I will be sending my tables, hypothesis, introduction, conclusion, limitations and sources.
COMPONENTS OF YOUR FINAL PAPER
Cover Sheet and Abstract (5% of final paper)
Introduction (5% of final paper)
Literature Review (20% of final paper)
Hypotheses (5% of final paper)
Methods Section (10% of final paper)
Results/Findings and Tables (25% of final paper)
Discussion and Conclusion (15% of final paper)
References (5% of final paper)
MECHANICS
Formatting (2% of final paper)
Grammar and Clarity (3% of final paper)
Citations and Paraphrasing (5% of final paper)
Your final paper should follow the format below. In order to receive full points on all components of the final paper, your paper will need to include each item in bold.
Cover Sheet and Abstract Cover sheet needs to include:
Paper Title
Your Name
Course Name: Sociology 400w: Senior Seminar
Date of Submission
Abstract. Which needs to include:
Sentence introducing your research project/motive.
Sentence describing the methods.
Sentence or two describing the data and sample.
Summary sentences for each of your major findings.
Key Words
List at least 4 key words.
Introduction
3 – 5 sentences introducing your topic.
Move from general to specific.
Cite findings from the literature.
A sentence or two stating your motive.
A statement of the purpose of your specific research question/topic.
A description of your data and sample.
A description of your method.
Literature Review
Introduction to Literature Paragraph
Sentence describing the purpose of your study
Sentence or two introducing and describing your DVs
Sentence introducing your IVs
Paragraphs for each of ten research articles
Write a sentence or two to introduce the authors and the primary purpose of the research.
A sentence or two about their methods.
A sentence or two about the findings of that study as it relates to the section topic.
You will also receive points for the organization of the literature review. To earn full points on organization you must demonstrate logical sequencing of ideas through well-developed paragraphs with transitions to enhance organization. This includes:
Dividing the review into sections with headings
Overview paragraphs for each section in which you synthesize the articles that follow
Hypotheses
A sentence introducing your hypotheses.
Clear statements of all hypotheses
Methods
Description of Sample and Data
Introduction to Data Set
Description of Questionnaire
Description of Sample and Sampling Method
Description of Subset and/or Sample Characteristics
Describe the Measures
Paragraph for each IV and DV used in analyses
What was the variable concept that you were trying to measure?
How was the variable operationalized? – Survey item and/or, response choices and/or, scale creation
If you include control variables, tell us what they are and how they are measured.
Analyses Paragraph – This is the analyses paragraph from Assignment 9.
Results/Findings and Tables
Descriptive Statistics
One sentence describing each variable with univariate statistics
You may (but are not required to) include a table
Analytical Results (You must have paragraph for each bivariate or multivariate test – *if your paper is qualitative or mixed methods, you will have a different format for this section!*)
For chi square tests:
In a sentence or two, describe the relationship between the variables—write about the column percentages here.
Write a sentence explaining the results of the chi square test (with the chi square statistic, degrees of freedom, and p-value in parentheses).
Make a statement about whether or not the results of the test support your hypotheses.
For regression analyses
Describe the model by reporting and interpreting each b-coefficient (including significance levels).
Interpret the beta coefficients.
Present and interpret R-square.
Make a statement about whether or not the results of the test support your hypotheses.
Tables: Properly formatted table for each bivariate or multivariate test.
Discussion and Conclusion
Overview Paragraph
Provide a 2 – 3 sentence “introduction” to your topic
Write a sentence explaining the motive of your study
Write a sentence explaining your data
Write a sentence explaining your method
Give (in a few sentences) an overall statement of the findings of your study
Revisit each bivariate or multivariate test in one paragraph. Each paragraph must include:
Introduce the hypothesis
In a sentence or two state how your findings either support or refute this hypothesis
In 1 – 3 sentences, revisit the literature
Provide a summary sentence generalization or interpretation of your findings related to that hypothesis
Limitations Paragraph
In 3 – 5 sentences, identify any issues that might affect your ability to generalize your research
Write a sentence or two describing how you could improve on this research to make the findings more generalizable
Directions for Future Research Paragraph/Policy Implications
Make two or three suggestions for future research. Write a sentence or two describing each and explaining how it furthers your research OR Make two or three suggestions for policy implications. Write a sentence of two describing each and explaining how your research supports that implication
Conclusion
In a sentence indicate the motive of your study
In a sentence describe your data and methods
In 3 – 5 sentences, summarize your findings
Make final, general statement about how your research makes a contribution to the literature, provides important policy implication, or suggests further research
References
Properly formatted references for at least 10 peer-reviewed journal articles. References section should start at the top of its own page.
Mechanics
Formatting and Fonts
Margins
Use standard margins
Spacing
Double-Space
Exceptions: blocked quotes, notes, captions, long headings—these should be single-spaced with double-space between items
It is standard to left-align your text, but I have a soft spot for justified text, so, if you prefer, you may “Justify” the text.
Fonts
Use a standard font in size 11 or 12.
Pagination
Number all pages beginning with the introduction.
Page numbers should appear at the bottom (L, C or R) of the page.
Headings
Can be made bold, italics, underlined, all caps, small caps, or centered (or any combination) and up to two font sizes larger than manuscript text font.
Should continue following double-space from previous text (do not put on another page unless it is to avoid a hanging heading—i.e. a heading without text immediately following it).
Length Requirement
There is no explicit length requirement for your paper, but you should aim for around 15 – 25 pages. This does not include tables and references. Papers shorter than the above recommendations are likely insufficient in meeting the content requirements, but papers exceeding the recommendations by more than 5 pages likely include too much information.
Citation Style
You will need to use a consistent style (like APA or ASA Style) for your paper. Resources for APA and ASA styles are found with an easy Google search. More help with these can be found on the links below.
APA Style Links
Penn State http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/lls/students/apa_citation.html
Purdue On-line Writing Lab http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Indiana University http://www.indiana.edu/~citing/APA.pdf
ASA Style Links
American Sociological Association http://www.asanet.org/documents/teaching/pdfs/Quick_Tips_for_ASA_Style.pdf
Purdue On-line Writing Lab http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/583/01/
