Article Critique Assignment
Your paper should
-be two to three pages in length, double-spaced,
-begin with a correct and full APA-6 citation for the journal article,
-have 1″ margins all the way around,
-be typed in a 12-point standard font like Arial or Times New Roman,
-be otherwise generally formatted in the writing style of the APA (6th edition of the style guide), and
-be generally well-written and formal
In general, an article critique should be written clearly enough that someone who has never read the article can follow the logic of what the researchers did.
Some of the topics your paper should cover (this is not necessarily an exhaustive list):
Discuss the topic, theory, and hypotheses being tested in the article you’ve read.
Identify all IVs and DVs, and describe how they were operationally defined.
Describe the results of the research and the authors’ interpretations.
Point out potential flaws, things you would have done differently, questions still unanswered, etc.
This last part is the most important, because this is the “critiquing” portion of the assignment, and you are being asked for a reaction to this work. Do not assume that since this is published that it is perfect – it’s not. Tell me what you think is wrong, but make sure to back it up. Why is it wrong? What would you have done differently?
Be careful not to give me your opinions about the authors’ choice of research topic, etc. Even if you are not interested in the topic, they are. Everything that you’ve learned about research design and quality issues should bear on your evaluations of this research. Don’t criticize or praise the work without backing up what you say using what you’ve learned.
