Individual Research Thesis (PSYC4071)

Course overview

Enrolment Note:This course has a delayed enrolment date and will open following the allocation of Honours streams. Students will be advised of the specific date each year when their Honours stream is confirmed and should contact the School of Psychology for further information. Enrolment will be approved for eligible fourth year students based on the number of available supervisors. Student GPA will be used to determine eligibility if supervisor places are limited. The individual research thesis is the largest single component of the Honours program. It is a year-long course and is intended to demonstrate the capability of students to conceive and carry out original, high level research. The individual research thesis, which is supervised by a member of the academic staff, is assessed on a number of grounds. These relate to the student's command of the chosen topic from initial conception of the problem, through its resolution via appropriate research strategies, to clear presentation and insightful interpretation of what has been discovered.

The individual research thesis is the largest single component of the Honours program. It is a year-long course & is intended to demonstrate the capability of students to conceive & carry out original, high level research. The individual research thesis, which is supervised by a member of the academic staff, is assessed on a number of grounds. These relate to the student's command of the chosen topic from initial conception of the problem, through its resolution via appropriate research strategies, to clear presentation & insightful interpretation of what has been discovered.

Course requirements

Assumed background

This course is only available to students enrolled in BA Honours in Psychology, BSc Honours in Psychology, or the 4th year of the BPsySc and BPsySc(Hons).

Recommended companion or co-requisite courses

We recommend completing the following courses at the same time:

PSYC4050

Incompatible

You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:

PSYC4070

Restrictions

BPsySc(Hons), BSc(Hons) in Psychology, BArts(Hons) in Psychology

Course contact

Course staff

Aims and outcomes

Develop skills in research design, data collection, analysis and both oral and written reporting for students completing the Honours program in Psychology.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.

Assessment details

Honours presentation

• Hurdle

Mode

Activity/ Performance

Category

Presentation

Weight

Program Requirement

Due date

24/02/2025 - 30/05/2025

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Individual Research Project

Mode

Written

Category

Thesis

Weight

100%

Due date

8/10/2025 2:00 pm

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04

Task description

Submission guidelines

By 2pm you must submit one full electronic copy via Turnitin. See 2025 handbook for further format details.

We will not accept emailed thesis submissions. Therefore, you must ensure that you submit your thesis through the Turnitin link only. If you have any technical issues with thesis submission you need to contact ITS (https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/information-technology/student-it-support).

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

Under no conditions will a priori extensions be granted. If you are late, a penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item will be applied for every day or part thereof past the submission deadline, including weekends and public holiday. For the thesis this is equivalent to 10% per day. Assignments submitted more than 7 calendar days after the submission deadline, without an approved extension, will receive 0%. For those theses submitted late, the submission time will be taken as the time that the thesis was submitted online through Turnitin.

Students who may submit a thesis late due to extenuating circumstances (e.g., illness) are required to submit by the Thesis due date a written application for a waiver of the late penalty which includes a nominated submission date and supporting documentation to the Honours Administrator (psychonours@psy.uq.edu.au). The written application for a waiver of the late penalty should include appropriate documentation for the duration of the waiver sought (e.g., 3 day late penalty waiver = 3 day medical certificate in the 2 week period before the thesis is due). Students should be aware that if they submit an application for a waiver of the late penalty, the Honours/Fourth Year Thesis Appeals Committee will seek input from their supervisors.  Specifically, supervisors will be asked to provide a statement indicating that the student’s progress on the thesis was satisfactory until the onset of the extenuating circumstances, and that the student had been on track to submit by the thesis due date. As such, students are expected to discuss their application for a waiver of the late penalty with their supervisor.

If the basis for your application is medical then the appropriate documentation is a medical certificate. Please note that the over-riding principle in deciding whether to grant a waiver is the extent to which it is considered the event has impacted on your ability to complete the thesis on time. As such it is typical that the period of illness or exceptional event will have occurred in the period two weeks prior to the submission date of the thesis (although it is recognised that exceptions to this do occur). If you develop a chronic or ongoing illness or issue during your 4th year, then please contact the 4th Year coordinator (Professor Fiona Barlow) as soon as possible to discuss your progression in 4th Year.

Student requests for the waiver of late penalty are considered by the Honours/Fourth Year Thesis Appeals Committee in November prior to the release of results.

We will not accept emailed thesis submissions. Therefore, you must ensure that you submit your thesis through the Turnitin link only. If you have any technical issues with thesis submission you need to contact ITS (https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/information-technology/student-it-support).

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.

Additional learning resources information

The more you know about the rules and structure of English, the better your writing will be. One excellent guide is Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th edition), which you’ll need to follow closely anyway when writing your thesis. The UQ library has a great resource for APA 7: <https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/referencing/apa7>. A number of excellent books are available to assist you with the process of writing. The following books have also been recommended by thesis supervisors from the School of Psychology.

THE WRITING PROCESS

• Silvia, P. J. (2015).ﾠWrite it up: Practical strategies for writing and publishing journal articles. American Psychological Association. (Available onlineﾠthrough the UQ library)
• Simons, D. (2018).ﾠWriting Guide. (download)
• Petelin, R. (2020).ﾠHow writing works: A field guide to effective writing. Routledge.
• Elbow, P. (1981).ﾠWriting with power: Techniques for mastering the writing process. Oxford University Press.
• Venolia, J. (2000).ﾠRewrite right: Your guide to perfectly polished prose (2nd ed.). Ten Speed Press.

ARGUMENT & STYLE

• Strunk, W., & White, E. B. (1979).ﾠThe elements of style. Macmillan Publishing. Williams, J. M. (1990).ﾠStyle: Toward clarity and grace. The University of Chicago Press.
• Pinker, S. (2015).ﾠThe sense of style: The thinking person’s guide to writing in the 21st century. Penguin Books.
• Lunsford, A. A., & Ruszkiewicz, J. J. (1999).ﾠEverything’s an argument. Bedford/St. Martin's Press.

WRITING IN PSYCHOLOGY

• Cone, J. D., & Foster, S. L. (1993).ﾠDissertations and theses from start to finish: Psychology and related fields. American Psychological Association.
• Nicol, A. A. M., & Pexman, P. M. (2010).ﾠPresenting your findings: A practical guide for creating tables (6th Ed.). American Psychological Association.
• Nicol, A. A. M., & Pexman, P. M. (2010).ﾠDisplaying your findings: A practical guide for creating figures, posters, and Presentations (6th Ed). American Psychological Association.

Simply reading about writing often isn’t enough to really improve, so you might want to enrol in the free online course calledﾠEnglish Grammar and Style, through UQ and edX where you can practice and test yourself.

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Additional learning activity information

Recording of Lectures: Please be aware that teaching at UQ may be recorded for the benefit of student learning. If you would prefer not to be captured either by voice or image, please advise your course coordinator before class so accommodations can be made. For further information see PPL 3.20.06 Recording of Teaching at UQ.

Presentation of your intended project during first semester IS COMPULSORY. The aim of this is to prepare you in the theoretical and technical background necessary for successful project completion. As part of this, it is expected that you will receive feedback on your project which you may be able to integrate into your paradigm and / or your data interpretation and discussion.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.

School guidelines

Your school has additional guidelines you'll need to follow for this course:

• School of Psychology Student Guidelines