POSC 121 SDSU The Anatomy of A Journal Article Essay

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-p…

Identify the 12 parts of the article, as described in the Anatomy of a Journal Article and elaborated upon in the Details of Analyzing Journal Articles

Typical Anatomy of a Journal Article in Political Science

Journal Articles, especially in the field of political science, typically have twelve parts.

1. The Title of an article appears on the first page of the article. The Title is brief, typically no more than 5-10 words, and identifies for the reader the subject of the article.
2. The Main Point of an article is typically found in the Abstract. An Abstract is a summary of the article which is located on the first page, after the Title. The main point may be in the Introduction of the article.
3. The Question of an article is typically found in the Abstract. The question may be in the Introduction of the article as well.
4. The Puzzle is a missing piece of knowledge that the article seeks to fulfill.
5. The Debate is how scholars currently argue the subject of the article. Debates have at least two sides, and the two sides we are most familiar with are “pro” and “con”. However, debates can be more complex.
6. The Theory is how the author thinks something works. For example, we may have a theory about how campaigns influence voters. Theories consists of constants, variables, and the relationships between variables.
7. The Hypotheses are derived from the Theory. A hypothesis is the expectation that one variable affects another variable in a specific way.
8. The Research Design is how the author compares the effect of the explanatory variable (X) on the outcome variable (O) in a group (G) or set of groups.
9. The Empirical Analysis is the use of quantitative or qualitative evidence to explore whether the hypothesized relationship between two variables does indeed occur in the world.
10. The Policy Implications are how the findings of the article should influence the behavior of individuals, groups, organizations, or governments.
11. The Contribution to the Discipline is how the article helps fill the missing Puzzle piece
12. Future Research offers suggestions for future research that build on the findings from the article.