RESEARCH APTITUDE

LAST CLASS

TALVIR SINGH
JRF COMMERCE &
MANAGEMENT
 Referral Code – TalvirS
Get Extra Discount

USE TALVIRS REFFERAL CODE TO GET 10% EXTRA DISCOUNT ON UNACDEMY PLUS
 What makes a Good research?

Good •problem selection

•SMART objectives
•Proper methodology
science •Proper analysis

Good •Fair subject selection

•Favorable Risk- Benefit Ratio
Ethics • Independent Review
 In general terms, “research ethics” is simply good citizenship
applied to professional life

Four basic tenants

❖ HONESTY : conveying information truthfully and honoring
commitments.
❖ ACCURACY : reporting finding precisely and taking care to avoid
errors.
❖ EFFICIENCY : using resources wisely and avoiding waste
❖ OBJECTIVITY : letting the facts speak for themselves and avoiding
improper bias.
Main Approaches to Research Ethics
The following are the three major approaches to ethics:
• 1. Deontological approach: We should identify and use a universal code in making ethical
decisions. This is an absolutist approach.
• 2. Ethical scepticism approach: It states that ethical standards are not universal but are
relative to one’s own particular culture and time. This is based on relativism.
• The risk-benefit precaution is a modern version of the end justifying the means. It has its
most direct application when those exposed to the risks also receive the benefits. The
ratio is more difficult to justify when the participants are subjected to potential harm and
when the benefits are directed to other individuals or to the society to be absolute in
their requirements.
• 3. Utilitarianism approach: Decisions regarding ethics in research should be based on an
examination and comparison of the costs and benefits that may arise from a study. If the
expected benefits exceed the expected risks, the study is presumed to be ethical.
 Deontology Ethical Skepticism Utilitarianism

• judges ethical issues on • Ethical decisions are a • judgments should

the basis of some matter of each individual’s depend on possible
UNIVERSAL CODE conscience. consequences of study,
• Certain actions are • Ethical rules are arbitrary including benefits and
inherently unethical and and relative to individual costs
should never be people and cultures. • This is the primary
performed regardless of approach used by the
the circumstances. federal government, most
professional organizations,
and Institutional Review
Boards (IRBs)
 Main Stakeholders in Research Ethics
• The researcher
• The subject/participant
• The research/knowledge community
• The university
• Regulatory bodies
• Publishers
• Society at large
 The Belmont Report
Overarching principles
1) Respect for persons
• Informed consent
• Coercion is unethical
2) Beneficence
• Ethical decision making (cost-benefit analysis)
3) Justice
• Equitable distribution of risks & benefits
 The principle of respect for human dignity

• The right to self determination:- Humans should be treated as

autonomous agents, capable of controlling their own activities.
• The right to full disclosure:- Researcher should fully describe the
nature of study, subject’s right to refuse participation, researcher’s
responsibility and risks and benefits.
 Issues related to principle of respect
• Inability of individuals to make well informed
judgments
• Bias
• Concealment
• Deception
 RISK BENEFIT RATIO
MAJOR POTENTIAL BENEFIT S TO •MAJOR POTENTIAL RISKS TO
PARTICIPANTS PARTICIPANTS

•Access to an intervention that •Monetary costs Physical harm

otherwise be unavailable to them •Boredom ,fatigue, physical
•Comfort to discuss situation with a discomfort
friendly person •Psychological or emotional
•Increased knowledge of themselves discomfort
•Satisfaction in helping others •Social risks
•Monetary or material gains •Loss of privacy
•Loss of time
 Some Desirable Elements to Ensure
Ethics in Research
• 1. Honesty in reporting data, results, methods and procedures, and
publication status.
• 2. Objectivity to avoid bias in experimental design, data analysis,
interpretation, and peer review.
• 3. Integrity, acting with sincerity, striving for consistency of thought
and action.
• 4. Carefulness to avoid careless errors and negligence; proper
documentation of all aspects.
• 5. Openness in sharing data, results, ideas, tools, resources and
openness to criticisms and new ideas.
• 6. Respect for intellectual property rights such as patents,
copyrights, and other forms of intellectual property.
• 7. Confidentiality in context of communications, personal records,
and privacy issues.
• 8. Responsible publication with an aim to serve the society.
Avoiding wasteful and duplicative publication.
• 9. Responsible mentoring in terms of guiding research students.
• 10. Respect for colleagues translates to extending fair treatment to
the colleagues.
• 11. Social responsibility means to serve the society and different
stakeholders.
• 12. Non-discrimination against colleagues or students on the basis
of sex, race, or factors that are not related to their scientific
competence and integrity.
 IMPORTANT ETHICAL ISSUES
• 1. Collecting information: Before a researcher actually collects information, his
request for information may put pressure or create anxiety on a respondent; it
may not be ethical, but without research, there will be no intellectual progress or
development in the society.
• 2. Seeking consent of participants: Informed consent refers to an individual’s
willingness to participate in a study.
• 3. Providing incentives: Most people do not participate in a study because of
incentives, but they are motivated because of the importance of the study. Giving
a gift before data collection is not ethical on the part of a researcher.
• 4. Seeking sensitive information: Some pieces of information can be regarded as
sensitive or confidential by some people. This may be akin to invading their
privacy.
• 5. Possibility of causing harm to the participants: When you collect data from
respondents or involve subjects in an experiment, you need to examine carefully
whether their involvement is likely to harm them in any way.
• 6. Maintaining confidentiality: In case, the researcher has to identify the
respondent as information needs to be sought more than once, sharing
information about a respondent with others for purposes other than research is
not ethical and at least the information provided by the respondent should be
kept anonymous.
Important Measures to Make Research More Ethical
• 1. Informed consent: The provision of informed consent also includes the
knowledge that the informed participation is voluntary and that
participants can withdraw from the study at any time.
• 2. Protective research design: This involves estimating the probability of
happening of harmful effects, their severity, and the likely duration of
these effects.
• 3. Screening: It is an attempt to select only those individuals for study
who show a high tolerance for potential risks.
• 4. Pilot studies: When the potential harms are uncertain, a useful
precaution involves a pilot study with follow-up diagnostic interviews to
assess the effects and request advice from the participants.
• 5. Outside proposal review: Requesting others to review research
proposals is a helpful precaution in minimizing risks.
• 6. Professional codes: Two features of professional codes are important
for discussion.
• First, professional codes have been developed inductively from the wide
research experiences of professionals.
• Second, professional codes place strong emphasis on researchers’
responsibility for their research.
• 7. Government regulations: Government regulations such as state and
central laws are designed to protect or advance the interests of society
and its individuals. Thus, researchers are required to take certain
precautions.
 Ethical Issues Relating to Participants
There are many ethical issues in relation to participants of a research activity. One of the most
commonly cited ethical principles is that we should not cause harm to our research
participants.
The issue of ethics in research mainly caught the attention of policy makers as a result of
many gruesome instances, few of which have been mentioned below.
1. Medical experiments conducted by Nazi doctors in German concentration camps in 1930s.
Nazi doctors in German concentration camps killed twin gypsy teenagers in order to
determine why some of them had differently colored eyes while conducting experiments.
2. A South African oncologist experimented with women suffering from cancer to excessive
dosages of chemotherapeutics without informing the patients and taking their due
consents.
3. Ethical issues during organ transplant, sterilization and so on.
4. Experiments on animals.
• 5. Inappropriate use of the information: Sometimes, it is possible to harm
individuals in the process of achieving benefits for the organization. An
example would be a study to help in the formulation of a policy by the
organization. New policy may not serve the interests of certain
individuals but may be good for the organization as such. Should you ask
respondents for information that is likely to be used against them?
Some of the key terms used in the context of ethical
issues concerning researchers are as follows:

• 1. Fabricating behaviour: Creation of spurious data by researcher, their recording

and drawing inferences.
• 2. Falsification: It manipulates the research material, equipment and processes or
changes or omits data or results such that the research is not accurately
represented in the research records.
3. Plagiarism: It is the act of appropriating somebody else’s ideas, thoughts, pictures,
theories, words or stories as your own. If a researcher plagiarizes the work of
others, the integrity, ethics and trustworthiness of the sum total of his or her
research becomes questionable. Plagiarism is both an illegal and punishable act
and is considered to be on the same level as stealing from the author who
originally created it.
It can take the following forms:
• (a) Intra- corpal: A case of plagiarism where one student has copied from another
in the same submission is known as intra-corpal plagiarism.
• (b) Extra- corpal: It is an instance of plagiarism where a student has copied the
material from an external source (Example: Books, journal article, world wide
web, etc.).
• (c) Auto plagiarism: It is citing one’s own work without acknowledgement.
• 4. Multiple authorship: There can be many improprieties in authorship. Improper
assignment of credit, such as excluding other authors, inclusion of other as authors who
have not made a definite contribution towards the work published or submission of multi-
authored publication without the knowledge of all the authors.
• 5. Peer review: It is the process in which an author submits a written manuscript or an
article to a journal for publication. The journal editor distributes the article to experts or
reviewers. The peer review process seldom proceeds in a straight line. The entire process
may involve several rounds of communication between the editor, the reviewers and the
original author before an article is ready for publication.
• The two most important ethics in the process are maintaining confidentiality and
protection of intellectual property.
• Reviewers and author should not know the names of each other. Only then, the peer
review process can be genuinely open and beneficial. None in the process can publicly
disclose the information in the article or use the information in a submitted article for
personal gain.
Important Measures to Make Research More Ethical
• 1. Informed consent: The provision of informed consent also includes the knowledge that
the informed participation is voluntary and that participants can withdraw from the study
at any time.
• 2. Protective research design: This involves estimating the probability of happening of
harmful effects, their severity and the likely duration of these effects.
• 3. Screening: It is an attempt to select only those individuals for study who show a high
tolerance for potential risks.
• 4. Pilot studies: When the potential harms are uncertain, a useful precaution involves a
pilot study with follow-up diagnostic interviews to assess the effects and request advice
from the participants.
• 5. Outside proposal review: Requesting others to review research proposals is a helpful
precaution in minimizing risks.
• 6. Professional codes: Two features of professional codes are important for discussion.
Firstly, professional codes have been developed inductively from the wide research
experiences of professionals. Secondly, professional codes place strong emphasis on
researchers’ responsibility for their research.
 Breach of ethics in
research would
amount to scientific
misconduct
 Scientific misconduct
• Fraud : invention/fabrication of data
• Plagiarism : copying data, ideas, text without acknowledgement of
source
• Piracy : infringement of a copyright
• Submitting/Publishing the same paper to different journals
 Scientific misconduct …
• Not informing a collaborator of your intent to file a patent in order to
make sure that you are the sole inventor
• Including a colleague as an author on a paper in return for a favor even
though the colleague did not make a serious contribution to the paper
• Trimming outliers from a data set without discussing your reasons in
paper
• Using an inappropriate statistical technique in order to enhance the
significance of your research
• Bypassing the peer review process and announcing your results through a
press conference without giving peers adequate information to review
your work
• Conducting a review of the literature that fails to acknowledge
contributions of others
• Stretching the truth on a grant application in order to convince reviewers
that your project will make a significant contribution to the field
• Giving the same research project to two graduate students in order to see
who can do it the fastest
• Overworking, neglecting, or exploiting research students
• Making derogatory comments and personal attacks in your review of
author's submission
• Making significant deviations from the research protocol approved by the
Review Board without informing the committee
• Sabotaging someone's work
• Rigging an experiment so you know how it will turn out
• Deliberately overestimating the clinical significance of a new drug in
order to obtain economic benefits
• Not reporting an adverse event in a human research experiment
• Wasting animals in research
• Exposing students and staff to biological risks
• Rejecting a manuscript for publication without even reading it
 Ethical review committee
(Institutional Review Boards)
Convened to
– maintain ethical standards of practice in
research
– ensure protection of subjects/research workers
from harm or exploitation
– to provide reassurance to the public
– protect researchers from unjustified criticism
 Procedure for ethical clearance
• Fill ethical clearance form and attach proposal,
questionnaires, informed consent forms, information
leaflets etc., and submit
• When ethical clearance is granted, data collection can
commence according to the approved methodology
Article
• The articles are usually informative in nature, which typically address the topic in
a general scope as a means of introduction. They may appear in newspaper,
magazine, consumer or industry publication.
• A research article is written by and for researchers for the purpose of making
specific findings known to the scientific community at large. It includes a problem
or question, method of research, data, and conclusions.
• Research article is found exclusively in a peer-reviewed scientific or medical
journal, such as Journal of Medical Research. A research article illustrates the
outcome of scientific research with supporting clinical data. A research article
could be used as a reference when writing a research paper.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Article or Journal Article
This topic can be divided into research article and review paper.
• A research article is based on original research.
• The kind of research varies depending upon the field or the topic (experiments, survey,
interview, questionnaire, etc.).
• Here, the authors need to collect and analyze raw data and conduct an original study.
The research paper will be based on the analysis and interpretation of this data. The
various steps followed to show the process have been given as:
• 1. Conducting research
• 2. Manuscript writing
• 3. Journal selection
• 4. Journal submission
• 5. Manuscript tracking
• 6. Peer review
• 7. Manuscript rejection 8. Post publication
• A review article or review paper summarizes the findings of existing literature.
So, the readers can develop an idea about the existing knowledge on a topic
without having to read all the published works in the field. It does not report original
research. Review articles generally summarize the existing literature on a topic in an
attempt to explain the current state of understanding on the topic.
Review articles can be of three kinds.
• 1. Narrative review: It explains the existing knowledge on a topic based on all the
published research available on the topic.
• 2. Systematic review: It searches for the answer to a particular question in the existing
scientific literature on a topic.
• 3. Meta-analysis: It compares and combines the findings of previously published studies,
usually to assess the effectiveness of an intervention or mode of treatment.
• Most reputed journals publish review articles. If published in a good peer-
reviewed journal, the review articles often have a high impact and receive a lot of
citations.
Research (Position) Paper
❑ Purpose: TO CONVINCE
❑ QUESTION-based
❑ Has a clear, arguable THESIS
❑ YOU use data and ideas as evidence
to support your position
❑ YOU analyze and interpret
information
❑ YOUR unique perspective and
conclusion
Report
❑ Purpose: TO INFORM
❑ TOPIC-based
❑ General discussion
❑ Summarizes information gathered
❑ Presents analysis and interpretation
of OTHERS
❑ Does not result in new knowledge
 Paper
• A paper is defined as an essay or dissertation read at a seminar
or published in a journal. It is either a result of research effort or
an intellectual exercise.
• A research paper may entail all the steps of research such as
literature survey, data collection and so on. It usually follows the
journal’s editorial policy.
• Conceptual papers are not based on data. It presents facts of
research in a logical and lucid style. They can be analytical or
argumentative.
• The paper usually requires that the sources are cited in a
bibliography given at the end.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• A review article or review paper is based on other
published articles. It does not report original
research.
• Review articles generally summarize the existing
literature on a topic in an attempt to explain the
current state of understanding on the topic.
 Dissertation and Thesis
• A dissertation culminates in a postgraduate degree such as MS/M.Tech./M.Sc./MPhil,
whereas a thesis leads to a doctoral degree (Europe and India). In American
universities, a dissertation leads to a PhD degree and a thesis leads to a Master’s
degree. We will adhere to the former one. In a dissertation, it is adequate if one has a
decent knowledge of the new discoveries in order to arrive at the conclusion
effectively.
• In a thesis, one has to substantiate the hypothesis with original research work.
• The hypothesis or the ‘synopsis’ should contain the gist of the new findings one has
made on the subject of research. The written thesis should contain all details of
original research work that one has made on the subject.
• (A thesis may be subjected to scrutiny for any plagiarism to determine the originality
of the effort.) Another finite difference between the two is that in a thesis, analysis of
any existing literature is added, whereas a dissertation by itself is an analysis of any
existing literature.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

The differences between a dissertation and a thesis are given below
• 1. A researcher has to utilize the already collected information in order to prepare
a dissertation, whereas thesis is based on the research conducted all by himself.
• 2. Thesis is lengthier, thus, takes more time to be completed, whereas
dissertation is short; therefore, it does not consume too much time to be
completed.
• 3. In thesis, researcher have to include a hypothesis based on your research work.
In contrast to thesis, in dissertation, researcher should have a decent knowledge
of the new discoveries in order to infer conclusion effectively.
• 4. In thesis, researcher has to focus on your primary argument in order to prove
your standpoint to the readers. In contrast to thesis, dissertation focuses on
background work.
• 5. Thesis is written as an academic research paper, whereas dissertation is more
like an academic book.
• 6. Data collected in dissertation is based upon the hypothetical analysis of
contents, whereas thesis is comprised of theory and argumentation based on
original research.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

Difference between Dissertation and
Thesis
• Dissertation: Written for a university degree
or diploma. you can also write dissertation for
PhD.
• Thesis: A document students write during
higher education to obtain an academic
degree or qualification.
 Thesis Article
Purpose The purpose is education as it shows how The purpose is advancement to enhance
much a person knows. credibility and contribution in the field
Audience Educational committee and professors to Here, person may look up to become a
decide whether a person is worthy of scientist or further researcher
degree
Abstract Longer up to 500 words Shorter up to 150-250 words

Introduction More detailed More concise, only absolutely required

information
Length Longer as the page count can be up to 50 It is shorter between 3 to 6000 words.
pages and around 20000 words Better to avoid copying, rewriting or
paraphrasing
Material and Extensive presentation Controlled presentation
method
Discussion Detailed interpretation of results Clear and concise presentation of results

References Exhaustive list Selective list

Difference between a proposal and a research
article
1. An abstract is optional in a research proposal
2. The literature review in the introduction is typically
more extensive than the review in a research report.
3. The results and discussion sections are typically
replaced either by a combined Results/ Discussion
section, or a section entitled Expected Results and
Statistical Analysis or Data Analysis and Expected
Results.
Meeting
Meeting A meeting is an assembly or coming
together of people whether it is a symposium,
workshop, conference, or so. In a very remote sort
of a way, all of them convey the same meaning—
that is, people coming together for a purpose.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Symposium
• Symposium It is usually a formal meeting at which
specialists deliver short addresses on a topic or on
related topics and then answer the questions
relating to these topics. It is especially one in which
the participants form an audience and make
presentations. Symposium is also defined as a
collection of writings on a particular topic, as in a
magazine.
 Colloquium
• Colloquium: It is usually an academic
meeting at which specialists deliver
addresses on a topic or on related topics
and then answer the questions relating to
these topics. A colloquium is targeted to a
well educated but not specialized audience.
• Conference A conference is a meeting of people who confer
about a topic. It is a meeting where people come for discussion.
It features keynotes and presentations delivered to all
attendees, as well as multiple break-out sessions.
• Attendees expect to receive information about industry trends
and developments.
• It can be an academic conference (a formal event where
researchers present results), a business conference (organized to
discuss business related matters), or a parent–teacher
conference (meeting with a child’s teacher to discuss grades and
school performance), a peace conference (a diplomatic meeting
to end conflict), and so on.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

Conference
 Webinars or Web
Conferences
•Webinars or Web
Conferences Webinars or
web conferences are
presentations that involve
an audio and video
component. The audio
portion of the event is
delivered via phone or over
the internet, so that
participants can listen via
their computer speakers.
Workshop
• Workshop is like a class in
which a group of interested
people are trained, helped to
learn some methods develop
skills to do something specific.
Congress Seminar Symposium
•Congress is a formal •Seminar is more about a •Symposium is a sort of
meeting of people with meeting relating to meeting in which experts on
political, trade affiliations to education background a particular subject are
discuss, exchange views including training, where called to speak upon it.
within a specific sphere of matters of technical •Symposium: A meeting or
activity. knowledge are discussed conference for the
and exchanged. discussion of some subject,
especially a meeting at
which several speakers talk
on or discuss a topic before
an audience.
Conference Colloquium
• Conference: A meeting for • Colloquium: It is usually an
consultation or discussion: a academic meeting at which
conference between a student specialists deliver addresses on
and his adviser. Symposium is a a topic or on related topics and
formal gathering in an then answer the questions
academic setting where the relating to these topics. A
participants are experts in their colloquium is targeted to a well
fields. These experts present or educated but not specialized
deliver their opinions or view audience.
points on a chosen topic of
discussion
• Webinars or Web Conferences Webinars or web conferences are presentations
that involve an audio and video component. The audio portion of the event is delivered via
phone or over the internet, so that participants can listen via their computer speakers.
• The video portion of the event is delivered via the internet, giving participants a presentation to
watch while listening to the instructor.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 SEMINAR (VS) WORKSHOP
Workshops and seminars are similar in that they
both are learning and teaching arrangements
which allow for active participation of
participants, and they are usually conducted in
small groups. At a workshop, the participants
are given the opportunity to practice skills and
receive feedback while a seminar concentrates
on delivering the information and discussion of
the pertinent issues
Seminar
• Topic are related to recent trends and
development in nursing
• Multiple aspects of the topic under
consideration is discussed
• Chairperson has to expert less control
• Less time of discussion involving
participants
• Comparatively less preparation form the
side of participants
Symposium
• Topic are related to controversial issues in
nursing
• Simple aspects of topic is discussed
• Chair person has to expert more control
• More time for discussion involving
participants
• Demands more preparation from the side
of participants
 Seminar versus conference
Seminar
Seminar is a form of academic instruction
that brings together a small group of
people to learn about a specific subject.
Seminars are conducted in one day though
they can be recurrent.
Conference is a formal meeting.
In some conferences, discussions are not
allowed.
Conferene
Conference is a formal meeting whose
typical aims are discussion, problem –
solving, and consultation.
Conferences can last for several days.
Seminars are less formal than conferences.
Discussion is a key feature in a seminar
 Meeting versus conference
Meeting Conference
Meetings are less formal and casual than Conferences are more formal than meetings
conferences

May last for a few hours May be held over a span of days

Can be held in offices, homes or any given Usually held in hotels and conference halls
space

Can be sudden Preplanned

May be between two people Have a large number of attendees

 Difference between Seminar, Conference, Symposium, Workshop
Characteristics Seminar Conference Symposium workshop Forum

Session Small Long duration Long duration Long duration Small

duration duration

Problem Broad area specific Specific specific Specific

orientation
Participant Active Passive Active Active Passive
involvement
Nature Theoretical Theoretical Theoretical Practical Theoretical
(theoretical/prac
tical
presentation One way One way Both way Both way Opposed also
 Difference between Seminar, Conference, Symposium, Workshop
Characteristics Seminar Conference Symposium workshop Forum

Mapping Expert- 1 – many 1 – many E- many Many – many

many

Doubt At the end Any time Any time Any time Any time
clear/question

Materials Presentation Kit Kit Manual + Minutes

received slide Hand Book

Keynote No Present No No No
speakers

No. of Small Group Large Group Small Group Hands on Hands on

participant
 Meeting versus Conference
Meeting conference
Meetings are less formal and casual than Conferences are more formal than
conferences meetings
May last for a few hours May be held over a span of days

Can be held in offices, homes or any Usually held in hotels and conference
given space halls
Can be sudden Preplanned

May be between two people Have a large number of attendees

 Seminar versus conference
Seminar
Seminar is a form of academic instruction
that brings together a small group of
people to learn about a specific subject.
Seminars are conducted in one day though
they can be recurrent.
Conference is a formal meeting.
In some conferences, discussions are not
allowed.
conference
Conference is a formal meeting whose
typical aims are discussion, problem –
solving, and consultation.
Conferences can last for several days.
Seminars are less formal than conferences.
Discussion is a key feature in a seminar
 Writing a Research Report
• Writing a report is the last, and for many, the most difficult step of
the research process. The report informs the world what you have
done, what you have discovered, and what conclusions you have
drawn from your findings.
• The report should be written in an academic style. Language should
be formal and not journalistic.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Semantic Characteristics
• Creative expressions in the form of superlatives, similes should be avoided. The
report should be concise.
• Jargon of any kind should be avoided.
• Common words with multiple meaning should be avoided.
• Language of the report must be simple. For example, sentences like "illumination
must be extinguished when premises are not in use" can be expressed in simple
words say "switch off the lights when you leave".
• Avoid using 'I' 'we'. The report should be more impersonal.
• Sometimes, the current research uses the data of research conducted in the past.
In this case it is better to use past tense than present tense.
 Precautions
1.Keep the main objective of research in mind.
2.Analysis of data should start from simpler and more fundamental
aspects.
3.It should not be confusing.
4.The sample size should be adequate.
5.Take care before generalizing of the sample studied.
6.Give due attention to significant questions.
 Oral report
No rigid standard format
Remembering all that is said is difficult if not
impossible. This is because the presenter cannot be
interrupted frequently for clarification.
Tone, voice modulation, comprehensibility and
several other communication factors play an
important role
Correcting mistakes if any, is difficult
The audience has no control over the speed of
presentation
The audience does not have the choice of picking
and choosing from the presentation
Written report
Standard format can be adopted
This can be read a number of times and clarification
can be sought whenever the reader chooses.
Free from presentation problems
Mistakes, if any, can be pinpointed and corrected
Not applicable
The reader can pick and choose what he thinks is
relevant to him. For instance, the need for
information is different for technical and non-
technical persons.
 Research Report Format
A scientifically written format of research work is known as
thesis or research report .
• A research report of a thesis is an organised format of the
research work carried out by the researcher
Three part of thesis
1) Preliminaries
2) Textual body
3) References

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Research Report Format
Title Page
1. Title of the research project
2. Name of the researcher s
3. Purpose of the research project, for example ‘A
research project submitted on partial fulfillment of the
requirements of ABC University , Mumbai , for the
degree of ____________’.
4. Date of Publication
TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY
 Preliminary Section

▪ Title page
▪ Preface /acknowledgment
▪ Table of content
▪ List of tables
▪ List of figures
TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY
 Table of contents
• In this section, the contents of the report, either in chapters or in subheadings are
listed. For Example
Chapter Number Title of the chapter
• Declaration
• Certificates
• Acknowledgement
• Executive summary
1) Introduction to the project
2) Research design and methodology
3) Theoretical perspective of the study
4) Company and industry profile
5) Data analysis and interpretation
6) Summary of findings, suggestions and conclusions
Bibliography
Appendix
 Chapter I
Theoretical Framework and Review of Related Literature
• Statement of the problem
• Hypothesis of the problem
• Significance of the problem
• Assumptions and delimitations
• Definitions of important terms
• Review of related literature

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

3) Design of the study
• method and procedures used
• tools of research and sources of data
• techniques of data collection
• description of techniques used

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• Introduction: The introduction must explain clearly the decision problem and
research objective. The background information should be provided on the
product and services provided by the organisation which is under study.
• Methodology: How you have collected the data is the key in this section. For
example, Was primary data collected or secondary data used? Was a
questionnaire used? What was the sample size and sampling plan and method of
analysis? Was the design exploratory or conclusive?
• Limitations: Every report will have some shortcoming. The limitations may be of
time, geographical area, the methodology adopted, correctness of the responses,
etc.
4) Analysis and interpretation of data
• analysis of data
• tables and interpretations
• figures and interpretations

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

5) Conclusions
• Discussion of results
• main findings and inferences

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Chapter 5
• Summary and Conclusion.
• Suggestions for Further Research
References/Bibliography Appendices
• Appendix I Questionnaire for Employees
• Appendix II Questionnaire for Managers

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 List of Tables
This section includes the title and page numbers of all
tables. Example
Table No. Title Page No.
• 1. Income levels of respondents
• 2. Age distribution of respondents

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 List of Figures
• This section contains the title and page
numbers of all graphs, pie charts, etc. Example
Figure No. Title Page No.
• 1. Pie chart showing the age distribution of respondents
• 2. Bar graph showing the popularity of menu items

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• Acknowledgements In this section, the researcher may acknowledge the
institute, principal, faculty guides (both research guide and technical
guide), research participants, friends, etc.
• Introduction This section introduces the research, setting out the main
aims and objectives. It is actually a rationale for the research.
• Theoretical Framework and Review of Literature This section includes all
the background research information that has been obtained from the
literature review. You must indicate from where all the information was
obtained. Thus, it is mandatory to keep a complete record of everything
the researcher has read. Otherwise, there are chances that the researcher
could be accused of plagiarism, which is akin to intellectual theft.
• Research Design This section includes all practical details followed for the
research. After reading this, any interested party should be able to
replicate the research study. It includes the methods used for data
collection, sampling procedures, tools used for data collection, and
analysis of data.
TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY
• Data Analysis and Interpretation If you have conducted a
large quantitative survey, this section may contain tables,
graphs, pie charts, and associated statistics. If you have
conducted a qualitative piece of research, this section
may be a descriptive prose.
• Summary and Conclusion In this section, you sum up your
findings and draw conclusions from them, perhaps in
relation to other research or literature.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• Data Analysis and Interpretation If you have conducted a
large quantitative survey, this section may contain tables,
graphs, pie charts, and associated statistics. If you have
conducted a qualitative piece of research, this section
may be a descriptive prose.
• Summary and Conclusion In this section, you sum up your
findings and draw conclusions from them, perhaps in
relation to other research or literature.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• Recommendations If the research has been conducted for any
client organization, this section could be treated as the most
important part of the report. Sometimes, this section is
included at the beginning of the report.
• Suggestions for Further Research Research is a continuous
process. This section shows how research could be continued.
This could happen as some results are inconclusive or the
research itself has thrown up many more research questions
that need to be addressed. It also shows the honesty and
integrity of the researcher that he has a wider perspective and
has actually not tried to cover up the shortcomings.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

• List of References/Bibliography The list of references
contains only the details of those works cited in the text. It
includes sources not cited in the main text matter but are
relevant to the subject of study, specifically in case of larger
dissertations or thesis. Small research projects may need just
a reference section to include all the literature that has been
referred to in the report.
• Bibliography – All the sources which have been consulted
are mentioned. These may or may not be used in the study.
• References – Only those sources are mentioned which have
been used. Sources for the referred material can also be
provided in form of footnotes.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Abbreviation Long form
anon anonymous
ante before
art augmented
aug book
bk bulletin
bull compare
cf chapter
ch column
col dissertation,
diss editor, edition, edited
ed edition cited
 Abbreviation Long form
ed. cit. edition, cited
eng. Enlarged
et. al. and others
et seq, et sequens and the following
ex example
f., ff. and the following
fig (s) footnote figure (s)
id, idem the same
ill, illus, illust (s) illustrated, illustrations
Intro introduction
I, II line (s)
 Abbreviation Long form
MS, MSS, Manuscript or manuscripts
N.B. Nota bene: note well
n.d. no data
n.p. no place
no pub. no publisher
no (s) number (s)
o.p. out of print
o.p.cit. in the work cited
rev revised
vid or vide see, refer to

viz namely
Basis of comparison Reference Bibliography

Meaning Reference implies the list of Bibliography is about listing

sources, that has been out all the materials which has
referred in the research work been consulted during the
research
Arrangement Alphabetically and numerically Alphabetically

Includes Only in-text citations, that Both in-text citations and

have been used in the other sources, that are used to
assignment or project generate the idea

Supporting argument A reference can be used to A bibliography cannot be used

support an argument to support an argument
Basis of comparison Footnote Endnote
Meaning Footnote refers to the Endnote implies a note
supplemental piece of printed at the end of the
information, published at book or a particular section
the bottom of the page of the book
Position Bottom of the page End of the document or book
or chapter

Contains An abbreviated addition Details of the reference

of an in-text excerpt quoted
• Appendices This is specifically required in case of
questionnaires or interview schedules constructed for
conducting the research; it may be useful to include them in
the report as an appendix. Appendices do not count towards
your total number of pages or words. It is a useful way of
including relevant material so that the examiner can gain a
deeper understanding of your work by reading it.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 Main Terms Used in Context of Footnotes and
Reference Writing
• Ibid is the abbreviation for the Latin Ibidem, meaning, the same. It refers
to the same author and source (e.g., book and journal) in the immediately
preceding reference.
• op. cit. is the abbreviation for the Latin opus citatum, meaning the work
cited. It refers to the reference listed earlier by the same author.
• Loc. cit. is of Latin origin and abbreviation for loco citato, meaning in the
place cited. It is a footnote or endnote term used to repeat the title and
page number for a given work.
• et al. refers to, and others; it is used when referring to a number of
people.
APA Format
The American Psychological Association (APA) guidelines specify using sentence-style
capitalization for the titles of books or articles, so we should capitalize only the first word
of a title and subtitle.
The exceptions to this rule would be periodical titles and proper names in a title that should
be capitalized. The periodical title is run in title case and is followed by the volume
number, which is italicized along with the title.
If there is more than one author, use an ampersand (&) before the name of the last author. If
there are more than six authors, list only the first one and use et al. for the rest.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

APA Format
• 1. Books Format: Author’s last name, first initial. (Publication date). Book title. Additional
information. City of publication: Publishing company. Examples Singh, DV (2015 ).
Fundamentals Marketing . New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House.
• 2. Encyclopedia and Dictionary Format: Author’s last name, first initial. (Date). Title of
Article. Title of Encyclopedia (Volume, pages). City of publication: Publishing company.
Examples Bergmann, P. G. (1993). Relativity. In The new Encyclopedia Britannica (Vol. 26,
pp. 501–508). Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica.
• 3. Magazine and Newspaper Articles Format: Author’s last name, first initial. (Publication
date). Article title. Periodical title, volume number (issue number if available), inclusive
pages. Examples Harlow, H. F. (1983). Fundamentals for preparing psychology journal
articles. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 55, 893–896.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

 MLA (Modern Language Association) Style
• MLA (Modern Language Association) style for documentation is
widely used in the humanities, especially in writing on language and
literature.
• MLA style features brief parenthetical citations in the text keyed to
an alphabetical list of works cited that appears at the end of the
work.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

MLA Format
 APA MLA
APA style is used in social sciences MLA style is used in humanities

Title is in italics; only the necessary words are Title is underlined; all major words are
capitalized capitalized

Source page is titled as “References” Source page is titled as “Works Cited”

Last name of the author is used Full name of the author is used

In – text citations contain author’s name and In-text citations contain author’s name and
year of publication page numbers

Commas are used in in –text citations Commas are not used in in-text citations
• Impact Factor The impact factor of an academic journal is a measure reflecting the average
number of citations to recent articles published in the journal. It reflects the relative
importance of a journal within its field. The journals with higher impact factors are
deemed to be more important than those with lower ones.
• The h-index is an index that attempts to measure both the productivity and the impact of
the published work of a scientist or a scholar.
• The g-index is like h-index; it has an averaged citations count. The i10-index indicates the
number of academic publications an author has written that have at least ten citations
from others. It was introduced in July 2011 by Google as part of their work on Google
Scholar, a search engine dedicated to academic and related papers.

TALVIR SINGH PLUS COURSE ON UNACADEMY

Basis for comparison Data
Meaning Data means raw facts
gathered about someone or
something, Which is bare and
random
What is it? It is just text and numbers
Information
Facts, concerning a particular
event or subject, which are
refined by processing is called
information
It is refined data

Based on Records and observations Analysis

Form Unorganized Organized

Useful May or may not be useful Always

Specific No Yes

Dependency Does not depend on Without data, information

information cannot be processed
 Primary Data Secondary Data
Meaning Primary data refers to the first Secondary data means data
hand data gathered by the collected by someone else earlier
researcher himself
Data Real time data Past data
Process Very involved Quick and easy

Source Surveys, observations, Government publications,

experiments, questionnaire, websites, books, journal articles,
personal interview, etc. internal records etc.
Cost Effectiveness Expensive Economical
Collection time Long Short
Specific Always specific to the May or may not be specific to the
researcher’s needs researcher’s need
Available in More Refined form
Accuracy and Reliability Relatively less
 Qualitative
Conceptual • concerned with understanding
human behavior from the informant’s
perspective.
• Assumes a dynamic and negotiated
reality
Methodological • Data are collected through
participant observation and
interviews
• Data are alyansed by themes from
descriptions by informants
• Data are reported in the language of
the informant
Quantitative
• concerned with discovering facts
about social phenomena
• Assumes a fixed and measurable
reality
• Data are collected through
measuring things
• Data are analysed through
numerical comparison and statistical
inferences
• Data are reported through statistical
analyses
 Qualitative Quantitative
Meaning Qualitative data is the data in Quantitative data is the type of data
which the classification of objects which can be measured and
is based on attributes and expressed numerically
properties.
Research Exploratory Conclusive
methodology
Approach Subjective Objective
Analysis Non- statistical Statistical
Collection of data Unstructured structured

Determines Depth of understanding Level of occurrence

Asks Why? How many or How much?
Sample Representative samples Large number of representative
samples
 Pure Research
Studies a problem usually from the focus of
on discipline.
Aims to illuminate the theory by enriching
the basic of a discipline.
Seeks generalizations
Studies why things happen
Reports is in technical language
Works on hypotheses that variables not
measured remains constant.
Applied Research
Several disciplines collaborate for solving the
problem.
Aims to solve a problem by enriching the
field of application of a discipline
Often studies individual cases without the
objective to generalize
Studies how things can be changed
Report is in common language
Recognizes that other variables are constant
by changing
 Difference between narrative and systematic reviews
Features Narrative review
Topic Typically broad-scoped
Data sources and search strategy The search strategy and databases
that were used may not be
provided
Systematic review
Focused research question
The search strategy is explicit and
comprehensive with a list of all
databases that were utilized

Authorship A recognized expert (s) on the A team of experts having

Article selection criteria
Searching
Appraisal of included articles
topic
Typically not specified
May be extensive, intended to
locate literature on the topic area
in question
Indefinite, may be variable
methodologic and clinical
expertise
Consistently applied inclusion and
exclusion criteria
Extensive, intended to locate all
primary studies on a particular
research question
Critical appraisal is meticulous
typically involving the use of data