Building the Annotated Bibliography - Prof. Miller - SOC103 Social Problems - Harold L. Drimmer Library Research Guides at Westchester Community College Library

Annotated Bibliography

The annotated bibliography should help you organize your thoughts and develop your understanding of the social problem you have chosen. When looking through your sources and writing your summaries, consider the following questions:

What's unique about the source? What does it add to my understanding of the social problem I have chosen?
Does this source add a new voice to the discussion? New ideas? Alternative points of view? Other explanations or interpretations? Background information? You don't want your sources to be completely identical in content.
What is the author's purpose in writing about this topic? What are they claiming about the social problem?

Types of Annotations

There are different kinds of annotations, depending on what might be most important for your reader to learn about a source. Three common types of annotated bibliographies are Descriptive, Informative, and Critical.

Three Types of Annotations: Critical, Descriptive, and Informative

A Descriptive annotation may summarize:

The main purpose or idea of the work
The contents of the work
The author’s conclusions
The intended audience
The author’s research methods
Special features of the work such as illustrations, maps, and tables

This type of annotation seeks to answer the question, Does this source cover or address the topic I am researching?

Three Types of Annotations: Critical, Descriptive, and Informative

An Informative annotation:

Summarizes what the content, message, or argument of the source is
Generally contains the hypothesis, methodology, main points, and conclusion or results
Does not include any editorial or evaluative comments about such content

This type of annotation seeks to answer these types of questions, What are the author's main arguments? What conclusions did the author draw?

Three Types of Annotations: Critical, Descriptive, and Informative

A Critical annotation includes value judgments or comments on the effectiveness of the work. In this context, critical means evaluative and may include both positive and negative comments. A critical annotation may contain the information found in a descriptive annotation and discuss some of the following features:

The importance of the work’s contribution to the literature of the subject
The author’s bias or tone
The author’s qualifications for writing the work
The accuracy of the information in the source
Limitations or significant omissions
The work’s contribution to the literature of the subject
Comparison with other works on the topic

This type of annotation seeks to answer these types of questions:

Is the author's presentation of the facts objective?
Is the methodology sound? Is this source useful for my audience?
Are the conclusions still valid in light of new research?
What contribution does this make to the field?
Does this source address all the relevant issues?

Sample Annotated Bibliographies

For annotated bibliography samples in APA citation style, see

North Carolina University of Chapel Hill's Writing Center guide

Purdue University Annotated Bibliography Samples

Prof. Miller - SOC103 Social Problems: Building the Annotated Bibliography

Overview

Annotated Bibliography

Types of Annotations

Sample Annotated Bibliographies

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