InstructionsThe purpose of this assignment is to test your expertise in:
selecting valid and relevant research-based literature on a topic that is relevant to your internship
synthesizing key information from scientific and current journals
properly citing referencesSelect a health topic related to your internship experience and write a research paper which is at least 5 pages and no more than 7 pages (excluding title page, abstract and references). The research paper should have the following sections:TITLE & AUTHOR NAME: 2.01 & 2.02 in APA ManualABSTRACT (on a separate page): 2.04 in APA Manual; Pg. 26The abstract must model your research paper. Should not be over 250 words.
Provide Key Words that describe your research paper. Write this in the end.INTRODUCTION: 2.05 in APA Manual (~1-1.5 pages)Identify the topic, community, background about the research problem, the question, the importance of the question (use data/statistics to showcase this), your approach to the question (use the literature to provide enough background information without going into too many details), and your answer to the question (tentative thesis statement).
The goal of the introduction is to convince the reader that you have a valid answer to an important (how or why) question.
Use a reverse pyramid approach: begin with general information about your topic, narrow the focus and provide context, and end by distilling your papers specific approach. As you move from general background information to the specifics of your paper, try to create a road map for your paper. Mirror the structure of the paper itself, explaining how each piece fits into the bigger picture. It is usually best to write the introduction after you have made significant progress with your paper to ensure you have enough information to write an accurate overview.
Introduce your internship; how what you do or how this topic relates to the organizations goals/mission (this is why you must choose a topic that aligns closely to your internship work. It is OK to personalize this section by using I
Your introduction should not have any quotations.
Thesis statement: This is the most important part of your paper. I like the thesis placed towards the end of the Introduction. The sub topics for your literature review will flow from the thesis. So spend some time in constructing a relevant thesis statement.
Include at least 2 different citations to support the information presentedMETHODS (~1/2 page)Describe what databases you searched, what keywords you used, and the limits that you set to select articles for the literature review (years, peer-reviewed articles etc.)
Include the internship location and name of your supervisor as well.
For information that you obtained from your internship site, indicate if you interviewed anyone, or how else you obtained the information.
Dont personalize this sectiondo not use I. Instead, write in third person.
Please see important note in the end about types of articles that are accepted and not accepted.LITERATURE REVIEW (~3-3.5 pages) [Refer to the Literature Review section in the APA manual]Refer 1.02 in APA manual
Start with a couple of lines introducing the reader to this section. What is it about and what can they expect from it?
Synthesize the evidence presented by the studies as a whole.
Identify themes or main ideas from your thesis statement and elaborate on thembe sure to use multiple citations to support each theme/idea.
Remember a literature review is NOT a summary where you include what author A found, then author B, and so on. You must synthesize the information. You could do this by organize/group the literature by patterns or similarities. Patterns might include journal articles based on similar community groups studied, similar samples (age, gender, ethnicity, SES, severity of disease etc.) similar research questions, similar concepts and theories, similar or different results, and similar themes.
It is great to include research that has competing arguments. This will ensure that your literature review is not biased.
Do not use any quotations in this section. I want you to paraphrase instead.
For citation help see the following sections of the APA Manual
Section 6.01; pg. 170
Section 6.02; pg 170
Section 6.04; pg 171
Sections 6.11-6.21; pgs 174-179
I expect that out of your 10 sources at least 6-8 will be used in the literature review section.
Please see important note in the end about types of articles that are accepted and not accepted.DISCUSSION (~1/2 page)Do not restate your literature review.
Are there any messages that emerge from your literature review?
How do your internship observations mirror or align with the findings in the literature review? Do you see similarities or differences?
What are some of the issues that need to be addressed in the future (these are not your opinions, but instead those that emerge from your research & experienceand are hence informed or evidence based suggestions)
Make a case for the meaning and significance of your findings, and support your case by connecting it to related research.
Specifically look at Pg 36CONCLUSION (~1/4 page)Do not restate your discussion here. Instead, what would you conclude on the topic based on your internship experience as well as the literature review
The conclusion then reaches beyond the suggestions you made in the body of the paper to emphasize the importance of these results, and their potential consequences.
Specifically discuss the public policy, public health and/or health policy implications of your findingsREFERENCES (minimum of 10 sources)Refer Chapters 6 & 7 in APA manualTypes of Articles for Your PaperPredominantly peer reviewed articles for your research paper. No more than 5-10 years old
Relevant and reliable sources to obtain data/statistical informationuse this in the introduction and throughout to highlight the importance of the topic
Current news articles that relate to your topic area from websites such as Kaiser Health News and New York times
Do not use articles that are based on study populations outside of the US to explain the various themes in your literature review. This is because we are making inferences about the US health care systemNo re-using papers! You may not re-use work that you have previously submitted to other classes. I expect you to write on a new topic that you have previously not explored in other classes.