If you’re a researcher writing an APA paper, you’ll need to include a Methods section. This part explains the methods you used to conduct your experiment or research study and is always written in the past tense.
It’s crucial that you include all the relevant information here because other researchers will use this section to recreate your study, as well as judge how valid and accurate your results are.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to write a clear and comprehensive Methods section for your research paper.
This section of an APA paper is typically split into three subsections under the following subheadings:
If necessary, you may add further subsections. Different institutions have specific rules on what subsections should be included (for example, some universities require a “Design” subsection), so make sure to check your institution’s requirements before you start writing your Methods section.
In this first subsection, you will need to identify the participants of your experiment or study. You should include:
● How many people took part, and how many were assigned to the experimental condition
● How they were selected for participation
● Any relevant demographic information (e.g., age, sex, ethnicity)
You’ll also need to address whether any restrictions were placed on who was selected and if any incentives were offered to encourage participants to take part.
In this subsection, you should address the materials, equipment, measures, and stimuli used in the study. These might include technology and computer software, tools such as questionnaires and psychological assessments, and, if relevant, the physical setting where the study took place.
You’ll need to describe specialist equipment in detail, especially if it has a niche purpose. However, you don’t need to provide specific information about common or standard equipment (e.g., the type of computer on which participants completed a survey) unless it’s relevant to the experiment.