Quality Research Papers: For Students of Religion and Theology

by Nancy J. Vyhmeister, Terry Dwain Robertson

This updated third edition of Quality Research Papers —fast becoming a standard reference textbook for writing research papers in the fields of religion and theology—gives improvements and added material for such things as the expanding field of online research and doing church-related research in a professional manner. Because so many new developments have taken place in the field of research, especially in terms of electronic research, this handy reference explores the ways to do research on the internet, including how to document such research. Quality Research Papers offers great opportunities to students today, especially in distant learning situations, to determine which resources can be used and which should be rejected. For this reason Nancy Vyhmeister brought in Terry Robertson, Seminary Librarian at Andrews University and professor of the seminary master’s level research courses. His expertise in library, computers, and the Internet are invaluable to the book. In addition to substantial, current information on electronic resources and online research, this third edition preserves all of the features of the original editions, now presented in a newly revised, more logical order.

Genres: Education, Writing, Theology, Nonfiction, Christian, School, Christianity

304 pages, Paperback

First published February 11, 2014

Reviews

[Jacob London · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could not think of a more boring topic to write a nearly 300 page book about. Yet, Vyhmeister did a pretty good job of making clear the points and engaging the reader in each chapter with examples of good and bad work.

After finishing the book I do feel as if I have learned quite a bit. Although, my thought is that this book is much more suited towards people who are writing a thesis than masters level 10 page papers...

[Russell Frazier · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a previous edition of this book. I don't have in my possession a copy of the previous work to compare the two editions. However, I think that the third edition is an improvement over the previous editions.

Chapters 2 to 10 on the kinds of theological education research are very valuable. This section is worth the price of the book. Less valuable is the last section on presenting the research. There are errors in that section, and it is not based upon the most recent edition of Turabian (i.e. the ninth edition). Perhaps this is the reason that Zondervan recently announced the publication of the fourth edition of Vyhmeister's work. Perhaps it would be best for Vyhmeister to avoid the details of the presentation of papers, theses, and dissertations which differ from one writing style to another and oftentimes from one theological institution to another.

Despite these caveats, the book is very valuable for guiding research in theological studies. Thanks to the author(s) for providing a rich resource.

[Craig Turnbull · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful guide to writing those smarty-pants pieces.

This particular work stresses the importance of accurate writing for the sake of the Kingdom of God. I appreciated the "big picture" focus and emphasis on humility as a writer throughout. These two concepts are largely absent from most secular works of a similar nature.

[Anthony England · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grateful for the updated edition in 2020! Terrific resource for my theology papers and general studies!

[Josaías · Rating 3 out of 5]

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[W. Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book to prepare me for my theological studies. This book is very comprehensive and I will certainly go back to it from time to time to review some of the chapters when I start writing my assignment papers. I especially find Part 1 on 'Kinds of Theological Education Research' to be profoundly helpful and clear. The author covers the common types of papers assigned such as biblical exegesis paper or pastoral theology paper and provides helpful suggestions and processes on how to tackle them.

Part 1 is the most unique section of the book as I think the rest of book covers pretty much what other similar genre of books have already covered though with additional insights relevant to theological studies. Overall, it is wonderful to have this as the one go-to resource that addresses most of the issues I need to write better quality papers.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on how to write a research paper from start to finish. The book includes every part of the paper or project, from thinking through what you want to accomplish to polishing your final draft, even a section on writing for publication. The sections are broken down in the table of contents very well, so the book is great for quick reference to answer a question. If you are a theology student, I highly recommend this book.

[Matthew Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Assigned reading. Good advice for writing academic papers, especially regarding specific manuscript sources and structuring papers, however, I felt like a lot of the material had already been received and digested, given the number of academic papers likely written by the time you get to a research paper project

[Emily Holladay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for a DMin class, and I am very impressed. The book is incredibly thorough, and specific to religion. I had no idea a book like this existed, and I am so glad I have it as a resource.

[Joshua Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many chapters were helpful for understanding more how to approach a research paper as distinguished from any other essay. Large portions of the book dealt with painfully obvious areas of study, like the importance of reading and note-taking.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent resource for students, especially those at the masters level

[Daniel Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't imagine trying to write seminary papers with this resource. It is very useful.

[Rick Brookens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little repetitive in the later chapters.

[Dorcas Adomako · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great research assistant tool

[Collin Lewis]

Another page turner

[Garrick Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am aware that Vyhmeister's work has long been considered a "must read" in theological education circles. Additionally, I acknowledge that I found the more theoretical and strategic parts of this book helpful. I believe, however, many books—see the various research/writing works on my shelf—better accomplish the multiple tasks "Quality Research Papers" sets out to. Vhymeister seems to attempt so many things in this work that she succeeds in doing few of them with excellence.

[Todd Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

My ranking is relative. There is no way a book with this subject matter is going to be a page turner. But for what this book sets out to do, it really is a rich resource. For the PhD or Masters student, this book will be a good investment, particularly for those who do not have a required style guide. A full review and summary will be posted on www.westernseminary.edu/transformedblog

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super helpful for writing a Thesis, would highly recommend!

[Jordan Aho · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helpful