Connect with Gillian  support@brightshinycoaching.com    +44(0)7767 143125
Gillian Hayes, PhD, ADHD Coach
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Diagnosis

How to read research papers and make your project literature review easier

25/10/2018

2 Comments

 
Picture
You have a bunch of papers to read so you can start your project. Where to start? How to start?

Obviously you pick one, start with the abstract and finish with the last reference, right?

Nope.

Most papers are written by academics, not professional writers. And they're not written with the idea of getting you hooked within the first paragraph.

Reading a research paper, especially when you've not had much practice at it, can be a tough job. Chances are you could get stuck partway through the materials and methods. So you put it down. A week later, back to those materials and methods. Oh, turgid stuff.
​

​Split it up

Here's a way of splitting up the task to make it better, more useful, and maybe even (hopefully) more interesting, even gripping.

0. Print it out. You're going to read it off the paper so you can write on it, use highlighters, and remember its spatial layout. A lot of your brain is devoted to processing physical space (as opposed to a static screen where one page is identical to the next, where you're not physically holding it, and where there are no coffee stains or any other distinguishing features). Let that brain do its job.

1. ​First, read the abstract, the intro, and the conclusion. Only. Ask yourself as you're reading: what is this paper about? What did they want to show/measure? Did they do it? You look to see how well those questions are answered in those three sections.

Then take a break. A few minutes, a day, a couple of days.

2. Next time, read the intro (to refresh your memory) and then read the materials and methods section. What did they do? What were the experiments? What pieces of kit did they use?

Take a break.

3. Next you might like to look at the results. What results did they get? How have they analysed their results? How do they rate their results? Don't get bogged down in any statistical methods that they use - you can do that later if it turns out to be important to you.

Take a break.

4. Look at the theory - if that's part of the paper. How much of it do you understand? What would you need to do to be able to understand it all? (Just make a list - and then you don't necessarily have to do it, at least not now.)

Take a break.

5. What did they intend to show and how well did they show it? What do they say themselves in the critical evaluation section? What would they do differently if they were able to do it all again? What did they not show? What do they suggest for further work?

Take a break.

6. By now, you're familiar with the paper. So you can scan it all through in one go if you wish.

7. Put a summary together about the paper. Something maybe like this:

X and Y investigated topic A. They looked at Z phenomenon (covered in theory) in P scenarios (different experimental setups, e.g. elements, substances, techniques used). Their results showed Q (results section), however they didn't have sufficient data points (critical analysis) to show R (shortcomings). It would be interesting to study S (the further work section) in scenario T (what you're going to do for your project).

8. Then add a bibliography entry to your bibliography management software (or use Word).


That's it. On to the next paper.


The whole idea is to have some questions in mind as you're reading - so you're reading to answer those questions, not for entertainment - and to read the various parts of the paper at different times. Sometimes your brain will be into theory/maths, other times you'll just want to read about lasers or spectrometers or hardware or experimental subjects and questionnaires.

Reading a group of papers by theme makes comparisons between them easier too - you're comparing methods, or subjects, or types of analysis, or domains of application.

The papers aren't just pieces of prose, they're actually tools. So don't read them like a novel, make them work for you. Happy reading!
2 Comments
Kimberley
12/8/2019 07:50:36 pm

I've just been diagnosed with ADD after trying to complete 3rd year at University as a direct entrant at 38/9. Reading the Research papers was one of the things I really struggled with. Part of it was the references in the body of the text. It was as if my brain just could not connect the disconnected bits of the sentences and paragraphs into whole parts.
It was such an issue I tried asking someone to write a program to take the references out so I could just read the text. To date this hasn't been successful.
I have 6 months before I have to retake the units I'm failing and would love to know how to deal with that issue.
Seeing this as the first post on your blog was wonderful for me!

Reply
Gillian Hayes
13/8/2019 09:32:03 pm

Hi Kimberley, so glad you found this useful! Research papers really don't read like novels and thinking of them as work tools can make them approachable.
That's a fantastic idea about taking out the references. I don't know of a program that will do that, but I suppose you could print it out and get a thick black pen and cover them over. Or get a pdf of the paper (mail the author and ask them for one if necessary) and then redact them in adobe. If your uni provides you with a budget for a support person, they could do that for you. Worth asking!
And well done for getting so far through uni - be proud of that!! - and good luck with the resits.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author

    ADHD coach Gillian's thoughts on ADHD life with stuff you can use too.

    RSS Feed

Connect with Gillian    support@brightshinycoaching.com
+44(0)7767 143125 
Click for info session