A research paper is an academic piece of writing. It has a specific tone, format, and style. The purpose of a research paper is to evaluate and analyse the research. Students also write research papers for the purpose of academic evaluations.
Writing a research paper is a hectic task. Too much information can confuse the author while writing the paper.
Some common problems that students face while writing a research paper are as follows;
- Including too much information
- Not knowing where to write the appropriate information
- Improper identification of important information
- Not understanding the requirements for writing a comprehensive outline and paper
- Also not understanding the title of the paper
- Not knowing the parameters discussed
- Lack of skill for analysing, evaluating and interpreting important information
- Not highlighting the research gaps and limitations
- Not knowing how to construct the information
- Lack of knowledge regarding academic writing language
Outline
A comprehensive outline might help you with getting to the point. Paving the way to a comprehensive outline requires brainstorming ideas. You can use the following basic outline foe ensure a proper writing piece;
- Abstract
- Thesis Statement
- Rationale
- Introduction
- Review of literature
- Method
- Results
- Discussion
- Conclusion
- Recommendations
- Limitations
- List of references
Articles
The CEO of a dissertation writing service firm said that while going through the articles, look for relevant information. Then write in the headings. It will save your time and energy. You will not have to go through every section and heading again. Reading the articles once will be enough for this.
Write the abstract at the end. This is because it’s the summary of an article. There is no new information in the abstract. You can choose to add an abstract in the end.
Thesis Statement
A thesis statement is the most important aspect of any article. Construct a concise thesis statement that addresses the research question. A thesis statement is a short statement comprising 2 to 3 sentences. It contains important information about the research process. The research questions are different aspects of the research topic that you will be analysing. The research questions come after the introduction or background section. You can write them in a separate section within the outline.
Research
When a reader goes through an outline, he looks for the main ideas of research. Research rationale, research question/s, and thesis statement are the main ideas. These are analytical parts of the author’s work. The rationale of the paper must also be added in its outline. This is because it is the main idea of a paper. Address the key indicators, and expected results in detail. The introduction must be short, and accurate as well.
Information
A little background information and ending with comprehensive sentences should be ensured. Place a hook statement connecting with the title. This will help in attracting the reader. The background should contain initial information on the important concepts. In the method section, write about the data collection, and analysis process. If you are not sure about the method at the start, write all the possible methods for that topic. Analyse the information at the end, and then select the one that suits you the most.
The review of literature is a small section of the previous researcher’s work. It helps analyse the gaps. It identifies and evaluates the implications of the study as well.
Research Work
The results and discussion part in the outline can have subsections of research parameters. For example, in results, you can use the subheading of the study’s parameters. In the discussion, you will use the same heading. But keep in mind that the content will be different. It will give a comprehensive image of both the outline and the paper. It will be easy for the reader to identify the main information this way.
Recommendations
The conclusion section can include the main interpretations. Recommendations and limitations in the outline give the image of a holistic informative article. Most of the research also appears to have a policy and practical application section. You can also use the application in practice or both outline, and the paper. It will contain the use of research outcomes within the industry, medicine, or social life. This practical importance depends upon the type of article. The limitation gives an idea of certain factors. If changed, they can give a better result. The gap analysis will provide aspects of future research as well.
There are certain requirements to develop a comprehensive outline. These are highlighted as follows;
Highlight Strong Ideas
In the outline other than the basic one, use strong concepts. It will give an informative image to the paper. The reader may find it full of concepts, and information. The purpose of academic writing is to convey information. Writing the strong concepts as a header will fulfil this purpose.
Brainstorm
Brainstorming is necessary for coming up with good stuff. Too much information jeopardises the structure of an article. Sometimes the author has an image of the paper. But this fades away after lots of reading. Write that image, or outline on paper first. Change it later after you are done brainstorming for the ideas.
7 Steps of Writing
During the writing of any kind, you might have to go through the 7 steps. These steps will provide you with screened content, and the least chance of errors. These 7 steps include planning, drafting, analysing, editing, revising, and publishing the content. These steps make it easy for you to create a comprehensive outline.
List of Ideas
Between writing sessions, sit aside and make a list of ideas. The goal is to enlist ideas that have a meaningful contribution to the article. An analytical, and evaluative mindset can help in the identification of good ideas. No matter how hard the topic is, make a list of all ideas.
Analytical, and Critical Thinking
An analytical approach will help identify important information. Critical thinking will provide the way to new ideas. An out of the box mindset for writing results in a distinguished article. Such an approach will create an article full of important information.
Conclusion
The outline gives a birds-eye view of the paper. It helps the reader in identifying information within the paper. It also helps highlight the main, and strong concepts of research. Write the results and discussions in subsections. These subsections will include a description of the parameters used within the research. This will make it easier for readers to understand the paper in general.
