Where to Begin (Hint: It is Not the Abstract!)

Begin with The Introduction

While the abstract may appear first, reading a paper's introduction can help you better understand what the authors are trying to prove, rather than what they feel they did prove. It helps you remain unbiased about the method and findings. The abstract is a dense, author-provided summary of the entire paper. It explains the conclusions drawn by the authors before you've analyzed how they came to those results. 

 

Understanding the Big Picture

Identify the Research Question

What question are the authors attempting to answer?

Additional Questions to Consider:

• What do the authors claim they're trying to prove?
• Do they have a motive or agenda for trying to prove this?
• Are the research questions explicitly stated and identified?

Tip: Write down the research question(s) to keep in mind as you read.

Understand the Background

The literature review section provides background on the current research. Read the literature review with the goal of understanding:

1. What related work has been done in the field prior to this research?
2. How does the problem under study relate to the broader discipline?
3. What led the authors to ask their research question?
4. How will answering this research question benefit the field?

Tip: Try writing your own quick summary of the background information to make sure you have a solid understanding.

 

Getting into the Details

Read Through the Methods Section
Use the following strategies and questions to guide your reading:

• Identify the variables used in the study. Does the author define the variables and do the definitions make sense to you?

• Are causal relations among variables being tested in this study? If so, identify the independent, dependent, and (if they exist) intervening variables.

• Summarize the methodology used by the author(s). Are the methods used consistent with other research cited in the article? Is enough information presented that the research could be replicated (i.e. verifiability)?

• Is there any bias in the design?

• How was the data collected? Was it obtained from a sample of a population? If so, identify the population and how the sample was selected.

Tip: You may find it helpful to draw out diagrams to visually represent experiments in the methods section.

Read and Interpret the Results

First, read through the results section with the intention of understanding what the results are without looking for what they indicate. Use these guiding questions to locate and understand the results:

• How is the data presented? Look for graphs, tables, and other figures that may hold data.

• Identify the inferential statistics used, if any. Were the appropriate tests conducted?

• Were the results considered statistically significant? 

Next, consider what you believe these results indicate:

• What do you think the data from the results section mean?
• Did the author(s) succeed in answering their initial research question?

 

Understanding the Implications

Read the Discussion, Conclusion, or other Interpretive Section

In this section, the authors will outline their interpretation of the data relayed in the results section. Consider the following as you read:

• What do the authors believe the results indicate?
• How does the authors' interpretation of the results differ from your own? Do you agree or disagree with their assessment?
• Do the authors identify any limitations or weaknesses of their study? Are there any you can identify that they have not listed?
• Are the conclusions drawn fully supported by the results?
• What future research directions are recommended (if any)?

 

Back to the Beginning

Go back and read the abstract. Does it match the study you have just read through? If not, what changes could you make to improve it?