The aim of this course is to introduce students to contemporary research methods and elements of the research process, as well as to provide them with knowledge necessary to independently engage in different research activities.

Upon completing this course, participants will be able to independently define meaningful research questions, design and conduct experiments, interpret and draw valid conclusions based on the obtained results, and finally, present findings of the research in a structured way to peers and scientific community.

Topics covered within the course are: defining research questions, experimental design, research variables, methods of measurement, direct and indirect measurement, reliability, measurement errors, control groups, sampling, reaching conclusions, reporting the results and referencing sources. Students will also be introduced to contemporary tools that can aid them at various research stages: LaTEX, MS Word, Mendeley.

Lectures and labs, an individual assignment and oral exam. Lectures will cover theoretical aspects of the course, while the labs will focus on enabling the students to use LaTEX, MS Word and Mendeley to structure a scientific paper and appropriately cite sources used.