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Project Psychedelic

Module description

Note: This module is of 20 weeks’ duration, 10 weeks each term in two of Terms 1, 2 and 3.

This dissertation/project module offers you the opportunity to explore in depth a topic that you have found to be of particular interest. You will be expected to work with certain independence on this project, albeit with supervision, to display proficient research and communication skills, which, at the highest level, could produce an output suitable for academic audiences. As this course is situated in a relatively new discipline, you will here find a chance to enrich your discourse with novel perspectives, or to deepen your knowledge in prior subfields.

You will work individually or, in certain circumstances, in a small group (roughly 2–4, engaged in the same piece of research), depending on the nature of the project. All students in each group will write and submit an individual final report.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The main objective of this module is to enable you to develop knowledge and practical understanding of the complexities and problems of conducting research in a particular area of Psychedelic Studies. Your project may involve: extended literature review; analysis of philosophical arguments; gathering of original quantitative and/or qualitative data in the field, clinic or online, and subsequent analysis; computational modelling of empirical data or secondary analysis, such as meta-analysis; etc., or some combination of the above. The module provides the opportunity for you to work alongside an experienced academic researcher, sometimes in a highly specialised area. The nature of the supervision will vary over the course of the project, depending on the requirements at any given time.

You will work towards developing the following academic and professional skills:

• Problem solving (linking theory to practice, developing ideas with confidence, responding creatively to resolving problems, handling large amounts of diverse data critically, identifying, selecting, and using appropriate sources of information)
• Structure (identifying key demands of the task, making decisions about task management, developing strategies to ensure individual and group progress, developing and implementing plans of action, developing an argument)
• Time (managing time effectively as an individual and/or group member to meet short-term and long-term deadlines, juggling multiple priorities and competing deadlines effectively, setting and maintaining work priorities)
• Audience (presenting information and ideas effectively with concision and in an appropriately academic or scientific manner, taking responsibility for acting in a professional and ethical manner, using a variety of means for engaging an audience, adjusting tone and style to suit the audience)
• Self and peer-review (taking responsibility for one’s own learning and progress, learning from and using feedback from multiple sources, responding actively to feedback, dealing with and learning from criticism)

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Design and conduct an original, ethical, research project using an appropriate methodology, with appropriate analysis and interpretation of the findings.
• 2. Produce an extended report in the specific domain of the project, written in a suitable academic style, and communicating ideas, principles, theories and findings in an effective manner that is well-structured, concise, fluent, and supported by evidence.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Acquire detailed, systematic and comprehensive knowledge within the discipline, demonstrating a level of specialisation that is appropriate for the project.
• 4. Review and critically evaluate published work at an advanced level, identifying its strengths and weaknesses, and possible future directions of research

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Select and manage information and undertake tasks competently and efficiently within time constraints.
• 6. Engage effectively and competently in informed debate in a professional manner
• 7. Communicate ideas, principles, and theories effectively, fluently and professionally by written and graphic means

Syllabus plan

 The exact plan will vary according to both project and supervisor but will take roughly the following shape:

• Students agree a research question/topic with a supervisor (time and date to be confirmed).
• Students submit a formatively assessed research proposal, based upon a comprehensive literature review.
• Depending on the nature of the proposal, students may need to make a submission to an appropriate ethics committee. In such instances, data collection will not proceed until ethical approval is granted.
• Students may submit an early draft of parts of the final dissertation (typically excluding the Introduction and Discussion sections from a scientific report) and will receive written feedback. Deadline for this draft to be agreed with supervisor.
• In addition to the final report, students will also deliver a poster summarising the project

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The module mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 50%) you will be required to re-submit any referred work for a capped mark.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Indicative basic reading list:

• Harris. P. (2002) Designing and reporting experiments in psychology (2^nd edition). Open University Press.
• Sjöstedt-Hughes, P (2021). The Essay Writing Skills Booklet: For Philosophy and Similar Subjects (Wulstenhulme Press)
• Sternberg, R.J. (1993) The Psychologists' Companion: A guide to scientific writing for students and researchers (3rd edition). Chapters 1, 3 (especially), 4, 5. Cambridge University Press.

Key words search

Research project, major project, empirical research, qualitative research