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AAQ Notes

Article Analysis Question (AAQ) Overview

  • On the AP exam, you will answer one AAQ summarizing a peer-reviewed source.
  • College Board suggests spending 25 minutes on the AAQ, with 10 minutes for reading.
  • AAQs have six parts; only three change yearly based on the prompt and research.
  • Use complete sentences in your answers.
  • Review Unit Zero concepts (research methods, ethics, experimental design).
  • Read the prompt before the study to focus on key variables, statistics, and ethical guidelines.
  • Highlight and mark up the documents to focus on key terms and concepts.

Part A: Identify the Research Method

  • Possible answers:
    • Correlational research
    • Case study
    • Naturalistic observation
    • Meta-analysis
    • Experiment
    • Cross-sectional study
    • Longitudinal study
  • Longitudinal and cross-sectional should be connected to experimental or non-experimental options.
  • AAQs focus on one research method.
  • Answer should be a sentence.

Part B: State the Operational Definition

  • State the operational definition for a variable in the study.
  • Operational definitions should be quantifiable and specific to ensure replication.
  • State how the variable is measured precisely.
  • The AAQ provides the answer; copy it into a complete sentence.

Part C: Describe the Meaning of the Identified Statistic

  • Possible statistics:
    • Mean
    • Median
    • Mode
    • Range
    • Standard deviation
    • Percentile rank
    • Skewness
    • Correlation coefficients
    • Effect size
    • Statistical significance
  • Show how the statistic connects with the research.

Part D: Identify Ethical Guideline

  • Identify one ethical guideline applied by the researcher.
  • Find the guideline in the participants or method section.
  • Identify one that is part of the study.

Part E: Explain Generalizability

  • Explain the extent to which the research findings may or may not be generalizable.
  • Support your answer with evidence from the study.
  • Generalizability refers to the extent the study can be broadly applied to the larger population.
  • Address who is represented and who is not represented in the study.
  • State whether the study is generalizable and explain why, connecting to evidence from the study.

Part F: Explain Research Findings

  • Explain how at least one of the research findings supports or refutes the psychological concept or hypothesis of the study.
  • Clearly state what the researcher found.
  • Explain how the results support or refute the hypothesis or concept.
  • State if the conclusions support or refute the hypothesis, and explain, connecting to the study's data, conclusions, or findings.