Scholarly Journal Article Review & Critique Writing Assignment Rubric
This assignment consists of obtaining an article on an approved psychological disorder from a scholarly journal and writing a critique on the article based on the required content below. Specifically, each student will select a research journal article based on empirical research on a Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM 5) Psychological Disorder. Examples of psychological disorders appropriate for use in this assignment can be found at the end of this rubric. While you may come across articles that are meta-analysis or case studies, it is required that you ONLY utilize an article that is first person research and is being published in a scholarly journal. You will be required to submit a copy of the article at a time certain (see rubric below in order to receive instructor approval to pursue a critique in completion of this assignment. Again, recall that your article must be directly related to the psychological disorder you have selected to review and the article must be one that was approved by your course instructor. Only approved articles will receive the points designated for the article approval requirement of this writing assignment. One of the best resources for you to find the article for this assignment would be to access the Psych Articles database through our library webpage.
Students who submit a Research article review based on an article that WAS NOT previously approved by the course instructor will receive a zero for the entire Research Critique assignment (0/100).
A. Copy of the journal article for instructor approval
Items B, C, & D below (along with corresponding numbered sections) should be type written using 12 font, double spacing with at least 2 but not more than 4 pages that comprise your response to this assignment. Please be sure that your document follows the format provided and that you clearly label and number each section and that it is stapled and submitted by the required due date. Items B, C, & D are
B. One typed paragraph describing why you selected this particular article. (10 points). Be sure that your thoughts are clearly organized and written in complete sentences with attention to use of correct grammar and punctuation. Also, be sure that you clearly explain why you selected the particular article and psychological disorder examined in the study.
C. Journal Article Review - This is a typed report. There should be four sections each labeled using the headings below: 1. Background, 2. Hypothesis, 3. Methods and 4. Results). This paper should reflect YOUR understanding of the journal article. Do NOT plagiarize the article or simply restate the information. Instead, you should be written in your own words. The object of this assignment is for you to comprehend and explore current research.
1. Background -
This is generally the information which led to the current research. Typically this describes similar research and explains why the current research was necessary. Please include the outcome of at least one previous study cited in your article that relates to or supports the research article you are reviewing.
2. Hypothesis -
This will be clearly stated in any scholarly article - it may be found in the abstract, background or methods sections. This section answers the question, "What are they expecting to happen?" You can use a quote from the article in this section, but please quote appropriately using APA style, including quotation marks.
3. Methods -
In complete sentences using subheadings below, please provide a clear written response for each item.
a. Number of subjects
b. Method of selection of subjects
c. Procedures used & Description of "what they did"
d. What was measured? What were the variables?
e. How did they measure this
4. Results (may also be labeled Findings) -
What did they find? Specifically note whether the hypothesis was supported or not. Be certain to analyze all variables.
5. Conclusion (may also be labeled Discussion) -
This will be clearly outlined in any scholarly article. If you are studying applied research, include any applications which answer the question, "How could this information be used by the general population?" If your article is a basic research article, what potential uses could this information have? In this section also include what the authors indicate are the limitations of this study and the directions in which future research in this area could go.
D. Constructive Article Critique -
6. Provide a short paragraph in which you critique the article. Be sure to comment on the following:
a. Provide your thoughts on how well (or poorly) the article was written, organized and understandable to you as a lay person (non-expert) and why you are taking that position.
b. Provide one suggestion for improving the quality of the article. In other words, if you were writing the article or conducting the research, what would you do differently and why? Be specific.