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Elements of a Research Paper
Set the stage; state the problem (introduction)
 Topic:
generally describe the topic and how it fits into your field of study
 Set the scene
Describe the environment and its conditions
Get permission before using personal information
 Introduce and describe the problem
Describe what you intend to show/argue and why
What is its significance?
Illustrate the problem with an interesting example
(Remember you are writing for an audience and want to capture their interest)
 Begin to define terms, concepts, vocabulary
If possible, use one authoritative source or combine definitions and footnote your sources
Later in the development of your paper, be conscious of using new terms and their
definitions
 Since tasks begun well, likely have good finishes (Sophocles)
review the topic, scene, and problem with your teacher or supervisor to verify if you are on
the right path
Review the Literature
What research is relevant?
How is it organized? c.f.: Writing Center/University of Wisconsin's Review of literature
Develop your Hypotheses
Your hypothesis is your proposed explanation that you will test to determine whether it is true or
false
It will contain measurable variables (those that change or can be manipulated)
with results that can be compared with each other.
Avoid over-generalizing, and reference the research findings of others to support why you think
this will work
C.F. National Health Museum's Writing Hypotheses: a student lesson
Methods
Give enough information so that others can follow your procedure,
and can replicate it (and hopefully come up with the same findings and conclusions as you did!)
 Describe your procedure as completely as possible so that someone can duplicate it
completely
 Define your sample and its characteristics
These should be consistent throughout the test
 List the variables used
These are what change, or that you manipulate, throughout the test
  Try to anticipate criticism that affects either your internal or external validity
These might be considered "flaws"
Findings
This is descriptive and numeric data
Discussion
Develop your argument based upon your findings.
While the data may read for itself, you will need to interpret
 how it validates your hypothesis
 what falls outside of validity
 how it impacts the literature you cited
 where further research is needed
Conclusion
Restate and summarize your findings and discussion either in order to simply complexity or to
provide a summary for those who skip to it!
References
Verify with your teacher the proper format
Recommendations:
A research paper is not an essay, an editorial, or a story.
All assertions of fact must be documented.
Be careful of any generalizations that you make.
Strive to be value-free in your inquiry.
Review our Guide on the Scientific Method
...it's worth stressing that the evaluation of your paper will never be determined by whether or
not your hypotheses are verified. It is important to remember that a hypothesis supported by the
data does not mean that it is true as there conceivably is an infinite number of other theories that
lead to the same prediction. Similarly, failure of support does not necessarily mean that your
hypothesis is wrong: it may be hold true in some populations, you may have incorrectly
measured your theory's concepts, your sampling may be flawed, etc. Philosopher Karl Popper, in
fact, argues that science is not a method for verifying hypotheses. Instead, all that science can
logically lead to is the falsification of hypotheses. In sum, negative results can be every bit as
important as positive ones. 1Marvin Harris (Cultural Materialism 1979:7)"facts are always
unreliable without theories that guide their collection and that distinguish between superficial
and significant appearances." 1

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Parts of a
Research Paper
How To Write, Research Papers 7,809 Views

Conducting academic research isn’t something easy. Students spend several

months for this purpose and then there comes a time when they are
supposed to do their own research. In this regard, you can make the things
easy for you if you choose to organize your thoughts before writing. Once
you decide to compile data and then organize it, then the entire process of
writing a research paper becomes simple for you. Stay focused and try your
best to deliver your main message of research to your readers the best way
you can. Go on for more research, if you think it’s necessary.

One more thing, which is the most crucial to mention here is; try to aim for
clarity throughout the research paper writing process. Those who start
reading your paper must not stop because it is too technical to understand.
Each and every part of your paper must be written in simple words so that
every reader could easily understand.

Other than clarity, you must also aim at simplicity and accuracy while writing
a paper. The reason is that your published article is going to be accessed by
people all over the world. So, try to use simple and direct sentences.
Moreover, include the accurate and reliable information only.

You may also Study: What is a Research Paper

Keeping all these things in your mind, let’s have a look at the proper
structure of research paper as these papers must be organized into some
specific pre-determined sections with each having a specific goal.

Form of activity or quiz

Parts of a Research Paper

 Title
In fact, this is the most vital part of research paper. It is to grab the reader’s
attention basically as it determines whether the person is going to read your
entire research or not. While deciding on the title for your research, you must
keep in mind that it should indicate the main focus of your research. It must
also contain the most important and relevant keywords (the search terms)
from your paper. It let the user find your paper in the search results when
searching for the related database.
There are two ways of writing titles for your paper. The first one is the
descriptive way, which basically states the main focus of your research. The
second way is the conclusive way, which portrays the conclusion from paper.
The first listed way of writing the title i.e. the descriptive way is preferred for
the reason that it speaks for itself.
1. Descriptive title: ‘The effects of social media on youngsters’.
2. Conclusive title: ‘Social media has badly destroyed our youngsters’
The last but not the least thing to mention here is the length of the title. It
shouldn’t be either too long or too short. Approximately your title must
comprise of 5 to 10 words. Don’t go for the least limit of words as it must
contain all the keywords so that the people may find your paper in the
search results when searching for the relevant database, as mentioned
previously.

Abstract
This is the section of the research paper that comes after the title. The
purpose of this section is to provide the user with the brief
summary of your paper. This section has equal importance as the title of
the research paper. Often, after reading the research paper title, the reader
may switch to its abstract to recognize if this paper is of his interest or not.
Basically, abstract determine the findings of the author and this is the main
plot where the reader decides if he needs to continue reading this paper or
not.
Keeping all these things in mind, the best recommendation for you is to write
the abstract in such a way it looks like a mini-research paper. The reason is
that it could provide the reader with all the information about his interest to
continue reading.

 Basic Introduction – Write a few introductory lines in the abstract to let

the reader know a few background details and the investigated problem as
well.
 Methods used – Don’t forget to mention the methods used in the
abstract.
 Major results – Try to mention all the major results of your paper in this
section. If possible, try your level best to proffer reader the results in form
of quantitative information.
 Discussion – Choose to write a few lines discussing your own (author)
interpretation of the presented results.
 Final summary – The last but not the least thing to mention is a brief
and a final summary in this abstract portion. This is considered the most
crucial abstract part and researchers are going to read this portion to
realize if it is important enough for them to read it further or not.
One more thing to keep in mind while writing the abstract is that
abbreviations aren’t allowed here to state. The reason is that, at this point,
you haven’t yet stated your abbreviations so the reader may lose interest as
he is unable to understand it. The length of the abstract is usually kept
between 150 to 300 words.

Introduction
This introduction portion let the reader know the background of your
research first and primarily consist of the following three sections.

 1st section of the introduction portion must state the background

knowledge i.e. why this study was undertaken.
 2nd portion of the introduction must state the nature of work being
performed in your whole research. It must include the investigated
variables as well as the methods utilized.
 3rd portion of introduction, which is usually the last portion, must state
the problem’s condition at the end of the research.
There are a different point of views of the people regarding introduction
writing. Lots of people consider writing first two points in this section and
consider the third one unnecessary. But, it is highly recommended for you to
include the third portion as well. It let the reader evaluate your paper more
accurately.

The author’s findings must be stated in the past tense and everything else in
the present tense in this section. When it comes to its length, it is not
fixed but is kept around 500 to 700 words.
Literature Review
It is the critical as well as the detailed section of the research paper that
includes the in-depth evaluation of previous researches. It allows the reader
to understand the reason why you took this particular research project and a
good research paper must entail all the details behind why you took this
question for research.

Methods
There are basically two functions this methods section;

1. The first one is that the reader must be able to evaluate your
performed work i.e. you must describe all the aspects of methodology you
utilized in your study.
2. The second function is that you must allow the reader to replicate the
study if they desire to do so. In this regard, all of your methodologies must
be described clearly so that someone could replicate your work, if desired,
without referring to any other publication. This is the reason people also
refer this section as ‘Method and Materials’.
These are definitely written in past tense. If there are different procedures to
describe, you can make separate heading for each to make it readable.

Results
This is usually the variable section of your research paper and it entirely
depends on your results as well as your goals.

Most of the time, in short research papers, the results and discussion
sections are mixed up by the authors. You must try your level best only to
state the observations of your findings. You may choose to reserve the
interpretations for the next section i.e. discussion section.

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What is the proper order of the steps in writing a research paper?

Choose a topic, create a research question, find reliable sources and start the bibliography,
take notes and make an outline, write a rough draft, revise and edit, and publish

Choose a topic, find reliable sources, create a research question, make an outline and take
notes, write a rough draft, revise and edit, start the bibliography, and publish

Create a research question, choose a topic, find reliable sources and start the bibliography,
make an outline and take notes, write a draft, revise and edit, and publish

Choose a topic, create a research question, take notes and make an outline, find reliable
sources and start the bibliography, write a rough draft, revise and edit, and publish

2. 1. In which step do you create a general plan for

each paragraph of your paper?


Write a rough draft

Take notes and make an outline

 

Revise and edit the rough draft

Create a research question

2. What is the difference between revising and

editing?


Revising focuses on the mechanical aspects, whereas editing involves

rewording sentences or change ideas.

Revising and editing are the same thing.

Revising involves rewording sentences or changing ideas, whereas editing

focuses on the mechanical aspects.

Revising means to write a whole new paper, and editing means to fix the
grammar.

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Jane wants to develop a research study to determine

the effects of video games in children's health. Her
University does not have enough funds to support her
project. Which of the following should she write to
request support from a government agency?

Research proposal
Scientific report

A business letter

A budget report

Next
Worksheet

Print Worksheet
1. Which section needs to grab the reader's attention
and explain what the project is about?


The abstract

The discussion

The title

The table of contents

2. Which section contains a short summary about the

project?


The title

The abstract


 The introdcution

The table of contents

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Presentation on theme: "Conducting a research project.

Clarify Aims and Research Questions Conduct
Literature Review Describe methodology Design
Research Collect DataAnalyse."— Presentation
transcript:

1 Conducting a research project

2 Clarify Aims and Research Questions Conduct Literature Review Describe

methodology Design Research Collect DataAnalyse Data Present findings, draw

conclusions Write Report START

3 Clarify Aims and Research Questions Conduct Literature Review Describe

methodology Design Research Collect DataAnalyse Data Present findings, draw

conclusions Write Report Conducting a research project Write research proposal
Rationale for research methods, data collection and analysis, sample size, plus
possible issues Gain ethical approval Gain access to research environment
START

4 Research proposal: the main elements Methodology Task: To justify the

research methods and other decisions you have made and explain your
assumptions What to do: Explain are the values, attitudes or beliefs inherent in
your choice of methods and approach to data? Attempt to justify theoretical
assumptions or existing understandings that you are drawing upon in the design
of your research proposal. For example, you might be making assumptions about
how power operates, how community education or lifelong learning can be
understood or practiced, how adults learn, or deeper understandings about what
is a ‘community’. Refer to literature here. There should be a coherent relationship
between the methodology (the justification and rational behind the methods) and
the methods themselves. Consider your role in the study. Although you will be a
researcher, you are also a student and you will have your professional role. How
will that influence the participants’ perceptions of you and how does that
influence your perception of yourself? What might the potential problems if
there’s a blurring of roles? What might the advantages be of being an insider in
some ways? Ethical Considerations Outcomes Are there any sensitive issues or
potential problems, which need to be addressed? How will you consult on these
and obtain approval where required. If you think there are no sensitive issues,
then give reasons why. How do you see the people involved in the study? Would
you provide them with feedback? Outcomes What are the likely outcome(s) of
your research? FINISH Background to the research Aim(s) and research
question(s) Task: To explain the aim of the investigation and identify the
questions which will inform and guide it What to do: Read about the topic to gain
some understanding of research that has already been undertaken in the area,
Define questions that cover what is to be found out and why. They should be:
clear, understandable and researchable and in line with the time and resources
available whilst still being significant in furthering understanding of the topic.
E.g. What additional support to adult learning tutors require to help them tutor
adults with learning disabilities? NOT How can the adult learning be made more
successful? The question should be framed so that it is clear how it might be
answered through practical activity. Research design Utilise a design template.
Select methods for data collection and analysis, which will allow the research
question to be addressed. Attempt to justify the decisions you make about how
you will undertake the research/intervention. Explain the rationale for choosing
particular research methods and how they will contribute to meeting your aim.
Why have you discounted other approaches? At this stage include your
understanding about sample sizes and how data will be collected and analysed.
Describe any practical problems you anticipate might encounter. Base decisions
on the resource available and the environment in which the research is taking
place.. Context This might include issues of policy, practice or public interest.
Also, understandings of relevant literature, previous research or interventions (as
you understand it). Definition of terms Define concepts and any specialised
language you are using. Your proposal should be understandable by anyone
unfamiliar with your chosen topic. This doesn’t need to be a separate section
Literature Review Outline the literature you would need to read, analyse or
understand in order to go about undertaking your proposed
research/intervention. You will need to do some reading to inform your
understanding of what this literature would consist of. However, you are not
expected to have read all of the literature at this stage. This might include:
Literature connected to your research topic Literature that informs the research
methods you are proposing to use Policy documents, newspaper reports or
websites. START Task: to convey what motivates your interest in the topic. How
is it relevant to your own experience? What are the issues and problems you are
seeking to understand or address? Try to convey your genuine interest,
understanding and enthusiasm for the research area, what the investigation or
intervention is and why it is required References: Bell, Judith, ‘Doing Your
Research Project’, (1987), Open University Press Bryman, Alan, ‘Social Research
Methods’, (2008), Oxford University Press

5 Research proposal: the main elements Methodology at might the advantages

be of being an insider in some ways? Ethical Considerations Outcomes

Outcomes FINISH Background to the research Aim(s) and research question(s)
Research design. Context Definition of terms Literature Review. START
References: Bell, Judith, ‘Doing Your Research Project’, (1987), Open University
Press Bryman, Alan, ‘Social Research Methods’, (2008), Oxford University Press

6 Title: Comparing the adult learner’s everyday struggle with numeracy to the

curricula that they negotiate in class Methodology Task: To justify the research
methods and other decisions you have made and explain your assumptions What
to do: Drawing upon ‘phenomenological theory’ which assumes that lived human
experience can be taken as ‘real’. Mentions how this might make it difficult to
take upon issues of power. Discusses potential issues connected to researching
at own place of work. Ethical Considerations Outcomes Describes use of ‘BERA
code of conduct’ to inform ethical decisions. Describes potential issue of
participants feeling they might have to take part even if they have reservations
and offers a strategy to tackle this problem. Outcomes Will produce a description
of the phenomenon of struggling with numeracy, as perceived by individual adult
learners. Will also provide an account of how the curriculum negotiated in class
differs from the situations and concepts struggled with in every day life. The
research method will also be evaluated. Practitioner networks and professional
groups for adult numeracy researchers might be vehicles for dissemination
FINISH Background to the research Aim(s) and research question(s) Aim: to
explore how the numeracy curricula negotiated by adult learners during class-
time reflects real life experiences of struggling with numeracy. Questions: What
are the real life experiences of adult learners who struggle with numeracy? What
are the curricula that adult learners negotiate during numeracy classes? To what
extent are real world experiences of adult learners negotiated into curricula?
Research design Utilises a design template. Takes each research question and
describes the method used to answer it. These include a semi- structured
interview and the collection of hard copies of students’ documentary records so
that they can be analysed. The findings from the interviews are to be compared
against what has been discovered from analysing the students’ records. Sample
will consist of three adult numeracy learners’ who are regular attenders and are
working at an assessed level identifying them as struggling with numeracy.
Context Adult numeracy education under researched. It has been defined by
policy. Emphasis has been placed on numeracy needed for employment, rather
than numeracy needed in everyday life. Definition of terms The terms ‘Numerical
concept’, ‘learner’ and ‘Individual Learning Plan’ are defined Literature Review
Describes how a search will be undertaken using the terms ‘adult literacies’ and
‘adult numeracy’’. Will search the journal ‘Adults Learning Mathematics’. Will
refer to Scottish policy documents defining literacies education. Gives examples
of how to consider literature which describes how to research lived experience.
Describes literature that will allow the development of a theoretical framework
e.g. with reference to ‘phenomenology’ and ‘constructivism’ START Situated as
an adult literacies tutor of numeracy. Interested in questions about how adults
learn. Wants to do a study which does not focus on policy, rather the experience
of adult learners References: Bell, Judith, ‘Doing Your Research Project’, (1987),
Open University Press Bryman, Alan, ‘Social Research Methods’, (2008), Oxford
University Press