PSYC 100 Assignments

Firstly, what is empirical research?

Empirical research is research that is based on observation or experimentation - these are studies with actual participants and not a literature review, systematic review, or meta-analysis, etc. 

Watch the video below to learn about the characteristics of empirical research: 

Secondly, limit results to show empirical research articles in PsycINFO

To filter for empirical research, scroll down the left-hand side of the page until you find the Methodology category under the limiters. Click to expand it, then check the box for Empirical Study. Your remaining results will now exclusively display articles based on empirical research.

How to find empirical research without the PsycINFO filter?

Empirical research is typically published in scholarly journals. But not everything in scholarly journals is necessarily empirical research - you still need to carefully evaluate the methods of the article to determine if it is empirical research. 

1. Carefully evaluate the article's Methods and Results sections. Empirical articles will a) include these sections and b) explicitly state their methodologies and share their results. Evaluate the methodology - are the methods based on observation, a survey, experimentation, etc? Look for charts, data, and other representations in the results section. 
    
2. Look out for types of articles that are NOT empirical. Meta-analyses, literature reviews (with no other study components), editorials/letters, book reviews, case studies, opinions. 
    
3. In other databases, like Google Scholar or Web of Science, try using keywords such as empirical research, quantitative method, qualitative method, survey, ethnography, fieldwork or other type of empirical research method.