you will develop a research paper that examines an interesting question regardin Leave a reply you will develop a research paper that examines an interesting question regarding a contemporary topic of counterterrorism or terrorism. The final paper will include the following sections: 1) introduction, 2) literature review, and 3) theory and hypothesis/hypotheses. In other words, the goal of the paper is to design a coherent theoretical argument that is rooted in the literature. Think of it like the front half of the scientific papers we read in class. You must upload a proposed research question by the end of Lesson 01.The paper will be around 8 pages it can be more but, formatted with 12-point font, 1-inch margins, and include page numbers. Double-space all of the text.Below are more details on the content that should be included in each section:IntroductionThe introduction to your paper should motivate the paper with a preliminary research question. The research question should:Identify some source of variation across countries, conflicts, governments or terrorist groups with respect to counterterrorism.Be causal. That is, it should seek to explain something.An example of a good research question is: what is the influence of democracy on terrorism? This is a good question because it seeks to explain a dependent variable (terrorism), identifies an independent variable (democracy), and identifies the country as the unit of analysis.Your introduction should also preview your main hypothesis or hypotheses. Your hypothesis should clearly identify the independent and dependent variables, as well as how you expect the independent variable(s) to influence the dependent variable.An example of a good hypothesis is Democracies are more likely to experience terrorism than non-democracies. This is a good hypothesis because it has an independent variable (democracy), a dependent variable (terrorism) and clearly identifies the relationship (democracy has a positive effect on terrorism in other words, democracy increases the probability of terrorism).The introduction should also preview your theoretical argument (the explanation behind your hypothesis) and emphasize the overall contribution that the paper is going to make to our understanding of counterterrorism.Literature ReviewThis section will survey the relevant literature concerning your research question. You should locate at least 10 high quality sources to review.A high-quality source:Addresses the same or a similar research question to the question that you pose.Provides a preliminary answer to the research question in the form of a hypothesis or hypotheses.Is empirical; that is, it uses evidence to answer the research question.Is a work of political science or a closely related field.Make sure that your literature review:Begins by restating your research question.Has a section reviewing the hypotheses and theories that have addressed your research question (or similar research questions) in the existing literature. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each of these and be sure to lay out each hypothesis and their underlying logic.Summarizes the findings of existing literature in detail, and how these empirical findings do or do not conform to the theories and hypotheses discussed above.Discusses what other variables (i.e., control variables) have been found to influence the dependent variable identified by your research question.Theory and HypothesesNow that you have reviewed scholarly works that are relevant to your research question, you will bring it all together by outlining your own theory and stating your hypothesis (or hypotheses). Your theory should do the following:Answer your research question. Explain in detail the logic or reasoning you used to conclude that your independent variable influences the value of the dependent variable, and in which direction. Be sure to cite the existing literature again where it supports your own arguments. In short, provide me with your own theory, but do not forget to reference previous literature and discuss how it is similar and/or different from your own story linking the IV to the DV.State your main hypothesis or hypotheses (which are derived from your theory). This entry was posted in Criminology on December 5, 2021 by .
