Making sense of community research

Ok, so you've found an article that looks relevant. How do you make sense of what it's trying to say and gauge whether it's credible? There are a few things to know about how to read and understand research.

Academic papers are not written in order, and don't need to be read in order!
You can 'read like a pirate' -- sail in, get the treasure you want, and sail away happy. No need to put down roots and learn the ins and outs of logistic regression or what James Coleman said in 1990. You can read just the abstract and results; you can read the abstract and the conclusion, then skip over to the Methods section to see where they got their data from. Some publications have a tradition of including sections with names like 'Implications for Design' or 'Implications for Practice' -- this is where the authors explain what they think should be different in the world because of their findings. You can always skip the parts that don't seem helpful or too detailed -- but do take a peek at any sections labeled Ethics or Limitations.

Don't let citations bog you down.
Formal research requires citations, sometimes lots of citations. We're building on what came before, and trying to go beyond expressing opinions into synthesizing evidence into arguments. Just like your math teacher probably once upon a time told you to show your work, citations are how we build up an argument. You don't need to read the citations -- but if you are in doubt of the work, or need to gauge the author's credibility, feel free to take a look at what's being cited: does it really say what the author says it does? It takes time and practice to get used to reading work that's studded with citations.

Assessing credibility.
As with any information you read, it's important to gauge whether the research you find is credible. Peer review helps, but isn't perfect. Some of the best universities might not be names you recognize. Scams and sloppy work happen in academia as with everywhere. Here are a few factors to weigh when evaluating research.


 * 1) Is the argument coherent? That is, can you see a connection between the question they ask, the data they gathered, the analysis they did, and the conclusions they came to?
 * 2) Is the work in consensus with or contradicting previous findings? In the science of community as in other sciences, a single study should generally not be enough evidence to change day to day practices. Look for multiple pieces of evidence: but be aware that academic publishing usually requires 'novelty' -- finding or doing something new -- so you're unlikely to find multiple sources for the same exact fact. Look for studies of the same types of practices in analogous communities.

It's a skill...be kind to yourself if it seems weird or hard.
Graduate students are taught to read articles and numerous guides exist to aid them in this. Let that serve as an encouragement---if it seems hard, it's because it's a skill you haven't learned yet. For some guides written for the future researcher audience:


 * Science Magazine
 * Wesleyan University Library has a visual guide.