Guidelines for the completion of Master's theses

An application for Master's thesis supervision by Prof. Neubauer is - subject to available places - always possible from the beginning of a semester for the following semester (e.g. in SS18 for WS18/19).
However, an application should only be made if it is foreseeable for the prospective Master's student that it will actually be possible to work on the topic quickly when the supervision begins; the planning of the empirical study should ALWAYS be completed in the same semester as the supervision! If the Master's student can foresee that this will not be possible, the application should be made for a later semester. This measure is absolutely necessary in view of the large number of supervised Master's students and the associated waiting times.

Requirements:

Participation in the seminar "Current Research Topics in Differential Psychology"; attendance is compulsory until the presentation of the results!
combined literature and planning presentation as part of this seminar (overview of the state of research and planning), duration approx. 45 minutes net (pure speaking time)
The literature and planning presentation should be given in the semester of admission if at all possible
Mandatory presentation of results after completion of the empirical study (duration: 30 minutes)
For both presentations, follow the guidelines for
presentations (handout from Westhoff),
Preliminary discussion of the respective presentation with Prof. Neubauer approx. 3 - 5 days before the presentation date (for the purpose of quality assurance).
1-2 weeks after the planning presentation: Written synopsis, which takes into account the changes discussed during the presentation; once the synopsis has been accepted by Prof. Neubauer, it is considered a binding agreement for both parties on the planning and implementation of the study!
The completed form for pre-registration of the study must be submitted together with the exposé.
Two mandatory minutes for presentations by colleagues (minutes of feedback and discussion contributions)

Guidelines for the design of the synopsis:

The function of the exposé is to conclude a contract between the Master's student and the supervisor regarding the planning and implementation of the study.
It should be sufficiently informative and comprehensive so that anyone with the necessary psychological know-how could replicate the study.
Number of pages approx. 8 - 10 pages
Introduction: the introduction, in which the topic is to be introduced, can comprise approx. 1 - 2 pages
Aim of the study: presentation of the derived objectives, questions, hypotheses
Methods: the methods section contains a description of the study (sample, study design, test procedures and materials used, tools used)
It is also IMPORTANT to provide a precise description of the study procedure.
Finally, the statistical evaluation procedures - if possible in relation to the hypotheses - should be discussed.
The description should be so detailed that it would be possible for an experienced scientist to replicate the study without further information! (cf. DGPS guidelines)

Guidelines for preregistration:

The preregistration is basically a very short, English-language version of the synopsis, in which all essential parts of the methodology of the planned study (the data collection hypotheses, data collection instruments, planned sample size and statistical analysis) are explained. In everyday scientific practice, the preregistration is time-stamped and uploaded to a public platform (e.g. the Open Science Framework; osf.io or aspredicted.org). This procedure reduces the possibility of, for example, adjusting your predictions after the data analysis or manipulating the analyses so that non-significant results become significant after all.
The function of pre-registration within the Master's thesis supervision is to give you a first insight into Open Science practices.
After submitting your pre-registration, you will receive feedback from your supervisor(s). Once this feedback has been incorporated, the revised pre-registration must be uploaded to Moodle. This will give all other participants in the Privatissimum access to your pre-registration and they can consult it before you present your results. If you have deviated from the preregistration when carrying out your examination or evaluation, this must be pointed out in the presentation.
The revised preregistration must also be added to the appendix of the Master's thesis. If you have deviated from the preregistration when carrying out your examination or evaluation, this must be indicated in the Master's thesis.
The "AsPredicted registration" form(https://osf.io/fnsb6/; last accessed on 12.07.2018) serves as a template for your preregistration. The questions contained therein should be easy to answer based on your exposé. They cover the minimum amount of information required to clearly distinguish planned analyses from exploratory analyses in scientific papers.
Information on reasons for preregistration and the characteristics of a successful preregistration can be found, for example, in the blog "Data Colada" by Nelson, Simmons and Simonsohn (e.g. at http://datacolada.org/64; last accessed on 12.07.2018).
If you have any questions about preregistration, please contact Gabriela Hofer (gabriela.hofer(at)uni-graz.at).

Master's thesis (written version):

The written version should essentially follow the DGP guidelines
The deviations from these guidelines are presented once each semester by Prof. Neubauer; there is also an opportunity to ask detailed questions at this time
IMPORTANT: The first version of the Master's thesis submitted should be "perfect" from the Master's student's point of view; the final grade is largely determined by the quality of the first version. Please clarify any uncertainties regarding the written presentation etc. in consultation(s) with Prof. Neubauer IN ADVANCE!
The Master's thesis MUST be blocked(link) and when uploading the thesis to UNIGRAZonline, the option "not accessible" must be selected for the access restriction of the full text.

Miscellaneous:

The Institute of Psychology cannot reimburse copying costs for Master's theses.
Interlibrary loan costs can only be covered by the Institute in exceptional cases (in consultation with the supervisor).
IMPORTANT: Send your e-mail address and telephone number to silvia.neumeister@uni-graz.at at the beginning of the supervision!