Journal Critique
You will write a journal critique on a article about one psychological disorder of your choice: Schizophrenia (considered the cancer of mental disorders), Anxiety (the most common mental disorder of the United States), Depressive Disorder (Mood disorder), Bipolar (Manic episodes), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (thoughts and actions like handwashing), Personality Disorder (Narcisstic) and Dissocative Identity Disorder (Alters). This should be no more than 3 pages not including the Cover and Reference page The article has to be less than 10 years old. Here are all the parts that should be included in the critique:
Introduction: to educate the reader on the topic/concept):
- will define topic, other key terms, symptoms, statistics of occurrence and current information in the field
- Main body: to explain the research conducted in the article, will state what you found in the journal article
- HYPOTHESIS:
- What were the researchers trying to discover (i.e. what was the hypothesis or purpose)?
- This is usually found at the beginning of the article. Usually the hypothesis or statement of a problem appears at the end of the review of the literature, most often in the last or next to last paragraph. The words that indicate that it is a hypothesis are, “We will examine. . .” or “Our hypothesis is . . .” In a statement of a problem, the researcher may say, “We plan to see if a relationship…,” “We proposed to observe…,” or “The problem we proposed to study…” (You must use your own words—do NOT use quotes).
- What were the researchers trying to discover (i.e. what was the hypothesis or purpose)?
- METHODOLOGY:
- How was the research conducted (research design or type of study)?
- Is the research descriptive (case study, naturalistic observation, laboratory observations, surveys, tests), correlation, experimental, or developmental? For more information on research methods, refer to chapter 1 of your text.
- When and where the research was conducted?
- How long did the study take?
- Who were the participants? (number [N], age, sex, criteria to be a part of study)?
- How was the research conducted (research design or type of study)?
- RESULTS/DISCUSSION:
- What did the researchers actually find in relation to their hypothesis/purpose?
- ARTICLE MAY STATE: The researchers found that . . .
- What limitations did the researchers reveal?
- What did the researchers actually find in relation to their hypothesis/purpose?
- Summary/conclusion: to show critical thinking in regards to the research)
- How does the information in the article integrate with information from class discussion, the text, and/or other information in the discipline?
- TIP: It is a good idea to use the subject index in your text to look up the topic in your text.
- What is your opinion of the research findings?
- EXAMPLE: was this research well done or not and why?
- Why is this topic/research important? (relevance/benefits to community and/or society)
- EXAMPLE: A conclusion to a study that suggests a new therapy/treatment for children with ADHD might help the child struggling to perform successfully in school, which then improves her confidence, her relationship with her parents, siblings, and classmates. Write about the implications of this new treatment.
- In what ways does this topic relate to your own personal experience and how is your experience in agreement or disagreement with the outcome of this study?
- How has your opinion of this topic changed since your review of the study?
- How does the information in the article integrate with information from class discussion, the text, and/or other information in the discipline?
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