Environmental Sociology Syd 4510

FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY

        Environmental Sociology SYD 4510

         Research Paper Guidelines

The paper should be 6-8 pages in length, (double-spaced), and should include:

(1) Title and Introduction (10 pts): a page briefly stating: (a) the purpose of the paper (your research question), (b) which specific issue related to the environment is the focus of your paper, (c) the hypothesis/ argument you are advancing,

(2) Data and method (20 pts): where the information concerning this issue is coming from (in-person interview, newspaper articles, government data, survey, etc., briefly discuss the limitations of your data),

(3) Theory (20 pts): briefly describe the theory or the theoretical concept(s) that you are using in your paper (see Harper and assigned readings for examples), explain how this theory (or theoretical concept) help us explain and understand the phenomenon that you are investigating

(4) Findings and Conclusion (40 pts): analysis of the data: in other words, what has your research uncovered with regard to your specific research question?  Do your findings conform or contradict your hypothesis?  How do your findings contribute to our understanding of this issue?  Do your findings attest to the validity of the theory or should the theory be changed in some way?

(5) Bibliography (10 pts): properly formatted (ASA or MLA format preferably), should have at least 5 sources, including one sociological journal article.  You are allowed to use one of the books or articles required in this course or the lecture as a source for your theoretical part of the paper.  Make sure to acknowledge other peoples’ words and ideas with appropriate citations in the body of the paper itself!  Online encyclopedias like the Wikipedia, or personal blogs will not count as valid sources.

Instructions for finding a sociological journal articles:

Start at the FAU home page.  Click on Libraries, then click on Indexes/Databases, next use Databases A – Z to locate Sociological Abstracts, click on it.  Begin search using keywords.

You can also use other databases, electronic journals links, or the web to located sociological journals (This is a sociology course so your paper should not be based mostly or entirely on studies from other disciplines such as psychology, chemistry, medicine, biology, climate science, etc.).