Discussion: Ethical Dimensions of Research Studies
Discussion: Ethical Dimensions of Research Studies
Question Description
This is an extension of the Course Project from Week 2. Before you begin, go over the Course Project Overview document in the Week 2 Resources section.
The literature review is an important part of the research process because it allows a researcher to determine what is currently known about a topic and identify gaps or additional questions. A thorough literature review can be a time-consuming process, but it lays the groundwork for everything that comes after. You will conduct a brief literature review to find information on the question you developed in Week 2 for this section of your Course Project. This will give you practice searching databases and locating relevant resources.
To get ready:
Examine the information in Chapter 5 of the course text, paying special attention to the steps for conducting a literature review and compiling your findings.
Locate 5 or more full-text research articles that are relevant to your PICOT question using the question you chose in your Week 2
Project (Part 1 of the Course Project). If possible, include at least one systematic review and one integrative review. Use the search tools and techniques discussed in this week’s readings to improve the comprehensiveness and objectivity of your review. You may collect these articles from any appropriate source, but make sure that at least three of them are available in full-text through Walden Library’s databases.
Read the articles thoroughly. Remove studies that are no longer relevant and add new ones as needed. Although you may include more, a minimum of five articles is required. Use the Literature Review Summary Table Template from this week’s Learning Resources to create a literature review summary table.
Prepare to summarize and synthesize the literature by consulting Chapter 5 of the course text for information on writing a literature review.
To finish:
Create a 3- to 4-page literature review that includes the following elements:
A summary of what the studies reveal about the current state of knowledge on the topic you developed.
Highlight inconsistencies and contradictions in the literature and provide possible explanations.
Preliminary conclusions on whether the evidence supports a change in practice or whether additional research is required to adequately address your inquiry.
Your APA-formatted literature review summary table with all references
You should proofread your paper. However, do not rely solely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part, and your grade will suffer as a result. Papers with a high number of misspelled words and grammatical errors will be penalized. Before submitting your paper, go over it in silence and then aloud, and make any necessary changes. It is often beneficial to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Uncorrected mistakes are preferable to handwritten corrections.
Use a standard 10 to 12 point typeface (10 to 12 characters per inch). Smaller or compressed type, as well as papers with narrow margins or single spacing, are difficult to read. It is preferable to allow your essay to exceed the recommended number of pages rather than attempting to compress it into fewer pages.
Large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are also unacceptable, waste trees, and will not fool your professor.
The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced, and have a one-inch margin on all four sides of each page. When submitting hard copies, use white paper and print with dark ink. It will be difficult to follow your argument if it is difficult to read your essay.