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This course requires several research assignments that use elements of research (such as outlines and thesis statements), as well as the full APA style format (with things such as title pages and abstracts). This playbook contains information that can help you with these assignments. To navigate the playbook, use the tabs below.
For your assignments this semester you will need to use the APA format, from the format of the entire paper to your References list at the end. Use the APA style playbook to format citations (in the body of the essay and on the References list), and see the documents below for more information.
The thesis statement, located at or near the end of the introductory paragraph of your paper,states your point of view of the topic, and it serves as a summary of the argument you will make in the rest of your paper. It tells the reader not only what your topic is, but what you will discuss in reference to your topic, and what conclusions you will defend.
The thesis statement “asserts, controls, and structures the entire argument” (Writing Center). It is the thread that makes your paper consistent and meaningful. Without a good thesis, your paper comes across as weak, unfocused, even confusing.
A good thesis will
How to build a thesis statement
Once you have your topic and your perspective about it, you can build your thesis. You will need your claim and your reasons for your claim. To find reasons, ask yourself why your claim is valid.
Example 1
Claim: An MRI is a better and less risky procedure than a CT scan.
Reason(s): MRIs produce accurate, detailed pictures of bodily structures. There is no radiation exposure with an MRI.
Thesis statement: While computerized tomography is an excellent way to image structures, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be a more desirable and less risky imaging procedure because the MRI produces accurate, more detailed pictures of bodily structures, and does not subject the patient to radiation exposure.
Example 2
Claim: The benefits of radiography exceed the risks associated with the procedure.
Reason(s): Individuals who need medical attention need answers quickly. Radiography can help doctors diagnose and manage a condition quickly and effectively.
Thesis statement: Even though there are risks to radiography (such as developing radiation-induced cancer or cataracts later in life, or causing a teratogenic defect in an embryo), radiography can greatly benefit patients who are in need of medical attention by helping doctors diagnose and manage a condition quickly and effectively.
*Note: Stating a fact followed by "because...." is NOT a thesis. The following are NOT thesis statements:
These are just facts followed by what may be a reason for the fact. They are not claims, so they do not constitute a thesis statement.
Sources:
Lunsford, A., Brody, M., Ede, L., Moss, B., Papper, C.C., & Walters, K. (2016). Everyone's an author: With readings (2nd ed.). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.
The Writing Center at Piedmont Virginia Community College
What is an outline?
An outline is a plan, a kind of map of your essay. It lists the points you will make, in the order you will make them.
Before you create an outline, you have to think about what you want to say, what points you will make, and in what order. This means you have to organize your ideas and put them in a sequence that will make sense to the reader.
Types of outlines
Topic outline
The topic outline lists information as words or phrases. The words and phrases represent the topics you will cover.
Example
Thesis: College athletes should receive a salary, because they are entertainers who also bring money and recognition to their schools.
I. Overview of college athletics
II. Why a salary?
A. Entertainment
B. Money
C. School recognition
Sentence outline
A sentence outline lists full sentences. A full sentence has a subject, a verb, and a predicate. Each sentence in a sentence outline is the first sentence of a paragraph as it will appear in the paper, and it shows exactly what you will say.
Example
Thesis: College athletes should receive a salary, because they are entertainers who also bring money and recognition to their schools.
I. College athletics, also called college sports, are competitive sports played at the university level.
II. While college athletes may not be professional, they do provide advantages to their institutions.
A. College athletes provide the same level of entertainment as professional athletes.
B. College athletes help bring tuition money to their schools.
C. College athletes bring recognition to their schools, making them known across the country.
Creating an outline
To create an outline:
Example of a topic outline
Thesis: Federal regulations need to foster laws that will help protect wetlands, restore those that have been destroyed, and take measures to improve the damage from overdevelopment.
I. Nature's ecosystem
A. Loss of wetlands nationally
B. Loss of wetlands in Illinois
1. More flooding and poorer water quality
2. Lost ability to prevent floods, clean water and store water
II. Dramatic floods
A. Cost in dollars and lives
1. 13 deaths between 1988 and 1998
2. Cost of $39 million per year
B. Great Midwestern Flood of 1993
1. Lost wetlands in IL
2. Devastation in some states
C. Flood Prevention
1. Plants and Soils
2. Floodplain overflow
III. Wetland laws
A. Inadequately informed legislators
1. Watersheds
2. Interconnections in natural water systems
B. Water purification
IV. Need to save wetlands
A. New federal definition
B. Re-education about interconnectedness
1. Ecology at every grade level
2. Education for politicians and developers
3. Choices in schools and people's lives
Example taken from The Bedford Guide for College Writers (9th ed).
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE NEW APA STYLE MANUAL (7TH EDITION) DOES NOT REQUIRE AN ABSTRACT FOR STUDENT PAPERS.
An abstract is a short paragraph (15-300 words) that provides a quick overview of an essay or report and the way it is organized. It is a concise summary of the entire essay or paper, and presents the thesis and the key points. Note that the abstract is an overview of the work, not a proposal, so you should avoid beginning the abstract with expressions such as "This paper will examine..." or "In this essay I will prove that..."
Example (153 words)
The HIV virus is currently destroying all facets of African life. It therefore is imperative that a new holistic form of health education and accessible treatment be implemented in African public health policy which improves dissemination of prevention and treatment programs, while maintaining the cultural infrastructure. Drawing on government and NGO reports, as well as other documentary sources, this paper examines the nature of current efforts and the state of health care practices in Africa. I review access to modern health care and factors which inhibit local utilization of these resources, as well as traditional African beliefs about medicine, disease, and healthcare. This review indicates that a collaboration of Western and traditional medical care and philosophy can help slow the spread of HIV in Africa. This paper encourages the acceptance and financial support of traditional health practitioners in this effort owing to their accessibility and affordability and their cultural compatibility with the community.
Example source: University of Montana
For your RAD 240 assignments, you will use information from your sources to support your own ideas in your essays. How you add that information is very important. You can't just clip information and drop it into your essay. The information from sources must be integrated into your essay so it forms part of your argument and your narrative. Your research paper is about communicating your ideas, not summarizing your sources. The sources are there to provide support, a framework for your ideas, but the paper should be all about your own ideas.
PubMed Central (PMC) is a database of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM). Articles found through PMC should be cited as journal articles, not as web pages. All the information needed to cite the article is provided by PMC. See the example below.
To cite this journal article, I need to follow the model provided in the APA style playbook, under Articles. The article I'm using has a DOI (digital object identifier, a unique ID for journal articles), so I will cite the article following this model:
Author Last Name, Initials. (Year). Article title. Journal Title, volume #(issue #), pages. https://doi.org/.........
(Note: The article I'm citing has 7 authors, and according to the APA style rules, all must be documented.)
My citation would look like this:
Van Speybroeck, A., Beierwaltes, P., Hopson, B., McKee, S., Raman, L., Rao, R., & Sherlock, R. (2020). Gallstone ileus, clinical presentation, diagnostic and treatment approach. Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, 13(4),499-511. https://doi.org/10.3233/PRM-200738
The parenthetical citation would be:
(Van Speybroeck et al., 2020).
The function of your sources is to support your own content and conclusions.
The quote sandwich is a method to properly incorporate borrowed materials into your papers. Your embedded librarian expects that quotes will be properly incorporated into your work. This isn't a difficult task, though it may be something you haven't done before. Be patient and ask your embedded librarian for help if you need it. Your grades will benefit from properly incorporating sources.
See the link below for information and examples of how to incorporate your source material into your papers.
Before you send in your paper for an APA check, please run through the checklist linked below and make sure you have everything that's needed. If you have any questions about any of the items, contact your embedded librarian.