Assignment 1: Critical review
Teaching period 2, 2019
PSY10005: Introduction to Research Methods
Assignment 1: Critical review
Word limit: 1000 (+/- 10%)
Weighting: 15%
Due date: 5pm AEST Monday 12 August 2019 (Week 6)
After you have read this information, head over to the Assignment 1 Q&A discussion board to ask any questions and see what your peers are saying about this assignment.
Assignment overview
Assignment details
Step 1: Choosing an article to review
Read the articles in the List of articles for critical review. You may have questions about the articles as you read; leave time to review the learning materials and answer them.
Select only one article to review. You may use the remaining articles as supporting literature to help you build your argument, but a well-constructed review might require you to conduct further research through the Swinburne Library.
Step 2: Writing your critical review
Write a critical review of your selected article, including the following:
• Title Page (not included in word count) – Criterion 1
o Title Page should be in APA format and include an informative title that makes sense.
• Introduction (approx. 100 words) – Criterion 2
o The introduction should say why the general subject of the research article being evaluated is important or interesting and what you are going to do (e.g. 'This critical review will ... '). Your final sentence should state your overall judgment about the strength of the article.
• Summary (400 words) – Criterion 3
o Provide summary of author’s research question/hypotheses, major arguments/ideas, strengths/weaknesses and conclusions.
• Critical evaluation (approx. 400 words) – Criterion 4
o You can find information regarding critically evaluating resources in the marking guide below. If you are unsure of how you would go about critically evaluating, please have a go at 3.5 Activity: Critical review generator as it will provide you with a starting point.
• Conclusion (approx. 100 words) – Criterion 5
o The conclusion should provide a summary of the major points of your argument, and your overall evaluation of the research article. Perhaps consider what the article has contributed to your understanding and to the development of knowledge in this area of research.
• Writing Style – Criterion 6
o Please consider general spelling, grammar and paragraph structure. Must include relevant sub headings and use appropriate topic/linking sentences. All headings and formatting must conform to APA format.
• References (in APA style) – Criterion 7
o Include a reference list in APA style. It should be presented on its own page with a separate heading. You may find the APA quick guide (Links to an external site.) useful.
Please note that the allocation of words to each section is a guideline, and will vary across individual assignments. This guide to writing critical reviews will assist you.
Note that your evaluation should go beyond a simple 'good' or 'not good'. Rather, you are evaluating the extent to which the argument is supported by the evidence, and the extent to which the methods address the research question. (Tip: Don't forget the strengths. It is unlikely that the paper is perfect, but as it is a published article, it probably has some strengths as well.)
Submission details overview
Assignment criteria
Assessment declaration
All students must agree to the following declaration when submitting assignment items.
Declaration and Statement of Authorship
1. I have not impersonated, or allowed myself to be impersonated by any person for the purposes of this assignment.
2. This assignment is my/our original work and no part of it has been copied from any other source except where due acknowledgement is made.
3. No part of this assignment has been written for me by any other person except where such collaboration has been authorised by the lecturer/teacher concerned.
4. I have not previously submitted this work for this or any other course/unit.
5. I give permission for my assignment response to be reproduced, communicated, compared and archived for plagiarism detection, benchmarking or educational purposes.
I understand that:
• Plagiarism is the presentation of another person's work as though it is your own. It is a form of cheating and is a very serious academic offence that may lead to exclusion from the university.
• Plagiarised material may be drawn from published and unpublished written documents, interpretations, computer software, designs, music, sounds, images, photographs, and ideas or ideological frameworks gained through working with another person or in a group.
• Plagiarised material can be drawn from, and presented in, written, graphic and visual form, including electronic data and oral presentations. Plagiarism occurs when the origin of the material used is not appropriately cited.
I agree and acknowledge that:
1. I have read and understood the Declaration and Statement of Authorship above.
2. I accept that use of my Swinburne account to electronically submit this assignment constitutes my agreement to the Declaration and Statement of Authorship.
3. If I do not agree to the Declaration and Statement of Authorship in this context, the assessment outcome may not be valid for assessment purposes and may not be included in my aggregate score for this unit.
4. I am aware that it is not acceptable to resubmit the same piece of work (in part or as whole) for multiple assignments without permission from the Unit Coordinator.
Penalties for plagiarismLinks to an external site. range from a formal caution to expulsion from the university, and are detailed in the Student Academic Misconduct Regulations 2012.Links to an external site.
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