Design an experiment and write up as a research proposal. Research proposal will include: Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion and References.

Research Question Idea:

"Does bilingual training in older age maintain cognitive function in older adults?"

Reference to started:

Bialystok, E. (2021). Bilingualism: Pathway to Cognitive Reserve. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 25(5), 355-364.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2021.02.003

What to do:

• conduct a literature review of around 20 relevant peer-reviewed journal articles in the area (I'd expect around 15 will be relevant enough for you to cite in your report and therefore include in your References)
• integrate and critically evaluate the evidence in the articles, leading logically to the research hypotheses
• describe both the methods you will use, and the appropriate statistical tests to understand, your data
• report what different patterns of results would mean in terms of your hypotheses
• point out the significance of your research for psychological theory, practice, and/or policy

Below are some instructions to follow when answering each section:

Abstract

Use this template to get you started: The purpose of this paper is to [x]. Based on [evidence 1, 2,3], it will be argued that [y]. To test this, we [...]. Based on this, it will be concluded that [z].

Example: The purpose of this paper is to [discuss the role of sleep in the formation of human memory]. Based on [Jan Born's Active Systems consolidation theory, Guilio Tononi's Synaptic Homeostasis Hypothesis and considerations of Hebbian plasticity], it will be argued that [sleep performs an active process of memory storage and generalization for human episodic memory]. From this discussion, it will be concluded that [sleep is vital for learning and memory].

Introduction

Start your introduction by:

• Providing a brief introduction to the topic area that establishes the importance of your outcome variable to your population, and why you have chosen the predictor variables used in your analyses.

Literature Review

Within your literature review you will need to:

• Integrate and critically evaluate the evidence in the relevant peer-reviewed journal articles to build your rationale for proposed hypotheses.
• State the aim of your research report.
• Describe the theoretical and experimental background to your topic
• Justify your report; i.e., what gap in the literature do you seek to address? How will this be done?
• Clearly state your hypothesis/hypotheses

Method

Participants: Provide a summary of your planned participants in text. You must include relevant details such as the sample size, gender, age range and experimental/control groups. Note that the content here will be specific to your question and will differ between reports.

Design: Provide a clear statement of the design of the study, clarifying the IVs and how they were manipulated and the DVs

Materials: Describe ALL materials used during data collection, including demographic surveys and anything used to collect important details about your participant sample, or to be used to address your topic

Procedure: Describe all of the steps involved in the data collection.

Analysis Plan: Describe how the data you've planned to acquire will be analysed. Note that you'll need to describe:

• Which statistical tests you plan to use to analyse the data
• Any other analysis steps needed (for e.g., cleaning of EEG data)

Results

Within the results section, you will need to:

• Explain the steps involved conducting your data analyses including obtaining descriptive statistics relating to your sample, testing for Normality, and the inferential statistical analyses you will use to address your hypotheses.
• Describe the possibilities of results of your planned inferential statistical analyses used to address your hypotheses. For instance, consider and describe what different patterns of results would mean for your hypotheses. If there are/are not significant between-group differences or correlations, what does this imply about the construct under investigation?
  • There should be separate analyses here for each separate hypothesis.

Discussion Conclusion

Within your discussion section, you will need to:

• Begin by briefly recapping the overall point of your analysis in text. This section should clearly address your research question.
• Discuss whether any biases and/or limitations were present in your analysis and how they may have affected your results/interpretation. You will also need to comment on your study design and potential limitations.
• Considering your interpretation of your results and the limitation/s of your study, what can you conclude? Do you think there is a relationship between the variables explored?
• What are the potential implications of your results for psychological theory, practice, and/or policy? Should more research be done, and if so, what type of research?
• Conclude with a short sentence or paragraph that summaries the report

Reference List

APA 7th ed.