Research Tips and Tricks

Rereading an academic article grants a researcher new understanding of the material. 

This ensures we don't miss anything important, especially with a longer piece!

Reading an intimidating article more than once may seem, well, intimidating, but it will help with not only comprehension, but also how to use the article in your own paper. 

Source of article used throughout this guide: Holland, D. (2016). College student stress and mental health: Examination of stigmatic views on mental health counseling. Michigan Sociological Review, 30, 16-43. http://www,jstor.org/stable/43940346

Just as you should write your own paper in smaller sections, you should consider reading academic articles in sections. 

Some articles (like my example here) are lengthy (28 pages, in this case), which makes understanding, absorbing, and annotating a piece difficult. We can lose steam the further we get into a long article, book chapter, or book. 

The solution? Eat that elephant one bite at a time!

Go section by section on your first read-through. Pay attention to the spots that confuse you (annotation, anyone?) to come back to later, whether this be on a second read-through or later in your first when things start to click.