SWK 355: Research in Social Welfare: Home

1. Find an article that qualifies as academic (not a news article) and is from a scholarly, peer-reviewed journal. The article can be on any topic related to social work or social welfare.
2. Read and critique the article based on several questions, including what is its purpose, who is the sample, what are the research methods, results, etc.

What does empirical mean?

Various components of a scholarly research article:

1. Abstract
2. Introduction
3. Literature review
4. Methodology (you are looking for empirical/original research)
5. Results
6. Discussion
7. Conclusion
8. References

Is this journal article scholarly/peer-reviewed?

1. Limiting a database search to peer-reviewed journals only
2. Check in the database Ulrich's, called "Refereed"
3. Examine the journal: does it have an abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, and references? Are the articles written by scholarly researchers in the field that the journal pertains to? Is advertising non-existent, or kept to a minimum? 

There are a number of databases at Carmichael library that will help you find sources for your paper. Please select one from below to begin searching for scholarly, peer-reviewed content. Use keywords from your research topic to craft your search:

This assignment is the opening to your research project and serves as the background for why your research question should be studied and what has already been studied recently. It includes an introduction to the topic, purpose or rationale for the study, significance of the study, and a review of the literature.

What IS a research question?

• clear: it provides enough specifics that your audience can easily understand its purpose without needing additional explanation.
• focused: it is narrow enough that it can be answered thoroughly in the space allowed
• concise: it is expressed in the fewest possible words.
• complex: it is not answerable with a simple “yes” or “no,” but rather requires synthesis and analysis of ideas and sources prior to composition of an answer.
• arguable: its potential answers are open to debate rather than accepted facts.

Example:

How can we stop human trafficking?

vs.

What kind of training would prepare social workers to identify and respond to cases of human trafficking that might otherwise go unnoticed or unaddressed?

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