Sections to the SOC 499 paper
Introduction
Start with a hook: question, quote, fact, or personal story. Transition to your topic and
establish the scope of the problem in terms of the costs in money, pain, etc. Establishing the
scope of the problem establishes the importance of your topic. The introduction should end with
stating your hypothesis which should be one sentence. This section is structure differently from
the rest of the structure because this is the only section where you end it with your all important
hypothesis that is going to be tested. 3-4 pages.
Literature Review
Your first paragraph should start with a hook and end by stating the hypothesis exactly
the same. A red flag the hypothesis is weak is when the Literature Review wanders because the
writer does not know where to go and launches out of desperation into trying to prove their
hypothesis like this is a persuasive paper for junior high English. Invest in improving your
hypothesis throughout the semester.
Body paragraphs need to have a TS, Topic Sentence, and put the experts center stage
because the purpose of this section is to tell us what experts have written on your topic. The
purpose is NOT to prove your hypothesis. THE PURPOSE IS TO TELL US WHAT EXPERTS
HAVE WRITTEN ON THIS TOPIC. You need to write at least one paragraph by summary
where you summarize a journal article or a book. Put the expert center stage and tell us “Jackson
and Johnson (2017) found action learning helped African-American students to improve
retention and understanding while increasing exam scores by 20 percent.(213)” You also need to
write at least one paragraph by author where you summarize the works of an expert. You also
need to write at least one paragraph by topic where you write a paragraph on a common topic
across experts, and you are naming and citing different authors and their different works in the
paragraph.
You may choose to define important words in the Literature Review, and it is
advantageous to establish the theoretically framework usually need the end of the Literature
Review. Strategically choose your theoretical framework, and do not arbitrarily choose one for
the sake of having one. 4-5 pages.
Methods
Your first paragraph should start with a hook and end by stating the hypothesis exactly
the same. What goes in the middle? Aha, that is the million dollar question you must find the
answer to.
The priority in this section is to explain why the data you collected will test your
hypothesis, and to explain in recipe detail how you collected the data you are using, so another
person can repeat your research and achieve similar results. The priority is not explaining how
researchers collected data that you are using, but is in explaining step by step how you found
your data and what was the criteria for choosing it.
Along the way you should define an explain concepts such as quantitative and qualitative
data, and have a developed explanation why yours is either or both. Other concepts you may
define and explain include primary research, secondary research, a theoretical framework to
frame your paper – such as conflict theory, symbolic interactionism, rational choice theory, strain
theory, etc. Be strategic in choosing theoretical framework, so consult with the instructor and
other students when choosing a theoretical framework that fits your thesis and the data you are
collecting.
Remember our program requires you do some statistical manipulation, and you need to
explain what you did and why it test your hypothesis or contributes to testing your hypothesis. 3-
5 pages.
Results
Your first paragraph should start with a hook and end by stating the hypothesis exactly
the same. What goes in the middle? Same old same old, you need to create the creamy filling that
goes in the middle of your Oreo.
The priority in this section is to present your data, your numbers and other data, in detail
using your words. You may use charts, tables, etc. in the appendix, but remember, “Charts and
tables are like the dead, they do not speak for themselves.” 3-5 pages.
Discussion and Conclusion
Your first paragraph should start with a hook and end by stating the hypothesis exactly
the same. What goes in the middle? Same old same old, you have to find how many licks does it
take to get the center of the Tootsie Pop.
The priority in this section is to tell us what your data means in terms of supporting/not
supporting your hypothesis and what this means in terms of you hypothesis, your topic, and the
problem (remember the scope of the problem). You may also tell us about limitations of the
study, and also suggestions for future studies.
This is where you tell us whether the data supported your hypothesis, for we do not use
the word “prove.” 4 to 6 pages.
THINGS WE DO
1. We use the phrase “for example”.
2. We use expert opinion, statistics, and logic to support decisions and claims.
3. We cite sources intext and have references at the end of the text.
4. We use ASA citation and reference style.
5. We repeat our hypothesis exactly the same way, for we are a social science class.
6. We read Pyrczak’s book when we have questions, ask the instructor, ask classmates, and
confer with scholarly textbooks and resources when we need clarification.
7. We use Lyman-Beecher Library databases to find scholarly resources.
8. We write in detail.
9. We invest in focused hypothesis that makes the entire paper easier.
NO NO’s, We do not:
1. use phrases such as “The research found”, “the Psychology Journal found”, “since the
beginning of time”, “evidently”, “clearly”, “obviously”, and “it is human nature”.
2. Changing your hypothesis so you do not sound redundant.
3. Leave citations out when we are in doubt.
4. Leave quotes to explain themselves.
5. Short change the reader by leaving out details.
6. Put charts and tables in the text to explain themselves, so we do not have to write.
7. Try to save time by writing a generalized hypothesis.
