Important: This guide assumes you have a topic, research question, and sources to analyze. For more on writing research, browse this playlist. Many terms used below are defined in these resources. For more information on the research process and finding viable sources, visit the Shapiro Library.
Research is a central academic exercise which starts with an inquiry. A good, open-ended research question might be “How does bullying affect victims long term?” Now that you know what you want to know, you can begin finding good sources. The answers you find will help you to form your own thesis, claim, or argument.
During your research process, you may be asked to “annotate” sources. But how do you do that? Annotate is just another way to say “take notes.”
Part of examining sources for their meaning is explaining how they are relevant to your argument or counter-argument. It’s important to have several diverse sources, so you can form your own picture about your topic. This will shift over time, and so is called a “working thesis.” Here’s how to use your working thesis to break down and annotate a source.
Making an Annotated Bibliography Entry
This guide follows APA style and is a general process. Always consult your specific assignment rubric or guidelines. To conserve space, this guide does not use standard double spacing.
Working Thesis: Bullying prevention is growing, but measures are not enough to combat the effects on victims. New therapies should be investigated and implemented by school psychologists.
Step 1: Provide Full Citation in your chosen format
Buxton, D., Potter, M. P., & Bostic, J. Q. (2013). Coping strategies for child bully victims. Pediatric
Annals, 42(4), 57-61. http://doi.org/10.14/journal.pone.03154517
Step 2: Summarize the source
Buxton et al. (2013) examined the causes and effects of experiencing bullying as a child. The authors also investigated ways to screen for post-traumatic stress through a simple assessment. They called for a process which involves distinguishing types of bullying victims and the experiences they carry with them.
Step 3: Establish the source’s credibility
The authors provide a full reference list citing other scholarly sources. The source is peer-reviewed and considers evenly both diagnostics and treatment of bullying’s effects. The authors all hold advanced medical and/or doctoral degrees.
Step 4: Explain source’s relevance to your argument
“Coping Strategies” is relevant because it not only supports the argument that bullying prevention exists and is not yet effective enough, but it also presents several examples of therapies that schools can use retroactively.
In APA, this would appear all together, like so:
Buxton, D., Potter, M. P., & Bostic, J. Q. (2013). Coping strategies for child bully victims. Pediatric Annals, 42(4), 57-61. http://doi.org/10.14/journal.pone.03154517
Buxton et al. (2013) examined the causes and effects of experiencing bullying as a child. The authors also investigated ways to screen for post-traumatic stress through a simple assessment. They called for a process which involves distinguishing types of bullying victims and the experiences they carry with them. The authors provide full a reference list citing other scholarly sources. The source is peer-reviewed and considers evenly both diagnostics and treatment of bullying’s effects. The authors all hold advanced medical and/or doctoral degrees. “Coping Strategies” is relevant because it not only supports the argument that bullying prevention exists and is not yet effective enough, but it also presents several examples of therapies that schools can use retroactively.
That's it! Repeat this pattern for each of your sources, and allow your thesis to shift a bit if this process changes your mind. That’s what research is all about! Stay curious.
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