PSYC 3401: Experimental Psychology

Empirical Article - A type of primary literature, an empirical article is a report on a study or experiment, written by the person or people who conducted the study or experiment. It contains the methodology, data, and conclusions of the study.

Components of an Empirical Article:

• Abstract – A report of an empirical study includes an abstract that provides a very brief summary of the research.
• Introduction – The introduction sets the research in a context, which provides a review of related research and develops the hypotheses for the research.
• Method – The method section is a description of how the research was conducted, including who the participants were, the design of the study, what the participants did, and what measures were used.
• Results – The results section describes the outcomes of the measures of the study.
• Discussion – The discussion section contains the interpretations and implications of the study.
• General Discussion – There may be more than one study in the report; in this case, there are usually separate Method and Results sections for each study followed by a general discussion that ties all the research together.
• References – A references section contains information about the articles and books cited in the report. 

Other things to look for:

• Language
  • measurement
  • psychological aspects
  • reports
  • research statistics
  • usage
• Length of Article
  • Empirical research articles are usually substantial (more than 1 or 2 pages)
• Includes a bibliography or cited references section (usually at the end of the article)