LITERATURE REVIEW

In this assignment, you will conduct a review of the current research literature on a violence-related topic. Your final paper will be 6-8 pages in length and will include an introduction, a current literature review, your recommendations for future research, and a conclusion. A minimum of 10 peer-reviewed references are required (Scholarly Journal Articles). You may use other resources such as government/non-profit web sites, newspapers, books, Dissertations, etc., but they will not be counted as peer-reviewed references. This assignment is worth 30% of your final grade.

The purpose of this assignment is to facilitate your abilities to research a topic of study so you can learn to (1) identify and develop a research question that defines what you’d like to investigate; (2) know how to search and locate scholarly literature using library and internet resources; (3) analyze information found in peer-reviewed journal articles; (4) synthesize new knowledge into a written literature review and (5) establish context for your research question.

Steps to Complete Your Literature Review:

1. Choose a violence-related topic that you are interested in studying from one of the following general violence topic areas: (1) school violence; (2) workplace violence; (3) community/gang violence; (4) Domestic Violence; (5) Dating Violence; (6) Murder- NOT serial murder; (7) Rape; and (8) Assault.
2. Start with a broad research topic that describes what you would like to know about your area of interest. (For example: “Are gun-control laws effective in reducing violent crime?”). As you develop your specific research question, do some preliminary library research to briefly review previous work in this area – What have others said about this topic?  What major themes emerge?  Are past findings consistent or do they disagree?  Are there problems with the body of existing research that your research question can address? Avoid sources that you randomly find through the Web. In all cases, your research question must be approved in advance, by the instructor.
           FINALIZED RESEARCH QUESTIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY FEB 26, 2018. Changes to
   research question after deadline will incur a 5 point penalty.
3. Find articles, read the abstracts and skim the articles to determine if they correspond well to your topic AND your SPECIFIC research question.
4. Select at least 10 journal articles for your assignment. Include relevant empirical studies that were conducted within the past ten years.
5. Read your articles and begin to sort and classify them according to their
6. Organize your articles by sorting and classifying their findings in a meaningful way, always considering your original topic and research question.
7. Write an outline for your literature review.
8. Write your review.

Outline for Writing your Literature Review

In this paper, you must NOT take sides or show any bias as you discuss all sides of the issue.

You must maintain third person voice throughout.

1. Introduction
   1. General background information that prompted the research question.
   2. A clear statement of purpose.
   3. Stated research question(s). Remember that a specific question allows for more specific answers, and this improves the focus immensely.
2. Review of the Literature
   Before you begin this section, be sure that you have sorted your articles into different themes based on the articles’ findings (sometimes called results). After you sort your articles, give your sorted groups a descriptive name. The names of the sorted articles will become your headings for each of the paragraphs that you write in the body of your review. The body of your literature review will include:
   1. Theme 1: a paragraph or several paragraphs that describe the first theme that you identified and compare, contrast and/or connect the articles you’ve selected.
   2. Theme 2: a paragraph or several paragraphs that describes the second theme that you identified and compare, contrast and/or connect the articles you’ve selected.
   3. Theme 3: a paragraph or several paragraphs that describes the third theme that you identified and compare, contrast and/or connect the articles you’ve selected.
3. Summary
   This is the last paragraph of your literature review. In this paragraph, you will briefly summarize the main findings from the articles that you reviewed and point out how your research question(s) were answered or not answered, what the gap or deficiency is in the available research, and your recommendations for future research.
4. References
   This is the last pages of your review. It serves as a listing of all references that you mentioned in your paper. Please make sure that only references cited in your paper are listed here.

Format

• Papers must be typed, double-spaced, and stapled (please, no folders).  Include page numbers.
• Pages must have a one-inch margin on all sides.
• Font size must be no greater than 10 (Times New Roman)
• Format must conform to the American Sociological Association (ASA) or the American Psychological Association (APA) style.  You may use either ASA or APA guidelines as long as you are consistent.
• Papers must be error-free regarding grammar and spelling.  Points will be deducted for errors.
• Papers must be between 6-8 pages in length, excluding the title page. A minimum of 10 peer-reviewed references are required (Scholarly Journal Articles). You may use other resources such as government/non-profit web sites, newspapers, Dissertations, Books etc., but they will not be counted as peer-reviewed references.
• All papers must include a Title Page. (The title of the paper, your name, course number, semester and year).  The title page does not count in the 6-8 page required length.

Hard copies only will be accepted – no faxes or e-mails.  Papers submitted after class will be counted late. Ten points per day will be deducted for late submissions.

All papers must also be submitted. Information regarding Class Account and Password will be provided.

Papers will be graded in terms of completeness, clarity, comprehension, and ability to apply the concepts learned in class.  Length, spelling, grammar, and neatness will also be counted.  Typographical errors or hand-edited corrections are not acceptable.  Students are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the services offered by the KSU Writing Center.  In their own words:

The KSU Writing Center helps students in all majors improve their writing. Experienced, friendly writing assistants help with topic development, revision, research, documentation, grammar, and more. For more information or to make an appointment, visit

http://writingcenter.kennesaw.edu/

or stop by English Building, Room 242 (Kennesaw campus) or Johnson Library, Room 121 (Marietta campus).

Last Updated on September 20, 2019