Psychology Poster

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Psychology Poster

What is a Scientific Poster?

A scientific poster is a document that visually communicates research findings. There are two primary purposes for presentation of research findings in poster format: (1) getting your main point(s) across to as many people as possible and (2) engaging others in discussion about your work.

Objectives: The overall goal of this assignment is for you to translate a primary journal article into a quality poster format, which you will then present to your colleagues. To achieve this goal your presentation should demonstrate:

  • Concise presentation of research topic/ question and conclusions
  • Clear depiction of results in graph or table format
  • APA format reference citations
  • Well-organized and attractive presentation

Components of the Poster: The following are required components of your poster presentation.

  • Title: For our purposes, this will be the title of the paper you are presenting.
  • Introduction: Get your reader interested in your question, using a minimum of background information.
  • Hypothesis
  • Methods: Briefly describe materials and methods.
    • Figures, tables, flow charts, pictures, etc. (when applicable) make the methods easily accessible.
  • Results: Figures and/or tables should be used to represent the results of your paper.
    • All figures and tables should have legends describing what they are presenting.
    • You MUST create your own graphics or recreate them in your PPT file. You cannot copy and paste graphics from the original journal article.
  • Summary and conclusions: Use words to summarize main findings.
    • Put them in context of other findings.
    • If appropriate, include future directions.
  • References
  • Acknowledgements: Specify any funding provided or technical/statistical assistance received

Effective Poster Presentations

  • Notes about text
    • Use text sparingly. Keep text in blocks of no more than 50-75 words.
    • Do not present text in paragraph style, bulleted lists are easier to read.
    • Use headings to help readers find what they are looking for.
    • Text should be large enough to read from 3-5 feet.
  • Notes about figures
    • Let figures and tables tell the story.
    • Results (in the form of figures/tables) should be located centrally on your poster.
  • Notes about aesthetics
    • Make sure your poster is well organized.
    • Information should proceed from top to bottom and left to right.
    • Avoid straining readers’ eyes by using dark text on a light background

Reminder about Plagiarism: Psychologists take plagiarism very seriously.

“Psychologists do not claim the words and ideas of another as their own; they give credit where credit is due” (APA, 2001, pp. 349).

This does not mean that you cannot discuss the ides of others in your assignments, but it does mean that whenever we mention these ideas, you must give credit to the appropriate person.

For this assignment, there should be NO DIRECT QUOTES from the paper you are presenting. You should paraphrase ideas in the paper and correctly cite any secondary source that the author used. Remember that paraphrasing is not simply changing the order of words or using a synonym for one of the words in the sentence. When you paraphrase, you should describe the entire idea in your own words and cite the source. For this assignment, you do not need to cite the original research paper for every idea (as it is understood that this information came from the original paper); however, you should cite the secondary sources that the author refers to. You should also include the citation for the original paper on your poster.

Poster Presentation:

Grading Rubric

Content Area Criteria Points
Background

 

 o  Is relevant previous research summarized effectively?

o  Are appropriate citations included?

o  Are key topics defined, as necessary?

o  Does this section explain why the research question is important?

 

 20
Hypothesis

 

 o  Is the hypothesis clearly stated?

o  Is directionality specified, when appropriate?

 

 10
Methods

 

 o  Does the method adequately describe participants/subjects, materials, and procedures? Are appropriate citations included?

o  Does the author include an appropriate amount of detail?

 

 20
Results

 

 o  Does the author use figures and tables to depict results effectively?

(Note: You must create your own figures/tables)

o  Can all figures and tables be easily understood? Are they labeled effectively?

o  Does the author summarize results accurately and completely?

 

 20
Conclusions

 

 

 o  Are the main findings summarized concisely and effectively?

o  Do the implications for research and practice follow logically from the background and results?

 20
Format, Style, & Presentation

 

 o  Is the flow of the poster easy to follow? Is it well organized?

o  Is the text size appropriate? Is it easy to read?

o  Is the poster eye-catching? Is it visually appealing?

 

 10
Total Points   100