Research Guidelines

LLT Guidelines for Articles Reporting on Research

General guidelines for conducting CALL research are available here:
LLT editors’ Research Workshop slides

Quantitative Research

The Editors of LLT recommend that authors of manuscripts based on quantitative research consider the general guidelines outlined in Chapter 1 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th edition. 2009. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, pp. 9-20).

In particular, a quantitative research report should generally include the following sections:

An Introduction that 

  • states the problem to be investigated
  • contextualizes the research by describing the underlying theoretical framework and reviewing previous studies
  • defines the variables and research hypotheses

A Method Section that describes 

  • the participants (e.g., demographics, selection criteria, and group assignment)
  • the materials (e.g., task[s], equipment, instruments, including a discussion of their validity and reliability, if appropriate)
  • the procedures employed in the study such as treatment(s)

A Results Section that includes

  • graphs and tables that help to present and explain the results
  • descriptive and inferential statistics used to analyze the data, including the following:
    • name of the statistic used and in the case of an uncommon statistical procedure, a reference to a discussion of the procedure
    • statistical significance of the results obtained
    • measures of effect sizes
    • how all necessary assumptions were met

A Discussion Section that includes

  • an interpretation of the results
  • an explanation of the results, including alternative explanations when appropriate
  • a statement relating the results obtained in the study to original hypotheses
  • theoretical implications
  • limitations of the study

A Conclusion that includes

  • general implications of the study
  • limitations of the study
  • suggestions for further research

References

Appendices

 

Qualitative Research

The editors of LLT recommend that authors of manuscripts reporting on qualitative research generally include the following sections in their articles:

  • An introduction that states the problem to be investigated
  • Statement of the research questions examined in the study
  • Description of the theoretical framework(s) underlying the research question
  • Description of the methodological traditions in which the study was conducted
  • Relationship between the study and previous work in the area under investigation
  • Detailed description of the participants and research site
  • Detailed description of data collection and analysis procedures
  • Report of findings
  • Limitations of the study
  • Implication(s) of the study
  • Suggestions for further research
  • References
  • Appendices

 

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