PSYM204 Coursework Assignment
Overview
In this coursework assignment, you will have the opportunity to apply your knowledge to a real-
world issue that interests you! The best way to approach this assignment is to imagine that you are a
consultant solving an organisation’s issues – this means that you must write it as if the person
reading has no knowledge of organisational psychology.
Assignment
Select a particular company of interest and focus on a single aspect of that company (e.g., one or
more diversity initiatives, employee stress management efforts). If possible, focus on a single web
page from that company to ensure that your assignment is sufficiently narrow. Here is an example
of a webpage to focus on if you want to analyse Google’s diversity initiatives:
https://diversity.google/commitments/. You’ll need to briefly introduce the organisation’s
strategy(ies)—and any important background information—and then do a critical analysis where
you discuss what the organisational psychology literature can contribute to understanding the
potential efficacy of the organisation’s strategies.
In your assignment, you will need an introductory section that introduces the company and gives a
preview of the points that will be made in the essay. Subsequent paragraphs should then analyse the
issue using solid empirical research – by solid empirical research, we mean research studies
published in peer-reviewed and reputable psychology journals (see below). Anecdotes or case
studies not backed up by peer reviewed research are not a sufficient evidence base. Ultimately, you
will need to make clear recommendations about how to solve the issue. These recommendations
may just confirm that what is already being done is adequate, or they might be new
recommendations that are based on the literature – it is essential that any recommendations actually
fit with the literature you have reviewed (don’t just tack on recommendations that are unrelated to
the rest of the essay or are just personal opinions).
Assignment Support
To support students as they develop their essay topic, there will be two scheduled opportunities for
discussion and reflection before the coursework is due in Term 3.
Week 5: Submit Essay Topic
Students should submit a very brief summary of their essay topic as a Word document to the
Assessment Information and Submission section on ELE – this is to ensure that you are thinking
about your topic as early as possible and can make the most of the support provided. We will look
over your chosen topics and leave comments on your submission if we see there are any potential
issues. If you do not receive any feedback regarding things to consider/changes to make, then
you’re good to go!
The summary should respond to the following questions:
1. What is the link to your media article or company web page?
2. What will the main takeaway of your essay be (in a couple sentences)?
Weeks 10&11: Student presentations
Students will present on their assignment topic in Weeks 10 and 11. This will provide an
opportunity to receive feedback from us, as well as your peers, on your ideas and analysis.
Guidelines & Assessment for Final Essay
Due Date: 12th May 12:00 2,500 words
Your assignment will be evaluated on the following criteria:
• Relevance to assessment topic
• Knowledge and understanding
• Quality of exposition • Structural organisation
• Preparatory reading and research
• Writing
• Citing
The best essays include insightful observations and recommendations, make clear arguments, are
well structured and linear (i.e., each paragraph transitions clearly and builds on previous sections),
and bring in a wide range of readings – there’s no need to stick to the readings from our class
reading list, provided it is relevant to your analysis. However, good writing also includes being
sufficiently narrow. Sometimes, students try to cover so much ground that their main points get lost
in the essay – do not feel compelled to cover aspects of the topic that aren’t directly relevant, or to
include tangential research findings just for the sake of lengthening your reference list.
Full assessment criteria are included at the end of this document.
Examples of Reputable and Relevant Journals
Organisational Psychology & Management:
• Journal of Applied Psychology • Journal of Applied Social Psychology • Personnel Psychology •
Human Performance • Academy of Management Review • Journal of Organisational Behavior •
Academy of Management Journal • Journal of Experimental Psychology: • Organisational Behavior
and Human Applied Decision Processes
Social & Personality Psychology:
• ASAP: Analyses of Social Issues • Personality and Social Psychology and Public Policy Bulletin •
British Journal of Social • Personality and Social Psychology Psychology Review • European Journal
of Social • Social and Personality Psychology Psychology Compass • Journal of Experimental Social
• Social Psychological and Psychology Personality Science • Journal of Personality and Social •
Social Cognition • Psychology • Journal of Social Issues
General Psychology:
• Psychological Science • Psychological Bulletin • American Psychologist • Psychological Review
Note: The list above is not exhaustive, but gives some good examples of journals publishing
relevant empirical research

Submission
Work should be submitted electronically via eBART. Detailed instructions on how to submit can be
found here: http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=3196.
Work submitted after this deadline (even by 30 seconds), will be considered late and the late penalty
will apply. Where a student considers that they have grounds for an extension to the deadline for a
piece of work, they must go through the usual mitigation procedures.
In submitting your coursework, you are declaring the work is your own independent piece of work,
not produced in collusion with a fellow student or plagiarised from a fellow student, or a web site,
or a textbook, or any other information source. You must demonstrate good referencing practice
and ensure you have sufficiently paraphrased all sources of information. Failure to do so may result
in being referred to an academic misconduct panel which has the power to grant penalties based on
specific criteria. For more details please revisit the Academic Honesty and Plagiarism information
on ELE.
Formatting Requirements:
• 12-point font in Times New Roman
• Margins 30mm on the left-hand side, 20mm on the right-hand side and 20mm for top/bottom.
• 1.5 line spacing should be used in typescript except for indented quotations or footnotes, for
which single spacing may be used.
• Paper: International A4 (210mm x 297mm) within range 70 g/m2 to 100 g/m2
• All pages should be numbered consecutively in one sequence starting with the title page as 1.

Assessment Criteria
Relevance to assessment topic:
Material included was highly relevant, with no gaps, and a high level of integration
Material included was relevant, with no gaps, and with good integration
Material included was mostly relevant, but some irrelevant material included and/or some key gaps
Material included lacked clear focus, and there were large gaps in material
Material included was largely irrelevant, inaccurate, and/or did not answer the question
Knowledge and understanding:
A thorough understanding of relevant theories/research, with evidence of additional insights
A good understanding of relevant theories/research, with no errors in knowledge or understanding
Some understanding of relevant theories/research, but with some minor omissions and factual
errors
Some understanding of relevant theories and past research, but more depth needed
Basic understanding of relevant theories and past research, with serious omissions and factual errors
Quality of exposition:
High levels of critical analysis with originality in approach
Evidence of critical analysis with some originality
Largely descriptive, but with some evidence of critical analysis and originality
Largely descriptive, and only a superficial approach taken
Argument unclear, self-contradictory, or not logical
Structural organisation:
Well organised and logical, with a clear argument structure throughout
Overall argument was structured well, but transitions/links between ideas could be clearer
Overall argument was unclear at times, with poor organisation in places
Disorganised and muddled, with no clear progression of ideas in the essay
Poorly organised, with little structure
Preparatory reading and research:
Extensive reading done and independent resources identified and used in the essay
A wide range of resources identified and used in the essay
Some evidence of reading beyond that provided in class
No evidence of reading beyond that provided in class
No evidence that reading was performed for the essay
Writing:
Very well-written with clear expression and minor grammatical errors
Well-written and clear but with some grammatical errors
Good written expression written but with frequent errors
Frequently unclear with many errors
Poor expression throughout, making it difficult to follow the argument
Citing/APA style:
Excellent with no errors
Very good with minor errors
Good with few errors
Competent but with frequent errors
Weak with substantial errors