Research paper | Research methodology | Lecture 5

By Ali Raza ( BS Biochemistry )

RESEARCH PAPER

A research paper is an academic piece of writing based on original research which features the analysis and interpretation from the author by using statistical rules.

It consists of,

·         Research

·         Critical thinking

·         Source evaluation

·         Organization & composition

COMPONENTS OF RESEARCH PAPER:

The components of the research paper are the following;

1.     ABSTRACT

It is the first component/part of the research paper. An abstract is actually the summary of a whole research paper that describes the whole research paper in a single paragraph of 150-300 words. We write in such a way that that the section of the paper will flow into each other and create a unified holistic effect.

·     Firstly, we will define the problem and provide the background of it.

·   Then we will tell the aim/purpose of the of study by being clear and direct that you are going to let the reader know your intentions.

·    We will describe the methodology into 1-2 lines the what did you do and how did you do it.

·  Then we will provide results in 1-2 lines in such a way that it should link with the problems that we wrote before.

 

2.     INTRODUCTION

It is the starting point of a research paper. It includes

·         Establishing the context of work

·         State the purpose of work in the form of hypothesis, question, etc.

·         Give aims and rationale for research

·         It includes the gaps that your study aims to fill

 

3.     LITERATURE REVIEW

It is actually a critical recap of what has already been researched on a topic. It could be anything from books, journal articles, or other sources.

·      In this, we write about the work that has been done on a topic by previous scientists, it gives your reader a critical overview of what you found which shows how your research fits into this.

·   We find out what is missing from current knowledge so that you can contribute something original

For example:

Glucose level is high due to glucose is not absorbed in the cell or insulin is not produced. Let’s suppose this work has already done by previous researchers, scientists etc. Now I will work why insulin is not produced and why glucose is not absorbed in the cell.

4.     RESEARCH METHOD

This provides the methods via which we have done our research. It is of two types.

a)      QUANTITATIVE METHODS

 

·         SURVEYS:

In the survey, we write how we design the questions, what sampling method we have used, what was the sample size and response rate.

·         EXPERIMENTS:

In this, we write how we design the experiment, how did we manipulate and measure the variables, what tools and technologies we used in this

 

b)     QUALITATIVE METHODS

 

·         INTERVIEW

In this, we write how many participants take part, in which form interview is taken and how their response is recorded.

·         OBSERVATION

In this, we write what community or group we choose, how long we spend conducting the observation and how we record our data.

 

5.     FINDINGS & RESULTS

We logically organize the results of our work. In this, we write what is the finding of our work, what have we achieved in our research work. It should be written in the following way.

·         Data is presented in tables, charts, graphs etc.

·         Data is analyzed contextually

·         Report on data collection

·         Data that corresponds to central research questions

 

 

6.     DISCUSSION

In this, we focus on the description and evaluation of what we have found and showing it how it relates the literature review or previous work and makes sound arguments in support of our overall work. It consists of;

·         INTERPRETATION

    Discuss results according to your expectation 

    Consider alternative explanation for the argument

·         IMPLICATIONS

     It shows how our findings fit into existing knowledge

     What new insights we contribute and consequences of it

 

7.     LIMITATIONS

Every research has some limitations and accepting this defines your credibility.

Limitations maybe due to

·         Research design

·         Specific methodological tests

·         Unexpected hurdles develop during research etc.

We should describe the limitations that directly research to our topic and evaluate how it impacts to our research.

8.     FUTURE SCOPE

The future scope is often concerned with limitations because future research arises due to limitations in our research paper. It tells the reader what gap is remained in our research that should be filled in the future.

The hypothesis or a question is left in this section that should be solved or on which research will occur in the future. Actually, this section provides facility for the reader to find out what is remaining in this topic on which research could be done in the future.

9.     CONCLUSION

The conclusion is written so that it helps the reader why this research matters to him. It provides important opportunities to demonstrate your overall understanding of the research problem to the reader. It includes

·         Present the last word of the issue you raised in paper

·         Summarize the thoughts behind the work

·         Introduce new ways to solve the research problem

 

10.   REFERENCES

It is the most important part of the research paper. If we write something from the work of some other scientist or source, we will write a reference for it.

For example

Beletsky, L. 1996. The red-winged blackbird: the biology of a strongly polygynous songbird. Academic Press, London. 314 pp.