Writing an abstract

1. Creating an Abstract (Summary) for a Research Report
What is a research report/abstract?
Abstract Types: Descriptive and Informative Abstracts are the two abstract types.
Informational abstracts
 convey report contents
 covering objectives, methodologies, scope, outcomes, conclusions, and suggestions.
 emphasize important points
 allow readers to choose whether or not to read the report; they are brief, ranging from a
paragraph to a page or two, depending on the report's length (10% or less).
Descriptive abstracts
 describe the contents of the report
 include the purpose, methods, and scope; do not include the results, conclusions, or
recommendations
 are always extremely brief—typically less than 100 words—and
 present the topic to readers, who must then read the report to discover the study's
findings.
Qualities of a Good Abstract
An effective abstract
 employs an introduction-body-conclusion structure in which the report's components are
discussed in the following order: purpose, findings, conclusions, and recommendations
 uses one or more well-developed paragraphs that are unified, coherent, concise, and able
to stand alone.
 adheres closely to the report's chronology
 makes sense given the information presented; • do not add any new information, but
rather summarize it and
 it is understandable to a broad audience.
How To Write a Successful Report Abstract
These four steps can help you write an effective report abstract:
1. Reread your report while keeping the abstract in mind. Consider the primary components:
objectives, procedures, scope, outcomes, conclusions, and suggestions.
2. Without returning to your report, write a rough draft after rereading it. Think about the
primary abstract components mentioned in step #1. Do not just paraphrase important
passages from your report. You will either enter too little or too much data. Do not
provide a fresh summary of the facts.
3. Edit your rough draft to
 fix issues with coherence and organization

2.  remove unnecessary details
 add crucial details that were previously omitted
 remove wordiness and
 fix grammatical and mechanical errors.
4. Proofread your final copy for any errors.