Research paper

348_Guidelines for the Final Paper.docx

Guidelines for the Final Paper

The requirements:

The paper should be 7 to 10 pages, not including your title page and references page. (A little longer is okay, but definitely try to avoid fluff and padding as much as you can; shorter than 7 pages would be kind of strange),

Typed and double or 1.5 spaced. Proofread for typos, grammar and other errors, and for flow and development. 

Use APA format (see the example paper under "files" or attached below).  Go ahead and do a title page—you'll need them for the more formal, longer papers you'll write for advanced classes.  The abstract is optional, but writing an abstract really helps you see if you've clearly addressed your questions and organized your research. 

Provide complete references for all sources cited. The goal is for your reader to be able to find any sources themselves, so include journal titles, volume number and pages.  Remember they may not be able to access the links you provide (especially any database links, which are useless to anyone who doesn't have access).  If you're using chapters from books, cite the chapter (and for edited books, the chapter authors) AND the book.

Remember, you must have at least 5 peer reviewed, academic research sources.  Typically, these are academic journal articles, but some book chapters will qualify.  You can use as many other sources as you need or want, but be careful with how you use them; that is, sort out popular press, opinion, theoretical assertions, or beliefs from evidence-based information.  Avoid over-reliance on one or two authors.  Make an effort to find and include differing or contradictory findings or interpretations, especially for topics that are less settled or more theoretically "charged."

If you're citing sources that are within other sources, you must provide a reference for these as well. Good practice is to say something like "cited in" or "quoted in" in your in-text citation, then provide the source in which you found that secondary reference. (Best practice is to locate and read that source for yourself, but I'll cope with some reality here.)  

General guidelines:

Start with and provide some context for your question (or topic).  That is, say what you were researching and something about why it matters. If it’s not obvious, go ahead state how it addresses the concerns of cultural psychology. A little bit of personal importance is okay, but you should keep that under control and focus mainly on the more general relevance of the question (to a population, to the field, to social policy, et cetera). Your research should have helped you get a sense of the nature of the concerns in the area, what the key questions or debates are, or the problem that drives the inquiry.  Provide a summary of that context.

Figure out the most sensible way to present your findings and organize the presentation accordingly. (Is it themes, a debate, a dilemma, or is it more a matter of building up pieces of evidence?).  Present the relevant findings in an even-handed way (you can draw your conclusions at the end of the paper).  Give the reader enough information to make their own judgments about the quality of the research, the strength of the argument, and the generalizability of the findings.  If you end up with a complex "portrait" of the research, then take a paragraph to provide a summary of the current state of the research (if it's straightforward, you may not need to do that).  Paraphrase and use your own words as much as you can (but don't mistranslate!).  Avoid excessive quotation (it reads as if you don't really understand what your sources are talking about).  Generally speaking, reserve quoting for especially well-phrased points, or for statements or conclusions that seem unique or idiosyncratic to the author. Avoid flowery prose, and generally avoid adjectives and adverbs as much as possible--go for that "objective," or even terse, writing style you see in your sources.

Then, provide your discussion and conclusions of what you found. If the answer seems clear, then great!  Say that. If things are less clear, then say that and provide some discussion of the debate or contradictions, what still needs to be determined, and your assessment of what can be safely said at this point.  In this section (and in the introduction) some conservative use of "I" is okay, but still be sure to support your conclusions or interpretations. (Again, think about your reader—and you should think of that reader as a "public," not just as me, your teacher--and how well they'll be able to follow your analyses and conclusions, and how well they could trust them.) 

That's the general formula!

In this module you will also find a “Sample APA paper” that is a cheat sheet for APA formatting questions. You will also find a very good student (but not perfect!) paper (from another quarter) to perhaps prime you a bit (but it’s not a “template” or “recipe” for your paper!).