Tips%for%understanding%the%methods%sections:%
• The%most%important%thing%is%to%understand%the$task%that%participants%did%
(this%is%often%in%a%separate%section%of%the%methods%labeled%something%like:%
Experimental%Procedure,%Task%Design,%etc)%
• There%are%a%lot%of%details%that%are%useful%if%a%researcher%wants%to%replicate%the%
study,%but%that%may%not%be%necessary%for%your%written%assignment%or%
presentation.%Their%relevance%will%depend%on%the%task%
o Many%of%these%details%may%be%related%to%the%stimuli.%Examples%include:%
background%color,%where%the%stimuli%were%obtained%(for%example,%the%
MRC%Linguistic%Databased),%font%type%ans%size,%visual%angle,%monitor%
size,%etc).%
• Some%of%the%studies%you%use%will%use%special%techniques%(MRI,%TMS,%ERP,%eye%
tracking,%skin%conductance).%%These%sections%will%list%technical%specifications%
about%the%technique.%%For%the%purposes%of%this%class,%you%should%assume%that%
these%are%fairly%standard.%%It%is%enough%to%say%in%your%paper/presentation%that%
subjects%had%their%brains%scanned%with%MRI,%had%TMS%applied,%had%their%eyes%
tracked,%etc.%
%
Tips%for%interpreting%statistics:%
• Papers%will%report%a%variety%of%information%about%statistics.%%For%our%purposes,%
the%most%important%thing%is%to%look%for%the%pMvalue.%If%p<0.05,%then%the%result%
is%considered%significant%
• The%main%types%of%test%you%will%see%are%tMtests%and%ANOVAs.%
