article review apa

article review apa

The Importance of Using APA Format in Article Reviews

1. Introduction

APA style is a writing style and format for academic documents such as scholarly journal articles and books. It is commonly used for citing sources within the field of behavioral and social sciences. It is described in the style guide of the American Psychological Association (APA), which is titled the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. This writing guide not only elaborates on the writing style, but also on the paper format, the citation rules of certain sources, and the way one may need to construct the complete record of the entire research. This format is used widely among those who write psychology and social science research and research articles. Many colleges have indeed adapted this style of writing, including courses at Trinity Western University. This document is an overview on how to do an APA formatted paper as well as how to write an abstract. APA (American Psychological Association) is a writing style that is used to cite references within the social sciences field. APA is a guide that is used to connect readers with information that is widely used/imported. This guide provides clear examples of sample APA citing for a wide array of different sources. Not only should the reader find the source easy to read, providing concise information, but the reader should also find the article easy to access should they choose to retrieve the information for any reason later on. APA is widely used by many of the behavioral and social sciences, which is why this guide is treasured.

2. Understanding APA Format

It is extremely important to fully understand the APA format for article review. This format is structured in a way that makes it very easy to understand, once you get the hang of it. There are six types of articles that are published: 1) Empirical studies, 2) Literature reviews, 3) Theoretical articles, 4) Methodological articles, 5) Case studies, and 6) Meta-analyses. The first thing you will want to do is visit the APA help guide website that can assist you with referencing. The article that you choose should be one that interests you so it makes it easier to write. The first step in your article review is choosing the article. It should be one that is from a credible source; an article that you would use for a research paper. Summarize the article, making sure to introduce the topic and the author’s hypothesis. The introduction of the review should provide some background about the article, and the writer should state his/her purpose in writing the article. This may include the author’s claim, how the data from the article is going to be used, and the writer’s theoretical orientation. Then, the article is to be summarized. This is where the six types of articles come into play. Make sure to identify which type of article is being reviewed, and in what way it is related to your assignment.

3. Benefits of Using APA Format in Article Reviews

Following a few simple guidelines will help the review writer to create a good article review that provides the reader with a sound understanding and an objective evaluation of the topic. The review writer’s goal should be an understanding and an evaluation of the topic at hand. All too often, students who write reviews fail to achieve these goals. Failure can result from a lack of proper preparation before the review writing takes place, the review writer’s inability to ask and answer relevant questions about the topic, and an unorganized and often uncritical analysis of the article. In many cases, review writers are not clear about the specific purpose of the article assessment and end up writing a review that is more of a summary. Although review writing and analysis of any sort is an inexact process with much room for subjectivity, a review will not be successful if the review writer fails to question the author’s ideas and evidence in the article.

The value of writing an article review for a class assignment is that it presents an excellent vehicle for bringing to the fore the most important ideas in an article and for fostering critical thinking on that article. A good understanding and evaluation of an article cannot be achieved without these two tasks being completed well. The process of asking the series of questions that I have given can be done with any article or essay—provided that the questions match the task or purpose of the article assessment.

A well-done article review provides the reader with an understanding and an evaluation of an article. Poor reviews fail to do either of these tasks. It is that understanding and evaluation of the article’s topic that is of central importance in an article review. Review writing that is not focused on these central tasks is likely to be regarded as a poor job. And writing that is not focused on the understanding and evaluation of the topic is unlikely to provide the reader with an understanding and evaluation of the topic.

4. Tips for Properly Formatting an Article Review in APA Style

The second step is to locate and read the articles to be reviewed. It is best if the student chooses an article that is within the similar field of interest, but it is entirely up to the author. Step three and five are critical to help capture all main ideas and points the article may be presenting. Step three is to make an in-depth and well-organized analysis or summary of the article. This is a very important step to comprehend the article in a thorough manner. The importance behind the method, results, and discussions should be heavily analyzed and should be compared to any present coursework material on the same topics. Sometimes students may not know what they are comparing to, so by doing a thorough analysis and summary, this will help the student understand. Highlighting the article is a current method in this step. Each sentence or section should be rewritten into the student’s own words. This helps avoid direct quotes. Again, avoid using direct quotes. If the researcher does copy any phrases or sentences, write these directly into the analysis, provide a citation, and put these statements in quotes. Step four looks for any contradicting points within the article. This may require further readings of sections of the article at times. Although the analysis step was in-depth, making a list of any references that may need to be revisited may be more helpful.

The first preparation step is to get familiar with the general research article and review format. Students should know the general APA style and have a foundation based on how to write a research for future references. Start by knowing the different sections. The research article usually consists of a title, abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion, and references. Compare them to the article review and the research article. Analyze them for the presence of a research article.

5. Conclusion

Librarians have long struggled to teach students the value of an organized research process. Many students tend to see research as a task that occurs prior to writing a paper, as something different and disconnected from the writing process itself. This fragmented approach to paper writing results in students struggling with the various components of the writing process, often leaving insufficient time for proper revision, which can result in a loss of grade. When this process occurs, it is obvious that students are not connecting the research process to their writing instruction. This is something that librarians are aiming to correct. By successful research paper writing, the student is given the opportunity to learn and enhance the writing process itself. By giving value to structured research, students will understand the need to organize their paper before they even start writing. This can lead to a reduced amount of anxiety often felt when writing a paper and also a more positive attitude toward the assignment. An organized research process can save time and effort in the long run and is something that at higher levels of education, everybody can benefit from. APA has designed a guide that can effectively enable the student to be successful in this research writing process.

Over the past two decades, higher education has become increasingly focused on writing intensive courses. With this change, faculty have been challenged to use writing-to-learn pedagogies in their teaching of undergraduate courses. As an outcome, each student is expected to write well in the various contexts encountered across the curriculum. Because of this shift toward writing instruction, it is essential for faculty and librarians to recognize the importance of teaching the writing process.