The Bedford Researcher Chapter 11 Summary

Chapter 11 of the Bedford Researcher titled "Developing Your Thesis Statement" talks about the use of your sources in crafting your own contributions about your issues.  Choosing your main point and drafting your thesis statement is the beginning of this process.

The previous chapters of the book led to serve as a foundation for development of the thesis statement which is the main point about your issue in your document.  As the most important idea you want to convey to your readers, choose as a thesis statement carefully as it will influence your readers. 

As you review our notes with your position statement in mind, it will deepen your understanding and affect how you think about the main point that you want to portray in your document.  Your purpose may have changed since you have started the process of researching your topic.  You may have to revise your position statement if this is the case.

Drafting our thesis statement will be affected by many factors that you have encountered in your research.  You will start by identifying the important information, ideas and arguments that relates to your position on the issue, looking for key words and phrases.  You can use this information as you draft your thesis statement.  You will want a focused thesis statement to make your purpose clear to your readers from the start of your paper.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 10 Summary

Chapter 10 of the Bedford Researcher is titled "Searching for Information with Field Research Methods".  Some key questions include when and how to conduct field research.  This chapter opens the mind of the writer to think outside the box.  It introduces the idea of gathering information beyond not only research articles, books, and other common resources, but to use interviews in order to gain first hand information on their topic.

Interviews can bring valuable information that is not found during the conventional way of doing research using printed materials.  A question-and-answer format or free-flowing discussion can be done using various ways of communication, not just face to face.  Talking to others can about your topic can help you gain a personal perspective that just reading published works cannot do.  Deciding what to ask is important and you will want to limit your number of questions to get more powerful material.  Be prepared with follow-up questions. Last of all, you want to be flexible.  You will want to scrutinize the information you have personally gathered just as you would the sources you have gathered in the traditional sense.

The chapter also covers how to conduct observations of events, working on surveys, and collecting information through correspondence.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 7 Summary

Chapter 7 of the Bedford Researcher titled "Avoiding Plagiarism" explains the important issues regarding plagiarism.  Using someone else's work and passing it off as your own without properly acknowledging where the ideas or information came from is plagiarism.  The chapter not only covers doing it unintentionally, but intentionally and in group projects, as well.  Deadlines and other pressures can contribute to the act of plagiarism such as taking poor notes and improperly citing sources. 

Plagiarism is a serious problem and can lead to serious consequences.  Neglecting to use quotation marks when using a direct quotation, paraphrasing too closely to the original material, not clearly distinguishing your ideas from the ideas of your source, and not properly recording your sources on your works cited list are ways of unintentional plagiarism.  Steps can be taken to avoid unintentional plagiarism.  It takes careful assessment of the way you take notes, paraphrase, summarize, and taking special care when citing your sources.  Penalties can be imposed if caught, such as a lowered grade or failure.  It can also cause readers to stop reading your document and question your credibility as a writer and researcher.

The originality of your work is important and it takes a conscientious effort to ensure that you correctly word your document.   

Scholarly Articles for Bipolar Disorder

Works Cited

Angst, Jules. “Bipolar Disorders in DSM-5: Strengths, Problems and Perspectives.” International Journal of Bipolar Disorders 1:12 (2013):1-3. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Cosgrove, Victoria E. and Trisha Suppes. Informing DSM-5: Biological Boundaries Between Bipolar I Disorder, Schizoaffective Disorder, and Schizophrenia.” BMC Medicine 11:127 (2013): 1-7. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Gibson, Susanne, et al. “Understanding Treatment Non-adherence in Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder: A Survey of What Service Users Do and Why.” BMC Psychiatry 13.1 (2013): 1-12. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Goodwin, Guy M., et al. “ECNP Consensus Meeting.  Bipolar Depression.  Nice, March 2007.” European Neuropsychopharmacology 18 (2008): 535-549. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Jan. 2014.

Henry, Brook L., Arpi Minassian, and William Perry. “Everyday Functional Ability Across Different Phases of Bipolar Disorder.” Psychiatry Research 210 (2013): 850-856. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Jan. 2014.

Hong, Jihyung, et al. “The Cost of Relapse For Patients With a Manic/Mixed Episode of Bipolar Disorder in the EMBLEM Study.” Pharmacoecomonics 28.7 (2010): 555-566. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Jan. 2014.

Látalová, Klára. “Insight in Bipolar Disorder.” Psychiatry Quartery 83 (2012): 293-310. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Liang, Min-Jie, et al. “Identify Changes of Brain Regional Homogeneity in Bipolar Disorder and Unipolar Depression Using Resting-State fMRI.” PLOS ONE 8:12 (2013) 1-8. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Pålsson, Erik, et al. “Neurocognitive Function in Bipolar Disorder: A Comparison Between Bipolar I And II Disorder and Matched Controls.” BMC Psychiatry 13:165 (2013) 1-9. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Peay, Holly L., et al. “Adaptation to Bipolar Disorder and Perceived Risk to Children: A Survey of Parents With Bipolar Disorder.” BMC Psychiatry 13.1 (2013): 1-18. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

Images For Bipolar Disorder

Images Cited

becauseilive. “How to Tell if You Have Bipolar Disorder.” Hubpages.com. Hubpages, Apr. 2012. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

Hirschfeld, Robert . “Bipolar Depression: The Real Challenge.” Medscape.org. Medscape, LLC., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

Khalife, Sami, Vivek Singh, and David J. Munzina. “Bipolar Disorder.” Clevelandclinicmeded.com. The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Aug. 2010. Web.  23 Jan. 2014.

Nemade, Rashmi, and Mark Dombeck. “Contemporary Understanding of Bipolar Disorder: Causes and Outcomes.” MentalHelp.net. CenterSite, LLC., Aug. 2009.  Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

Porter, Eloise. “9 Famous Faces of Bipolar Disorder.” Heathline.com. Healthline Networks, Inc., Oct. 2011. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.  

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 6 Summary

Chapter 6 of The Bedford Researcher is titled "Managing Information and Taking Notes".  It takes into account that a narrowly defined question will produce a large number of sources that are relevant to keep for your research.  Planning and drafting of your document can be made easier by the way you save and organize the information you have accumulated during your search.

There are numerous ways to save the information you find.  You have to make a decision on how you will manage the information for your research project from the available sources you find online or from books, magazines, and newspapers.  You will want to be sure that you follow a consistent organizational scheme as you take notes and keep track of your sources.

Keeping track of important information and gaining a thorough understanding of your sources can be accomplished by taking notes.  Putting the information in your own words is crucial while you paraphrase and summarize to avoid plagiarism.  Make sure you  are accurate if you are quoting directly.  Record key ideas, your reactions, and impressions.

A working or annotated bibliography will help you keep track of the sources.  It will help keep track of the content you are including, serve as a planning tool, and be used as proof for your paper as your list of resources.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 3 Summary

Chapter 3 of the Bedford Researcher is titled "Developing Your Research Question and Proposal".  These are important steps because it directs your efforts in creating a plan, searching for sources, and collecting information.  It is the foundation for developing your position or main point of the issue you choose.

Developing your research question requires many aspects to consider.  You will need to focus on your specific issue by asking different variations of your question trying to narrow down your focus while keeping track of the different variables that are required to write your paper.  An analysis of your topic and it's requirements should show your understanding of your writing situation.  While doing research and honing your research question, you may find that the insights you have gained from the information you have gathered will affect the stand you choose to take.  It is not uncommon to have to make adjustments as you go about refining your final question.  You will narrow the scope of your research as more information is collected and your understanding and views are challenged.

Creating a research proposal, or formal presentation of your planned research, can be a useful tool in gathering your thoughts and ideas to help guide you in organizing your information and explaining how included information is relevant to your finished project.  The sources you choose is important as well as the information you choose to include in your research project.  Used as an outline, a research proposal can be a useful tool in writing a well thought out, concise paper.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 5 Summary

This chapter entitled "Evaluating Resources" guides the student  in the factors that should be used in to check for relevance, evidence, the author, the publisher, timeliness (the publishing date), comprehensiveness, and genre of the information collected for use in researching a topic.  It gives information to help determine if the sources will help accomplish your goals.  It lists guidelines for evaluating sources so you can choose the most meaningful material that will help your paper by supporting your arguments.

All types of sources should be evaluated using criteria that has been discussed in previous sections of the book.  The second section of the chapter talks about evaluating relevance and credibility of digital sources and the relevance and accuracy of field sources.  Incorporating information that is relevant is very important.  There are numerous data bases online where you will encounter interesting information that will not necessarily help to prove your case.  While it would be tempting to add these tidbits of information, you need to take into consideration if the information will help strengthen your writing or confuse your readers by filling valuable space with unnecessary irrelevant issues.  Some sources are more reliable than others and you will have to discern which sources can be trusted.

Evaluate a Website on My Topic.

I chose the subject of Manic Depression for the subject of my final paper.  In this in class lab, I have to answer questions to complete a tutorial on page 90 from The Bedford Researcher using my website as my topic.

The website I have chosen after doing a google search using the key words "manic depression" was http://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/bipolar-disorder-manic-depression.

1.      In checking the domain and seeing that it is a .com, its purpose is business.

2.      Checking the Title Bar, the site’s purpose is to educate.  The publisher has relevance.

3.      WebMD is a legitimate source that covers many topics within the medical world.

4.      The article was reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD on February 01, 2012.

5.      The article was mainly text without illustrations relating to the subject matter.

 

6.       The footer showed the publisher but I could not the find the author.  It was published by WebMD, LLC.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 4 Summary

This section covers the topic of reading critically.  It includes many valuable tactics on getting started on a research paper.  Starting with a research question, work with sources for collecting information, come up with a thesis statement to enhance the paper, and document your sources.  Critical reading helps with formulating judgments as to what information being researched is relevant to your stance on the position of the issues regarding the topic that you have chosen.  It helps to shift your focus and begin to develop a strong position statement.  While critical reading, you will attempt to determine what sources are reliable.  These techniques will help to provide a convincing argument and help effectively present your information.  Any supporting evidence provided will help illustrate your points.

Effectively organizing and formatting your document towards your audience while considering the requirements and limitations involved will be your guide as you form opinions.  Challenge what you read to form your own conclusions.  Interact with your sources while actively reading.  This practice will help while you take notes on the information presented that you will use to support your understanding and stance on your topic.  Your sources are important.  You will need to make an accurate analysis of the information you are researching.  Choose credible sources.

As you read, analyze and interpret the evidence.  First skim the material to access the usefulness and relevance of the content.  Then take a second pass to identify promising sections.  Lastly, if the source is found to be valuable, reread important passages to gain a better understanding of the material.  This will enable you to refine and support your argument.  

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 2 Summary

Chapter 2 of the Bedford Researcher concentrates on exploring and focusing on the topic of choice of a research paper by gaining a general understanding of the issues within a topic.  Setting the groundwork guides your efforts towards gaining a comprehensive understanding of the task for your research.

The first section begins by exploring the topic chosen to create a plan.  It entails discussing the topic with others to conduct observations.  It also encompasses finding and reviewing possible sources for material in numerous places such as the library in books, articles in scholarly journals, articles in trade and other professional journals, articles in magazines and newspapers, theses and dissertations, microfilm and microfiche and other sources including maps, videotapes, audiotapes, CD-ROMs and DVDs.  This section discusses the pros and cons of each source and where to find them.  It also gives some direction on how to effectively use these materials.

Later, the chapter gives advice on how to focus on a specific issue and gives examples on how you can organize your resources to gather the information you have compiled in an effective matter.  The process will help to access the importance and relevance of the issues to help identify personal connections between the sources and your own interests.  Choosing an issue with the strongest points that interest you helps keep you focus as you write your paper.

The Bedford Researcher Chapter 1 Summary

Chapter 1 of the Bedford Researcher is a wonderful resource in trying to start the process of coming up with ideas for a research paper.  It gives suggestions about coming up with the right topic using different processes.

The first chapter begins with a section entitled, "How can I research and write with confidence?"  The chapter has a lot of good ideas in guiding the writer to finding a good topic in which he or she will have enough information and resources to write whatever style of paper that is required.  There are many styles to consider when taking your subject and audience into consideration.  It can be a challenge deciding how to use information after searching though different databases that fit the parameters required to produce the final paper.  Collecting information and developing it in an organized matter is of upmost importance.

The second section of the chapter, "How can I choose an appropriate topic?" concentrates on analyzing the guidelines and audience of the paper.  It suggests ways to generate ideas in choosing an appropriate topic.  This is a critical area because the type of document you are writing and your audience has a major effect on what you choose to write and how you should go about it.  The requirements of the paper need to be kept into consideration also.  You want to make sure that what you produce is appropriate. 

Sample Research Paper

As we start our new quarter in English 102 we are preparing to write a formal MLA research paper.  As an exercise during our first day of class, we read sample research paper "Reinstating Compulsory Conscription" written by Carol Rivers for her English 101 class with Dr. Chrzanowski on July 12, 2009 from the Jefferson State University of New York.  After reading the paper, the class split up in groups of two or three people to discuss the contents of the paper.  We compared it to the requirements of our formal paper that will be due at the end our quarter.  We then discussed our findings as a class.

We agreed that the sample paper was 3000+ words in length which was sufficient to meet our requirements.  We thought that the citations within the body of the paper were not as clear as we would have liked them to be.  There were long sentences throughout the paper as if the author tried too hard to sound smart, which made it boring and hard to understand.  Transition phrases where confusing to the organization of the paper.  Signal phrases were employed somewhat.  More signal phrases citing resources would have made the paper stronger.  Although a large number of sources were employed, the majority of the class believed that some sources cited did not seem as credible as others.  Some examples were years older than others or from sources that seemed weak in our opinion, such as one from the "National High School Debate Topic...". 

The writer reiterated the same things over and over.  There were many holes in the paper that did not seem to be filled.  The paper was written looking at both sides of the debate.  Though fact based, picking apart the topic made the paper seem biased.  The paper seemed emotional.  It failed to make a sound argument as a persuasive paper.

While it is not the best example as a paper, there is enough information included to receive a grade to pass the class.