Spinal Cord Injury (SCI)

Discussion Post:

Review this week’s Learning Resources about the peer-review process.

Go to the biopsychology site. In the top, right-hand corner box (Search Article Summaries), select a keyword link that you are interested in (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease). Browse through two or three recent articles (published within the past 5 years). Take note of the style of writing that is used, as well as the level of description of the studies. Note that these articles are typically written by science journalists about someone else’s research.

Next, visit online journal collection, and locate a peer-reviewed journal article related to the same topic (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease). Be sure that the article you select is a research report—that is, it should contain sections that describe in detail the sample of individuals studied, the methods of data collection, and the results of the study. As you read the article, take note of the style of writing used by the author(s) and the level of description of the study. Compare this article to those you read from the BioPsychology.com website

Record citations for all of the articles you read for this Discussion.

With these thoughts in mind:

BY DAY 3

Post a description of the peer-review process, including how it works, the benefits of this system, and an example of how this process might not work as intended. If you were a researcher or journal editor, what would you propose to do differently to improve the process?

In a second paragraph, post a brief summary of one of the BioPsychology.com articles and another brief summary of the research article (include both in-text citations and a complete reference in APA format). Compare the two types of information on criteria such as ease of understanding, level of detail, and accuracy. Address both similarities and differences in the papers. Finally, describe the benefits of each type of article for college students studying brain and behavior or for researchers studying the brain. (Note: You only need to address either students or researchers.)

Note: Put the keyword topic you have selected in the first line of your post. You will be asked to respond to a colleague who selected a different keyword topic than you did.

Support your postings and responses with specific references to the Learning Resources and any additional sources you identify using both in-text citations and complete references in APA format

Learning Resources:

Garrett, B., & Hough, G. (2022). Brain and behavior: An introduction to behavioral neuroscience (6th ed.). Sage Publications, Inc.

Chapter 2, “Communication Within the Nervous System”

Chapter 3, “The Organization and Functions of the Nervous System”

Chapter 4, “The Methods and Ethics of Research”

BioPsychology NewsLinkLinks to an external site.. (n.d.). Home page. 

Note: This site contains links to online paper and magazine articles related to biological psychology.

Elsevier. (n.d.). What is peer review?Links to an external site. 

Furman, B. L. (2015). The peer-review process for journals in the biomedical sciences; love it or loathe it, it won’t go away!Links to an external site. International E-Journal of Science, Medicine & Education, 9(3), 1–3.

Unreliable research: Trouble at the labLinks to an external site.. (2013, October 19). The Economist, 409(8858), 27.

An article from the Walden Library that addresses a topic of your choice. The article must be a research report, meaning that it was published in a scientific journal and includes Methods, Results, and Discussion.

Document: “How to Search PubMed” (Word document)Download “How to Search PubMed” (Word document)

Optional Resources

Optional Media

Many appropriate media pieces to further your understanding are available through the textbook publisher website:

SAGE edge. Brain & behavior: An introduction to biological psychology by Bob GarrettLinks to an external site.. 

Open Colleges. (n.d.). Your brain map: Strategies for accelerated learningLinks to an external site..