Article Critique Requirements

Critique of a Scholarly Empirical Journal Article

The process of writing an article critique is designed to improve and test your ability to critically analyze an empirical research study. Clearly, the better written an article is, the more likely it is to be accepted by the intended audience; however, research has varying degrees of quality. This assignment will increase your ability to read professional writing, recognize valid research and understand the results, and it will aid you in identifying weaknesses in research and writing. Learning to recognize flaws in grammar and logic will improve your ability to recognize those flaws in your own writing.

You will write a Article Critiques this semester, based on predetermined scholarly, empirical research studies. The articles will be posted on CANVAS. Once you have downloaded the appropriate article, read the article carefully, making notes on the strengths and weaknesses of the author(s) assertions and the overall quality of the research. When you feel that you understand the article thoroughly, you are ready to outline the article, and write a critique. This process will help you to thoroughly understand, organize, and analyze the information from the articles.

After reviewing the information to follow, thoroughly reading the journal article, and outlining the article; write your critique, paying special attention to each of the following requirements. The body of your critique (Introduction – Conclusions) should be three pages in length (not including the outline or the cover page), typed, and strictly double-spaced.

1. Following the Article Critique Formatting Example, format a cover page for each Article Critique (this will be page 1). Your cover page will include an APA style reference for the article, as such, it is not necessary to include a separate reference page at the end of your Article Critique.

2. Your outline should follow the cover page. It must conform to standard outlining format.

3. Use appropriate headings (see Article Critique Content). The headings should be centered and bolded, using headline style capitalization. Do not include the roman numerals.

4. Appropriately address all required sections.

GRADING:

You will be graded on: (1) the inclusion of an appropriate outline; (2) how closely you follow the APA guidelines and format for an Article Critique; (3) the clarity and content of your critique; (4) your comprehension of the article; and (5) correct use of college level writing mechanics.

Article Critique Content Requirements

The sections outlined below need to be addressed for each Article Critique you write this semester. The body of your Article Critiques should include the appropriate specified headings. Article Critiques must be written in APA style, including: (1) proper in-text citations, (2) sparing use of direct quotes only when absolutely necessary, (3) avoidance of personal statements (e.g., “I” statements and “My” statements); (4) avoidance of contractions (e.g., can’t); and (5) the proper written format for numbers. Critiques of scholarly research are intended to be written in an objective and analytical manner.

I. Introduction

Briefly describe what the study was about without getting into too much detail. Subsequent sections will be used to address further details about the study.

What was the author’s or authors’ general purpose for carrying out this study? Keep in mind there may be more than one purpose.

Briefly describe the theoretical assumption(s) associated with the proposed thesis, research question(s), hypothesis or hypotheses. There may be multiple research questions or hypotheses; utilize appropriate subheadings if needed.

Lastly, conclude this section by clearly identifying the proposed research question(s), or hypothesis/hypotheses.

II. Methods

Relatively briefly, but thoroughly, describe the main aspects of the study methodology.

Be sure to include information regarding: the study design, participants (e.g., who were they, how were they recruited, how many were there?), variables of interest (i.e., independent, dependent, and other showcased variables), data collection process (i.e., what was the timeframe of the data collection, what data collection instruments were used, were the instruments reliable and valid, what was done with the data?), and operational definitions of key terms if necessary.

III. Results

What were the major findings of the study, especially in relation to the research question(s) or hypothesis/hypotheses?

If a specific hypothesis was proposed, did the evidence provided (i.e., results of the analyses) support or not support it? (If there were multiple hypotheses, be sure to address each one).

What other important statistical relationships were found?

IV. Conclusions

Did the methodology seem appropriate in terms of what the author(s) attempted to investigate? Whether your answer is “yes” or “no” be sure to support your answer (a simple “yes” or “no” answer will not suffice). Could the study design have been improved? Is there anything that should have been done differently?

How meaningful were the study findings (i.e., results)? There are varying levels of strength when it comes to supporting evidence.

What were the stated limitations of the study? What are the implications of the limitations?

What was your overall impression of how the author(s) conducted the study?

HPRF 100W: Article Critique Requirements 3

Article Critique Formatting Requirements

1. Properly formatted cover page (this will be the first page) – see example

2. Proper page numbering (i.e., the page numbers should appear in the upper right-hand corner of your assignment in the header of the document, not in the body of the document.

3. The entire assignment (with the exception of the outline) should be strictly double-spaced, with no additional space before or after each line (check your paragraph settings).

4. Proper use of specified headings in APA format (i.e., each heading should be centered, bolded, and conform to sentence-style capitalization).

5. The entire assignment must be written in 12 pt. Times New Roman font, with 1” margins on all sides.

6. The body of your critique (Introduction – Conclusions) is not to exceed 3 pages (not including the outline or cover page).

7. The assignment is to be written in proper English, with college-level writing mechanics (e.g.., spelling, verb usage and tense, grammar, vocabulary, sentence formation, and paragraph formation)

8. A proper APA-style reference must be provided on the cover page, and proper APA-style in-text citations must be provided when necessary for paraphrased material as well as direct quotes.

Alternative to “I” and “My” statements:

Keep in mind that oftentimes straight forward declarative statements work just as well as statements qualified by ownership.