Critical Research Paper (Review of Literature)

Research Paper (20%) Presentation (5%)

Now that you have created a research proposal, the next step is the actual research. Your research proposal acts as an outline and guide to your research paper. Please note that this assignment also includes a formal presentation on your research topic.

Essay Guide

  1. Format: 5-7 pages (not including the cover page or work-cited page); APA format with cover page. Visual image should be placed somewhere on the cover page, along with the article’s title and your name/course name.
  2. Minimum of Four Sources:  Two of your sources must contain an experimental research component, and the other two sources can come from review papers.
  3. Your paper must begin with an abstract, and followed in IMRAD format.
  4. IMRAD format means that your paper must have an introduction/background, Methods, and Results/Discussion section.

Introduction Section: Your introduction must respond to all of the Moves, 1, 2, and 3, discussed in class:

  • Move 1: Establish topic and significance
  • Move 2: Establish need for present research
  • Move 3: Introduce the present research

Methods Section: Unless you are doing an actual experiment, your research will be based on a review of other research experiments or studies. Therefore you are tasked with analyzing the methods used in one or two of your primary research sources, that either supports or counter-argues your claim. In other words, you must evaluate their research methods by responding to the following questions:

  • Were the study’s subjects screen and selected for the appropriate characteristics?
  • Were subjects assigned to groups and conditions without bias?
  • Did the study include a sufficient number of subjects?
  • How appropriate was the study design for resolving the research issue?
  • How valid and comprehensive were the study’s independent variables?
  • How valid and reliable were the study’s dependent variables?
  • During the course of the study, how effectively did the researchers control for extraneous variables?
  • How appropriate and accurate were the study’s statistical analyses?

Results Section/Discussion Sections: The results and discussion sections can be combined or evaluated separately; it all depends on your research, argument, and rhetorical goals. This is the section(s) where you prove and legitimize your argument using scientific analysis and facts based on your research.

Conclusion: Your conclusion should describe how your research informs and benefits the science community, and the wider world. It should resonate with your readers in a way that will make them want to learn more about your topic.

Due Dates:
Wed 11/14 – First draft online peer-review
Wed 11/21 – Final draft