Chapter 7 - Reading and evaluating research reports. This chapter includes contents: Disclosure of research findings, typical contents of research report, preliminary information, methods section, functions of discussion section, references & appendix,...
Chapter Reading and Evaluating Research Reports Disclosure of Research Findings Culmination of research process is the public disclosure of results – – – – Article in professional journal Presentation at a conference Contractual research report Thesis or dissertation Typical Contents of Research Report Preliminary information Introduction Methods Results Discussion References Appendix (if appropriate) Preliminary Information Title – Length should be 15 words or less Author information Acknowledgments Abstract – May be as short as 150 to 200 words – Succinct summary of research study – Not required by all journals Introduction Section Typically contains 2 primary elements – Background information Acquaints reader with foundation and rationale for conducting study – Statement of problem May also include the research hypothesis, although less common today Helps the reader understand why the study was conducted Methods Section Usually contains information about – Research participants – Instrumentation – Procedures Data collection procedures Experimental treatments Data analysis procedures Methodology and procedures are usually described in detail Results Section That section of a research report in which the researcher reports the results of the data collection efforts as well as the outcomes of the data analysis Usually includes consideration information from the various statistical techniques – Indicate whether H0 was rejected or not Normally would not include discussion or interpretation of results Discussion Section That section of a research report that contains an explanation of the results Interpretation of the findings, culminating with the conclusions – Conclusions should relate back to research problem Provides implications for professional practice and recommendations for future research Functions of Discussion Section* Summarize the results Interpret the results Offer conclusions Theorize Provide recommendations Suggest future research *Adapted from Tuckman (1999) References & Appendix Listing of all books, articles, or other sources cited by the author Format varies according to specific journal Astute readers should carefully peruse the list of references Appendices are rare in published articles – Questionnaires – Tabular information – Special materials or illustrations Critiquing a Research Article Astute readers should be able to critically read research reports and make informed judgments about the quality of the research Published articles vary considerably in quality – Referred journals – Nonreferred journals Criteria for Critiquing an Article Because of the wide variety of types of research projects, there is not a universally accepted list of criteria Guidelines are similar to those one would follow for developing a research article Consult textbook Examples 7.9 and 7.10 for checklist for evaluating research article ... That section of a? ?research? ?report that contains an explanation of the results Interpretation of the findings, culminating with the conclusions – Conclusions should relate back to? ?research? ?problem... Research Report Preliminary information Introduction Methods Results Discussion References Appendix (if appropriate) Preliminary Information Title – Length should be 15 words or less Author information... – Succinct summary of? ?research? ?study – Not required by all journals Introduction Section Typically contains 2 primary elements – Background information Acquaints reader with foundation? ?and? ?rationale for