Emerging Adulthood Thesis Writing

• Critically evaluate theoretical, methodological, and ethical issues associated with designing, conducting, and evaluating research.
• Describe and perform each stage of the research process, from formulating original research questions to interpreting and reporting results.
• Analyse data from complex research designs by performing the appropriate statistical analysis and interpreting research findings.
• Demonstrate the use of digital technologies to analyse and interpret complex data.
• Communicate scientific ideas, procedures, results, and conclusions using appropriate language and formats.
• Critically evaluate and communicate the advantages and limitations of quantitative and qualitative research approaches.

Overview

The major written assessment for this unit involves you completing a project thesis investigating the developmental period known as emerging adulthood and is worth 40% of your overall mark. 

Throughout the program, you have been engaged in a range of assessment tasks that have sought to develop your academic writing skills for how to present a clear, structured and scientific report that clearly communicates a piece of research. These are the same essential skills that are required for article publication in academic and professional journals. While you may not intend to go down the research pathway, having detailed knowledge of how such publications are put together will make you an effective consumer of the scientific literature to aid your practice of psychology within your chosen field.

For this assessment you will be an independent researcher who will have more autonomy in devising your own research question and choosing the research design and analysis that you believe would be most appropriate to study. To support you in being able to complete the study within the time we have available in the teaching period we will provide you with a dataset suitable for this project that has a versatile range of variables relating to the topic Emerging Adulthood. As the data has already been collected there are some important constraints that you need to be aware of in formulating your research question. 

To fulfil the requirements of the assignment you must have:

• At least one emerging adulthood variable
• At least one of the other variables (e.g., disability identity, narcissism, self-efficacy, etc)
• At least two independent/predictor variables.
• Only one dependent variable

These requirements will ensure that your statistical analysis is one that is taught in this unit.

You are encouraged to work at a steady and consistent pace as different sections of the report will be discussed in weekly live class meetings. You will also have the opportunity to submit a Project Thesis Plan for feedback prior in Module 2. While it is not a compulsory requirement, we strongly encourage you to submit a plan for your Project Thesis as this will enable you to kick start the central elements of your study. The targeted feedback you receive will be invaluable in helping you improve your final Project Thesis assignment.  Please note that the Project Thesis Plan submission deadlines are final and only one plan can be submitted. No plans will be accepted for review after the deadlines have passed except where there is grounds for a formal extension as per the special consideration process. Feedback will be based on the marking criteria (note: no mark will be provided for plans - only feedback comments).  Refer to the draft submission points themselves for specific deadlines.

Preparation activities

The following module activities will help you prepare for this assessment: