SOWK 416/616: Research I: Research Paper

What are the different types of articles?  

• An empirical (research) article reports methods and findings of an original research study conducted by the authors. Empirical research relies on experience or involves observation
• A literature review discusses past research studies on a given topic and you can connect the studies thematically
• Conceptual research articles are related to an idea or theory. These type of articles  are used to develop new concepts or to reinterpret existing ones.

If you are not familiar with what empirical studies are and/or how to find them, the following links can be helpful:

• Social Work: Empirical Articles: Finding Empirical Articles - a LibGuide from Georgia State University Library explaining what empirical studies are and where to find them
• My instructor said that I needed to find "Empirical" articles. What should I do? - from Cal Poly Pomona. Pay attention to #2 -- search devices in different databases. Ignore the Ask Us section on the right as it is information pertinent to their library.
• Empirical Research - from CSU, Chicago, Meriam Library. Check out the Test your knowledge section
• Empirical Research in the Social Sciences and Education - a LibGuide from Penn State Libraries

• Empirical Research: Finding Empirical Research in Library Databases - note the keywords used for 'empirical studies' in ERIC and other medical databases

• Anatomy of a Research Paper
• Anatomy of a Scientific Paper
• How do I begin - helpful guide from Purdue OWL
• Research Paper, Qualitative Methodology, APA Style (Sociology) - from Writer's Help Hacker Handbooks
• Example of Quantitative Paper  from Trinity Washington University
• On Methods: What’s the difference between qualitative and quantitative approaches? - from the Chronicle of Evidence-based Mentoring, U Mass Boston
• Social Work Literature Review Guidelines - from Perdue OWL
• Conceptual vs. Empirical Research: Which Is Better? - from the enago academy

 

You may have an assignment that asks you to read a research paper and critique it. You start reading the paper but it is long and boring (!) and you may not have any clue how to comprehend it! 'How to Read a Paper' series from The BMJ is a go to source when it comes to learning how to read a research paper.

Here's the link to the following articles:

• Papers that go beyond numbers (qualitative research) Trisha Greenhalgh, Rod Taylor
• Papers that summarise other papers (systematic reviews and meta-analyses) Trisha Greenhalgh
• Papers that tell you what things cost (economic analyses) Trisha Greenhalgh
• Papers that report diagnostic or screening tests Trisha Greenhalgh
• Papers that report drug trials Trisha Greenhalgh
• Statistics for the non-statistician. II: "Significant" relations and their pitfalls Trisha Greenhalgh
• Statistics for the non-statistician Trisha Greenhalgh
• Assessing the methodological quality of published papers Trisha Greenhalgh
• Getting your bearings (deciding what the paper is about) Trisha Greenhalgh
• The Medline database Trisha Greenhalgh