Research paper writing

Research paper writing in communication writing & skills
by Muzammal Munier Matyana

1. Topic Name: Research Paper writing by Muzammal Munier Matyana

2. A research paper is a piece of academic writing based on its author’s original research on a particular topic, and the analysis and interpretation of the research findings. It can be either a term paper or a master’s thesis.

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH PAPER: The characteristics of research paper and formal report are same like Style, Structure and approach. The purpose of writing research paper is to make unknown things known to others. The reading of the research paper is optional but reading of the report is compulsory. Following points are important:

4. Continue… A research paper is the most important form of expository disclosure. Most research papers are characterized by the use of graphics aids, and scientific or technical vocabulary. Generally, it contains all those formal elements which a technical report includes like introduction, discussion, conclusion and references etc. Every research paper is a unified composition arising out of the study of a particular subject. A research paper is a documented prose work.

5. COMPONENTS OF RESEARCH PAPER: A research paper form of written communication must follow the rules of a valid publication. They are as follow: Title Authors Table of contents List of symbols Acknowledgements Abstracts Introduction Material and Methods Discussion Results Conclusions References & Bibliography

6. Title: The Title of a research paper may be defined as the possible words that adequately describe the context of the paper.

7. For Example: An effective title: Is a clear indication of the context. Is neither too short nor too long. Contains specific and not general terms. Is built on careful syntax. Is a label and not a sentence. Avoid the use of common abbreviations and specific notation.

8. 2) Name and Address of Authors: A full name and a full address should be considered obligatory ,unless the writer of the research paper wishes to publish anonymously. Spelling and the name of the authors should remain the same in all his publication ,if any authors did not follow this rules, it becomes the cause of confusion for readers.

9. Continue… I f a paper is written by different authors then their names and addresses should be given separately. In the case of multi-author paper , the author to whom correspondence concerning the paper is to be addressed should be indicated by an asterisk(*) and the footnote , to whom all correspondence is to be addressed.

10. 3)Table of contents In this section, we add the contents of the topics that we did in the project in the number wise order. For example: 1)Introduction 1.1………. 1.2………… 1.3…………

11. 3) List of symbols In the research paper you can use abbreviations that should be standard. Try to write the full version of the first place as it is the purpose of the research paper. So use only abbreviated forms To represent the physical and chemical quantities units.

12. 4) Acknowledgements: Acknowledgements and References are the two additional section of the research paper. These two section follow the main text. First , if any individual gives you any significant technical help, you should acknowledge it in your laboratory. Second , In this section you should also acknowledge the financial assistance such as grants and contracts. This Section of research paper require all in its simple courtesy, appropriate order.

13. 5) Abstract: The abstract of a research paper has special significance. It has two main functions: To enable readers identify the basic content of a document quickly and accurately in order to determine its relevance to their interests To meet the requirements of the abstracting journals.

14. The Characteristics of an abstract are: It should be concise as possible and should not exceed 3% of the total length of the paper. It is self-contained. It does not contain any bibliography ,figure, or the table references. It does not contain any obscure abbreviations and acronyms. It is generally written after the paper.

15. The steps involved in preparing an abstract are: Read the introductory paragraph of the study to identify the objectives. Scan the summary and conclusions at the end and nothing the main findings of the study. Read through the text for information on methodology adopted, new data, and any other vital information. Prepare the draft arranging the various items in the order new methodology or equipment employed, data of fundamental value, and major conclusions and correlations derived. Modify and trim the paper to get the required size.

16. Introduction: In introduction the previous knowledge or background information is provided to the reader.

17. Guidelines for a good Introduction : It should present first, with all possible clarity,the nature and the scope of the problem. It should review the pertinent literature to orient the reader. It should state the method of investigation and if necessary. It should state the principal results of the investigation and also the principal conclusions suggested by the result.

18. 7) Material and Methods: In this section, the author describes the experimental design, experimental technique, or theoretical derivation and then provides enough details so that the competent worker can repeat the experiment.

19. 8) Results: This sections forms the core of paper. There are three ways to describe the results: Choice of data: Choice of form of data presentation: Presentation of data in tabular form: Give the heading to the column. Avoid presenting any un-relevant material and structural formulas inside the table. Avoid making the table complex by giving the extra result.

20. 9) Discussion: In this section, we interpret data and highlight the important features and their causes. Limitations and any source of error are also mentioned in it. In this section only interpretation of data is needed.

21. 10) Conclusions: In this section no extra material should be introduced. This section includes the conclusion of the presented data. For the significant findings, conclusion becomes the necessary part of the paper. The main function of this section is to make recommendations based on the result of the study.

22. 11) References: By giving the references of the earlier researches, the reader can find the original source. If you give reference with complete bibliographic details, the reader can easily locate the original source.

23. 12) Bibliography: Cite the work of those individuals whose ideas, theories or directly influenced your work. These works provide background information ,support or dispute your theories or offer definitions and data. You must credit all those sources you used to write those paper otherwise you will be guilty of plagiarism.

24. Continue… APA requires that information be cited in 2 different ways-within the text and in the reference list at the end of the paper. The reference list should be a new page, double spaced and used the hanging indent method(all lines after the first one are indented). For Example: In the text author-date method is use.For ex:smith,1990 In the reference list such as :Name of author,title,name of publisher,date of publication and location of publication.