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The pause is an exceedingly important feature in any kind of story, and a frequently recurring feature, too. It is a dainty thing, and delicate, and also uncertain and treacherous; for it must be exactly the right length - no more and no less - or it fails of its purpose and makes trouble.

— Mark Twain

Usually, term or research papers are assigned to give you an opportunity to apply what you’ve learned in lecture, reading, and class discussion to a problem or issue in the subject you’re studying. Your work should demonstrate that you’ve become familiar with scholarship on your topic, that you’ve understood that scholarship, and that you can contribute something to it—your own opinion, perspective, or point of view.

Develop a Research Question and Thesis

You’ll probably start with a fairly broad topic idea, such as women in World War II. Read widely in related literature to find out what questions have been asked about your subject and how others have answered them. Once you have an understanding of what others have said about the topic, narrow it.

Next, pose a question about your topic that would be interesting to your readers. They will want to know how your research contributes to an understanding of the scholarship on the topic. For example, if you’re writing an academic paper addressed to anthropologists, consider why they might find war brides of interest. An anthropologist is interested in cultures and how they form, so you might relate the topic to the conditions under which people join together to form support organizations.

Once you have the question, you’ll look for an answer in the research, and this will be your thesis.

Do the Research

If your research is incomplete or sloppy, your paper will be as well. To find appropriate sources, talk to a reference librarian or check the University Libraries’ home page under “Research Guides” or “Class Resources.” It’s important to find scholarly sources that are respected in the discipline you’re writing for.

It’s vital that keep track of your research. A well-documented paper serves a number of purposes:

Carefully record any words and ideas you’d like to use. You’ll need this information when you are writing so that you can quote accurately and fairly. Be sure to consult a style guide for correct documentation practices. Common style guides include MLA, APA, and Chicago (these books are available at the library, or see our guide on Documentation Styles ).

Information you must record

Methods of organizing research notes

Select one method and stick to it. Below are some ideas:

Thesis: The swine flu scare was mostly a media creation.

Read the Research Critically

Critical reading actually starts as critical thinking. Ask yourself: What am I reading to learn or find? How does this relate to my research question?

The following questions can help you decide what is important as you read each text.

Knowing more about the genre (i.e., the kind of text it is) can help you know what to expect from the work. If the text is a critical analysis, for example, it will evaluate the authenticity or accuracy of something—say an idea or a performance. If the work is a research study, the article will present the purpose, methods, and results of the study. If the text is an argument, it will present a claim and evidence for the claim.

Critical Reading Tips

In addition to asking these questions while you read, you can use some of these tips to help you concentrate and notice important information.

Your work isn’t done once you’ve finished reading. Think about the text. Review your notes or comments. In some cases, you’ll find yourself questioning the text’s claims, evidence, or results; even if you accept the findings, asking yourself critical questions about what you’ve read will help solidify your familiarity with the text. Thinking about the text and reviewing your notes will help you remember what information you found. You may also find it helpful to discuss your topic or research with a peer or teacher.

Organize Content

Titles. Your title should describe what the paper addresses and should contain key words that will help others find it in a database. Often titles describe the type of research, the scope or setting of the research, and sometimes hint at the findings.

Introduction. Use the introduction to interest the reader in the research problem you are investigating. For example, perhaps readers need to know more about WWII era war brides and the challenges they faced so they can better understand why they needed support. Use the introduction to state your thesis—that is, a short statement of your argument or your perspective.

Review of the Literature. In a term or research paper, a large portion of the content is your report on the research you read about your topic (called the literature ). You’ll need to summarize and discuss how others view the topic, and even more important, provide your own perspective.

Organize your research as you discuss it. One way is to comment on it from the perspective of your thesis. For example, you might be examining how teenage pregnancy affects the educational level of mothers, and you find some scholars stress negative effects, while others stress positive effects. Use this pattern as your organization: first discuss the negative effects, then the positive. Another way to organize is by topic: for example in a paper on war brides, the first half might focus on how forming clubs helped war brides adjust to their new culture and the second half might discuss how the clubs provided support in times of crisis.

Conclusion. Use the conclusion to restate the research question, reinforce your thesis, and discuss the wider significance of the problem. Perhaps you have a point of view, but you feel that it would be stronger if further research was conducted; perhaps you conclude that theories advanced by the research you read don’t really explain the topic or solve the problem; perhaps you feel that your topic has been neglected by scholars and deserves more attention. Or you may discuss applications for the field—does the research suggest that a new procedure or policy be adopted?

The prose style of a term paper should be formal, clear, concise, and direct. Don’t try to sound “academic” or “scientific.” Just present solid research in a straightforward manner.

Use the documentation style prescribed in your assignment or the one preferred by the discipline you’re writing for. Don’t mix styles or just copy and paste from works cited pages. Be sure your documentation style is consistent.

Bean, John, Virginia A. Chappell, and Alice M. Gillam. Reading Rhetorically . 2nd brief ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2007.

Kennedy, Mary Lynch, and Hadley M. Smith. Reading and Writing in the Academic Community . 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall-Pearson, 2010.

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The dietrich school of arts & sciences department of psychology.

Writing Research Papers

Writing research papers toward your assignment.

Please plan ahead if you anticipate submitting papers--they MUST be turned in by the deadline if you wish to receive a grade for the term. Do not wait until the last minute to submit papers. Failure to plan ahead to add an account to Canvas or a failure to upload the paper at the last minute due to an error on Canvas will not change the deadline. It is your responsibility to plan well in advance of the deadline. Papers are due by 11:59 PM the Friday of the last week of undergraduate classes as listed on Pitt's academic calendar (i.e., this week includes the date marked as "Last day for undergraduate day classes" on the calendar) . This is to make sure there is enough time to grade them for your final grade. Given the volume of papers, exceptions to this deadline cannot be made.

This page includes a list of papers that you can review. These papers were chosen because they describe important studies in the field and because they represent the diversity of the field of psychology. The list of papers can be located here: List of Papers .

If you would prefer to write papers toward your research assignment, follow the guidelines below.

STEP ONE: Join the Canvas course associated with the paper assignment by clicking this link: http://pi.tt/IntroPsychPapers

STEP TWO: Choose an article from the list and read it. All papers are available from the University Library (some are online, others may be available only in hard copy). Some articles have electronic versions linked directly from this page. NOTE: you must read the actual article listed here--not just a summary of it. If you have difficulty locating them, please contact a librarian.

STEP THREE: Write a paper about the article you read. Be sure that you include eight clearly labeled and numbered sections of the paper (in this order):

Additional requirements:

STEP FOUR: Turn the paper in to the Assignment on the Canvas course. There will be one for each paper. Use Paper 1 for the first paper and Paper 2 for the second paper, and so on. Do not use revision assignments unless explicitly asked to do so . If you revised a paper and need to resubmit and the deadline has not yet passed, submit it under the SAME assignment, not a revision assignment. It will replace the previous submission.

DO NOT send your paper via email.

The Turnitin software we use thorugh Canvas checks for plagiarism, so be certain that all of the information is written in your own words . Plagiarism includes but is not limited to: copying the work of another individual, copying someone's words and then replacing some of those words to try to make it different, and sharing your work with another student (see http://plagiarism.org for more information). You are expected to comply with the University of Pittsburgh’s Policy on Academic Integrity at all times while a student at the university. Any student suspected of violating this obligation will be required to participate in the procedural process as outlined in the University Guidelines on Academic Integrity. For this assignment, it is also considered an ethical violation if you turn in an assignment with another student’s name on it, and both students will be subject to the penalties outlined above. For more information about the academic integrity code and violation procedures, see the academic integrity code for the School of Arts and Sciences here (linked to https://www.as.pitt.edu/faculty/policies-and-procedures/academic-integrity-code ). Further questions can be directed to [email protected] . Note that we have set up the assignment so that you can see your overlap a short time after you turn in your assignment. We strongly recommend that you look at this report as soon as it is generated, and that if you have more than 5% overlap, you rewrite the sections of the assignment that have overlap with published sources or student papers. This is just a rough guideline, but papers that have freshly generated text typically do not have more than 5% overlap with these sources. Finally, for this assignment, it will not be considered plagiarism If the overlap occurs in the citation; the software is set to ignore this section.

STEP FIVE: Credit will be awarded on Sona for all papers submitted by the deadline posted above. Note that there are hundreds of papers submitted every semester, so please be patient in waiting for a score. Because of the volume of papers and other related tasks, the deadlines noted on this page must be strictly observed.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact [email protected] . Note that your instructor is not in charge of this assignment so likely cannot assist with questions about it.

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Research Papers

Publisher: Federal Reserve Bank of New York Call Number: HG2401.R437 Bound Holdings: #91-01 - 98-22; lacks 92-20, 93-04, 94-03 Unbound Holdings: 1995+

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COMMENTS

How Do You Make an Acknowledgment in a Research Paper?
To make an acknowledgement in a research paper, a writer should express thanks by using the full or professional names of the people being thanked and should specify exactly how the people being acknowledged helped.
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Writing a research paper is a bit more difficult that a standard high school essay. You need to site sources, use academic data and show scientific examples. Before beginning, you’ll need guidelines for how to write a research paper.
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A complete research paper in APA style that is reporting on experimental research will typically contain a Title page, Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results
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Research Papers
A research paper should demonstrate that you've become familiar with scholarship on your topic, that you've understood that scholarship, and that you can
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Writing Research Papers
If you would prefer to write papers toward your research assignment, follow the guidelines below. STEP ONE: Join the Canvas course associated with the paper
Research Papers
Research Papers. Publisher: Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Call Number: HG2401.R437. Bound Holdings: #91-01 - 98-22; lacks 92-20, 93-04, 94-03.