APA Research Project  Annotated Bibliography for topic:

   “A Decade of Decision: Emerging Adulthood as a Foundation for Life”

          The objective of this series of assignments is to introduce students to scholarly research and current APA style format. The student will:

• Formulate research questions and obtain scholarly resources which speak to their research questions.
• Read and analyze scholarly research.
• Write a brief analysis, evaluation, and reaction to what has been discovered.
• Present the material using current APA guidelines for publication. 

1. Develop a list of research questions related to your topic.  

Here are some examples:  

• What is emerging adulthood?  Characteristics in the cognitive, biosocial, and psychosocial domains.
• What do developmental theorists say about the needs and/or tasks of emerging adulthood (Erikson, Fowler, Marcia, etc.)?
• How can personal exploration help an emerging adult in the process of vocational identity format (measures of personality, spiritual giftedness, aptitude, interest, etc.)?
• What factors create a platform for success or lack of success in emerging adulthood?
• Risky behavior in emerging adults – why do they do what they do? (Focus on high-risk behaviors related to relationships, physical health, vocation, etc.)

1. Conduct your research.

Using the resources found in the Jerry Falwell Library, select 5 primary research or peer-reviewed journal articles of interest related to your chosen topic.

Required criteria:

• Articles must be recent (published within the last 10 years).
• Articles must be scholarly (primary research published in a scholarly publication or peer-reviewed journal).

1. Submit your preliminary list of articles during Module/Week 4

• Note that your initial list of articles will be reviewed by your instructor. If the articles do not meet the required criteria, replacement articles will be required.
• This assignment will include a correctly formatted title page and a correctly formatted reference page. The reference page must include at least five resources (see criteria above), formatted according to current APA guidelines.

1. Review approved articles and write an annotation for each of the five articles.

An annotation is a critical evaluation that provides a concise summary and analysis of an article. Each annotation must include:

1. A summary of the main points found in the article.
2. An examination of the strengths and/or weaknesses found.
3. Your evaluation of the article (useful, not useful, etc.)
4. Each annotation must contain 100–200 words.

1. Prepare for submission

A paper ready for submission will include the following:

• APA formatted title page.
• A correctly formatted citation.
• One annotation for each of 5 approved articles.

Refer to the grading rubric provided. This will be helpful to use as you prepare your paper. 

APA Research Project Submission Schedule:

Module/Week 2:Submit your topic by typing your choice in the Submission textbox. 

Module/Week 4:Submit your title page and 5 original research or peer-reviewed journal articles/references. This paper must be in current APA format, which includes a title page and a references page (all in one document). 

Module/Week 7:Submit the completed Annotated Bibliography (including title page and 5 article annotations) by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday.