Critiquing Research Articles
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For important and highly relevant articles:
Introduce the study, say how it exemplifies the
point you are discussing
Say how the study is similar to yours, in purpose
and / or method
Report its methodology in detail
Critique the methodology
Report details of the findings that relate to your
topic
If its findings are limited or unjustified, tell how
Give its implications for your study
Critiquing Research Articles
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For studies moderately related to yours:
Introduce the study, saying how it exemplifies
the point you’re discussing
Report its general methodology
Report its general findings related to your topic
If its findings are limited or conclusions
unjustified, tell how
Give its implications for your study
Critiquing Research Articles
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For studies somewhat related, used for
background information:
Introduce the study, saying how it exemplifies
the point you are discussing
Give the “gist” of its findings related to your topic
Give its implications for your study
How to Critique a Research Study
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The Introduction Section:
Is the problem clearly stated?
Are the argument and rationale for the study
convincing?
Are primary terms and concepts clearly defined?
Are the author’s assumptions made clear?
Are the research questions or hypotheses stated
in testable form?
How to Critique a Research Study
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The Method Section:
Research Design
What type of design was selected? Is it
appropriate?
Were extraneous and confounding variables
controlled by the design?
Are independent and dependent variables
adequate to test the questions and hypotheses?
Is the predicted relationship between (among)
them clear?
How to Critique a Research Study
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Participants
Was the sample size large enough?
Were subjects selected randomly?
Are the relevant characteristics of the sample
described?
If subjects were not randomly assigned to
experimental groups, were they comparable on
relevant characteristics?
How to Critique a Research Study
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Measures
Do selected measures appropriately
operationalize the variables?
Are satisfactory reliability and validity data
provided for all measures?
For interpretive measures, was scoring objective?
For two or more raters, was satisfactory interrater reliability found?
Are measures administered consistently to
different groups?
How to Critique a Research Study
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Results
Do the data fulfill assumptions underlying
statistical tests?
Are the statistical tests appropriate for the
questions and hypotheses?
Are the appropriate statistics reported for each
test?
For multiple statistical tests, do authors adjust
alpha error levels?
For statistical tests, are adequate statistics
(means, SD, shared variance for correlations etc.)
presented?
How to Critique a Research Study
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Interpretation and Discussion
Are statistical tests interpreted correctly?
Are generalizations only to the population from
which the sample was drawn?
Do authors identify problems of control that
weren’t addressed by the design or analysis?
Do authors mention other limitations of the
study?
Are conclusions consistent with statistical results?
Are alternative conclusions considered?
Are theoretical and / or practical implications
discussed?
How to Critique a Research Study
Overview Questions:
 Was the method reported in sufficient detail that
you could replicate the study?
 What was the theoretical context for the study?
 What issues were raised and not addressed?
 What assumptions were made?
 What did the authors overlook?
 Were there any major problems that invalidate the
study?
 What contribution did the study make?
 How does the study relate to your topic?
Your Literature Review
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Must have 7-10 current references from academic
journals cited
Written in APA format
Copies of journal articles used must be turned in to
professor with the assignment
Should be 5 typed pages
Literature review should include introduction,
summary and critique of journal articles, a
justifications for your research project and the
hypotheses for your research project