The Complete Guide To Writing A Research Paper

Composing a research paper gives you the opportunity to explore a subject of your interest and contribute to academic literature. It is also a part of academia in many universities and a daunting task if you are not aware of the guidelines for writing a research paper.

A research paper is necessary for the advancement of science so that the scientific community can validate the findings and publish them for other research scholars. In this blog, we will be covering a step-by-step guide on how to write a research paper, create a research paper outline, and to use citations and evidence.

What Is A Research Paper?

A research paper is a piece of academic writing that is based on an author’s research. It provides an in-depth analysis of the research topic chosen and presents arguments and evidence on it.

It also helps validate a hypothesis, which is a crucial scientific method in research. The research that is done either refutes or supports the hypothesis in the paper. Moreover, designing experiments and surveys is part of data collection that is also described within a research paper. However, presenting the information and data in a compelling manner holds significance as well, which is why we break it down into simple steps for your understanding. Read on to learn everything that you need to know.

What Should Be The Length Of A Research Paper?

If you are a student who is writing a research paper, then the word count or length will be mentioned in the instructions. However, the length of a research paper can vary from 4000 to 6000 words. In the case of lengthy research papers, it can also exceed 10,000 words.

Moreover, the length of a research paper can depend on the following factors:

• Complexity of topic (e.g.: Controversial topics require more arguments and evidence to support the findings).
• Amount of research conducted (such as data and information collected).
• Specific requirements set by the instructor. (Word count or page limit).

Benefits Of Writing A Research Paper

Before learning how to write an effective and well-structured research paper, it is important to understand the advantages of writing it. Below are the key benefits of writing a research paper:

11 Steps On How to Construct A Research Paper

Many students seek help for writing a research paper. But, we can make it easier for you to understand the different steps covered in composing a research paper, which will not only save precious time but also foster a deeper understanding of academic writing. Here are 11 steps on how to write a research paper:

Choosing A Suitable Topic

It is important to understand the assignment before choosing the topic. This includes citation styles, length and formatting requirements. After gaining a clear understanding of this, choosing the topic should be the main focus.

The topic for your research should be focused and narrowed to one specific niche, and not be too broad or general. You will want to choose a topic that is rich enough for data collection and gives content that can be used to write a well-structured paper. It is best suited to pick a topic that you are specifically interested in, as it makes the research enjoyable and fulfilling.

Conducting Research

To write an effective research paper, it is necessary to conduct good research. Use any primary and secondary sources to gather information and data. It is recommended to remember the difference between these two sources and not get them mixed. Moreover, if you have a new take or argument on the topic chosen, you can use both quantitative and qualitative methods like focus groups, surveys and questionnaires to gather first-hand information.

Lastly, skim through all research articles, journals, databases and websites to gather any information that is relevant to your topic. In this stage, it is helpful to form research questions, so it is easier to seek answers to them.

Literature Review

A literature review is a crucial component of your research paper. It involves presenting the sources you have used in your research paper. By doing this, you are communicating what sources you approached, how you used them in your research and how they contribute to your specific topic. It also showcases how your work relates to the existing research. Reviewing other previous studies strengthens your paper if you have new insights to offer.

Organising The Research Paper

Creating an outline of your research paper is necessary as it organises your paper beforehand. Make a list of your statements, arguments and research questions to know what you will be addressing. Using the IMRaD format to understand how to organise your paper helps in dividing and creating an order of the topics into sections and subsections.

Develop A Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a statement that summarises your work in one sentence. It gives the purpose of the paper and is the best answer to how to start a research paper. This statement is concise and reveals only necessary details without giving all the information.

This not only prepares a reader for the problem statement addressed in your paper but also assists other scholars in assessing if the paper is relevant to their study.

Writing The Abstract And Introduction

The abstract is the summary of the research paper and communicates the content quality and relevance. It is written for two purposes. I.e. indexing and selection. An abstract helps readers determine if the content of the paper aligns with their interests and if they want to continue reading the rest of it. Moreover, online databases use abstracts to index larger works. A reader quickly scans the abstract to gain an idea of your research, the problem statement addressed, the methodologies used and the results gained from it.

Then comes the introduction of the research paper. This should answer the questions of what, why and how.

What? This means what problem statement you will be addressing. What topic have you chosen?

Why? The reason why you chose to work on this topic and what new insights do you offer in your work?

How? This tells what to expect from the research paper such as methodologies and sources used.

• It should also include the main research question, and hypothesis of the research.

Write Body Paragraphs

After the abstract and introduction, comes the main body of the research paper. According to the IMRaD structure, the main body is divided into methods, results, discussions, conclusion and acknowledgments. The section of methods discusses the methodologies and reagents used in data collection and experimentation.

The next paragraph summarises the results and findings of the research. This can be explained quantitatively and qualitatively. While the discussions section is where you explain your results according to the available literature and how they contribute to it. It is important to summarise, analyse and evaluate your work in these sections, rather than just reporting it.

Craft A Compelling Conclusion

A proper and well-written conclusion places emphasis on the findings and gives a summary of your research. Here are some aspects that should be covered while writing the conclusion of a research paper:

• State what you achieved and what your findings are
• Tell the readers how you have contributed towards the scientific community by this research.
• Give recommendations on the topic for future researchers.

Properly Citing And Referencing Sources

It is important to cite the work that belongs to someone else and has been used by you in your work. This is done to avoid plagiarism. Moreover, you can use numerous referring software programs, such as Mendeley, Zotero and Endnote for proper referencing. Here are some tips on how to cite sources properly:

• Provide a detailed list of references such as authors(s) publication, year of publication title and page numbers.
• Remember to insert a citation (author name or number) in text when you write.
• Use citation styles such as APA, MLA and Chicago according to your need.

Proof-Reading/Editing

While proofreading and editing your work, you need to check for accurate information, precise sentence structures, grammatical errors, spacing and consistency. Each paragraph must have the necessary headings and proper transition phases that make it easier for other readers to understand. You can also speed up the proofreading process by using online tools.

Pre-Submission Peer-Review

A pre-submission peer review is the last step before sending your work for publishing to the journal you have chosen. You may ask experienced experts, researchers and colleagues to review your work. This helps to refine your work, check for any factual errors, and a chance to get constructive feedback from others in similar fields.