proposal will be provided from both your supervisor and the unit coordinator. Formal feedback on your submitted written thesis will be in the form of two examiners reports.

Assessment

Overview

The thesis units involve two formative assessment pieces designed to assist you in making progress, receiving feedback from your supervisor and in producing a high-quality thesis. The research proposal and supervisor progress report is not graded but rather designed as a milestone formative assessment requirement, for which you will receive feedback from your supervisor and the thesis unit coordinator.  A supervisor progress report will be submitted in week 13 of the semester you are enrolled in PYH400-2 and PYH400-3. The sole summative assessment item for the four thesis units is the submission of the final written thesis. Your grade for each of the thesis units will be based on the grade you receive for your final thesis. Until the submission of your thesis you will receive an assessment continues grade for PYH400-1, PHY400-2 and PHY400-3. You will be required to submit a PDF of your full thesis on the upload link on the PYH400-4 learning site.

The sole graded summative assessment item for the four thesis units is the submission of a 10000 word written thesis. Your grade for each thesis unit will be based on the grade you receive for your final thesis. Until the submission of your thesis you will receive an unsatisfactory or satisfactory grade for PYH400-1, PHY400-2 and PHY400-3 based on your performance in the two formative assessments (research proposal and supervisor progress report).

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale and S (Satisfactory) / U (Unsatisfactory)

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Research Proposal

This formative assessment due in Week 13 or enrollment in PTYH400-1 requires you to produce an overview of your proposed research that outlines the research questions, provides a literature review leading to your rationale for the proposed study and describes the methodology that will be used to address the research question and the ethical implications of your proposed method. Evidence of Ethics and Health and Safety approval or submission are also required to be submitted with the research proposal. 

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

 

Threshold Assessment:

Your research proposal must be submitted to the Thesis Coordinator to ensure your proposed research meets the scope of an honours project and has the Ethics and  Health & Safety approvals required for the completion of the research project. The Thesis Coordinator will contact you and supervisor if any further information or changes to your proposal are needed in order to progress your thesis research.  Detailed feedback on your research proposal will be provided by your supervisor for you to incorporate into your final thesis. Submission of the research proposal is a mandatory requirement of the unit.

Weight: 0
Length: 5000 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 13 of semester enrolled in PYH400-1
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3

Assessment: Supervisor Progress Report

Your supervisor will be invited to provide feedback on your progress as a formative assessment in PYH400-2 and PYH400-3.

Threshold Assessment:

A satisfactory progress report from your supervisor is required to continue your study in the final thesis unit PYH400-4.

Weight: 0
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 13
Week 13 of semester enrolled in PYH400-2 and PYH400-3
Related Unit learning outcomes: 2, 3, 4

Assessment: Thesis

You are required to submit an APA formatted 10,000 word thesis (word length not including figures and tables) to the PYH400-4 unit learning site. Your thesis presents the work undertaken as part of your honours research project. It should contain an introduction which sets out your original research question, a method detailing your methodology, a full results section and a discussion which relates your findings to your research aims and the broader research in the field. Your thesis is marked by two examiners who are independent of the supervisory process.

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

 

Weight: 100
Length: 10000 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 13 of semester enrolled in PYH400-4
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Requirements to Study

Costs

There may be some expenses in the collection of data for the thesis. 

Resources

Students are expected to make use of current scientific literature and other relevant sources (e.g. government reports, textbooks or monographs, on-line sources, etc.) in the course of producing the thesis. Some expenses in the collection of data may be incurred.

Risk Assessment Statement

A Health and Safety Risk Assessment application must be approved by the School/ Faculty Health and Safety Officer before data collection can commence.

Course Learning Outcomes

This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.

PY09 Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Honours Psychology)

  1. Investigate a substantive original research problem relevant to the discipline of psychology with intellectual independence, application of scientific research methods and technologies and ethical principles.
    Relates to: Research Proposal, Thesis