Psychology Research in the Media

As we discussed in class, the news media often misrepresents, misunderstands, and leaves out important details when reporting on psychological studies. Your goal in this assignment is to critique a news article published in the popular media that discusses a psychological study.
I want you to be a skeptical and critical consumer, and write-up your critique of how well the popular news covers a psychological study. Please follow the steps below.
1. Choose ONE of the following news articles below to critique. All of these are news articles in the mainstream media about a psychological study.
Is Animal Crossing good for you?
https://www(dot)theguardian(dot)com/games/2020/nov/16/video-gaming-can-benefit-mental-health-find-oxford-academics
Can brain injuries be unbroken?
https://medicalxpress(dot)com/news/2020-10-scientific-brain-injuries-unbroken-neuro-technologies.html

2. Identify the claim
What is the claim that is being made in this news article? Does the title of the article make a bigger claim than is warranted? Why or Why not?
3. Evaluate the evidence (you DO NOT need to address every bullet point; pick a few to discuss that seem the most relevant to you)
Critique the coverage of the study using what we have learned in this class. Consider the pros (what the news article got right) and the cons (what they did not do so well). Here are some things to think about:
Review Carl Sagan (http://users(dot)tpg(dot)com(dot)au/users/tps-seti/baloney.html)’s Baloney Detection Kit (not all of these points may be relevant but it is a good place to start).
How reliable is the source of the claim? Are personal beliefs driving the claim? What is the writer's education/expertise on the topic? What is the writer's motivation for this article (what do they stand to gain)?
Does the news article provide a link to the original study for the reader? Where did the original study appear and who wrote it? Where was the original study conducted?
Is the original study presented as a breakthrough or a game changer in the news article? Are any related studies mentioned that also support this claim or studies that refute this claim?
What information are you given about the participants and procedures in the original study? What else would you want/need to know?
Are you given adequate information about how the variables were operationalized and measured? What more do you need to know?
Are you given adequate information to determine the study design (within or between subjects)? Was there a control group?
Does the news article indicate if the original study was correlational or causal? Is the language used appropriately tentative?
Does the news article indicate the limitations of the study and findings? What do you think are the limitations of the study that should have been mentioned?
4. Consider Alternative Explanations
Consider alternative explanations for the findings. Could there be a "third-variable" problem, directionality problem, or some other explanation for the observed relationship?

Please submit a word document with your critique of the news article. You must include the title of the news article that you chose at the top of your document.
Your paper should be a minimum of 1 page double-spaced text, and no more than 2 pages. DO NOT make your font huge to make the 1 page minimum (this really annoys me). Plagiarism is not tolerated. You should appropriately paraphrase information from your news article, and use quotation marks when you quote.