Critique two (2) scholarly articles pertaining or relating to topics or issues in the text book. Students will follow the guidelines posted below for completing all article critiques. The completed assignments must be a minimum of 4 pages and a maximum of 6 pages, double-spaced, and should follow APA style guidelines. The title page and reference pages are not included in the required assignment length. References should support any opinion stated in the critique. The two article critiques will be due as a “completed set” on November 30th.  Keep electronic copies of all work submitted 

Requirements for Article Critiques.

Citation

1. Provide a full citation of the article to include author(s), title of article, and name of journal, volume and pages. For example:

Coleman, E. & Cheurprakobkit, S. 2009. Police hiring and retention of sexual minorities

      In Georgia and Texas after Lawrence v. Texas. Journal of Criminal Justice, vol. 37(3), 

       256-261.

Topic

1. Briefly describe the topic of the journal article (hint: it’s usually in the article’s title). Identify the major and minor objectives of the article as well.
2. Identify ad define the important concepts focused on by the author. Are the definitions clear, in your opinion?

Theory/Research Methods

1. Is the author being guided by a particular theoretical perspective? If so, what is it and how does he use this theory to understand the problem?
2. Dose the author collect data? If so, what method does he use (survey, field observation, use of existing sources, experiment, and is it cross-sectional or longitudinal in design)?

Main Ideas

1. Summarize the article’s content. In doing so, what is the author’s major argument?
2. What are the supporting arguments?
3. Are the ideas clearly presented?

Conclusions

1. What conclusions does the author(s) make?

Reflection

1. In your opinion, do the data support the conclusions being made by the author(s)?
2. In your opinion, are the results thought provoking?
3. In your opinion, what could be done to improve the research?
4. What was the most important thing you learned by reading and critiquing this article?