THE VIDEOS FOR ASSIGNMENT #3
(1) watch the video clip from John Oliver called “Scientific Studies” on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Rnq1NpHdmw&has_verified=1
(2) watch this video from the U of A Scientific Literacy course (Science communication in the media)
The purpose of the third written assignment is to get you to think about how the media
represents scientific (psychological) research. This assignment will aid you to develop skills
to think like a psychologist, including critical thinking. It will also aid in the development of
skills necessary to access and read scientific journal articles.
For your assignment, you will need to do the following:
a) Compare and contrast the stance the two videos (John Oliver vs. U of A Scientific
Literacy) take regarding how the media represents scientific research. (i.e., you need
to highlight both the similarities and differences between the two video clips)
b) Choose one specific example of a media portrayal of science from the John Oliver
clip and answer the following: (i) what was the media outlet?, (ii) where was the actual
primary journal article published?, (iii) identify the type of experiment (case study,
descriiptive, observational, survey, correlation, experiment), and (iv) identify one dependent
variable.
c) What are some reasons why journalists/media outlets misrepresent scientific
discoveries?
d) How misrepresentation can occur. Below I’ve outlined a fictitious study. Your job is to
(i) identify 2 points from the study you would emphasize or ignore in order to SUPPORT the
conclusions of the author, (ii) identify 2 points from the study you would emphasize or
ignore in order to REFUTE the conclusions of the author, and (iii) justify your choices.
Please indicate which question you are answering in your assignment to make it more obvious for your TA
use APA
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