Cognitive Psychology

AUO_PSY363_Anatomy_of_a_Research_Article.pdf

Anatomy of a Research Article

The most common type of peer-reviewed article is the research article, or paper describing a research

study. Authors of research articles follow a prescribed structure as they discuss their studies. As you begin

to gather articles for your literature review, you will begin to recognize a common anatomy, or structure,

across the articles. This common anatomy makes it easier for us to navigate and understand the articles we

read.

Research articles are typically organized into the following seven sections:

1) Title Page

2) Abstract

3) Introduction

4) Methods

5) Results

6) Discussion

7) References

Each of these sections has a unique purpose:

1) The Title Page serves as a cover sheet for the article. It typically includes the title of the paper, the

authors’ names, and the university or institution at which the research was conducted.

2) The Abstract is a brief summary of the entire research article. It helps us to get a sense of the

research question, methods, and findings.

3) The Introduction section provides a review of the relevant existing research related to the study’s

research question. It is the equivalent of a “literature review.” We will discuss the nature of literature

reviews more fully later in this lecture. In short, the introduction summarizes the history of research

related to the study’s question and explains why the current research study is important and

necessary.

4) The Methods section explains how the study was conducted. The authors describe the

participants, or “subjects,” how they were selected, and what the subjects were asked to do in the

study.

5) The Results section describes the findings of the study. The authors describe the data analysis and outcome of that analysis.

6) The Discussion section explores the author’s interpretations of their findings and how those

findings fit in (or not) with existing research in the area of study. Here, the authors also discuss the

limitations of their own study as well as suggest future research that should be done to address the

research question.

Anatomy of a Research Article

7) The References section provides citations of all references or sources the authors used in the

preparation, design, and interpretation of their study. Readers often like to use the references

section to get leads on other studies related to the topic of interest.