Students of psychology have long faced the problem of tracking down original research articles, which are generally scattered in hard-to-find journals or presented in watered-down form in text books. In Introducing Psychological Research, Philip Banyard and Andrew Grayson have resolved this dilemma once and for all by providing detailed summaries and background information for sixty-three of the most influential studies in psychology.

The studies included in this remarkable reference illustrate the breadth of psychological research covering the areas of biological psychology, comparative psychology, social psychology, human diversity, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, and health psychology. Among the ground- breaking trials highlighted are Piaget's cognitive approach; the jigsaw technique; the prison simulation; the Robbers' Cave; and the Minimal Group Studies. Contributors to this collection include Stanley Milgram, Philip Zimbardo, Henry Tajfel, B. F. Skinner, Niko Tinbergen, Sandra Bem, Carol Gilligan, Sigmund Freud, and Albert Bandura.

Crucially, the foundations of good psychology, in both practice and knowledge, are the ability to understand and carry out effective methods in psychological research. Subsequently, this title aims to introduce students to a thorough history of the key psychological studies across the sub-disciplines of social, developmental, cognitive and biological psychology as well as neuroscience. Research case-studies are described and critiqued encouraging students to critically think about the wider implications of how research is conducted and the subsequent findings that they produce. The pivotal case studies covered have been specifically chosen to illustrate how psychological methods in research have evolved over the history of the discipline and to showcase as broad an overview as possible of the various ways in which research may be conducted; including controlled experiments, in-depth interviewing and literature searches. The book is essential for undergraduate students looking for a comprehensive and clearly written guide to both the classic and contemporary studies that have informed the research methods in the discipline of psychology today. This book has been written to provide clear and well-explained summaries that encourage critical reflection and discussion of the material learnt, making this an apt introduction for students wishing to learn about the valid methods of carrying out empirical research.