Qualitative Research Project

I have a research paper that I am writing and need help with the the research and the proper format of the study. I am working on gathering the data which are interviews from 5 people. I will use a program to transcribe the interviews.
The topic is about the experiences of African American females in a locked facility for juveniles with severe emotional disturbances.
I started writing the assignment but keep getting marked off for editing errors.

The instructor has a desired format of APA 7th edition.

General Information: Your final paper should be in full APA format:
• 1 inch margins all around • Double-spaced throughout
• Conservative font (Times Roman or Ariel/Helvetica) Be sure to carefully proofread your work for grammatical and spelling errors.
Your paper must be presented in APA style according to the 6th Edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.
Please note that the 7th Edition of the Publication Manual was recently published, so I will incorporate aspects of the new manual that facilitate ease of use in formatting, etc.

Title Page [page 1 of your document]
• Paper title
• Your name
• Academic affiliation
• Running Head [first words of your title – maximum 50 characters]

Abstract [page 2 of your document]
• A single paragraph that summarizes the entire paper.
Written when the entire paper is completed, this will typically have one sentence that summarizes each section (Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion).

Introduction [begins on page 3 of your document] 20 points
• Title of paper appears centered at top of page.
• Literature review begins directly under the title [no extra space between title and first paragraph] • Paragraphs are indented [no extra spaces between paragraphs]
• Format of literature review should be organized like a funnel moving from broader to more specific.

Start your introduction by presenting the general topic under study. Then provide some background information about the topic area by discussing theoretical arguments and previous research in the area. Do your best to include recent relevant work. Be sure to give your reader information about methods used and conclusions reached, citing each source following appropriate APA style.
When you describe this literature, be sure to identify the logical connection between previous work and what you are intending to do. Providing a theoretical, empirical background only makes sense if you can link it to what you are specifically studying. Once you have introduced your reader to prevailing theories and relevant findings in the area, present what specific questions you want to answer about this topic area. The previous research you have described should allow you to make predictions about what the answer to your research questions may be.

Method 15 points

The method section of your paper describes (in detail) how you conducted your study. One of its major purposes is to allow another researcher to replicate your study, exactly!
That means you have to describe who participated in your study, what materials you used and how you created them, and how you conducted your study. This information is minimally broken into two subsections labeled Participants and Materials and Procedure.

• Participants
You need to include their major demographic characteristics, such as sex, age, ethnicity, or any other characteristics that may have bearing on the interpretation of results. At a minimum, you must list the total number of participants, the male/female breakdown (e.g., 10 males and 15 females), the source of your subjects (e.g., they were all undergraduate students at …), and their motivation to participate (e.g., they voluntarily agreed to participate).

• Materials and Procedure
In this subsection you describe the design of the study as well as the materials and procedures used for conducting the study. Be sure to include all of the following elements in this subsection of your report:

A full description of your methodology (what is the nature of your study, specify that this is a qualitative study, describe the type of data collected)
The setting of the study (if interviews were conducted, how and where – in person, telephone, etc.)

Any apparatus you used (e.g., computers, video recorders)
The procedures you used to conduct the study (including how participants gave informed consent, how you described the study to your participants)
Measures taken to ensure ethical practices (protect confidentiality, etc.)
overview of interview questions or instrument used to collect data [full interview content or sample instrument should be included as an Appendix that is referenced in this section]

• Data Analysis

You will also need to fully describe how you analyzed your data: fully describe how you analyzed your data (e.g., transcribed recorded interviews, identified major themes – if you used something like
Wordle to identify themes, make sure that you describe this as well), keep in mind that you want to provide enough specificity so that someone else could reproduce what you did.

Results 20 points
The results of your study are of great importance to your reader and must be presented simply and clearly. Like in the method section, you should avoid flowery language here and stick to the facts. The first paragraph of your Results should provide an overview of themes identified in your data analysis: identify the number of themes and name them. You should then identify each them (number them) by name and provide a description (operational definition) and provide the number of participants for whom this theme was identified (describe them and provide narrative examples (quotes) for your key themes. Quotes should be separated from regular text (indented, in italics) for emphasis.

Theme 1: Give theme a name or short phrase. Operational definition/description of the theme . . . Four of the six participants described XYZ. “I think that XYZ has played a significant role in how I work.” See sample articles and sample Results for formatting of this section.

Discussion 20 points
The discussion section of your paper wraps up your paper into a neat, digestible package. It also gives you an opportunity to evaluate your study in terms of its effectiveness as a contribution to the field. Your Discussion should:
• Discuss how your findings fit in with previous research, how they modify the current theories, and what you’ve added to the field of knowledge.
• Describe the implications and practical applications of your findings.
• How might someone use your results?
• End your discussion with a commentary on the importance of your findings and perhaps suggest a next step for a research study that could improve or extend your work.
• The format of your Discussion starts out specifically and becomes more general (reverse funnel). Describe your findings
Link your findings to prior research
Provide recommendations for future research References Appendices

• Your questions or sample data sheets should be in your Appendix

Final Report Document 10 points

The final draft of the project will bring all sections together, properly formatted and carefully proof-read for spelling and grammatical errors. APA style will be properly followed throughout the document. The Title, Title Page, and Abstract will be graded as well.