Introduction to Occupational Therapy - OTAH101

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1. Who is the intended audience for this article?
2. What kind of information do you get from this article?
3. What is the purpose of this article?
4. As a practicing OTA, why would you opt to use or read this article?

1. Who is the intended audience for this article?
2. What kind of information do you get from this article?
3. What is the purpose of this article?
4. As a practicing OTA, why would you opt to use or read this article?

Tips for reading a scholarly journal article

• Reading a scholarly journal article is not easy. If a journal article has been published in a scholarly journal, the peer-reviewers and editors believed it worthy of being included in the literature for a specific discipline. ​

• Tips for reading a journal article:​

• Don’t read from start to finish. Articles which report experiments were not necessarily meant to be read straight through. You need to understand the larger picture before diving into the details. Skim the Introduction, Discussion and/or Conclusion, and any tables or figures.​

• Identify the author’s point. This should be easy to find in both the introduction and the conclusion. Sometimes the title, abstract, and headings have hints about the main points of the research study.​

• Identify unknown vocabulary, jargon, and technical terms. Jargon is often defined within the article. If you do not understand a concept look around for the definition. You may wish to consult a textbook, dictionary, or other reference source. ​

• Identify the kind of article it is: an experiment? A research study? A review article (systematic reviews or meta-analysis)? An editorial? Etc.​

• Look at the visual materials included. If you look through the graphs, charts, and tables included in the article it may help you quickly get an idea about how the findings are being interpreted.​

• Evaluate the article. Is it something that can benefit your information need? What did you learn from reading this article? Was the article well-organized or confusing? Did the authors define their purpose and outcomes in a clear and logical manner? Would other individuals benefit from reading this article? ​

• Above all else, keep in mind that reading a scholarly article will take time. You may need a second, third, or even fourth reading if it is particularly important for you to understand a specific article. Talk to a classmate or your professor about the article. When you are in your field, look to other professionals or industry specific websites for interpretations or examples of clinical practice mentioned in the article.​