What is a Critical Review of a Journal Article?

A critical review of a journal article evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of an article's ideas and content. It provides description, analysis and interpretation that allow readers to assess the article's value. Before You Read the Article What does the title lead you to expect about the article? Study any sub-headings to understand how the author organized the content. Read the abstract for a summary of the author's arguments. Study the list of references to determine what research contributed to the author's arguments. Are the references recent? Do they represent important work in the field? If possible, read about the author to learn what authority he or she has to write about the subject. Consult Web of Science to see if other writers have cited the author's work. (Please see 'How to use E-Indexes'.) Has the author made an important contribution to the field of study? Reading the Article: Points to Consider Read the article carefully. Record your impressions and note sections suitable for quoting. Who is the intended audience? What is the author's purpose? To survey and summarize research on a topic? To present an argument that builds on past research? To refute another writer's argument? Does the author define important terms? Is the information in the article fact or opinion? (Facts can be verified, while opinions arise from interpretations of facts.) Does the information seem well-researched or is it unsupported? What are the author's central arguments or conclusions? Are they clearly stated? Are they supported by evidence and analysis? If the article reports on an experiment or study, does the author clearly outline methodology and the expected result? Is the article lacking information or argumentation that you expected to find? Is the article organized logically and easy to follow? Does the writer's style suit the intended audience? Is the style stilted or unnecessarily complicated? Is the author's language objective or charged with emotion and bias? If illustrations or charts are used, are they effective in presenting information? Prepare an Outline Read over your notes. Choose a statement that expresses the central purpose or thesis of your review. When thinking of a thesis, consider the author's intentions and whether or not you think those intentions were successfully realized. Eliminate all notes that do not relate to your thesis. Organize your remaining points into separate groups such as points about structure, style, or argument. Devise a logical sequence for presenting these ideas. Remember that all of your ideas must support your central thesis. Write the First Draft The review should begin with a complete citation of the article. For example: Platt, Kevin M. F. "History and Despotism, or: Hayden White vs. Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great." Rethinking History 3:3 (1999) : 247269. NOTE: Use the same bibliographic citation format as you would for any bibliography, works cited or reference list. It will follow a standard documentation style such as MLA or APA. The first paragraph may contain:

a statement of your thesis the author's purpose in writing the article comments on how the article relates to other work on the same subject information about the author's reputation or authority in the field The body of the review should: state your arguments in support of your thesis follow the logical development of ideas that you mapped out in your outline include quotations from the article which illustrate your main ideas The concluding paragraph may: summarize your review restate your thesis Revise the First Draft Ideally, you should leave your first draft for a day or two before revising. This allows you to gain a more objective perspective on your ideas. Check for the following when revising: grammar and punctuation error, organization, logical development and solid support of your thesis,errors in quotations or in references You may make major revisions in the organization or content of your review during the revision process. Revising can even lead to a radical change in your central thesis. What is critical analysis? Critical analysis is a central process in all academic work. It involves thinking critically, which is applying rational and logical thinking while deconstructing the texts you read (and write) at university. Browne and Keeley (2001, p. 2) define critical thinking as: 1. 2. 3. an awareness of a set of interrelated critical questions the ability to ask and answer critical questions at appropriate times the desire to actively use the critical questions.

How do we think critically? When we think critically we are being active; we are not passively accepting everything we read and hear, but questioning, evaluating, making judgements, finding connections and categorising. It means being open to other points of view and not being blinded by our own biases. Critical thinking is useful for most activities associated with tertiary study, such as forming judgements in lectures and tutorials, and when reading, writing essays and assignments, making decisions and developing arguments. Critical thinking involves various processes in the disciplines. In science and technology it can include asking questions, identifying problems, describing, predicting, analysing, categorising and establishing cause and effect. In the arts, social sciences and commerce it can include asking questions, identifying problems and solutions, relating theory to practice, stating an argument and supporting it with evidence, making comparisons and evaluating. Key terms Logic: the study of correct and incorrect reasoning and the application of correct reasoning.

Argument: a group of statements or premises leading to a conclusion. If the premises are false or if the argument is invalid, the conclusion is likely to be incorrect Premise: a beginning statement of an argument. Deductive argument: one that arrives at a conclusion that is inherent in the premises. These arguments are either valid or invalid according to the correctness of the logic. Inductive argument: one that examines the real world to find evidence towards a conclusion. (These are what are mostly used in writing essays in the arts and social sciences). Such arguments should be assessed according to whether they are weak or strong.(Windschuttle & Elliot 1999) Asking questions Asking questions - and then answering them - is a central skill for critical analysis. Start firstly by asking questions that relate to the context and the big picture of a text. Then ask questions about the author's argument and the evidence provided to support it. You should also consider the style of writing and how it affects the clarity with which the author's argument is presented. The big picture These questions help to you identify the significance of a text:

Who is the author and when was this written? Was it written in response to another text? Is this a new piece of research? What is this author saying? (What is his/her argument?) Try to put this into your own words. What are the main points of this text? Highlight these or note them down. What is the author's standpoint and what are the underlying values in this text? Is this a significant work in its field?

Argument and evidence These questions help you to judge the validity of the argument or the author's point of view:

What is the quality of the evidence? Examine the conclusion carefully and ask: is this the correct conclusion from the points made in the argument? Is every point relevant? Does one point lead logically to the next? (This is a way of checking whether it flows logically.) What has been left out and is this significant? Why? Which parts do I agree with and why? Which parts do I disagree with and why? What are the strengths of this text? What are the weaknesses? What assumptions does the author make? Do I agree or disagree with these?

Style: These questions help you to examine how the language and the style of writing used can contribute to how clearly (or not) the author conveys the argument/point of view in a text:

Is the argument clearly expressed? Is it written in plain language or language that obscures? Is the aim of the text clearly expressed in the introduction? What is the quality of the evidence? Is there a clear conclusion? Are any words and phrases ambiguous?

Answering questions In answering the questions you have posed about a text you will develop a body of useful insights and knowledge about it. You can then use this information in discussions, in tutorials, in your thinking and decision making, and in your academic writing.