How to Critique Journal Articles in the Social Sciences

Title Page
Contents
Preface
About the Author
Chapter 1 - Social Research versus Ordinary Ways of Knowing
	Ordinary Human Inquiry
	Seven Differences between Ordinary Human Inquiry and Social Science
		Conceptualizing the Topic
		Reading the Literature: Quantity and Quality
		Research Design
		Taking Careful Measurements
		Collecting Samples
		Analyzing Data and Presenting Results
		Ethics and Politics
	Conclusion
Chapter 2 - What Is a Journal Article?
	Journal Articles versus Articles Published in Popular Outlets
		1. Journal articles are usually lengthier than popular articles.
		2. Journal articles take more time to compose.
		3. Journal articles involve extensive reviews of the literature.
		4. Journal articles typically involve more rigorous exploration of theoretical assumptions.
		5. Academic journals are usually competitive and the editors accept a minority of submissions.
		6. Academic journal articles are evaluated by an anonymous panel of experts before being accepted for publication.
		7. Journal articles often report the results of authors’ original research, using empirical data that is collected via careful methodological strategies.
	Journal Articles versus Chapters in Books
		1. Compared to the articles that appear in an issue of a journal, the chapters of a book are usually more closely related to each other, often “flowing” in a linear or cumulative fashion.
		2. Chapters in edited books are more frequently invited submissions rather than open submissions.
		3. Book chapters are less likely to undergo the same rigorous peer-review process that journal articles do.
	Where Can Scholarly Articles Be Found? The Diverse Landscape of Academic Journals
	What Gets Published in Academic Journals? Other Scholarly Works besides Empirical Research Articles
		1. Book Reviews and Review Essays
		2. Theoretical Treatises
		3. Literature Reviews
		4. Methodological Pieces
		5. Notes, Commentaries, and Responses
	And Finally: What Do Conventional Articles Look Like? The Typical Format of the Standard Journal Article
		1. Title and Abstract
		2. Introduction and Literature Review
		3. Methods Section
		4. Findings
		5. Discussion and Conclusion
		6. Endnotes and Footnotes
		7. References
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 3 - Defining Key Terms
	Defining Concepts in Everyday Life
	Defining Concepts in Journal Articles
		1. Sometimes authors neglect to define terms.
		2. Sometimes authors implicitly define terms.
		3. Sometimes authors explicitly define terms.
	Two Reasons Why Concepts Can Be Criticized
		1. Ambiguity and the Dilemma of Infinite Regress
		2. Arbitrariness and the Lack of Definitional Consensus
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 4 - Literature Reviews
	Finding Imperfections in Literature Reviews
		1. What counts as “relevant” research?
		2. What is relevant within a publication?
		3. What does the existing literature mean?
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 5 - Research Design
	Designing Course Evaluations
	How to Critique Authors’ Research Designs
		1. Certain research designs tend to have standard or recurring pros and cons. Look for these in the authors’ methodology.
		2. Imagine different designs that could be used to study the same topic.
		3. Find and compare articles that use different designs to study (approximately) the same topic.
		4. Imagine alternative designs that the researchers could have used if they had fewer or no constraints.
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 6 - Measurement
	Operationalization in Everyday Life
	Scholars’ Measurements Are (Usually) Better than Laypersons’
		1. Social scientists carefully think through how best to measure something.
		2. Scholars usually attempt to use consistent, systematic measurement procedures throughout a study.
		3. Researchers tell their readers exactly how they measured something, so that others can find flaws and propose better measures.
	Critiquing Measures
		Measuring Binge Drinking
		Measuring Marital Equality
		Miscellaneous Examples
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 7 - Sampling
	Three Reasons Researchers Usually Do a Better Job with Sampling
		1. Researchers’ samples seem, on average, larger than those collected in everyday life.
		2. Researchers’ samples are usually selected with more care than those collected in everyday life.
		3. Researchers (usually) tell readers who or what was included in their samples.
	How to Find Imperfections in Researchers’ Samples
		1. Look for authors’ admissions of limitations.
		2. Build on the authors’ admissions of limitations.
		3. Look for any other ways that the sample may be significantly different than the population that researchers want to generalize about.
	Conclusion
	Endnote
Chapter 8 - Analysis
	The Analytical Strengths of Social Research
		1. Social scientists carefully scrutinize their data using sophisticated analytical techniques, and they report their findings precisely and cautiously.
		2. Social scientists base their analyses on theoretical arguments about the constraints that shape human behavior.
	Finding Analytical Weaknesses in Social Research
		1. Selective Analysis
		2. Causal Order
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 9 - Ethics
	Ethics in Everyday Life: Casual Snooping and Gossip
	Ethical Practices that Set Social Research Above Ordinary Human Inquiry
	Ethical Dilemmas
	Finding Imperfections in Researchers’ Ethics
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 10 - Politics
	Critiquing Authors’ Politics
		1. How do researchers justify the topics they choose to study?
		2. Do researchers maximize or minimize the impact their articles could have?
	Conclusion
	Endnotes
Chapter 11 - Why Read Journal Articles--and Think Critically about Them?
	1. College graduates—and especially social science majors—should know how to find and evaluate primary sources.
	2. Learning to evaluate journal articles can make you a better researcher.
	3. Learning to evaluate journal articles can be useful for a variety of careers.
	4. Learning to evaluate journal articles might prove useful whenever you want greater insight into your life or the world around you.
	Not the Last Word
	Endnote
References
Author Index
Subject Index