Components of the Draft =Literature Review, Mock Research Proposal, References
1. Find 3 journal articles on your topic
Write a summary of each article (approximately ½ of a page to 2/3 of a page in length for each article), describing how the study was conducted (each summary will include the following information):
a. name(s) of the authors
b. Major findings of the study (a few sentences)
c. Who were the participants (how many) and how did they find/recruit them
d. Where was the study conducted (e.g., in what type of setting, in what county, state or region)
e. What did they do with the participants or have the participants do (explain in a few sentences; if assessments were given, mention the name of the assessments, if known)
f. What materials did they look at (or collect)
g. What was the length of time of the study (optional, unless the study was longitudinal, i.e., followed the participants over a period of time)
h. Describe 2 limitations of the study that might make it difficult to generalize the findings to other settings or other populations
2. Write up a mock (hypothetical) research proposal (a study that you will not conduct, but your assumption is that you would have a HUGE grant for such a study).
a. Use the guidelines from the list above (only items C-G) to describe your proposed study
b. Remember, there will not be results nor will there be limitations
c. Make sure your study is realistic (e.g., you can’t depend on doing a study in every correctional facility in the country, or running your own groups in a residential center, or starting a new treatment – some places won’t agree)
d. This can be written up in outline format
3. Write up a Reference section
a. This should list the 3 articles you used.
b. It should be in APA format (you can find the link to the format on the Sealey Library Homepage)
c. Remember, the articles should be listed in alphabetical order by the last name of the author
Examples of APA format for listing journal articles:
Ash, P. (2006). Adolescents in Adult Court: Does the Punishment Fit the Criminal? The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law 34, 2, 145- 149.
Ford, Chapman, Connor & Cruise (2012). Complex Trauma and Aggression in Secure Juvenile Justice Settings. Criminal Justice and Behavior 39, 6, 694-724.
Please note: in the body of the article summary you might write this as: Ford et al. (2012)
Overview of Paper Requirements (aka, how is the Finalized Paper different than the draft?)
If your draft is submitted in a timely manner, you will receive feedback on how to tweak your paper to get the best grade you can. The feedback will consist of comments, questions (and corrections as needed)
Your Draft is likely to be 3 pages long (not counting a title page and References); your Finalized Paper should be 10-12 pages (not counting a title page and References)
Required sections of the Finalized Paper:
1. The Literature Review for the Draft consists of 3 peer reviewed articles. You will need to add 4-7 more articles in order for the Literature Review section of the Finalized Paper to be complete.
2. Summary and Conclusions – this section was not in the Draft. This section requires that you look at the major findings of all the articles you used, and see where there are similarities and differences (1-2 paragraphs)
3. The Mock Research Proposal will have more details than when it was in Draft form. You’ll use the feedback from the Draft to guide what additional information is needed (it will be 1-2 pages long)
4. References – a list of the peer-reviewed journal articles you used
