Assignment: Fitness Analysis of Scientific Literature Essay
TOPIC CHOOSEN FOR PAPER: Exercise and prevention or treatment of cancer.
Guidelines
Assignment Learning Objectives:
Students will learn to critically analyze empirical research in the fitness field by deconstructing study components, evaluating methodologies and findings, and articulating their analysis through a professional written critique and corresponding oral presentation in APA format.
Assignment Overview:
The purpose of this assignment is to learn how to critically read and analyze research articles in the fitness field. This Analysis will be a 5 page (minimum 1,250 word) critique of an empirical research study that has been published in a peer-reviewed academic journal. This Analysis will be on a Fitness topic that you select from page 4 of the Assignment packet. Once you select a fitness topic of interest, you will find your own peer-reviewed research study related to that topic and write a paper on it. You will also be recording an oral presentation of this paper for the Fitness Oral Presentation assignment.
Assignment Steps:
Please see detailed instructions on APA format (7th ed.)Links to an external site. and how to adopt it in your papers on the Owl Excelsior Writing LabLinks to an external site. website.
1. Selecting a Research Study: The research study you select needs to be recent, published within the last 10 years. Make sure to select either an experimental study so that all components of the assignment can be addressed, a review paper or meta-analysis is not acceptable. The article you select will be the same one that you present for your oral presentation. The article must be referenced in your written assignment. Contact your instructor if you would like confirmation on the paper you selected.
2. Instructions and APA Format: Use the directions below as a guide to critically evaluate each section of the paper. Each one of these questions should be addressed within the paper but the paper should be written in paragraph format.
3. Briefly describe and then critically analyze all of the following components of the study:
What is the research problem? Another way to think about this is: Why was this study conducted?
What is/are the hypothesis/hypotheses stated by the author(s)? If not stated directly, what does the hypothesis appear to be?
Who were the study participants? How many were there and how were they recruited? What were the inclusion/exclusion criteria for selecting the participants?
What was the study design? Primary and secondary outcomes? Dependent and independent variables? Participant groups and study intervention.
What were the main study results? Describe the results clearly using numerical values.
Did the results support the authors’ hypothesis/hypotheses? Why or why not?
Regarding the methods used, what was/were the limitation(s) and strength(s) discussed by the author(s)? These are usually in the Discussion/Conclusion section of the article. Were there any additional strengths and weaknesses of the methods not discussed by the author(s)? If so, discuss with a brief professional critique and do not use overly personal opinion-based judgements.
What conclusion(s) did the author(s) make?
How can the research findings be applied? If no applications were suggested by the authors, provide ideas for how the findings could be applied.
Based on this study and past research discussed in the Introduction, what directions should researchers take for future study of this topic?
4. Composing answers to the above questions: Use your own words to discuss the answers using information from the article. DO NOT use direct quotes or copied material from the article. Instead, paraphrase the source material and cite appropriately in APA format. Do not include the questions. Your paper should be written in paragraph form; it should NOT be a list of the questions and your responses.
Form and Style Guidelines
Your paper should:
be written in narrative, paragraph format, no numbering or bullets;
be written in formal style-3rd person only (do not use 1st or 2nd person, such as “we”, “I” or “you”);
be a professional critique and NOT contain overly personal opinion-based judgements;
cite a professional reference for any nutrition or fitness guidelines or recommendations suggested in text;
NOT use direct quotes or copied material. Instead, paraphrase the source material in your own words and cite appropriately in APA format;
use past tense when describing the research;
be typed, double spaced, be left justified, have 1-inch margins, and at least 5 pages in length (or min. 1,250 words);
be in a font size that is Times New Roman 12 point or similar size (easy to read);
be turned in on Canvas.
Additional Resources and information
On-Time Submission – As stated in the syllabus, late work is penalized with 2.5 points (out of 50 pts.) reduction for each day past the due date posted below.
Be sure to familiarize yourself with the handout “How to Understand and Interpret Food and Health-Related Scientific Studies.” which provides detailed descriptions of common research methods and terms.
Please refer to the Assignment Packet for specific instructions regarding how to format your individual pages and use the APA format.
Please see detailed instructions on APA format (7th ed.)Links to an external site. and how to adopt it in your papers on the Owl Excelsior Writing LabLinks to an external site. website.
In order to help you see what’s expected, I have taken papers submitted from former students for you to review. One paper received an A grade while the other had several mistakes and therefore scored a C. I included my comments to the students and the completed rubrics. Take a look at these former students’ A and C paper samples to get a sense of the expectations
There are ppt presentations for each writing assignment. There is also a video recorded by your instructor walking you through those guideline slides. Both the ppt slide deck and the recorded video can be found in the previous week’s module. Please make sure to refer to these resources that will help you find the answer to your potential questions.
Writing and grammar make up 10 of the 50 points for your paper grades so be sure not to make these common mistakes!
These optional videos may be useful to help you get in the mindset of a critical online consumer and learn ways to best assess the accuracy of online information: The facts about fact checking, Evaluating online evidence
Assignment Packet:
FITNESS OR NUTRITION ANALYSIS OF SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE
Purpose:
To understand how to critically read and analyze research articles in the nutrition or fitness field.
You will write one Analysis of Scientific Literature paper either on a Fitness or a Nutrition topic. It will be a 5-page-critique (or min. 1250 words) of an empirical research study that has been published in a peer-reviewed academic journal. You will find your own peer-reviewed study depending on the subject (Fitness or Nutrition) you are assigned. The name of the assignment seen on your dashboard will reflect the subject you are assigned.
If you are assigned to the Nutrition subject, you will choose a topic from the Nutrition page (p.3), find your own research study related to that topic and write your paper on it. If you are assigned to the Fitness subject, you will choose a topic from the Fitness page (p.4), find your own research study related to that topic and write your paper on it.
Due Date and Submission:
Please see the syllabus for the due dates, your Canvas calendar should also show your assignment due dates.
Late papers will be docked 2.5 points for each day or partial day late, so try to turn your paper in on time.
Your paper will be submitted to CANVAS and it is your responsibility to double check that the paper you upload is the paper you intended and is accessible. Each student must do his/her own work. Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in a failing grade on the assignment and the student being reported to the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. Turnitin is enabled for all writing assignments and both the Similarity Score (which highlights plagiarized text and its source) as well as the %AI Report (which highlights writing developed by Artificial Intelligence) will be reviewed by instructors prior to grading. You can view these reports yourself once papers have been submitted.
Guidelines for Selecting a Study:
The research study you select needs to be recent, published within the last 10 years. Make sure to select an experimental human study article so that all components of the assignment can be addressed, a review paper or meta-analysis is not acceptable. The article you select will be the same one that you present for your oral presentation. The article must be referenced in your written assignment. Contact your instructor if you would like confirmation on the study you selected.
Guidelines for Analyzing Research:
Be sure to consider the suggestions from the handout “How to Understand and Interpret Food and Health-Related Scientific Studies” when analyzing the articles. Use the directions below as a guide to critically evaluate each section of the paper. Each one of these questions should be addressed within the paper but the paper should be written in paragraph format.
Directions:
In a 5-page essay, briefly describe and then critically analyze all of the following components of the study:
1. What is the research problem? Another way to think about this is: Why was this study conducted?
2. What is/are the hypothesis/hypotheses stated by the author(s)? If not stated directly, what does the hypothesis appear to be?
3. A. Who were the study participants? How many were there and how were they recruited?
B. What were the inclusion/exclusion criteria for selecting the participants?
4. What was the study design?
5. What were the main study results? Describe the results clearly using numerical values.
Resources
This is a partial list of peer-reviewed journals and on-line resources that can be used for your written assignments and oral presentation. The research studies you select need to be recent, published within the last 10 years.
Journals
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance
American Journal of Public Health Journal of Nutrition
American Journal of Sports Medicine Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
International Journal of Sports Medicine New England Journal of Medicine
Journal of Athletic Training Nutrition Reviews
Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Physician and Sports Medicine
Journal of the American Medical Association Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research Sports Medicine
Journal of Food Science Strength and Conditioning Journal
On-Line Resources
American College of Sports Medicine www.acsm.org
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics www.eatright.org
American Medical Association www.ama-assn.org
Australian Institute of Sport www.ais.org.au/sssm/index.asp
Centers for Disease Control www.cdc.gov
Food and Drug Administration www.fda.gov
Government Healthfinder www.healthfinder.gov
International Food Information Council www.ific.org
Medline: www.sjlibrary.org website for access to database www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/
MyPlate.gov www.myplate.gov
National Institutes of Health www.nih.gov
New England Journal of Medicine www.nejm.org
Physician and Sportsmedicine www.physsportsmed.com
Gatorade Sports Science Exchange www.gssiweb.com
Sport Science Organization www.sportsci.org
World Health Organization www.who.int/en