Guidelines for First Draft. I will upload the instruction as a pdf to make it easier. I need this paper before 10pm eastern time.
Here is an outline for organizing the paper. Please do not deviate outside of the instructions. Be sure to refer to the original handout that details to over all assignment as well! In this handout, I’ll add a bit of detail for each section:
Introduction: – Give the reader a “hook.” This could involve a couple of things: start with a broad ques- tion (for example, “why do some countries democratize?”) and then move to your specific question (for example, “do major shocks to the economy make democratization more likely?”) which could then be followed by a brief statement of your theory; or, you could start with an anecdote that details the causal mechanism and research question (for ex- ample, a story about a voter in Wisconsin who went for Obama in 2012 but switched to Trump in 2016 to explain your theory of swing voters). – No matter how you set up your introduction, it should detail to the reader the topic of your paper as well as briefly outline your causal mechanism.
Previous literature: – This is pretty straight forward. Take your sources from your annotated bibliography and tell a story about what we do and do not know about your topic. – What you want to avoid are six unrelated paragraphs for each source or “mini book re- ports.” Focus on the big picture and how your sources inform what we do or do not know about your topic. – Because you are presumably not experts on your topic and are only detailing six sources, I recognize this won’t be a complete summary, but do your best with what you have. • Your argument: – What is your explanation for why x causes y? – State your hypothesis of course, but be sure to detail why you believe that hypothesis is true. – Assume your reader is unfamiliar with your topic—be more detailed than you perhaps think is necessary. • Research design: – How will you measure your variables? – Which hypothesis test would you use? Is difference of means, χ2, or Pearson’s r most appropriate? Briefly state why you think the test you have chosen is the most appropriate. The answer to this question depends on the level of measurement of your variables. – For the first draft, this is enough. You’ll add a description of multiple regression and other variables you’d include in your model in the final draft.
