Writing a Research Paper in Political Science: A Practical Guide to Inquiry, Structure, and Methods / Edition 3

by Lisa A. Baglione

Overview

This writing guide breaks down the research paper into its constituent parts and shows students what they need to do at each stage to successfully complete components until the paper is finished. Even writing an introduction, coming up with effective headings and titles, presenting a conclusion, and the important steps of editing and revising are covered with class-tested advice and know-how.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781483376165
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	04/01/2015
Edition description:	Third Edition
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Dr. Lisa A. Baglione is a professor in the

Department of Political Science and a member

of the International Relations Program at Saint

Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Currently,

Dr. Baglione also serves as the co-director of the

Gender Studies Program.

During her career, Dr. Baglione has conducted

research in five areas, and while they

are varied, she has benefited from the ways that

insights from each have interwoven: negotiations

between adversaries, authoritarian transformation,

peacebuilding, gender in politics, and

pedagogy. She has published two other books, To

Agree or Not to Agree: Leadership, Bargaining, and

Arms Control with University of Michigan Press

and Writing a Research Paper in Political Science:

A Practical Guide to Inquiry, Structure, and

Methods, now in its fourth edition, with Sage.

Table of Contents

Preface xiii

1 So You Have to Write a Research Paper 1

What Is a Research Paper? A Few Helpful Metaphors 3

What Research Paper Writing Entails 6

Blueprint of the Book 7

2 Getting Started: Finding a Research Question 15

Characteristics of a Good Question 15

Find Something Interesting 16

Determining Why Your Topic Is Important 24

If Possible, Identifying a Puzzle 26

Starting Words for Questions 26

Types of Research and Questions 30

Using the Advice to Generate Questions 31

Stating Your Question Concisely and Directly 35

Practical Summary 37

Recipe 1: The Research Question 38

Exercises 39

3 Learning Proper Citation Forms, Finding the Scholarly Debate, and Summarizing and Classifying Arguments: The Annotated Bibliography 41

What Are Bibliographies, and Why Do We Bother with Them? 42

Plagiarism versus Paraphrasing 45

Annotating the Bibliography 48

Identifying the Key Conceptual Issues 49

Searching for Sources 50

Identifying Similar Arguments and Grouping Your Sources 58

One Last Word of Advice: Generic Schools of Thought 60

Writing the Annotated Bibliography 61

The Beginnings of Gabriela's AB 65

Practical Summary 69

Recipe 2: Annotated Bibliography 70

Exercises 71

4 Making Sense of the Scholarly Answers to Your Research Question: Writing the Literature Review 75

Preparing for and Understanding the Literature Review 76

The Fundamentals of the Literature Review 77

Writing the Literature Review 79

Practical Summary 88

Recipe 3: Literature Review 89

Exercises 91

5 Effectively Distilling Your Argument: The Thesis, Model, and Hypothesis 93

The Thesis 93

The Model 94

The Hypothesis 98

Applying These Insights 102

Practical Summary 104

Recipe 4: Model and Hypothesis Section 104

Exercises 106

6 Revising and Editing Your Work: The Writing-Thinking Spiral 109

Practical Summary 115

Recipe 5: Revising and Editing 116

Exercises 119

7 Making Your Plan and Protecting Yourself from Criticism: The Research Design 121

Research Design: The Medical Science Analogy 122

Writing the Research Design 126

Choosing Cases 126

Concept Delineation and Measurement: Operational Definitions and Operationalization 134

Identifying Data Sources 139

Strategies for Uncovering and, at Times, Creating Data 140

Methodology 141

Finishing Touches on the Research Design 143

Practical Summary 148

Recipe 6: Research Design 148

Exercises 151

8 Evaluating the Argument: The Analysis and Assessment Section 155

Qualitative Analysis 156

Quantitative Analysis 163

Practical Summary 170

Recipe 7: Analysis and Assessment 171

Exercises 173

9 Bringing the Paper Together in Three Essential Ways: The Conclusion, Introduction, and Title 175

Considering the Significance and Limitations of Your Findings: The Conclusion 176

Writing a Good Introduction 181

A Last Element in Attracting Readers: Developing an Appealing Title 185

Are You Done? The Joy (and Continued Responsibilities) of Finalizing Your Draft 187

Practical Summary 188

Recipe 8: Conclusion, Introduction, and Title 188

Exercises 189

Bibliography 191

Index 197

Editorial Reviews

One of the greatest difficulties students face when writing research papers is finding a good research question to guide the rest of the writing process. Baglione's text tackles that issue head on and does so quite well.”

Jack D. Collens

Baglione offers an extremely practical and useful text for understanding the content and structure of a thesis-length research paper. For some students, the clear outlining of the sequential steps is most useful, while for others who have the basics down, it offers a broad view of the goals and long-term responsibilities for such a project.”

Jennifer Seely

I love the checklists! I require students to submit every section of their paper drafts with the corresponding checklist attached.”

Emily Beaulieu

This is a very relatable book. The prose is accessible, there is little jargon, and the use of examples is perfect for an undergraduate audience.”

David Mislan

Students will be able to use Baglione’s book throughout their career on campus. It is especially helpful for students who are hesitant their about writing a research paper or struggling to find a suitable topic. The book walks through the research process and provides very helpful checklists to ensure students stay on the right track.”

Aaron King

Lisa A. Baglione’s book is a highly accessible resource to help undergraduate students transition from writing about politics to writing about empirical political science research.

Ashlie B. Delshad

Writing a Research Paper in Political Science is a helpful research and writing guide for students from various disciplines and undergraduate levels.

Dorian Brown Crosby

With clarity and compassion, Lisa A. Baglione leads undergraduates step by step through the morass of empirical research.

William M. Flanik

The book is very accessible in terms of writing, complete with great examples. I like that it walks students through the process of finding a topic, formulating the research question and writing the literature review so thoroughly.

Review program - Kimberly Cowell-Meyer

"Most of my students did well once they identified a tractable research question. This is where Baglione’s text shines. A poorly-thought out project is not likely to end well, even if the author is otherwise smart and industrious. Designing research projects, starting with the development of a good question, is probably the single most important skill that I can teach beginning college students. It’s a wonderful reference. I’ve enjoyed using it, and I can imagine using it again in the future."

Review - Christopher Marcoux

"As a supplemental text, it contains an appropriate mix of writing skills and methodology. The emphasis is first and foremost on writing skills, but the book introduces enough methodology to help undergraduate students design rigorous research papers. I also like that the book provides clear advice for both qualitative and quantitative analysis (and combinations thereof)."

Review - Kirsten Taylor

"The book's strengths are clear: it summarizes the writing process that coincides with the typical process that I teach students to conduct empirically-oriented research in political science. The author captures the typical undergraduate political science major audience well, and is accessible to students who do not intend to pursue political science as a profession, but who I think will benefit from a greater understanding about the process that political scientists follow to identify a puzzle or problem, survey the literature, develop a thesis, and design and carry out a logical process to address the problem.

Review - Timothy La Pira

"The strengths are the checklists, the clear guidance from A to Z on how to think through the process; the calendar is helpful to students. The incorporation of political theory and the different students with different interests is excellent. Finally, it’s short and thus not overwhelming. It’s a simple guide and that’s very useful."

Review - Rachel Cobb

"The strengths of the book are numerous: the use of actual student writing, the emphasis on multiple draft writing (I particularly appreciate this), the length of the text, the emphasis on finding and then evaluating sources and plagiarism, and I really appreciate the skills-based approachm particularly when it is deliberately done and demonstrates how these skills are portable."

Review - Michelle Deardorff

Writing a Research Paper in Political Science is an essential text for every political science major.

Steve B. Lem

"The book's strengths are clear: it summarizes the writing process that coincides with the typical process that I teach students to conduct empirically-oriented research in political science. The author captures the typical undergraduate political science major audience well, and is accessible to students who do not intend to pursue political science as a profession, but who I think will benefit from a greater understanding about the process that political scientists follow to identify a puzzle or problem, survey the literature, develop a thesis, and design and carry out a logical process to address the problem.

Review - Timothy LaPira