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Psychology IA Format and Structure

Roxanne

By Roxanne

•

12 Jan 2024

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Marked only by official IB examiners

Have you got your Psychology IA topic selected but are unsure how to begin the writing process? Do not worry, as Clastify is here to help guide you step-by-step on how to write your IA. In this post, we will give you key points on what to include in each section of your IA, based on our experience with IB. Although we recommend this structure based on our successful history of helping students receive top-rated IAs, feel free to personalize the guide below in a way that suits you!

 

 

Psychology IA Format and Structure

 

 

Title page

  1. Include a brief statement of what is being investigated. This should be in the form of "An investigation into...", or "An exploration of.....", or "An experiment investigating the......"
  2. Include your IB student code, word count, date of submission, and whether you are in HL or SL.
  3. A good example can be found here.

 

Table of contents

  1. This should include sections for Introduction, Research Methodology, Data Collection, Discussion, References, and Appendix. 
  2. Make sure each section has its corresponding page number. 
  3. A good example can be found here.

 

Introduction

  1. Explain the relevant psychological theory or concept that forms the basis of the original study. This could involve models of memory, cognition, perception, or social behaviour, depending on the study you selected.
  2. Explain why this theory/concept is appropriate for the investigation that you are carrying out - what makes it suitable to be used?
  3. Briefly describe the original experiment that your investigation replicates. Explain what the researchers tested and what they found. This helps establish the context for your own experiment.
  4. Clearly state the aim of your research and explain its relevance. Explain what you are attempting to test through the replication.
  5. State the null hypothesis and the research hypothesis. 
  6. A good example can be found here.

 

Exploration

  1. State and explain the sampling technique and research design used to collect data for the experiment (eg: independent or repeated sampling design, opportunity sample, etc).
  2. Explain why you have chosen to use the respective sampling technique and research design. What makes them most suitable to use for your study? Why is the chosen design/technique better than other designs/techniques?
  3. Explain how you selected the participants of the study. What makes them suitable to analyze your research question? 
  4. State all the control variables of the experiment. Mention how and why they were controlled. How would they have affected the results if these variables had not been controlled? 
  5. Provide a list of all the materials used in the study.
  6. Show proof that your study was ethical. This include mentioning that the participants completed the informed consent form/debrief. A copy of these forms should then be included in the appendix. 
  7. A good example can be found here.

 

 

Analysis:

  1. Include both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics in your analysis.
  2. Descriptive statistics is used to organize data and can include calculating the mean, median, mode, standard deviation, interquartile range, variance, and range. 
  3. Inferential statistics is used to draw conclusions based on the data obtained from the experiment. 
  4. Include tables and graphs of the data from the experiment. Ensure that all tables and graphs are appropriately numbered and labelled wth a figure caption. 
  5. Below each table/graph provide an explanation of the data they contain. Describe any trends seen in the data and use figures from the tables and graphs when writing the explanation.
  6. Explain the significance of the data in relation to the hypothesis.
  7. A good example can be found here and here.

 

Evaluation:

  1. Discuss the strengths and limitations of the study, such as in the research design, sampling technique and procedure. 
  2. Discuss the findings of the study in relation to the main theory or model used in the experiment, as outlined in the background information section. 
  3. Include some modifications that can be made to the experiment to improve for future, as well as how this would improve the experiment.
  4. A good example can be found here.

 

References:

  1. Include a full list of all the references used in the IA. 
  2. Ensure the bibliography is in the same citation style used in the introduction and background information section. 
  3. A good example can be found here.

 

Appendix:

  1. Include all extra information necessary for the completion of the experiment.
  2. This includes consent forms, debriefs, instructions given to participants, any slides or documents presented to participants, quizzes, raw data tables, passages, statistical tests (t-tests, Mann-Whitney U tests, etc.) and outlier calculations.
  3. A good example can be found here and here.

 

 

We hope this guide helps guide you in properly formatting and structuring your Psychology IA! If you want to read some exemplary IAs before you start writing, we've got you covered too! Simply head to the Clastify website, where you will be able to find numerous Psychology IA ideas and examples, so you can look for the ones that are the most relevant to your topic. Good luck!