Expanding Your Literature Search

Expanding Your Literature Search At this point, you have five articles. Now you need to double that number to have at least 10 articles for your literature review. What are some strategies to expand your literature search? 1. Reference list a. Relevant articles will cite other articles that you should also read, so review it for articles that interest you. 2. Keywords identified in article a. Some journals include relevant keywords for that article. If the journal does this, they are often found right under the abstract. Try those terms if you want to read more articles like that one. 3. Authors a. If you find an especially interesting article, look up the author to see what else they have published. Check to see if they have a website: they often list their publications there. • QUESTION 1 Look at the articles you already have and consider the ones that you found especially relevant. Review the reference list. Identify two articles in the reference list that you could locate: Enter your response • QUESTION 2 Look to see if any of the current articles you have list keywords. What are two new keywords, or keyword combinations, that you could use to search for more articles? Enter your response • QUESTION 3 Identify the author(s) of one of your articles and look them up. You can use Google to see if they have a website as well as search for their work in the literature databases. Who are you going to read up on? Enter your response Databases Part 1 Another thing to consider is the database you’re searching. Summon is the general database that pulls from all of Capella’s online databases. If you find more specific databases, that can increase the likelihood that you’ll find relevant articles. Some useful databases for human services include: - PsycArticles - Psychology Database - PsycINFO - Sage Journals Online - SocIndex with Full Text - Sociology Database The advantage of searching in certain databases is that the results are more likely to be relevant to your topic compared to what you may find in, say, the Education database. Using the general Summon databases will yield results from a variety of disciplines besides your own. • QUESTION 4 Which databases will you use to search for articles? Try a new one if you haven’t searched it yet!  Enter your response Databases Part 2 After you locate your additional articles, analyze them just like you did for assessment 3: first, individually, and then comparing/contrasting the findings for similarities and differences.  Hopefully, you feel like you have a deeper understanding of your topic with the new information. If not, consider: were these new articles relevant? A couple of other things to remember about the literature searches: • Limit your lit search to the last five years • Make sure you select a research article, not something like a literature review, dissertation, or another document (Capella library guide: https://capellauniversity.libguides.com/c.php?g=197572&p=1302271)  • You can search multiple databases at once. Resources:  • Human Services Doctoral (DHS) Program Library Guide (https://capellauniversity.libguides.com/hsdoc) • Searching the Library for Articles (https://capellauniversity.libguides.com/hsdoc/basicsearch) • How do I Know I’m Looking at It (research article)? (https://capellauniversity.libguides.com/c.php?g=197572&p=1302271) • Searching Multiple Databases (https://capellauniversity.libguides.com/MultipleDatabases) Incorporating Theory Research refers to the systematic collection and analysis of data to answer a research question, such as testing a hypothesis. Theory refers to how things are: they are questions that have been tested repeatedly and have not been disproven. Both research studies and theories are written in scholarly articles, but theory tends to focus on the ideas, supported with previous research findings. Theory is as crucial to doctoral-level professionals as research; it helps them make sense of all the findings. For example, let’s say you find multiple articles that indicate employees tend to think more highly of leaders who share their religious beliefs:  • Protestant Christian employees tend to view Protestant Christian leaders most favorably • Roman Catholic employees tend to view Roman Catholic leaders most favorably • Jewish American employees tend to view Jewish American leaders most favorably • Muslim employees tend to view Muslim leaders most favorably What theory could help us make sense of this? Tajfel (1974) theorized that people sometimes prefer others who are like them (in-group) over others who are different (out-group) as part of his theory on social identity. Social identity theory (Tajfel, 1974) helps make sense of the findings listed above. When searching for scholarly theories, remember these things: 1. Scholarly theories are published in peer-reviewed journals and by academic publications. Self-help books are not appropriate sources for scholarly theories. 2. Theories have been tested repeatedly and not disproven. If you cannot find research on a theory, it is not a scholarly theory. 3. You should always read the primary sources for theories rather than rely on summaries from textbooks or other articles. It is appropriate to have older citations for theories. The research findings and scholarly theories are the specialized knowledge that doctoral professionals use to inform their thinking. Some common theories used in social science include: - Urie Bronfenbrenner’s (1992) ecological systems theory focuses on how the environment beyond the family can influence child development. - Albert Bandura’s (1977) social learning theory posits that, not only do people learn from their environment, but they also influence their environment, hence influencing their own learning. - Albert Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory focuses on how our thoughts and beliefs (cognitions) influence people. - Tversky and Kahneman’s (1974) cognitive bias theory is about how people can systematically rely on flawed ideas/thinking patterns to solve problems. - Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) stress and coping theory defines stress as an imbalance between an internal or external stressor and perceived resources to manage the stressor. • QUESTION 5 There are many theories out there to help make sense of research findings: just make sure it is a scholarly one! A relevant theory may be discussed in the introduction or discussion section of an article. You can also find them discussed in textbooks (especially for introductory-level courses) but do make sure to look up the primary source. Textbooks can be located in Capella’s ebook database in the library. What is a theory that helps you make sense of the research findings for your paper? Enter your response APA Format We’ve reviewed APA format for headings, but you want to make sure you are adhering to APA format for all your writing. We’ll review: - In-text citation format - Reference list format -In-Text Citation Format Single author Only the last name of the author is included in an in-text citation: first and middle initials should only go in the reference list. The appropriate format for an in-text citation where the author is not referred to explicitly in the sentence is: - Burnout is a significant predictor of attrition rates (Clarkson, 2021). Both the author’s name and publication year are in parentheses, separated by a comma. The appropriate format for an in-text citation where the author is referred to explicitly in the sentence is: - Clarkson (2021) identified burnout as a significant predictor of attrition rates. Since the author is referred to explicitly, the name is outside of parentheses and no comma is needed. A comma is only required if the author name is in the parentheses. Multiple Authors for One Article If there are more than two authors, you must refer to all of the authors the first time in the paper, and you can then switch to “et al.” - Windmere, Louis, and Fletcher (2022) examined the relationship between leadership style and employee satisfaction. Employee satisfaction rates were highest for transformational leaders and lowest for authoritarian leaders (Windmere et al., 2022). Note that there is no comma after Windmere in the parentheses: a comma is not needed to separate the first author from “et al.” Multiple Articles in one set of parentheses If one sentence is supported by multiple articles, you may choose to put all of the citations in one set of parentheses. The author and publication year are still separated by commas; the articles are separated by semicolons. The articles should be alphabetized based on the last name of the first author. - The demographic characteristics of leaders influences how employees view them (Giles and Anderson, 2020; Jackson, 2022). Question: Identify the correct in-text citation format: Option A: Holly (2020), found that case managers with high caseloads were more likely to report feeling overwhelmed. Formative Answer: This is incorrect: no comma is needed after (2020). A comma is only needed if the author name and publication year are both in parentheses. Option B: Jones, et al (2019) demonstrated the relationship between repetition and skill acquisition. Formative Answer: This is incorrect for two reasons: (1) no comma is needed after Jones to separate it from et al. and (2) “et al.” must always be followed by a period. Option C: (Becker, 2021) asked leaders about their experiences starting their non-profit organizations. Formative Answer: This is incorrect since the author, Becker, is referred to explicitly: Becker is the subject of the sentence. Therefore, the name should not be in parentheses. Option D: Non-profit leaders struggled the most with financial management of their organizations (Smith, 2020). Formative Answer: This is the correct answer: since the author is not referred to explicitly in the sentence, both the name and publication year are in parentheses and are separated by a comma. Option E: Protecting tax-exempt status was a significant challenge for leaders whose organizations generated significant revenue (Thompson, 2020, Deane and Watson, 2022). Formative Answer: This is incorrect for two reasons: (1) the two articles are not separated by a semicolon, and (2) they are not in alphabetical order (Deane and Watson should precede Thompson). Reference: APA Format for in-text citation: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_author_authors.html Reference List Format To see the correct format for a reference list, review APA Academic Writer and copy that format exactly. It matters where you put periods, commas, and how you capitalize article titles vs journal names, so pay attention to the details! • QUESTION 6 Correct the mistakes in the reference below: Jackson, Amber T., Ricki, Gillian M., & Thompson, Jesse L. (2022) Leadership Style and Organizational Success, Human Services Organizational Journal, Vol. 22, Iss. 4, pp. 482 – 491. Enter your response Literature Review Organization Once you have a list/table of your findings, it’s time to start thinking about writing the literature review. The stages of writing a literature review are: 1. Prewriting 2. Drafting 3. Peer Review (if possible) 4. Revising 5. Proofreading Prewriting Prewriting is when you think through the ideas that you want to write about. At this point, you’ve read the articles, analyzed them (individually), and synthesized them (thought about the articles as a group) to identify key points.  How are you going to organize those points? What is the overall point of your paper? This is what you determine in the prewriting stage. It is tempting to skip this step. DON’T DO IT.  Most writing problems are thinking problems, and this is the thinking part. If you start trying to write without a clear sense of the point of your paper and the supporting points, you will have a jumbled mess to revise.  Some things to consider in the prewriting stage are: 1. What is the main point of this paper? 2. What are the key points to elaborate on the main point? 3. What is a logical order for these points? Identifying the Main Point The main point of your paper (what can also be referred to as the “thesis” or “main argument”) is a combination of: - Your topic - Research findings Let’s say you started out wanting to understand how cis female and transgender female leaders maintain their authority in work environments where the staff is predominantly cis male. That’s your topic. The research might indicate:  - The experience is different for cis female and transgender females due to gender socialization differences and different reactions to their gender identities 1. Cis gender leaders deal with gender socialization that encourages maintaining relationships over establishing dominance 2. Transgender females are not accustomed to the sexism that cis females grow up experiencing - Both groups experience frequent challenges to their authority  - Both groups develop strategies to establish authority while maintaining productive working relationships, but those strategies differ So while you started out wanting to know how female leaders (whether cis female or transgender female) maintain authority among predominately male subordinates, you discovered that the experiences are unique based on whether they are cis female or transgender.  The main point or thesis now is: Female leaders, whether cis female or transgender female, face challenges to their authority from male subordinates, but the experiences are different for cis female leaders compared to transgender female leaders. • QUESTION 7 Look at your notes from your articles. What is the main point? Enter your response • QUESTION 8 What are the key ideas in the story (add more if you need them)? Enter your response • QUESTION 9 Are any of the ideas not directly relevant to your topic (although they may be interesting)? Note them here. They could be useful things to read about another time! Enter your response • QUESTION 10 What is a logical order? Order the ideas in two different ways. Enter your response Formal Outline Now that you have your ideas, put them into a formal outline with headings that you will use in the paper. Here’s the outline you need to use for this assessment: I. Introduction II. Literature Review III. Theory IV. Project Proposal The literature review is the section that will need the most thought, since the headings/subheadings will vary for each of you, based on what you’re reading. For example, continuing with the above example, the lit review outline could be: I. Introduction II. Literature Review a. Cis female and transgender female leaders experience challenges to authority i. Gender socialization ii. Reaction to sexism b. Strategies to Establish Authority i. Cis female gender strategies ii. Transgender female strategies c. Responses to Challenges of Authority i. Cis female responses ii. Transgender female responses III. Theory IV. Project Proposal • QUESTION 11 Write an outline for your paper: Enter your response