Forum Thesis: Research hypotheses are tested through many different types of study designs.
For the following five forums, you will be given a discussion topic that requires you to find one peer-reviewed research article. Once you find that article, you will summarize it and post your summary in the discussion, as well as turn it in for an assignment grade. Lastly, you will comment on at least two other students’ research article selections.
Forum 3-6 have “hot” topics of interest that relate to the material we are learning. Where do you find a peer-reviewed research study? The APUS library is a great resource and/or you can use PubMed or Google Scholar. During the first week, your textbook explained the many types of research articles. Now you need to find one that is peer-reviewed and published in the research literature. Here is a video that can help: Finding a Peer-Reviewed Research Article (Transcript can be accessed at the host site).
A peer-reviewed research study usually has these sections: introduction, methods, results with figures and tables, and a conclusion. The sections may not be labeled with these exact words, but the paper is designed to report the results of a research study. The exception will be systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
A research article is not a review article. A research article reports the results of a research study. You can tell the difference between a research article and a review article because a review article summarizes several research studies. I attached an example of a peer-reviewed research study and a peer-reviewed review paper. The library has several resources to help clarify research articles and review articles. Here are several links:
How do I find peer-reviewed or scholarly articles?
What’s the difference between a research article (or research study) and a review article?
What does “peer-reviewed” mean?
For this forum, you will find one published peer-reviewed scientific article that fits your assigned topic. Find the first letter of your last name, and that is your assigned topic. For example, if your last name is Smith, your task is to find a systematic literature review and answer the questions below.
If your last name starts with…
Find a research article that is a…
I-L
Prospective cohort studies
Again, to find a peer-reviewed research article, use our library, Google Scholar, or try PubMed (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/).You may have to look at several articles before you find one. Once you find a paper describing a peer-reviewed research study, read the paper. The first couple of articles you read may be difficult to understand, but you will become accustomed to the genre and format after reading a few articles.
After you have read the article, draft your post in Word. Be sure to use the grammar and spelling tools available in Word because you will be submitting your initial post for grading as an assignment as well as posting it in the forum discussion. Your post must include the following:
Paper’s citation
Impact factor of the journal
Type of study design
A brief introduction of the topic and the specific aim(s) of the study
Study groups
A summary of methods includes the study design, for example, how long the study was and the methods used, such as survey or Elisa to detect hormone levels.
A brief summary of the results that support the most relevant findings.
List at least two findings or conclusions from the study.
A brief explanation of how the study supports or refutes the forum thesis.
Since this is an upper-level class and a writing assignment, it is anticipated that your summary may be around 500 words. Be succinct; longer is not necessarily better. Paragraphs are an excellent way to separate the different sections, and you are welcome to have headings for each paragraph. Include references where needed. You do not have to follow a specific citation format, but you must provide all the information so the reader can find the article. If you use references besides the paper you summarize, don’t forget to show where you cite that reference in the text.
This summary will serve as your initial post and must be posted by midnight, Wednesday of the forum discussion week. Also, you must submit your initial forum post in the assignment area (under Forum 2 assignment) by Sunday midnight.
Once you have posted your initial discussion, you must reply to at least two other learners’ posts. Since your forum grade will reflect in part your response to at least two other learners, be sure to make these substantial. A substantial post may be more than 100 words. Here are suggestions to make those responses substantial. How does their post support the forum’s thesis? For this forum, is it an accurate reflection of the type of study they were to find?
Discussion Guidelines
