Article Critique: Qualitative/Quantitative Research

by

Your Name

Critique Assignment Submitted to

Dr. Hiral Shah

St. Cloud State University

Practical Research Methods

Month, Year

St. Cloud, Minnesota

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Introduction

You should write an introductory statement here as a lead-in to the

problem statement of the article.

This paper is not meant to be a long; it will probably be four to six pages in

length. For each subsection you can write about a paragraph and it will be

sufficient. All sections are worth 2 points; and proper format, referencing,

spelling, grammar, and APA style is worth 2 points. Use APA Heading Levels 1

and 3 (APA, 2001, p.113). You can use this paper as a template and type in the

same format to maintain the APA style and double line spacing. A copy of the

article that you critiqued must be attached to the paper along with your email.

Statement of the Problem

This section must be a very specific statement of the problem that the

study was trying to address – not the objective of the study or the research

question, but the basic problem that had caused a need for the research.

Nature and Significance of the Problem

This section should discuss the background history and/or environment of

the problem, and why the problem is important.

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Objective of the Research

This section should state the specific goal(s) that the research is trying to

achieve. In the article, the objective may have been stated as a research

question, hypotheses to be tested or in some other way.

Methodology

Describe the research procedures used by the author(s) in the following

subsections. Begin here with an introductory statement, leading into the

research design subsection.

Research Design

Specifically name, and describe or define, the generic research design the

researcher(s) used.

Population, Sample, and Subjects Investigated

Specifically state the population, about which the study was trying to

describe or to generalize, and the sampling technique and actual sample taken

from that population for investigation in the study. However, not all types of

research use populations and/or samples. If not, state why not, and what

subjects or who was being investigated in order to collect data.

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Data Collection

Describe how the generic research design was specifically applied to the

author’s unique research situation. Describe the research environment,

conditions and treatments (where applicable), data collection instrumentation and

techniques, and the nature and amount of data actually collected.

Data Analysis

Describe the statistics and/or methods of analysis that were used to

determine what the data meant.

Research Results

Describe the results of the data analysis. The results are not the final

conclusions, the “raw” results of the data analysis procedure(s).

Research Conclusions

Describe the conclusions the researcher(s) made, based upon their

evaluation of their research results. Good researchers usually also provide

recommendations for further research or possible applications of the research

results.

Research Critique and Application to Career Area

This section should be a critical analysis of the study. Discuss its

appropriateness for the research problem, its actual effectiveness, possible

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alternative research methodologies or a better way to apply the method used,

and your overall opinion of the research and report.

Also discuss an application of the research design type and/or actual

study to your specific career area. You must describe an actual or hypothetical

research project, in which you could be involved or conduct, which would use a

similar research design.

Conclusion

Write a short summary and concluding statement about the article, your

critique, and possible similar research project related to your career area.

References

Reference the article that you critiqued in APA style (APA, 2001, pp. 239-

281) and also type in only two references from the article that you critiqued in

APA style. Include these three references in this reference section. Maintain

double line spacing for the reference list, and indent the second line of each

reference.