LibGuides: SWK 355: Research in Social Welfare: Home

Article Review Paper (2-3 pages)

Find an article that qualifies as academic (not a news article) and is from a scholarly, peer-reviewed journal. The article can be on any topic related to social work or social welfare.
Read and critique the article based on several questions, including what is its purpose, who is the sample, what are the research methods, results, etc.

What does empirical mean?

Various components of a scholarly research article:

Abstract
Introduction
Literature review
Methodology (you are looking for empirical/original research)
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
References

Is this journal article scholarly/peer-reviewed?

Limiting a database search to peer-reviewed journals only
Check in the database Ulrich's, called "Refereed"
Examine the journal: does it have an abstract, literature review, methodology, results, conclusion, and references? Are the articles written by scholarly researchers in the field that the journal pertains to? Is advertising non-existent, or kept to a minimum?

Finding your Articles

Several databases at Carmichael Library can help you find sources for your paper. Please select one from below to begin searching for scholarly, peer-reviewed content. Use keywords from your research topic to craft your search:

Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new window
A multi-disciplinary resource that includes full-text articles from several thousand journals, in virtually every area of academic study.
Education Full Text This link opens in a new window
This database focuses on education and related fields. It provides access to over 260 full-text journals and indexes nearly 700 open access journals.
ERIC (EBSCOhost) This link opens in a new window
- This link opens in a new window
Provides indexing and abstracts for journals and ERIC documents in areas relating to education at all levels. | Watch video tutorial
PsycARTICLES This link opens in a new window
PsycARTICLES is a database of full-text articles from journals published by the American Psychological Association, the APA Educational Publishing Foundation, the Canadian Psychological Association, and Hogrefe Publishing Group.
PsycINFO This link opens in a new window
Contains nearly two million citations and summaries of journal articles, book chapters, books and dissertations, all in the field of psychology
SocINDEX This link opens in a new window
SocINDEX is the authoritative bibliographic database for sociology research. It offers indexed records from top sociology journals covering many related studies. It also provides full-text access to articles from curated open-access journals.

Social Work Journals

Clinical Social Work Journal
Journal publishes peer-reviewed original articles relevant to contemporary clinical practice with individuals, couples, families, and groups.
Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work
Journal publishes research on multicultural social issues in all aspects of social work policy, including the impact of culture, ethnicity and class on human services.
Research on Social Work Practice
Journal publishes peer-reviewed empirical research concerning the assessment methods and outcomes of social work practice.
Social Work with Groups
Journal publishes examples of evidence-guided group work with diverse populations in multiple settings through a combination of practice illustrations and theoretical concepts.
Social Work: journal of the National Association of Social Workers
(12 Month delay on full-text) Publishes articles on all aspects of social work and social welfare that yield new insights into established practices, evaluate new techniques and research, examine current social problems, or provide critical analysis on problems in the profession.