Introduction

The introduction of an APA paper should (a) present a solid conceptual introduction; (b) operationally define the hypothetical construct including two and at most three domains; (c) present research supporting the operational definition and each of the subdomains; (d) present a summary/conclusion which ends with a hypothesis statement regarding your test construction or a thesis which states your claim and provides a list of the main headings in the paper as a “map” of the Literature Review.

Conceptual introduction

The opening paragraph should introduce the chosen topic (construct) and give a general description, letting the readers know why the construct is of interest (why one would want to create a measure about this), and why this construct is important to measure or analyze.

Operationally define the hypothetical construct

The second paragraph should help the reader understand how this paper defines the construct (using two and at most three domains). It is important that the construct is very clearly defined as this will help the reader better understand your analysis.

Present research supporting the operational definition and each domain

Once the hypothetical construct has been operationally defined, the next few paragraphs should support this construct and the chosen subdomains. References must be chosen from scholarly peer-reviewed journalsand occasionally books.Avoid using dissertations, theses, conference proceedings or internet sources (dictionary.com, wikipedia.com, etc.).

Summary/conclusion which ends with a hypothesis statement regarding your test construction

The final paragraph of the introduction should be a summary of the other three sections. The last sentence of this paragraph should clearly state the hypothesis or thesis of this paper. “We hypothesize that the [Your Measure’s Name (acronym)] will reliably and validly measure [what is the thing you are trying to measure]. Or “I will analyze the existing literature on XXXX . . .”

Reminders:

  • This is simply a “template” and should be adapted to your instructor’s guidelines and whether the paper is an empirical research article or a Literature review.
  • The word “Introduction” or any substitute subheading cannot be used for the first section. Simply begin your text after repeating the title on the first page of text.

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