Chapter 1. How To Read a Scientific Article

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Psychologists publish their research findings in peer-reviewed, scientific journals. Scientific journal articles are different from news articles or blog posts that you might find through a typical Internet search. When you read news articles or blog posts about a research study, you can’t assume these sources accurately interpret the study’s findings or appropriately emphasize what the study’s original authors think is important. For a full description of the background, methodology, results, and the application of a research study’s findings, you must read a scientific article.

The figure shows the first page of a scientific article. You can find scientific journal articles through online journal databases such as PsycINFO, available through your school library, or Google Scholar, a search engine accessible on any computer. Search results can provide references that follow a standard format, like this: firth the authors, then the publication year, title of the article, title of the journal, volume number, page numbers, and digital object identifier. At first glance, scientific articles can seem overwhelming. It helps to know what you will find in a typical article. Scientific articles follow a specific organizational style and include the following elements: title, authors, abstract, keywords, introduction, method, results, discussion, and references. Abstract is a brief description of entire article. It helps you quickly decide if the article describes research you are interested in. Keywords identify themes or topics of article. They can be used to search for similar articles. Introduction explains topic of study, relevant previous research, and specific goals and hypotheses. Method describes how study was conducted. It provides details about participants, materials and procedures, allowing the study to be replicated. Results describe data collected and outcome of study. Often they include tables, graphs or figures. Discussion interprets results to determine support or lack of support for the research hypotheses. Often it reports study’s limitations, contributions, and implications for future research. References list all of the articles cited. This is a great place to look for additional research articles.

QUESTION: In a full citation of an article found in a professional psychology journal, which of the following pieces of information would appear first?
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Correct.
Incorrect.

QUESTION: Dr. Phillipi is writing an article to be published in the Journal of Professional Psychology. She knows that as part of this article she will have to provide a brief description of the entire article, and that this description will be found at the start of her paper. What is this brief description called?
Correct.
Incorrect.

QUESTION: In which of the following sections of a professional journal article would you be most likely to find ideas for additional research articles on the topic you’ve just read about?
Correct.
Incorrect.

QUESTION: The reference for a complete journal article follows a specific format. Which of the following pieces of information is not found in such a reference?
Correct.
Incorrect.

QUESTION: You are writing an article that will summarize the research you have done in your particular field of psychology. There is a lot of data to present, and you have decided to do so using a series of charts and graphs so that the reader will have all of that information in one place. In which section of a standard scientific article would these graphs and charts be most likely to appear?
Correct.
Incorrect.
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