How to Read a Research Article

How to Read a Research Article
A. First, read the Abstract. Do not believe everything you read in the abstract ... read it to get a
general idea about the study: what is topic and how did the authors go doing about their research.
B. Second, read the Introduction trying to answer the following questions:
1. What was the purpose for doing the study
2. What are the primary dependent and independent variables in the study (you might have
to wait until you get to the Method section to find out how these variables were
operationally defined)
3. What were the author’s hypotheses concerning the relationships that might exist between
the independent and dependent variables
C. After answering the questions in part B, and not before, read the entire Method section over
quickly and determine if the reported study represents an experiment or a non-experimental
study. After you have figured this out go back and carefully read the Method section:
1. Read the Participant section: Who were the subjects, are they representative of some
population (was the sample a convenience sample or a probability sample), to what
extent might the subject sample limit the generality of possible results
2. How were the variables in the study operationally defined (measured). Were the
operational definitions adequate (reliable, valid, relevant) and can you think of other
ways to operationally define the variables
3. What was the design of the study
4. How and where was the study done There will probably be a “Procedures” section
where this information will be available.
5. Now before you do anything else, ask yourself:
a) if the study was an experiment, is there any chance the study could be confounded
and if so how might that have happened
b) if the study was a non-experimental study, ask yourself about third
variables that might be operating in the study and try to identify any possible
directionality problems
c) do you think that the study was designed and carried out in such a way that the
results of the study might shed light on the hypotheses that you identified from
reading the Introduction
D. Read the Results section: reading the Results might be difficult but in most cases you can skip
over the statistical details and look for the authors’ conclusions regarding the results of their
statistical analyses.
1. If there are charts or figures in the report try to interpret them ... they can often help you
understand the results even when you are not familiar with the inferential statistical
methods used by the authors.
2. What do the results tell you about the hypotheses that you identified when you read the
Introduction
3. Are there additional analyses that might be of interest
E. Read the Discussion section but be very careful ... do not believe everything the authors tell

you ... read this section critically. DO NOT READ the Discussion section until you have
completed tasks A through D.
1. How do the authors interpret the results of their study... Do you agree with them
2. What implications do the authors draw for future research or perhaps public policy ...
were these inferences reasonable given the results and scope of the study
3. All studies without exception have limitations. The authors should always discuss the
limitations of their study. Identify these limitations. (If the authors have failed to discuss
the limitations of their research that should be noted and you should be skeptical of their
claims about the results of the study)
4. Now you might want to go back and read the study a second time following steps A
through D.... Repeat until you are sure that you understand the study.