Writing a research paper is one of the most serious assignments that students get to handle in school. It is lengthier than the rest of them and requires more work to complete it. However, you can put in all the research work and still come with a substandard paper. This will happen if you get it wrong at the format stage. Depending on the style of writing you are using, a research paper will have different parts from other papers. There is also a particular order in which these individual parts should be arranged. The following are the parts of a research paper:
In any kind of writing, this is usually the first part and it sets the pace for the rest of the work. For a research paper, the majority of the students write it first while some others write it later after the rest of the paper. A good introduction consists of these three parts:
In this part, you mention the benefits that will be gained by doing your research. Also, address the reasons why the problem at hand has not yet been solved. This means that another researcher handled the problem before but did not find the right or all of the solutions.
This is where you briefly explain to your reader why you decided to conduct the study. At least give them an implication of what you are trying to find. For some, this is where they place their thesis statement. Others prefer to have the statement at the end of the introduction so that their reader can get a full picture of the study.
Since the literature review can be quite hectic to go through, this last part of the introduction makes it easier for the reader. Here, you give the context of the study by highlighting the necessary points.
This refers to the various methods and materials that you are planning to use in your study for it to be as effective as possible.
Depending on the results and aims of the experiment, you will have different presentations of the results. Quantitative research will give numerical results while qualitative research will have broader discussions.
In this section, the different findings are discussed in deeper detail. Both the quantitative and qualitative results are dissected and evaluated in the bid to find solutions to the problems.
Here, you should build on your discussion as you relate what you got with other people’s findings. The length of the conclusion depends on the lengths of different research papers.
This is where you document all the sources to avoid plagiarism and give authenticity to your work. The layout here depends on the specific style you are using for your paper be it APA, MLA, or any other.
The format of a research paper is as important as the research itself and whatever else that goes in. The guidelines here will help you to write a quality research paper.
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