Strategic Note-taking for Social Sciences Research: QRSTUV
Title/Author Question(s) Research Methods Summary of Findings Takeaway Message
Unfamiliar Vocabulary
List the full title and name of the author(s) If the piece comes from a textbook that contains many different selections, please use the author and title of the individual piece you read, NOT the author and title of the whole textbook If the piece is a film, just include the title
What is the main research question that the piece seems to be addressing? Please be sure to phrase this as the research question that the author is asking (not as a question that *you* have about the piece). For formal research articles, youll generally find a version of the research question in an articles introduction. If the author does not explicitly state their research question, you can construct one by asking yourself, after you have read the entire selection, Why did this author set out to write this piece? What question does it seem like they were trying to answer in writing it?
What research method does the author use? Was their research based on interviews? Observation? Quantitative analysis? Documentary filmmaking? You can do your best to explain this in plain English terms. You can often find a description of the research methods used near the beginning of the article If there is no clear statement of method, you should do your best to identify what the author seems to be doing, i.e., The author is interviewing people who have experienced similar kinds of workplace abuses, or the author is reviewing what other researchers have written in the past about the economy, or the author is theorizing (proposing) a
In this box, you should summarize the main points of the research. A good way to approach this is by seeing what the authors themselves highlight. Looking for cues like bold headings, words in italics, or points made repeatedly is a good strategy, as is paying special attention to any points made in the Discussion or Conclusion sections of a research article. This is typically where social scientists try to bring together all of the threads of their argument to highlight claims that they are making. This section should be 125-275 words (i.e., it should be a LOT longer than your takeaway message). Please write this section in prose as a paragraph, not in bullet points. Use your own words rather than quoting the author, and be sure to present the authors research findings, not your opinion about their findings. (continued below) In thinking about what you would in include here, consider what you might say to a friend if you were
