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Midterm e-Portfolio evidence becomes the evidence base for the Final Assessment.
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English for Academic Writing 4 • Assessment pathway

Do not mix the Midterm tasks with the Final synthesis reasoning. They perform different jobs.

The Midterm e-Portfolio prepares trustworthy, traceable source-level evidence. The Final Assessment starts only after that preparation is complete and changes the unit of attention from one source at a time to one theme across multiple sources.

Midterm • Task 1

Preliminary Source Collection

Find 10 preliminary sources. Record databases/search engines, search terms, title, year, source type, database, and direct link/DOI.

Midterm • Task 2

Sources Evaluation

Select the 6 most credible and relevant sources. Document APA in-text citation, source type, and CRAAP justifications.

Midterm • Task 3

Data Summary

Treat each of the 6 sources individually. Under Problem, Solution, and Evaluation, preserve Original evidence and write a standalone Summary.

MIDTERM ENDS HERE

At the end of Task 3, you have a source-by-source evidence matrix. You have not yet compared the six sources, diagnosed convergence, built an overall pattern, or written synthesis.

FINAL ASSESSMENT • THE COGNITIVE SHIFT

Now reorganize the same Task 3 summaries by theme and reason across sources.

For example, collect the Problem summaries from all six sources. Only now do you compare them, identify relationship types, decide what overall evidence pattern appears, notice genuine friction, interpret why the evidence fits together that way, and form a critical synthesis.

1 • GatherOne theme across sources

Problem summaries from S1–S6, or Solution summaries, or Evaluation summaries.

2 • CompareFind relationships

Use only the relationship types actually supported by the evidence.

3 • InterpretPattern → friction → explanation

Pattern is the larger picture. Friction is optional. Explanation tells why the configuration makes sense.

4 • WriteCritical synthesis → paragraph

The reasoning becomes natural academic prose with APA citations.

Introduction ≈100Problem 150–200Solution 150–200Evaluation 150–200Conclusion ≈100
THINKING ARCHITECTURE

What happens before and during planning

  1. Gather Task 3 summaries for one theme.
  2. Compare findings across sources.
  3. Diagnose one or more relevant relationships.
  4. State the overall evidence pattern.
  5. Check for friction only if evidence genuinely complicates the pattern.
  6. Write an interpretive explanation: why do the findings fit this way, and what does that mean?
  7. Form the critical synthesis.
WRITTEN PARAGRAPH

What the reader finally sees

  1. Topic sentence.
  2. Synthesized evidence development with APA citations.
  3. Relational signposting woven into the evidence discussion.
  4. Pattern / friction / interpretive explanation as needed.
  5. Critical synthesis or closing claim.

Important: the seven planning moves are not seven compulsory sentences.

MIDTERM • TASK 1

Preliminary Source Collection

Purpose: search broadly and create a pool of 10 possible sources. At this stage, you are documenting where the sources came from and what they are—not deciding how they will relate in a synthesis paragraph.

What the template asks

I. Search Strategies

Record the databases/search engines you used and the search terms/Boolean combinations you tried.

Example search terms:
"sugar-sweetened beverages" AND "type 2 diabetes"
"sugary drinks" AND diabetes risk
What the template asks

II. Preliminary Sources

For each of the 10 preliminary sources, record only the required bibliographic/search details.

TitleYearTypeDatabaseLink / DOI
Not yet: do not label a source “convergence,” “friction,” “Problem source,” or “Solution source” in Task 1. Those are later cross-source reasoning decisions. Task 1 is a search-and-record task.

Worked Task 1 candidate list — diabetes example

The columns below mirror the Midterm Task 1 template. These 10 are candidates; Task 2 will determine which 6 are carried forward.

No.TitleYearType of sourceDatabase/search engineLink
1A prospective study of sugar intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women2003Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
2Sugar-sweetened beverages, weight gain, and incidence of type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women2004Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
3Sugar-sweetened beverages and incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in African American women2008Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
4Soft drink and juice consumption and risk of physician-diagnosed incident type 2 diabetes: the Singapore Chinese Health Study2010Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
5Sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened beverage consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in men2011Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
6Consumption of sweet beverages and type 2 diabetes incidence in European adults2013Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
7Consumption of artificially and sugar-sweetened beverages and incident type 2 diabetes in the Etude Epidemiologique...2013Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
8Prospective associations and population impact of sweet beverage intake and type 2 diabetes, and effects of substitutions with alternative beverages2015Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
9Changes in consumption of sugary beverages or artificially sweetened beverages and subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes2019Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
10Sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened beverage consumption, physical activity and risk of type 2 diabetes in US adults2025Empirical journal articlePubMedPubMed record
MIDTERM • TASK 2

Sources Evaluation

Purpose: move from the 10 preliminary sources to the 6 most credible and relevant sources that will be used in Task 3 and later in the final mini-thematic review.

INPUT

10 preliminary sources from Task 1

These are candidates, not automatically final evidence.

→
OUTPUT

6 selected sources documented in Task 2

The Task 2 table records APA in-text citation, source type, and CRAAP justification for the selected sources.

What CRAAP is judging

Currency

Current enough? Updated? Functional link/DOI?

Relevance

Useful for the target condition and appropriate to Problem, Solution, and Evaluation needs?

Authority

Who wrote it? What affiliations or qualifications support authority?

Accuracy

Evidence-supported? Peer reviewed/refereed? Traceable data?

Purpose

Inform, teach, persuade, sell, or entertain? Are intentions clear?

Source Type

State the academic text type explicitly; do not assume every journal-looking page is the same kind of source.

Still not synthesis: Task 2 decides which sources are credible and relevant enough to retain. Do not yet assign “convergence,” “extension,” or “friction.” Relationship reasoning requires comparing extracted findings, which comes later.

Worked selection — six retained sources

This model keeps six sources with strong credibility and useful coverage. The purpose here is source evaluation, not paragraph organization.

Selected sourceAPA 7 in-text citationSource typeCurrencyRelevanceAuthorityAccuracyPurpose
Janket et al. (2003)(Janket et al., 2003)Empirical journal articleOlder but still useful as boundary evidenceDirectly examines sugar intake and T2DAcademic medical researchersProspective cohort; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
Schulze et al. (2004)(Schulze et al., 2004)Empirical journal articleOlder foundational cohortDirect SSB–T2D evidenceAcademic epidemiology/nutrition researchersLarge prospective cohort; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
InterAct Consortium (2013)(InterAct Consortium, 2013)Empirical journal articleStill relevant multinational evidenceDirect SSB–T2D incidence evidenceLarge European research consortiumMulticountry case-cohort; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
O'Connor et al. (2015)(O'Connor et al., 2015)Empirical journal articleModerately recentIncludes substitution evidence relevant to interventionAcademic researchersProspective dietary data; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019)(Drouin-Chartier et al., 2019)Empirical journal articleRecentChange-over-time and substitution evidenceAcademic nutrition/epidemiology researchersLarge repeated-measures cohorts; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
Pacheco et al. (2025)(Pacheco et al., 2025)Empirical journal articleVery currentDirectly evaluates SSB risk with physical activityAcademic researchersLarge prospective cohorts; peer-reviewedResearch / inform
MIDTERM • TASK 3

Data Summary: treat each source individually

Purpose: read each of the 6 selected sources separately. For each source, locate information under the three predetermined themes, preserve the exact original wording, and write a standalone summary beside it.

What you do now: Source 1 → Problem / Solution / Evaluation → Original + Summary. Then repeat the same process for Source 2, Source 3, Source 4, Source 5, and Source 6.
What you do NOT do yet: do not compare Source 1 with Source 2; do not decide convergence, complementarity, extension, qualification, friction, or an overall pattern. The Task 3 template explicitly keeps the source as the unit of work.

The Task 3 matrix structure

Source 1
Original
Summary
Theme 1: Problem
Exact text describing biological mechanism, root cause, or risk factor.
Your concise standalone summary of that exact evidence.
Theme 2: Solution
Exact text describing standard care or a newer / alternative intervention.
Your concise standalone summary of that exact evidence.
Theme 3: Evaluation
Exact text describing drawbacks, adverse effects, or methodological limitations.
Your concise standalone summary of that exact evidence.

Then repeat the same three-theme Original/Summary structure for Sources 2–6.

How to fill an “Original” cell

  1. Read one source only.
  2. Locate text that matches the required theme.
  3. Copy the exact wording faithfully.
  4. Keep enough context so the original meaning is not distorted.
  5. Record the APA citation for the source in the source heading.

How to fill a “Summary” cell

  1. Identify the main point of the original.
  2. Remove examples and nonessential details.
  3. Change vocabulary and sentence structure.
  4. Keep the meaning accurate.
  5. Make the summary stand alone without referring to “the text above.”

One worked cell — not synthesis yet

Example: a Problem-theme cell from Schulze et al. (2004).

Original: “Higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a greater magnitude of weight gain and an increased risk for development of type 2 diabetes.”
Standalone summary: Frequent sugar-sweetened beverage consumption was associated with greater weight gain and higher type 2 diabetes risk.
Stop here for Task 3. Do not yet write “this converges with Source 6.” That cross-source comparison belongs to the Final Assessment reasoning stage.

What Task 3 gives the Final Assessment

After completing all six source matrices, you now possess source-level summaries organized under Problem, Solution, and Evaluation. The next cognitive move is to reorganize them by theme across sources.

FINAL ASSESSMENT • REASONING BEFORE WRITING

This is a thought process, not a seven-sentence paragraph template.

The detailed sequence helps you think across sources. It produces the logic that the paragraph will later express naturally. Several reasoning functions may be combined inside one sentence, and some functions—especially friction—may not appear at all.

A. Reasoning / planning process

  1. Gather Task 3 summaries for one theme.
  2. Compare findings across sources.
  3. Diagnose one or more relationship types.
  4. State the overall evidence pattern.
  5. Check for friction if something complicates the pattern.
  6. Write an interpretive explanation of why the findings fit this way and what that means.
  7. Form the critical synthesis.
→

B. Paragraph the reader sees

  1. Topic sentence.
  2. Synthesized evidence sentences with APA citations.
  3. Relational signposts embedded where needed.
  4. Interpretive explanation woven into the discussion.
  5. Critical synthesis / closing claim.

The paragraph is the written realization of the thinking process, not a copy of the planning labels.

The full post-Task-3 reasoning flow

1. Theme-level gathering
What material am I comparing?
Collect the Problem summaries from all six Task 3 source matrices. Do the same separately for Solution and Evaluation.
2. Relationship reasoning
How do the findings connect?
Diagnose only the relationship types actually present. The eight types are a toolkit, not eight required stages.
3. Overall evidence pattern
What bigger picture emerges?
State the collective picture produced by the connected findings. A pattern is larger than a single relationship.
4. Friction — optional
What complicates the picture?
Identify a genuine limitation, qualification, tension, or mismatch only when the evidence creates one. Do not manufacture friction.
5. Interpretive explanation
Explanation of what?
Explain the evidence configuration: why the findings can coexist, why this relationship exists, what distinction/condition/context/methodological difference makes it understandable, and what the relationship changes in the interpretation.
6. Critical synthesis
So what can I defend?
Form a stronger, more precise claim that becomes defensible only after the findings have been connected and interpreted.

Interpretive explanation: what are you actually explaining?

If the evidence converges

Explain what the convergence strengthens and why agreement across these studies matters.

The repeated SSB–T2D association across different cohorts makes the pattern less dependent on one study population.

If the evidence differs

Explain why the findings can reasonably differ or coexist and what boundary that creates for the claim.

Total dietary sugar and habitual SSB intake are different exposures; therefore, a null result for total sugar does not automatically invalidate the SSB pattern.

Do not invent an explanation. If you claim that findings differ because of age, culture, adherence, access, or biological mechanism, the evidence must support that explanation.

Written paragraph: functional roles are flexible, not one sentence each

Topic sentence
Establish the controlling idea of the paragraph.
Evidence development
Combine several findings into synthesized sentences. Multiple sources may share one parenthetical citation.
Relational signposting
Use similarly, consistent with, extending this, however, whereas, taken together only when those words accurately represent the relationship.
Interpretive explanation
Explain why the evidence fits together this way and what that relationship means for the claim.
Critical synthesis
State the higher-order conclusion earned by the evidence and reasoning.
FINAL ASSESSMENT • RELATIONSHIP REASONING TOOLKIT

The eight relationship types are eight possible ways findings can connect. They are not eight requirements for one paragraph.

A paragraph may contain one relationship type, several relationship types, or the same relationship across a cluster of several sources. Use only what the evidence actually shows. The goal is not to collect relationship labels; the goal is to understand what the relationships do to the emerging evidence picture.

1–3 is often enough

No fixed quota

A 150–200-word paragraph does not need all eight. One clear relationship may be sufficient.

8 possible tools

Not a sequence

You do not move from Convergence to Complementarity to Extension. Each is an alternative diagnosis.

∞ possible combinations

Evidence decides

Several sources can form one convergence cluster; another source can then extend or qualify that cluster.

The key question: When you bring a new finding beside what is already emerging, ask: Does it support, complete, extend, limit, challenge, sequence, operate at another level, or reveal a research-to-practice mismatch?
Example cluster A

S2 + S6 + S9

S2 and S6 both associate higher SSB intake with greater T2D risk → Convergence. S9 adds change-over-time evidence → Extension.

Pattern produced: habitual or increasing SSB intake is repeatedly associated with higher T2D risk.

Example cluster B

S1 compared with cluster A

S1 reports no harmful association for total dietary sugars → Qualification / possible apparent tension.

What it does: complicates an over-broad “all sugar” claim and creates something that needs interpretation.

Choose a relationship above.

The detailed explanation will show what the relationship means, when it is justified, what it does to the overall pattern, what the interpretive explanation must explain, and how to signpost it.

Hierarchy: findings are the evidence units → relationships connect those findings → several relationships produce an overall evidence pattern → some evidence may create friction → the writer gives an interpretive explanation → then forms a critical synthesis.
Worked body paragraph 1 — Problem

Build the paragraph around the synthesized finding, not around the source list.

The problem paragraph asks: What exactly is the evidence-supported problem? Here, the strongest answer becomes more precise after qualification evidence is interpreted.

How to read this page: the logic map is a planning analysis. The highlighted paragraph below is the final prose. Do not copy the planning labels as separate compulsory sentences.
Topic sentence
Where is the paragraph going?
The evidence supports a specific relationship between habitual SSB consumption and T2D risk rather than a universal claim about all dietary sugar.
Findings
What evidence matters?
S2: frequent SSB intake → higher risk. S6: similar association across European adults. S9: increasing intake over time → higher subsequent risk. S10: association remains among active adults. S1: total dietary sugars → no harmful association.
Relationships
How do they connect?
S2 + S6 = convergence. S9 = extension. S10 = qualification. S1 = qualification that creates friction with an over-broad “sugar” claim.
Overall pattern
What bigger picture appears?
Frequent or increasing SSB consumption is repeatedly associated with higher T2D incidence across different cohorts.
Friction
What does not fit comfortably?
Total dietary sugar does not show the same relationship as habitual SSB intake.
Interpretive explanation
Why can both exist?
The studies do not measure equivalent exposures. Total dietary sugars come from multiple food sources; SSB studies isolate a beverage-consumption pattern. The mismatch therefore narrows the claim rather than automatically invalidating the SSB pattern.
Critical synthesis
What can now be defended?
SSB consumption is a specific modifiable risk exposure associated with T2D; the evidence does not justify saying that all sugar directly causes diabetes.
TopicFindingsRelationship signpostsOverall patternFrictionInterpretive explanationCritical synthesis
The evidence supports a specific relationship between habitual sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and type 2 diabetes risk rather than a universal claim about all dietary sugar. Schulze et al. (2004) found substantially greater diabetes risk among women with frequent SSB intake, and similar prospective evidence was observed across European populations (InterAct Consortium, 2013). Extending this pattern, Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) found that increasing sugary-beverage intake over time was followed by higher subsequent diabetes risk, while Pacheco et al. (2025) showed that the association remained even among physically active adults. Taken together, these studies form an overall evidence pattern in which frequent or increasing SSB consumption is repeatedly associated with higher diabetes incidence. However, Janket et al. (2003) found no harmful association for total dietary sugars, creating an important qualification. This apparent mismatch can be explained by the fact that the studies did not examine equivalent exposures: total dietary sugars and habitual SSB consumption are different dietary measures. Therefore, the evidence supports a narrower conclusion that SSB consumption is a modifiable risk exposure associated with type 2 diabetes, not that sugar itself has been proven to directly cause the disease.
Worked body paragraph 2 — Solution

A solution paragraph needs evidence for what changes—not merely another description of the problem.

Here, S8 and S9 are useful because both estimate substitution: what happens when sugary beverages are replaced by specific alternatives.

How to read this page: the logic map is a planning analysis. The highlighted paragraph below is the final prose. Do not copy the planning labels as separate compulsory sentences.
Topic sentence
What solution claim is being examined?
Reducing exposure to sugary beverages may be more actionable when paired with a specific replacement strategy.
Findings
What did the solution studies show?
S8: replacing soft drinks/sweetened milk with water or unsweetened tea/coffee → lower incidence. S9: replacing a daily sugary beverage with water, coffee, or tea → lower subsequent risk.
Relationship
How do the solution findings connect?
Convergence: both point toward substitution with unsweetened alternatives. Complementarity: they estimate the strategy in different cohorts and time structures.
Overall pattern
What larger solution picture appears?
The useful intervention is not simply “avoid sugar”; it is to reduce SSB exposure by replacing it with lower-sugar or unsweetened beverages.
Friction
Is friction required?
No. These findings fit comfortably together. Do not invent a contradiction simply because the framework contains a friction stage.
Interpretive explanation
What does the convergence mean?
The studies strengthen the same practical direction and show that a recommendation is more useful when it specifies the replacement behavior, not merely the behavior to stop.
Critical synthesis
What follows?
SSB reduction should be framed as a substitution strategy using water, unsweetened tea, or coffee rather than as an isolated instruction to “drink less sugar.”
The retained evidence suggests that reducing exposure to sugary beverages may provide a practical prevention strategy. O'Connor et al. (2015) found that replacing soft drinks or sweetened-milk beverages with water or unsweetened tea or coffee was associated with lower diabetes incidence. Consistent with this finding, Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) reported lower subsequent diabetes risk when a daily sugary beverage was replaced with water, coffee, or tea. These converging findings show an overall pattern in which risk appears lower when sugary beverages are displaced by unsweetened alternatives. The relationship is meaningful because both studies move the recommendation from vague avoidance to a concrete replacement behavior, while their different cohorts make the practical direction less dependent on one study setting. Taken together, the evidence supports reducing SSB intake while encouraging water, unsweetened tea, or coffee as realistic alternatives rather than treating “drink less sugar” as a complete intervention by itself.
Worked body paragraph 3 — Evaluation

Evaluation asks what the evidence allows—and where the claim must stop.

This paragraph is where qualification becomes especially important. Evaluation does not mean attacking the studies. It means judging the strength, boundary, applicability, and precision of the claim.

How to read this page: the logic map is a planning analysis. The highlighted paragraph below is the final prose. Do not copy the planning labels as separate compulsory sentences.
Topic sentence
What is being evaluated?
Association, substitution estimates, and direct causal proof are not equivalent.
Findings
Which findings set boundaries?
S10: physical activity reduces but does not eliminate the SSB-related association. S1: total dietary sugar does not show the same harmful association.
Relationships
How do they affect the main pattern?
Both are qualification moves. S10 limits a “physical activity cancels it” interpretation; S1 limits an “all sugar behaves the same” interpretation.
Overall pattern
What remains after qualification?
The SSB association remains reasonably consistent, but its interpretation must stay specific to the measured exposure and study design.
Friction
What needs interpretation?
Strong SSB associations coexist with null findings for total dietary sugars.
Interpretive explanation
Why is this not simply “one study is wrong”?
The papers ask different questions and operationalize exposure differently. A beverage pattern, total dietary sugar, and physical activity are distinct variables. Prospective association also does not itself establish direct causation.
Critical synthesis
What is the strongest evaluation?
SSB reduction is supportable as a risk-reduction strategy, but causal wording should remain qualified and tied to the specific exposure actually measured.
The evidence should nevertheless be interpreted cautiously because association, substitution estimates, and causal proof are not equivalent. Pacheco et al. (2025) found that meeting physical-activity guidelines reduced the impact of SSB consumption but did not eliminate the higher diabetes risk associated with greater intake. This qualifies a simple behavioral explanation: physical activity matters, but it does not appear to fully cancel the observed beverage-related association. At the same time, Janket et al. (2003) found no harmful association for total dietary sugars, which limits any attempt to generalize SSB findings to every form of sugar exposure. The resulting difference is best interpreted through measurement and claim boundaries: the studies address different exposures, and prospective associations cannot by themselves establish that sugar directly causes diabetes. Consequently, SSB reduction is supported as a risk-reduction strategy, while causal language should remain qualified and specific to the exposure actually measured.
APA 7 — In-text citations

Citations are part of synthesis reasoning: they show which evidence supports which claim.

Your Week 11 lesson distinguishes in-text citations from the reference list and teaches narrative, parenthetical, multiple-source, quotation, organizational-author, and secondary-source forms. This page applies those rules directly to the diabetes synthesis model.

In-text citation

Appears inside the paragraph next to the claim it supports. The two fundamental pieces are normally author + year.

Higher SSB intake was associated with greater T2D incidence (InterAct Consortium, 2013).

Reference list

Appears at the end of the paper. It gives the full publication details so the reader can identify and retrieve the source.

Every source cited in the essay should appear in the reference list, and every reference-list entry should normally be cited in the essay.

1. Parenthetical citation
Frequent SSB intake was associated with higher T2D risk (Schulze et al., 2004).

The citation is part of the sentence; the final period comes after the parenthetical citation.

2. Narrative citation
Schulze et al. (2004) found higher T2D risk among women with frequent SSB intake.

If the author is grammatically part of the sentence, only the year goes in parentheses.

3. Three or more authors
Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) reported...

APA 7 uses the first author + et al. from the first in-text citation for works with three or more authors.

4. Two authors
Narrative: Author and Author (Year)
Parenthetical: (Author & Author, Year)

Write and in narrative prose; use & inside parentheses.

5. Multiple works in one parenthetical citation
(Drouin-Chartier et al., 2019; InterAct Consortium, 2013; Pacheco et al., 2025; Schulze et al., 2004)

Order different works alphabetically by first author/group author and separate them with semicolons.

6. Multiple sources in narrative form
Schulze et al. (2004), the InterAct Consortium (2013), and Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) all contribute to the emerging SSB-risk pattern.

The authors are part of the sentence, so normal prose punctuation is used. In narrative form, the sources may appear in the logical order needed by your sentence rather than alphabetical order.

7. Direct quotation
The authors concluded that “...” (Author, Year, p. X).

For a direct quotation, include a page number when the source has pages. The closing quotation mark comes before the citation; the final period comes after it.

8. Organization as author
First parenthetical citation: (World Health Organization [WHO], 2023)
Later citations: (WHO, 2023)

If you plan to abbreviate a well-known organizational author, spell out the full name the first time and introduce the abbreviation in square brackets. In the reference list, use the full organization name rather than the abbreviation.

9. Secondary citation
(Original Author, Year, as cited in Source You Read, Year)

Use this only when you genuinely cannot access the original. Prefer the original source whenever possible.

How citation works inside synthesis

Across prospective cohorts, habitual SSB consumption is repeatedly associated with greater T2D incidence (InterAct Consortium, 2013; Pacheco et al., 2025; Schulze et al., 2004). However, total dietary sugars did not show the same harmful association (Janket et al., 2003).

Why this is better than separate citations: the first parenthetical citation visibly supports one synthesized claim shared across several studies. The second citation marks the finding that qualifies that pattern.

APA 7 — Reference list

The reference list is not a source dump. It is the complete bibliographic record of the works actually cited.

The course lesson emphasizes alphabetical order, no numbering or bullets, hanging indents, correct author formatting, and the distinction between et al. in-text and full author listing in the reference list.

Core formatting rules

  • Order entries alphabetically by the first author’s surname or group author.
  • Do not number or bullet the references.
  • Use a hanging indent: first line flush left; later lines indented.
  • Use & before the final author in the reference list.
  • For up to 20 authors, list all authors; do not use et al. in the reference entry.
  • Italicize the journal title and volume number.
  • Present DOI as a URL when available.

Important distinction

In text: Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019)
Reference list: all 10 authors are listed because the paper has 20 or fewer authors.

Using et al. in the essay does not mean you use et al. in the reference list.

Final 6-source APA 7 reference list

Drouin-Chartier, J.-P., Zheng, Y., Li, Y., Malik, V., Pan, A., Bhupathiraju, S. N., Tobias, D. K., Manson, J. E., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2019). Changes in consumption of sugary beverages and artificially sweetened beverages and subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes: Results from three large prospective U.S. cohorts of women and men. Diabetes Care, 42(12), 2181–2189. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc19-0734

InterAct Consortium. (2013). Consumption of sweet beverages and type 2 diabetes incidence in European adults: Results from EPIC-InterAct. Diabetologia, 56(7), 1520–1530. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-013-2899-8

Janket, S.-J., Manson, J. E., Sesso, H., Buring, J. E., & Liu, S. (2003). A prospective study of sugar intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women. Diabetes Care, 26(4), 1008–1015. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.26.4.1008

O'Connor, L., Imamura, F., Lentjes, M. A. H., Khaw, K.-T., Wareham, N. J., & Forouhi, N. G. (2015). Prospective associations and population impact of sweet beverage intake and type 2 diabetes, and effects of substitutions with alternative beverages. Diabetologia, 58(7), 1474–1483. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-015-3572-1

Pacheco, L. S., Tobias, D. K., Haslam, D. E., Drouin-Chartier, J.-P., Li, Y., Bhupathiraju, S. N., Willett, W. C., Ludwig, D. S., Ebbeling, C. B., Hu, F. B., & Guasch-Ferré, M. (2025). Sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened beverage consumption, physical activity and risk of type 2 diabetes in US adults. Diabetologia, 68(4), 792–800. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-024-06351-w

Schulze, M. B., Manson, J. E., Ludwig, D. S., Colditz, G. A., Stampfer, M. J., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2004). Sugar-sweetened beverages, weight gain, and incidence of type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women. JAMA, 292(8), 927–934. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.292.8.927

de Koning, L., Malik, V. S., Rimm, E. B., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2011). Sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened beverage consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in men. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 93(6), 1321–1327. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.110.007922

Drouin-Chartier, J.-P., Zheng, Y., Li, Y., Malik, V., Pan, A., Bhupathiraju, S. N., Tobias, D. K., Manson, J. E., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2019). Changes in consumption of sugary beverages and artificially sweetened beverages and subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes: Results from three large prospective U.S. cohorts of women and men. Diabetes Care, 42(12), 2181–2189. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc19-0734

Fagherazzi, G., Vilier, A., Saes Sartorelli, D., Lajous, M., Balkau, B., & Clavel-Chapelon, F. (2013). Consumption of artificially and sugar-sweetened beverages and incident type 2 diabetes in the Etude Epidemiologique aupres des femmes de la Mutuelle Generale de l'Education Nationale-European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 97(3), 517–523. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.112.050997

InterAct Consortium. (2013). Consumption of sweet beverages and type 2 diabetes incidence in European adults: Results from EPIC-InterAct. Diabetologia, 56(7), 1520–1530. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-013-2899-8

Janket, S.-J., Manson, J. E., Sesso, H., Buring, J. E., & Liu, S. (2003). A prospective study of sugar intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women. Diabetes Care, 26(4), 1008–1015. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.26.4.1008

O'Connor, L., Imamura, F., Lentjes, M. A. H., Khaw, K.-T., Wareham, N. J., & Forouhi, N. G. (2015). Prospective associations and population impact of sweet beverage intake and type 2 diabetes, and effects of substitutions with alternative beverages. Diabetologia, 58(7), 1474–1483. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-015-3572-1

Odegaard, A. O., Koh, W.-P., Arakawa, K., Yu, M. C., & Pereira, M. A. (2010). Soft drink and juice consumption and risk of physician-diagnosed incident type 2 diabetes: The Singapore Chinese Health Study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 171(6), 701–708. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwp452

Pacheco, L. S., Tobias, D. K., Haslam, D. E., Drouin-Chartier, J.-P., Li, Y., Bhupathiraju, S. N., Willett, W. C., Ludwig, D. S., Ebbeling, C. B., Hu, F. B., & Guasch-Ferré, M. (2025). Sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened beverage consumption, physical activity and risk of type 2 diabetes in US adults. Diabetologia, 68(4), 792–800. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-024-06351-w

Palmer, J. R., Boggs, D. A., Krishnan, S., Hu, F. B., Singer, M., & Rosenberg, L. (2008). Sugar-sweetened beverages and incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in African American women. Archives of Internal Medicine, 168(14), 1487–1492. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinte.168.14.1487

Schulze, M. B., Manson, J. E., Ludwig, D. S., Colditz, G. A., Stampfer, M. J., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2004). Sugar-sweetened beverages, weight gain, and incidence of type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women. JAMA, 292(8), 927–934. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.292.8.927

FINAL ASSESSMENT • Model

A fully cited five-paragraph synthesis essay built from the six sources retained and processed during the Midterm e-Portfolio.

Notice that citations are attached to evidence claims, while the paragraph’s interpretive explanation and critical synthesis are written by the student but remain constrained by what the cited evidence actually permits.

Type 2 diabetes is influenced by multiple behavioral and metabolic factors, and dietary exposure is one important area of prevention research. Within this evidence base, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) have received particular attention because their habitual consumption has been associated with later diabetes incidence in prospective cohorts (InterAct Consortium, 2013; Pacheco et al., 2025; Schulze et al., 2004). However, research on total dietary sugars does not produce the same conclusion (Janket et al., 2003). This essay therefore examines the problem of SSB-related risk, evaluates beverage-replacement strategies, and considers the limits of interpreting observational evidence as proof that “sugar causes diabetes.”
The evidence supports a specific relationship between habitual sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and type 2 diabetes risk rather than a universal claim about all dietary sugar. Schulze et al. (2004) found substantially greater diabetes risk among women with frequent SSB intake, and similar prospective evidence was observed across European populations (InterAct Consortium, 2013). Extending this pattern, Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) found that increasing sugary-beverage intake over time was followed by higher subsequent diabetes risk, while Pacheco et al. (2025) showed that the association remained even among physically active adults. Taken together, these studies form an overall evidence pattern in which frequent or increasing SSB consumption is repeatedly associated with higher diabetes incidence. However, Janket et al. (2003) found no harmful association for total dietary sugars, creating an important qualification. This apparent mismatch can be explained by the fact that the studies did not examine equivalent exposures: total dietary sugars and habitual SSB consumption are different dietary measures. Therefore, the evidence supports a narrower conclusion that SSB consumption is a modifiable risk exposure associated with type 2 diabetes, not that sugar itself has been proven to directly cause the disease.
The retained evidence also suggests that reducing exposure to sugary beverages may provide a practical prevention strategy. O'Connor et al. (2015) found that replacing soft drinks or sweetened-milk beverages with water or unsweetened tea or coffee was associated with lower diabetes incidence. Consistent with this finding, Drouin-Chartier et al. (2019) reported lower subsequent diabetes risk when a daily sugary beverage was replaced with water, coffee, or tea. These findings converge because both studies point toward the same practical direction: risk appears lower when sugary beverages are displaced by unsweetened alternatives. They are also complementary because one study estimated substitutions within a UK cohort, whereas the other evaluated long-term changes across three large U.S. cohorts. The overall evidence pattern therefore concerns substitution, not simply avoidance. This distinction matters because a prevention recommendation must specify what should replace the sugary beverage. Taken together, the findings support reducing SSB intake while encouraging water, unsweetened tea, or coffee as realistic alternatives rather than treating “drink less sugar” as a complete intervention by itself.
The evidence should nevertheless be interpreted cautiously because association, substitution estimates, and causal proof are not equivalent. Pacheco et al. (2025) found that meeting physical-activity guidelines reduced the impact of SSB consumption but did not eliminate the higher diabetes risk associated with greater intake. This qualifies a simple behavioral explanation: physical activity matters, but it does not appear to fully cancel the observed beverage-related association. At the same time, Janket et al. (2003) found no harmful association for total dietary sugars, which limits any attempt to generalize SSB findings to every form of sugar exposure. The resulting friction is not that one study is “right” and another is “wrong”; rather, the studies address different exposures and therefore support claims at different levels of specificity. The interpretive explanation is that evidence about a beverage pattern cannot automatically be converted into evidence about all dietary sugar, and prospective associations cannot by themselves establish direct causation. Consequently, the strongest evaluation is that SSB reduction is supported as a risk-reduction strategy, while causal language should remain qualified and specific to the exposure actually measured.
Overall, the six retained studies support a precise rather than exaggerated interpretation of the evidence. Frequent or increasing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption is consistently associated with greater type 2 diabetes incidence, while replacing sugary beverages with water, coffee, or unsweetened tea is associated with lower risk. However, total dietary sugar does not show the same pattern, and observational findings do not prove direct causation. The most defensible conclusion is therefore that SSB consumption represents a modifiable dietary risk exposure rather than proof that “sugar causes diabetes.” Effective academic synthesis depends on preserving that distinction between what the evidence shows, how findings relate, and what can reasonably be concluded.

References

Use the six-entry APA 7 reference list on the Reference List Lesson page.

Practice lab

Test whether you can distinguish evidence, relationship, pattern, friction, explanation, and synthesis.

The questions focus on the reasoning job—not merely memorizing the names of the eight relationships.

Apply • Reasoning & paragraph builder

Build the reasoning map first; then convert it into natural prose.

Use this only after Task 3 is complete. You may identify one or more relationship types. There is no requirement to use all eight, and friction may be left blank.

Your reasoning plan

Complete the fields and click Build reasoning plan.
Final writing reminder: this output is a planning map. Your actual paragraph should turn these ideas into connected academic prose rather than writing the labels “Relationship,” “Pattern,” and “Friction” as headings.
Student-friendly terminology

Glossary

Search the term you are unsure about. Each definition states both the meaning and the function in synthesis writing.

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