Research paper topics: popular articles

Posted by on October 22, 2008 
Filed Under Writing Assignments

As you know, the first submission of your research paper is due next Monday, October 27, via E-Learning. As a reminder, full details about the research paper assignment are available on the syllabus and here (PDF).

Some students have contacted me with confusion about acceptable topics for the research paper. As a reminder, the assignment requires you to base your research paper on an article about sexuality from the popular press. The full research paper guidelines include the list of acceptable popular articles. For your convenience, here it is again:

Possible popular articles for research paper topics (PDF)

Remember: If this list does not include an article on the topic you’d like to research and write about, you are welcome to select your own article from the popular press. However, you must work with your TA to determine if the topic and article is appropriate for the assignment. You may use an article of your choosing only if you receive written approval from your TA before the paper is due.

If you have any questions or comments, leave them here.

Comments

16 Responses to “Research paper topics: popular articles”

  1. Alexis on October 22nd, 2008 1:12 pm

    I was wondering if our 6 required articles include the suggested articles or if we need six outside of the suggested ones.

  2. Chris on October 22nd, 2008 8:35 pm

    can you use the textbook as a reference to psychosexual development for example if you are only paraphrasing it, and have your 6 journals/books already?

  3. Lance Gravlee on October 22nd, 2008 9:58 pm

    @Alexis: The minimum of six sources you refer to must be scholarly sources (see the written assignment for a definition of scholarly sources). The sources may not include the suggested articles or any article assigned for class. We expect to see evidence of independent library research.

    @Chris: In a research paper like this one, you should avoid citing textbooks. The reason is that textbooks are derived from primary literature. A better strategy is to go to the primary literature itself. Check the references cited in the textbook and then look up the original sources to get the information you need.

    Hope that helps.

  4. Raquel Saint-Hilaire on October 23rd, 2008 10:04 am

    Our TA mentioned that we needed to turn in a hard copy on monday during lecture as well as turning it in on e-learning. Is that still in effect because i noticed you didn’t mention it in the announcements?

  5. Suzanne on October 23rd, 2008 10:16 am

    Raquel: if the e-Learning discussion boards run smoothly I will not need a hard copy of your paper on Monday. Please refer to the email I sent about this.

  6. Chris Delano on October 24th, 2008 5:58 pm

    MOST websites are conidered not appropriate sources- however what if I am planning on using the Center of Disease Control(CDC) site for statistics/data? Is this acceptable if i site it properly?

  7. Brooke on October 25th, 2008 4:40 pm

    When will the rubric be posted? It still isn’t up on E-learning.

  8. Cam Newton on October 26th, 2008 1:38 pm

    For some reason, I can not print or download the PDF version of the research paper assignment. Please help asap!

    Thank you,
    C. Newton

  9. Alex on October 26th, 2008 4:57 pm

    As long as we are still following the research paper guidelines, can we put our own personal opinion into the paper at some point or must we remain unbiased throughout?

    Thank you!

  10. Alex Fechtmeyer on October 27th, 2008 8:01 pm

    Do we need to include our bibliography in the rough draft?

  11. Alex Fechtmeyer on October 27th, 2008 10:20 pm

    Also i have one block quote in my paper. Is it double spaced as well?

  12. Nerine on November 21st, 2008 2:40 pm

    I just wanted to share some information relating to my research on FGM. I found a very interesting book called Infidel, written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. She is a Somalian woman who was circumcised as a young girl and later ran away in order to escape an arranged marriage. She traveled to Europe, and became a member of the Dutch parliament. She is an outspoken critic of any form of genital mutilation and of Islam in its capacity to be used as justification for the abuse of women. She wrote the script for Submission, a ten-minute movie portraying the various ways in which women are subjugated under Islamic law. It is a highly controversial film, and its release resulted in the murder of the director, Theo van Gogh, by a Muslim extremist. If you’re interested, you can watch it for free online at http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=sumbission&emb=0&aq=f#q=submission%20ali&emb=0
    Enjoy.

  13. Luca on October 16th, 2009 12:40 pm

    I was told to try using JSTOR by my TA, however UF isn’t one of the recognized institutions, how do I log in?

  14. Josie on October 19th, 2009 3:22 am

    There are two different lists of topics to choose from and im not sure if anyone is aware. Does it matter which list I use for my topic? I have already finished my paper and will die if I have to write a new one. I’m distressedddd!!!!!

  15. Lance Gravlee on October 19th, 2009 11:24 am

    @Luca: UF does, in fact, have access to JSTOR, but you must be on a campus computer or connected via VPN or remote proxy. Go here.

  16. Lance Gravlee on October 19th, 2009 11:25 am

    @Josie: I apologize for the confusion. As I mentioned in lecture this morning, we will accept without penalty any research paper written about a topic from last year’s list.