Guides: KINE 231 Library Tutorial: Reading & Evaluating Research Articles

How can I quickly tell if an article is relevant?

Before you read an article from beginning to end:

Read the title - the title of an article should give you some clues as to what the authors researched. Sometimes, the title of the article will be the research question that guided the authors' study. Based on the title, consider what you think the article will be about.
Read the abstract - the abstract for research articles will explain the purpose of the study, how it was conducted (methodology), what they found, and some of the conclusions they can draw from the study. Start by reading the abstract to get a sense of the study and to make sure that the article is on a relevant topic.
Skim the subjects and keywords - when looking at a the detailed information about an article in a library database, you will usually see a list of keywords and subjects. These will give you a sense of the main focus/topics of the article.

Take a look at the annotated screenshot of the article "Does emotional intelligence predict athletes' motivation to participate in sports?" to see the kind of information you can find in the article description in a library database.

Where do I find the information I need for my article critiques?

Question to Answer in your Article Critiques	Most likely place to find the information
What was the purpose of the study?	Abstract and introduction
How was the study conducted? (Who were the subjects? What did the subjects do?)	Methods (might be called method, methodology)
What was found in the study?	Results (findings with no interpretation) and Discussion (this is where the authors interpret the findings)
What are the limitations of the study?	Consider the purpose of the study (what were they trying to find out), you can usually find this out in the Introduction, and how they conducted the study by carefully reading the Methods section.
Did the author(s) acknowledge the limitations of the study?	Many papers will include a Limitations sub-section within the Discussion section
Did the results and discussion seem consistent? Explain.	Results (what the authors describe the findings) & Discussion (where the authors interpret the findings and try to make meaning of their results)
What implications do the study's findings have for us?	Sometimes the authors provide their own thoughts on this in the Discussion or Conclusion

Should I reject articles with study limitations?

Many articles have a section where the authors describe the limitations of their study. While it may seem like acknowledging the limitations of a study might undermine the credibility of a study, this is not the case.

ALL studies have limitations.

When authors acknowledge the limitations of their study, they make it clear to their readers how a study was conducted, the challenges the researchers encountered, and the conditions and context of their study.

Study limitations can help to explain unexpected results that differ from the majority of studies on a topic, the applicability of a single study, and help other researchers design other studies that look at the same research question so that they can add to the overall picture of what is known about a certain topic.

The goal of a single study is to add to the total body of knowledge on a topic, not to provide a definitive conclusion. Over time, more and more studies can be conducted, each with different limitations, and a clearer picture can emerge.

This means that when you do research on a topic, you may not find a conclusive answer. Accepting uncertainty is a big part of academic research. Watch the 1 min video below to learn more!

60(ish) Seconds with: CapU Library, Part III from Capilano University on Vimeo.