The document provides information on how to write an effective abstract. It defines what an abstract is, its purpose, and types of abstracts. It discusses the components of an abstract, including introducing the topic, stating the purpose and scope, summarizing methods and results, and indicating conclusions. The document offers tips for writing concise, coherent abstracts using clear language. It emphasizes including only essential information from the larger work in the abstract.

2. Abstract Writing
By
Muzammal Munier Matyana

3.  What is an abstract?
 An abstract is a self-contained, short, and powerful statement
that describes a larger work. Components vary according to
discipline.
 An abstract of a social science or scientific work may contain
the scope, purpose, results, and contents of the work.
 An abstract is a 150- to 250-word paragraph that provides
readers with a quick overview of your essay or report and its
organization.
 It should express your thesis (or central idea) and your key
points; it should also suggest any implications or applications of
the research you discuss in the paper

4. Abstract …….
 Why write an abstract?
You may write an abstract for various reasons. The two most
important are selection and indexing. Abstracts allow readers
who may be interested in a longer work to quickly decide
whether it is worth their time to read it. Also, many online
databases use abstracts to index larger works. Therefore,
abstracts should contain keywords and phrases that allow for
easy searching.

5. When do people write abstracts? :-
 when submitting articles to journals, especially online
journals.
 when applying for research grants.
 when writing a book proposal.
 when completing the Ph.D. dissertation or M.A. thesis.
 when writing a proposal for a conference paper.
 when writing a proposal for a book chapter.

6. TYPES OF ABSTRACT:
There are four general types.
1) Critical Abstract 2) Descriptive Abstract
3) Informative Abstract 4) Highlight Abstract
Critical Abstract:
A critical abstract provides, in addition to describing main
findings and information, a judgment or comment about the
study’s validity, reliability, or completeness. The researcher
evaluates the paper and often compares it with other works on
the same subject. Critical abstracts are generally 400-500
words in length due to the additional interpretive
commentary. These types of abstracts are used infrequently.

7. Descriptive Abstract:
A descriptive abstract indicates the type of information found
in the work. It makes no judgments about the work, nor does
it provide results or conclusions of the research. It does
incorporate key words found in the text and may include the
purpose, methods, and scope of the research. Essentially, the
descriptive abstract only describes the work being
summarized. Some researchers consider it an outline of the
work, rather than a summary. Descriptive abstracts are
usually very short, 100 words or less.

8.  Informative Abstract:
The majority of abstracts are informative. While they still do
not critique or evaluate a work, they do more than describe it.
A good informative abstract acts as a surrogate for the work
itself. That is, the researcher presents and explains all the
main arguments and the important results and evidence in the
paper. An informative abstract includes the information that
can be found in a descriptive abstract [purpose, methods,
scope] but it also includes the results and conclusions of the
research and the recommendations of the author. The length
varies according to discipline, but an informative abstract is
usually no more than 300 words in length.

9.  Highlight Abstract:
A highlight abstract is specifically written to attract the
reader’s attention to the study. No pretense is made of
there being either a balanced or complete picture of the
paper and, in fact, incomplete and leading remarks may be
used to spark the reader’s interest. In that a highlight
abstract cannot stand independent of its associated article,
it is not a true abstract and, therefore, rarely used in
academic writing.

10. PURPOSE OF ABSTRACT WRITING:
 Introduce journal articles.(Journal articles are shorter than
books and written about very specific topics. A journal is a
collection of articles (like a magazine) )
 Inform readers about the article content.
 Help readers to decide whether or not to read the article.
 Overview conference programs, abstract collections and book
chapters.

11. What makes a good Abstract?

12.  Qualities of a Good Abstract:
An effective abstract.
 uses one or more well-developed paragraphs, which are
unified, coherent, and concise.
 uses an introduction-body-conclusion structure in which
the parts of the report are discussed in order: purpose,
findings, conclusions, recommendations
 provides logical connections between material included
adds no new information but simply summarizes the report
is intelligible to a wide audience.

13. Bad abstract:
This paper will look at the
human genome project and
its goals. I will prove that
scientists have ethical and
moral questions about
genetic engineering
because of this project.
Good abstract:
Begun in 1988, the human genome project
intends to map the 23 chromosomes that
provide the blueprint for the human
species. The project has both scientific and
ethical goals. The scientific goals
underscore the advantages of the genome
project, including identifying and curing
diseases and enabling people to select the
traits of their offspring, among other
opportunities. Ethically, however, the
project raises serious questions about the
morality of genetic engineering. To handle
both the medical opportunities and ethical
dilemmas posed by the genome project,
scientists need to develop a clear set of
principles for genetic engineering and to
continue educating the public about the
genome project.

14. 5 Things Make a Good Abstract :-
 Unity
 Support
 Coherence
 Good language
 Elaboration

15.  Tips for Writing Effective Abstracts:
 The style of an abstract should be concise and clear, and the
wording should be very direct.
 1. Make the abstract easy to read.
a. Use familiar words. If unfamiliar words are necessary, define them.
Avoid jargon.
b. Use active verbs rather than passive verbs whenever possible.
c. Vary sentence structure.
d. Use complete sentences. Don't omit articles or other small words
to save space.

16.  2. Be concise.
a. Rephrase ideas from the article to condense the meaning.
b. Give information only once.
 3. Be exact and unambiguous.
 4. Use an organization scheme that will make the information clear
to the reader. Usually, an abstract that puts the thesis first and then
 provides conclusions or findings, and supporting data or details is most
useful.
 5. If you are writing an abstract for another writer's article,
remember that your job is not to evaluate the article but simply to report
what is in it.

17.  How do I write an abstract?
 The format of your abstract will depend on the work being
abstracted. An abstract of a scientific research paper will
contain elements not found in an abstract of a literature article,
and vice versa. However, all abstracts share several mandatory
components, and there are also some optional parts that you
can decide to include or not. When preparing to draft your
abstract, keep the following key process elements in mind:

18.  Reason for writing: What is the importance of the research?
Why would a reader be interested in the larger work?
 Problem: What problem does this work attempt to solve?
What is the scope of the project? What is the main
argument/thesis/claim?
 Methodology: An abstract of a scientific work may include
specific models or used in the larger study. Other abstracts
may describe the types of evidence used in the research.
 Results: Again, an abstract of a scientific work may include
specific data that indicates the results of the project. Other
abstracts may discuss the findings in a more general way.

19.  Implications: What changes should be implemented as a
result of the findings of the work? How does this work add
to the body of knowledge on the topic?
 All abstracts include:
 A full citation of the source, preceding the abstract.
 The most important information first.
 The same type and style of language found in the original,
including technical language.
 Key words and phrases that quickly identify the content
and focus of the work.
 Clear, concise, and powerful language.

20.  Abstracts may include:
 The thesis of the work, usually in the first sentence.
 Background information that places the work in the larger
body of literature.
 The same chronological structure as the original work.
 How not to write an abstract:
 Do not refer extensively to other works.
 Do not add information not contained in the original work.
 Do not define terms.

21.  If you are abstracting your own writing:
 When abstracting your own work, it may be difficult to
condense a piece of writing that you have agonized over
for weeks (or months, or even years) into a 250-word
statement. There are some tricks that you could use to
make it easier.

22. Bad abstract:
This paper will look at the
human genome project and its
goals. I will prove that
scientists have ethical and
moral questions about genetic
engineering because of this
project.
Good abstract:
Begun in 1988, the human genome project
intends to map the 23 chromosomes that
provide the blueprint for the human species.
The project has both scientific and ethical goals.
The scientific goals underscore the advantages
of the genome project, including identifying and
curing diseases and enabling people to select the
traits of their offspring, among other
opportunities. Ethically, however, the project
raises serious questions about the morality of
genetic engineering. To handle both the medical
opportunities and ethical dilemmas posed by the
genome project, scientists need to develop a
clear set of principles for genetic engineering
and to continue educating the public about the
genome project.
Sample:

23. End
Of
Presentation