How to write a thought paper
Every week you are expected to read the respective literature (2 papers, please find the
references below; I will post pdf’s on the intranet). You then should pick one of them and write
about 1-2 pages of your own thoughts. These thought papers serve three main purposes. (a)
They should make you read the literature in the first place and help you prepare for the course.
(b) They should train you to write scientifically. (c) They should encourage you to develop your
own thoughts on the particular topic.
The thought paper should not be a mere summary, it should be a description of things you liked,
disliked or thought could be done differently. So, your thought paper could be a question, a
criticism or a problem, an alternative interpretation of experiments, or a suggestion for follow-up
experiments. At any rate, focus on one central point.
It may help to jot down ideas while you read the articles. Do you agree or disagree with the
author(s)? Have you experienced/read/heard anything that applies to what the writer said in the
article or book? Does the evidence in the article support the statements the writer made?
A next step could be to write a thesis statement and then to develop your ideas by adding
examples, quotations, and details to your paragraphs.
When you are writing the thought paper note that it should have a clear structure with an
introduction, a body, and a conclusion.
The introduction should contain all the basic information in one paragraph (“tell them what you
are going to tell them”). Begin the introduction with a general sentence or a relevant example
from daily life. Then talk about the article you have selected. Finally, include your own thesis in a
concise and focused form.
The body of your thought paper should provide support for your thesis in 2-4 paragraphs (“tell
them”). For this, decide on the key points that will focus your ideas and put them into so called
“topic sentences” (a topic sentence makes a general statement that is wider in its scope than the
rest of the sentences in the paragraph, and those other sentences should support it).
A key issue of the thought paper is that it should be as clear as possible. Bring your ideas
into a decent order. Try to write in short sentences. Have a new paragraph for each of your ideas.
The final sentence of each paragraph should lead into the next paragraph. Also, it might be useful
to go back to your thesis in the introduction to make sure (a) that the topic sentence of each
paragraph really supports it, and (b) that this is obvious to the reader.
The conclusion of the thought paper comes in the final paragraph. It should be a restatement of
what you said in your paper. It can also be a comment which focuses your thoughts and/or makes
predictions for future experiments or tests. Note that your conclusion should include no new
information (“tell them what you told them”).
What you should avoid:
- "This article was really hard/easy to understand."
- "There were only five participants in the study which seems like too few" (if there's no
reason given for why it's too few), etc.
- Two pages of summary followed by "I really liked this article."
The following statements could be used in your thought paper. I think that… I see that… It seems
that… In my opinion, … Because … In addition, … For example, … Moreover, … However, …
Consequently, … Finally, … In conclusion, …
Don’t forget, the thought paper should be 1-2 type-written pages, double-spaced. Fonts should be
set at 12-point. No electronic versions, please!
Due days
Please submit your thought paper as a hard copy when coming to our course sessions. Penalty
for unjustified late assignment: 1 scoring point (out of 10) per day. Printer problems and other
technical difficulties are not acceptable excuses for failure to hand in your thought papers on time.
Marking scheme for thought papers PSYD51
Writing: 3 points
•
How well did the author lay out the argument in the opening section of the paper? And,
how obvious was it where the author was going with their argument as you read it? That
is, was the information presented in a very scattered manner with no apparent direction,
or was the argument (and the relevance of the sections of the paper to it) obvious
throughout?
•
How clearly did the author structure the body of the paper? Does the author succeed in
having a paragraph for each idea? How well are the paragraphs connected (e.g., does
the final sentence of one paragraph lead to the next)?
•
How well is the paper wrapped up in the conclusion?
Research articles: 2 points
•
How much does the argument link to the chosen research paper?
•
How well did the author explain the relevant aspects of previous research?
The author’s own thoughts: 5 points
•
Does the author show evidence of independent, critical thinking? Does the thought paper
go beyond a summary? Does the author also have her/his own thoughts?
•
Are the thoughts of the author justified? Note that the thought paper can have very
different forms. E.g., the thought paper could be a critique of the research paper. Is the
critique/assumption/etc. reasonable?
•
How unique or surprising are the thoughts of the author? A simple summary of the
research paper would reflect zero originality. A methodological assessment (if justified)
would be of intermediate originality. A highly innovative thought would be a new view on
the topic, an alternative interpretation of the results, or suggesting a new experiment.
•
How central is the thought paper’s main point with respect to the chosen topic? Do you
think the author talks about an important aspect of the topic or does he/she miss an
essential point?