Reading Reports of Empirical Studies
We are bombarded with information all of our lives. Does the information
make sense? Is it important? Why should I care? Reading and thinking critically
involves asking questions of everything we read or study. The questions
listed below are just some of the questions you need to ask while reading
reports of empirical studies. These questions will help you identify key
information in the report and reflect on what purpose the information serves.
General questions are described here. Specific questions your instructor
wants you to concentrate on are included in the Report Summary that follows.
In order to critically evaluate a report of empirical research, it is
essential to consider the context in which the research was conducted.
The following questions will help you understand the context for the research:
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Who did the research?
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Where was it published?
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What are the research questions?
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Where did these research questions come from?
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Is the research important? Why or why not?
Researchers use different methods to address the research
questions. The following questions will help you evaluate the way in which
the research was conducted:
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Who are the participants in the study?
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Are the participants appropriate for the study?
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What is the research design?
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Is the research design appropriate for the research question(s)?
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What are the measures?
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Are the measures appropriate for addressing the research question(s)?
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What ethical considerations are important to address? Are they all addressed
in the article?
The results of the study are used by the researchers to answer the
research questions. Use the following questions to help you understand
the results and determine whether they answer the research questions:
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What are the main results of the study?
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Can the results be used to answer the research question(s)?
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Can the results be generalized beyond the context of the study?
The conclusions place the results of the study into the context
of the study. The following questions will help you understand how the
researchers make sense of the results and how they use the results to better
understand psychology:
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What conclusions do the researchers draw from the results?
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Are the conclusions important? Why or why not?
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