Assignment #2: Research Article Summaries
(30 points)
Due 2/11/2020

Instructions:
    You will work with your group to find peer-reviewed scientific articles on your topic. 
    You are EACH to find 3 unique articles about your topic and then summarize them. After this assignment is completed, you will share your 3 article summaries with your group so in total you will have 12 articles/summaries to use when writing your introduction section.
o    Dont just pick any 3 articles. Choose ones that help you set-up the study you are doing. You want to adequately summarize all of the facts surrounding what we know about this topic in your introduction.
o    Attempt to locate articles since 2005 and later, but the more recent the better. Since you are studying something about college students in 2020, citing work done back in 2000 doesnt do a whole lot of good because college and society as a whole is a lot different in 2020 compared to 20 years ago!
o    These articles must be primary sources and peer-reviewed! Remember, we use science to build facts, not some weird internet site or what momma says!
    Summarize each of your 3 articles by answering the questions listed below.
o    Use the numbering and format provided below for each article separately.
o    Please write in complete sentences but you may use bullet points to help with organization. Do NOT copy word for word! You must put these answers in your own words by paraphrasing!
    Be sure to submit this assignment via the Turn-it-in portal on eCampus.
    You must each send an email to your GTA with all 3 PDFs of your articles. Failure to do so will result in 5 points being deducted from your assignment grade. Also, bring the articles with you to labs on 2/11 and 2/18 to help with writing your introduction.

Note: Do not read just the abstract. Because of the brevity, this section can be misleading. (We understand that we have not gone over methodology/results in detail yet, but try your best reading these sections.) By reading the entire article you will have a better appreciation for the research process and you will gain valuable experience for your final paper assignment.

* Do not include the above text with your assignment. We dont need to see all of these directions!

Assignment 2: Article Summaries
* Remember, do not copy word for word, this is plagiarism (submit via turn-it-in)

TOPIC:  Concisely state your groups project topic:

FOR EACH OF YOUR 3 ARTICLES, ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS separately:

Article #1
General:
1.    What is the title of the manuscript, the journal it appears in, and the date it was published?

Introduction:
2.    What is the main goal of the study?
3.    What was the main hypothesis as it relates to your study? (If there was more than one, focus on the main one or two that are directly related to your study. Pretend you are explaining this to your parentsdont copy the hypothesis listed in the paper word for word.)
4.    What was the reasoning behind the authors hypothesis? That is, why did the authors believe that their hypothesis would be true? (Hint: Think about the theory/model that the authors used to explain why their variables would be associated.)

Methods:
5.    What was the main independent variable (predictor) that is closest to the predictor you will use in your study? And how did they measure it? Be specific! (What was the question used? If it was a multi-item scale, give a few examples of some questions.) You want to figure out all the ways prior research has measured the IV because findings may be different depending on how you decide to operationalize your IV.
6.    What was the main dependent variable (outcome) that is closest to the outcome you will use in your study? And how did they measure it? Be specific! (What was the question used? If it was a multi-item scale, give a few examples of some questions). Again, you want to figure out all the ways prior research has measured the DV because findings may be different depending on how you decide to operationalize your DV.
7.    Describe the sample. (That is, give a brief description of who they studied by giving the age range, gender breakdown, races, etc.?). Also provide detail of how participants were recruited and from where? Findings may be different across studies based on the sample collected.

Results:
8.    What did the study find? In other words, explain to me the results of the study in everyday language. Be sure to explicitly state if the hypothesis was supported. (Hint: Think about how you would describe the findings to one of your grandparents in 1-2 sentences. What would you tell them? Dont be scientific at all, and be concise. Do NOT copy word for word!).

Discussion:
9.    Why do the authors say this research is important (meaning, what are the implications of the findings? How do we use these new findings?)
10.    Describe 2 strengths of the study according to the authors.
11.    What are 2 limitations the authors highlighted?
12.    What are 2 future directions the authors suggested?

Article #2
Answer questions 1-12, as above.

Article #3
Answer questions 1-12, as above.