Title page: Your instructor or your school may have special guidelines for title pages. If you are not sure, check with your instructor to see if there is a preferred format.
Abstract: With the abstract, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Most universities and publishers have a maximum number of words for abstracts. The university where I did my dissertation had a 300-word limit for abstracts. Readers should read your abstract and know the exact focus of your paper.
Epigraph: Your epigraph can be a quote that prepares the reader for what will follow in your paper, or it can be something that helps the reader understand you and what is important to you.
Introduce the problem: As you introduce the problem, help the reader understand the importance of the problem to you and to others in the world.
Methods: The important thing to remember here is that your description in the Methods section should help the reader determine the reliability and validity of your results. In addition, you should give enough detail so that someone else could replicate your methods.
Results: Make sure that you include any results that do not support your hypothesis (in addition to the ones that do). Your primary role is to generate valid and reliable insights, not to support your hypothesis.
Discussion: After you have given a concise summary of your findings, compare and contrast your findings with what you found in the literature. It is usually acceptable to draw inferences from your research. One way of doing this is to ask questions about what might lay beyond the scope of your research.
Acknowledgements: Students typically include an acknowledgement section for longer papers, major projects, theses and dissertations. It is a good idea to include one as a tribute to those who helped you finish the paper. It makes the other members of your team feel special and appreciated.
Appendix: Some students wonder whether to include information in a table (or figure) or in an appendix. A general rule of thumb is to put the information in a table or figure if you think readers would benefit from seeing the information as they read that section of your paper. If the information is important, but not necessary for understanding your discussion, you can probably include it in an appendix.
Title page: Your instructor or your school may have special guidelines for title pages. If you are not sure, check with your instructor to see if there is a preferred format.
Table of Contents: Those who read your paper will often go to the Table of Contents first. The headings you use should clearly communicate the content in each section in a way that captures peoples' attention. When you use subheadings, remember that you must always have at least two subheadings.
List of Tables: With table headings, it is important to use nouns that accurately describe the table. For example, the heading, "A Summary of the Research Data," is better than, "Summarizing the Data." Notice that the first heading uses the noun "Summary" and clarifies that the data is "Research Data." In addition, when you use a table in your paper, make sure that you explain the significant parts in the section prior to the table. A table always requires accompanying commentary to connect the table with your discussion.
List of Figures: Make sure that all of your figures are necessary. If they do not support and strengthen your discussion, then they are unnecessary. Only use figures that are simple and easy to understand. Be sure to include appropriate explanations as to the importance of a figure in the paragraph(s) preceding a figure. If you use abbreviations in a figure, make sure that you include a legend at the bottom of the figure that spells out the abbreviations. If you copy a figure from another source, be sure to cite the other source.
Abstract: With the abstract, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Most universities and publishers have a maximum number of words for abstracts. The university where I did my dissertation had a 300-word limit for abstracts. Readers should read your abstract and know the exact focus of your paper.
Introduction: One of the best things you can do before writing the body of your paper is develop an outline of what you will write. What are the main points that you want to cover? Making an outline ahead of time will help you to stay focused on the intent of the paper. As you write your paper, make sure you cite authors when you write about their ideas. Many students simply summarize what others have said. Feel free to interact critically with other sources and to contrast sources with each other. It is in this rigorous integration of external sources that you will sometimes discover novel insights.
Introduce the problem: As you introduce the problem, help the reader understand the importance of the problem to you and to others in the world.
Explore importance of the problem: Some of the reasons why a problem might be important include there is a gap in the literature related to the problem, the problem impacts others in significant ways and the problem is personally troubling. If you choose the last one, make sure you describe how the problem influences you.
Describe relevant scholarship: This is the section where you look at what others have written about the problem. Make sure you cite authors when you write about their ideas. Many students simply summarize what others have said. Feel free to interact critically with other sources and to contrast sources with each other. It is in this rigorous integration of external sources that you will sometimes discover novel insights.
State hypotheses and their correspondence to research design: Here is where you get to introduce your proposed solution to the problem based on what you discovered in the literature. In some fields, you would call this your hypothesis. Make sure that your purpose or hypothesis flows naturally out of the preceding discussion. In fact, a good writing practice is to prepare the reader for your statement of the purpose (or hypothesis) by hinting at it the previous sections without explicitly stating it. You can do this by asking leading questions or posing dilemmas that cry out for the solution that you propose here.
Methods: The important thing to remember here is that your description in the Methods section should help the reader determine the reliability and validity of your results. In addition, you should give enough detail so that someone else could replicate your methods.
Participant (subject) characteristics: One of the challenges of communicating research results is to make appropriate generalizations. To a large degree, your sample population determines the generalizability of your results. Be careful not to make sweeping generalizations beyond the scope of your sample population. For example, if your sample population is made up of university students, use caution when trying to extend the findings to those outside a university context.
Sampling procedures: Make sure you describe your sampling procedures with enough detail so that others can replicate your study.
Sample size, power, and precision: Be careful in using the word "significant," especially when you are describing a quantitative study. In these types of studies, the word "significant" is typically used to describe a correlation that is statistically significant. I often use the word "important" instead of "significant" when I am discussing important findings in a quantitative study that are not statistically significant.
Measures and covariates: Statistical software is great for generating accurate and insightful results. However, make sure that you understand all the measures that you report because someone might ask you about the meaning of the measures in your study.
Research design: Most universities have some type of ethics review board that must approve any research involving subjects (humans and animals). Make sure you check your university's policies before starting a study of this kind.
Experimental manipulations or interventions: For technical descriptions of experimental manipulations or interventions, it is generally acceptable to use abbreviations for measures used. For example, you could say that the weightlifter lifted 120 kg for 10 sec (see underlined abbreviations).
Results: Make sure that you include any results that do not support your hypothesis (in addition to the ones that do). Your primary role is to generate valid and reliable insights, not to support your hypothesis.
Discussion: After you have given a concise summary of your findings, compare and contrast your findings with what you found in the literature. It is usually acceptable to draw inferences from your research. One way of doing this is to ask questions about what might lay beyond the scope of your research.
Table 1. Sample table caption: A table always appears at the end of the paragraph in which you first mention a table.
Appendix: Some students wonder whether to include information in a table (or figure) or in an appendix. A general rule of thumb is to put the information in a table or figure if you think readers would benefit from seeing the information as they read that section of your paper. If the information is important, but not necessary for understanding your discussion, you can probably include it in an appendix.
Title page: Your instructor or your school may have special guidelines for title pages. If you are not sure, check with your instructor to see if there is a preferred format.
Approval: You can usually find a sample approval page in the research section of your school's website. An approval page is typically only required for a thesis or dissertation.
Abstract: With the abstract, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Most universities and publishers have a maximum number of words for abstracts. The university where I did my dissertation had a 300-word limit for abstracts. Readers should read your abstract and know the exact focus of your paper.
Biography: Including a biography is good way of "locating" your paper. Readers will better understand where you are coming from and as a result will be in a better position to understand your discussion. Make sure that you include information that will help readers understand what has shaped your perspective.
Epigraph: Your epigraph can be a quote that prepares the reader for what will follow in your paper, or it can be something that helps the reader understand you and what is important to you.
Table of Contents: Those who read your paper will often go to the Table of Contents first. The headings you use should clearly communicate the content in each section in a way that captures peoples' attention. When you use subheadings, remember that you must always have at least two subheadings.
List of Figures: Make sure that all of your figures are necessary. If they do not support and strengthen your discussion, then they are unnecessary. Only use figures that are simple and easy to understand. Be sure to include appropriate explanations as to the importance of a figure in the paragraph(s) preceding a figure. If you use abbreviations in a figure, make sure that you include a legend at the bottom of the figure that spells out the abbreviations. If you copy a figure from another source, be sure to cite the other source.
List of Tables: With table headings, it is important to use nouns that accurately describe the table. For example, the heading, "A Summary of the Research Data," is better than, "Summarizing the Data." Notice that the first heading uses the noun "Summary" and clarifies that the data is "Research Data." In addition, when you use a table in your paper, make sure that you explain the significant parts in the section prior to the table. A table always requires accompanying commentary to connect the table with your discussion.
Preface: With the preface, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Readers should read your preface and know the exact focus of your paper. The preface is often the first (and sometimes the last) part of your paper that someone will read, so make sure it is accurate and interesting.
Acknowledgements: Students typically include an acknowledgement section for longer papers, major projects, theses and dissertations. It is a good idea to include one as a tribute to those who helped you finish the paper. It makes the other members of your team feel special and appreciated.
Introduction: One of the best things you can do before writing the body of your paper is develop an outline of what you will write. What are the main points that you want to cover? Making an outline ahead of time will help you to stay focused on the intent of the paper. As you write your paper, make sure you cite authors when you write about their ideas. Many students simply summarize what others have said. Feel free to interact critically with other sources and to contrast sources with each other. It is in this rigorous integration of external sources that you will sometimes discover novel insights.
Appendix: Some students wonder whether to include information in a table (or figure) or in an appendix. A general rule of thumb is to put the information in a table or figure if you think readers would benefit from seeing the information as they read that section of your paper. If the information is important, but not necessary for understanding your discussion, you can probably include it in an appendix.
Glossary: Make sure that, in your definitions, you use words that others can easily understand.
Title page: Your instructor or your school may have special guidelines for title pages. If you are not sure, check with your instructor to see if there is a preferred format.
Epigraph: Your epigraph can be a quote that prepares the reader for what will follow in your paper, or it can be something that helps the reader understand you and what is important to you.
Contents: Those who read your paper will often go to the Table of Contents first. The headings you use should clearly communicate the content in each section in a way that captures peoples' attention. When you use subheadings, remember that you must always have at least two subheadings.
Figures: Make sure that all of your figures are necessary. If they do not support and strengthen your discussion, then they are unnecessary. Only use figures that are simple and easy to understand. Be sure to include appropriate explanations as to the importance of a figure in the paragraph(s) preceding a figure. If you use abbreviations in a figure, make sure that you include a legend at the bottom of the figure that spells out the abbreviations. If you copy a figure from another source, be sure to cite the other source.
Tables: With table headings, it is important to use nouns that accurately describe the table. For example, the heading, "A Summary of the Research Data," is better than, "Summarizing the Data." Notice that the first heading uses the noun "Summary" and clarifies that the data is "Research Data." In addition, when you use a table in your paper, make sure that you explain the significant parts in the section prior to the table. A table always requires accompanying commentary to connect the table with your discussion.
Preface: With the preface, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Readers should read your preface and know the exact focus of your paper. The preface is often the first (and sometimes the last) part of your paper that someone will read, so make sure it is accurate and interesting.
Acknowledgements: Students typically include an acknowledgement section for longer papers, major projects, theses and dissertations. It is a good idea to include one as a tribute to those who helped you finish the paper. It makes the other members of your team feel special and appreciated.
Abbreviations: The first time you use an abbreviation in the main body of your paper, make sure that you spell out the full version with the abbreviation in parentheses. Here is an example to show what I mean: "International Business Machines (IBM) is an innovative company." If you do not use an abbreviation beyond its first occurrence, do not use that abbreviation or list it in this Abbreviations section.
Glossary: Make sure that, in your definitions, you use words that others can easily understand.
Editorial Method: Use this section to discuss the approach (i.e. your editorial method) you used to write the paper if your dissertation or thesis requires it.
Abstract: With the abstract, keep it concise and specific. It should be a comprehensive summary of the entire paper. Most universities and publishers have a maximum number of words for abstracts. The university where I did my dissertation had a 300-word limit for abstracts. Readers should read your abstract and know the exact focus of your paper.
Introduction: One of the best things you can do before writing the body of your paper is develop an outline of what you will write. What are the main points that you want to cover? Making an outline ahead of time will help you to stay focused on the intent of the paper. As you write your paper, make sure you cite authors when you write about their ideas. Many students simply summarize what others have said. Feel free to interact critically with other sources and to contrast sources with each other. It is in this rigorous integration of external sources that you will sometimes discover novel insights.
Illustrations: Make sure that all of your illustrations are necessary. If they do not support and strengthen your discussion, then they are unnecessary. Only use illustrations that are simple and easy to understand. Be sure to include appropriate explanations as to the importance of an illustration in the paragraph(s) preceding it. If you use abbreviations in an illustration, make sure that you include a legend at the bottom of the illustration that spells out the abbreviations. If you copy an illustration from another source, be sure to cite the other source.
Appendix: Some students wonder whether to include information in a table (or figure) or in an appendix. A general rule of thumb is to put the information in a table or figure if you think readers would benefit from seeing the information as they read that section of your paper. If the information is important, but not necessary for understanding your discussion, you can probably include it in an appendix.