Research Paper

Journal Article Summary Assignment Instructions
Go to the library website and locate a copy of the 1999 article written
by J. Kruger and D. Dunning titled “Unskilled and unaware of it: How
difficulties in recognizing ones own incompetence lead to inflated selfassessments”. The article appeared in the Journal of Personality and
Social Psychology, volume 77, number 6.
Download a copy of this article. Read the article and complete the “12
Steps to Understanding a Quantitative Research Report” (shown
below). The completed outline form cannot be more than two pages
long.
12 Steps to Understanding a Quantitative Research Report
Directions: Record notes in only enough detail to support recall in the
absence of the original document. Except for Step 1, use
abbreviations, diagrams, shorthand, and a careful selection of no more
than what is absolutely essential to the study. Your work should be
less than two pages, use the outline format below.
1. CITATION. What study report is this? Record a complete reference
citation.
2. PURPOSE AND GENERAL RATIONALE. In broad terms, what was
the purpose of the study, and how did the author(s) make a case for
its general importance?
3. FIT AND SPECIFIC RATIONALE. How does the topic of the study
fit into the existing research literature, and how is that provenance
used to make a specific case for the investigation?
4. PARTICIPANTS. Describe who was studied (give number and
characteristics) and how they were selected.
5. CONTEXT. Where did the study take place? Describe important
characteristics.
6. STEPS IN SEQUENCE. In the order performed, what were the
main procedural steps in the study? Describe or diagram in a
flowchart, showing order and any important relationships among the
steps.
7. DATA. What constituted data (e.g., test scores, questionnaire
responses, frequency counts), how was it collected, and what was the
role of the investigator(s) in that process?
8. ANALYSIS. What form of data analysis was used, and what specific
questions was it designed to answer? What (if any) statistical
operations and computer programs were employed?
9. RESULTS. What did the author(s) identify as the primary results
(products or findings produced by the analysis of data?
10. CONCLUSIONS. What did the author(s) assert about how the
results in Step 9 responded to the purpose(s) established in Step 2,
and how did the events and experiences of the entire study contribute
to that conclusion?
11. CAUTIONS. What cautions were raised by the author(s) about the
study itself or about interpreting the results? Add here any of your own
reservations.
12. DISCUSSION. What interesting facts or ideas did you learn from
reading the report? Include here anything that was of value, including
results, research designs and methods, references, instruments,
history, useful arguments, or personal inspiration.