This document provides an outline for a presentation on how to write a scientific paper for social sciences journals. It discusses key aspects of the research process such as defining research and knowledge, selecting a topic, developing a research question and hypothesis, choosing a methodology, finding and evaluating sources, taking notes, documenting sources, and writing drafts. The goal is to explain the techniques for writing research papers that can be published in peer-reviewed journals.

1. HOW TO WRITE A SCIENTIFIC PAPER
FOR SOCIAL SCIENCES JOURNALS?
By
Prof. Dr. Zahid Anwar
Political Science Department
University of Peshawar, PAKISTAN
zauop@yahoo.com

2. The presenter is thankful to all those
who have helped in the preparation
of this presentation.
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3. OUTLINE OF THE PRESENTATION
• INTRODUCTION
• KNOWLEDGE & RESEARCH ARE TWINS IF NOT ONE
• WHAT IS KNOWLEDGE?
• WHAT IS RESEARCH?
• WHAT IS A RESEARCH PAPER?
• TYPES OF RESEARCH PAPERS?
• IMPORTANT STEPS IN WRITING A RESEARCH PAPER
• CITATION STYLES
• PLAGIARISM & SIMILARITY INDEX ISSUES
• CONCLUSION
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4. PRESENTATION OBJECTIVES
• To know about academic writing
• To explain few terms frequently used in research
in Social Sciences
• To comprehend techniques of writing research
papers for peer reviewed journals.
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5. KNOWLEDGE
• Knowledge is a familiarity with someone
or something, which can include facts,
information, descriptions, or skills
acquired through experience or
education. The theoretical or
practical understanding of a subject.
What is known in a particular field or
in total; facts and information.
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7. EDUCATION & PEDAGOGICS
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•Education is the process of receiving or giving
systematic instruction.
•The theory and practice of teaching.
.The act or process of imparting or acquiring general
knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning
and judgment.
•Pedagogics is the science or art of teaching.
•Pedagogy means teaching (the function or work of a
teacher)

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9. RESEARCH
• Research is the systematic study of
materials/sources in order to establish
facts and reach new conclusions.
• It is an endeavour to discover new or
collect old facts by the scientific study
of a subject.
• Research is what we do when we have a
question or a problem we want to
resolve
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10. RESEARCH
• Research refers to a search for knowledge
• Research means a scientific and systematic
search
for pertinent information on a specific topic
• In fact, research is an art of scientific
investigation.
• The purpose of research is to discover answers to
questions through the application of scientific
procedures
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11. RESEARCH PAPER
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12. RESEARCH PAPER
• Research paper is a paper written to
reflect a search that will present
information to support a point of
view on a particular topic.
P. Berge and C. Saffioti. Basic College Research
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13. PURPOSE & CONTEXT
OF A RESEARCH PAPER
• What is the purpose of your paper
• What is the context of your paper
• Text without context is a pretext
• A research paper analyzes a perspective
or argues a point.
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14. FURTHER EXPLANATION
•A research paper is an expanded essay that
presents your own interpretation or
evaluation or argument.
•A research paper involves surveying a field of
knowledge in order to find the best possible
information in that field.
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15. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
ESSAY AND RESEARCH PAPER
• When you write an essay, you use
everything that you personally know and
have thought about a subject.
• When you write a research paper you build
upon what you know about the subject and
make a deliberate attempt to find out what
experts know.
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16. RESEARCH PAPER
• Research papers are original written works of
several typed pages in length, which use
information gathered through a search of other
sources to describe an event, explain a concept, or
argue a point.
• Each type of research paper has its own stylistic
traits and purposes.
• Two of the most common types of research papers
are the argumentative research paper and the
analytical research paper.
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17. Common Elements of Research
Papers
• There are two common traits all research papers
share. First, research papers include information
from other sources, which may be primary or
secondary sources.
• Second, research papers are original works.
Plagiarism, or the representation of someone else's
work as your own, is a serious offense.
• To avoid plagiarism, information from other
sources must be properly cited and all direct
quotations must be properly formatted.
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18. ARGUMENTATIVE RESEARCH PAPER
• An argumentative research paper presents two sides of an
issue and aims to persuade the reader that one side is more
correct than the other.
• In the introduction, you clearly state the issue and include a
thesis statement that informs the reader which side you
intend to argue for. In the body of the paper, you present the
two sides of the issue one at a time.
• Your explanation of each side should include both pros and
cons, and be supported by evidence from primary and
secondary sources.
• In the conclusion, you restate your thesis and explain why the
evidence you have provided in the body proves that your
viewpoint on the issue is the most valid.
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19. ANALYTICAL RESEARCH PAPER
• An analytical research paper presents several
points of view on an issue but, unlike an
argumentative research paper, does not aim to
persuade the reader that any side is more correct
than the rest.
• In the introduction, you clearly state the issue and
provide a very short summary of each point of
view you are going to examine.
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20. ANALYTICAL RESEARCH PAPER
• In the first section of the body, you provide a more
in-depth summary of each point of view.
• In the second section, you make a claim about how
the points of view presented interact, contradict
and/or support each other, followed by an analysis
that supports this claim using information from the
first section as evidence.
• In the conclusion, you summarize your findings
and may also choose to suggest avenues for further
research.
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21. OTHER TYPES OF RESEARCH PAPER
• Other types of research paper that you may come
across include critical analysis research papers,
descriptive research papers, expository research
papers, opinion research papers, exploratory
research papers and definition research papers.
• With any research paper, it is helpful to know the
requirements and structure of the type you are
using before you begin.
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22. MAJOR STEPS OR MEASURES
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with
a single step.
• A series of steps will lead you through
writing a research paper.
• These research writing measures represent
a movement through the research writing
process.
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23. TOPIC SELECTION
Think of the who, what, when, where
and why questions:
• WHY did you choose the topic? What interests
you about it? Do you have an opinion about the
issues involved?
• WHO are the information providers on this
topic? Who might publish information about it?
Who is affected by the topic? Do you know of
organizations or institutions affiliated with the
topic?
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25. • WHAT are the major questions for this topic? Is
there a debate about the topic? Are there a
range of issues and viewpoints to consider?
• WHERE is your topic important: at the local,
national or international level? Are there
specific places affected by the topic?
• WHEN is/was your topic important? Is it a
current event or an historical issue? Do you
want to compare your topic by time periods?
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26. ABSTRACT
ORDER OF TYPICAL ELEMENTS
• B=some background information
• P=the principal activity (or purpose) of the
study and its scope
• M=some information about the
methodology used in the study
• R=the most important results of the study
• C=a statement of conclusion or
recommendation

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28. RESEARCH QUESTION
• Try to develop a research question first
• You will need unfocused research before
identifying your own viewpoint.
• That view point which you will eventually
need to support.
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THEORITICAL FRAME
• Research often begins with a question,
answering that question requires mapping
the context of the question and describing
the conditions that determine the validity
of proposed answers i.e, the theoretical
framework that leads to an answer.
• A theoretical framework is a collection of
interrelated concepts.

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• A theoretical framework guides your
research, determining what things you will
measure, and what statistical relationships
you will look for.
• Theoretical frameworks provide the
organization for the study.
• A theoretical framework provides a broad
explanation of relationships that exists
between concepts.

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32. HYPOTHESIS
• Hypothesis is the tentative solution to a
research problem
• Hypothesis is your proposed answer to
your research question, which you
finalize only after completing the
research.
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33. HYPOTHESIS II
• In a hypothesis you gather information
and evidence from appropriate, valid
sources to support your perspective
on a topic or stand on an issue.
• Developing a good working hypothesis is
an important research skill
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34. SYNERGY BETWEEN
RESEARCH QUESTION & HYPOTHESIS
• Hypothesis is not just your topic, but what
you're saying about your topic.
• once you've come up with the central
question, your hypothesis is an answer
to that question
• Hypothesis should be in the form of a
statement, not a question
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35. CONNECTION BETWEEN THE TWO
• Make sure your hypothesis covers exactly
the topic you want to talk about, no more
and no less.
• Shape your hypothesis to fit the question
you wish to answer
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36. TOPIC & METHODOLOGY
• In conducting research one needs
methodology
• Methodology is selected as per topic
• The point is, `your modus Vivendi shapes
your modus operandi`.
• It may be historical, analytical,
descriptive, experimental, case study so
on & so forth
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37. FINDING SOURCES
• We use sources to support our ideas in a
research paper.
• Many sources are now available in
electronic format.
• The trick is to find and then match
appropriate, valid sources to your own
ideas.
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38. MAJOR SOURCES
• Popular options:
• Library, computer (CDs, Databases),
knowledgeable people, internet, books,
magazines, newspapers, journals,
Indexes & Abstracts etc
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39. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES
• Primary sources are original, first-hand
documents.
• Secondary sources are comments about
primary sources.
• One can use a combination of primary
and secondary sources to answer a
research question.
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41. Books
• There are many general reference books
that may be useful to your research in
a variety of ways.
• 1. General Encyclopedias (Britannica,
Americana, etc.)
• 2. Specialized Encyclopedias and
dictionaries
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43. LIMITATIONS OF A BOOK AS A SOURCE
• The important thing to remember here is
that, by the time a book is printed, the
information is at least a couple of
years old.
• So if you're doing research that requires
very recent information, a newspaper,
magazine, or journal is your better
choice.
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44. INTERNET
• The Internet can offer valuable
information in a quick, and easy way.
• You also have to be critical of what you
find, since anyone can post and even
change anything that's out there in
cyberspace
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45. LIMITATIONS
OF INTERNET AS A SOURCE
• Be sure that your internet information is
from a recognized source such as the
government, an agency that you are
sure is a credible source.
• 'Being a good writer is 3% talent, and
97% not being distracted by the
Internet'.
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46. HOW TO TAKE NOTES?
• Taking notes is an important part of
research paper
• Be sure when you take notes that you
write down the source that they are
from.
• You should not write the words down
exactly as they appear on the page,
unless you are putting them in
quotations.
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47. HOW TO TAKE NOTES? II
• Notes can be in one of the three forms:
summary, paraphrase or direct quotation
• When you summarize or paraphrase, you
record ideas as opposed to exact language;
the language is yours.
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48. HOW TO TAKE NOTES? III
• Do not include your own ideas or
commentary in the body of the summary
or paraphrase.
• Your own ideas should come after the
summary or paraphrase
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49. DOCUMENTING YOUR SOURCES
• How to document sources?
• Help for preparing bibliographies and
footnotes can be found in:
• MLA handbook for writer of research
papers or
http://www.umuc.edu/library/libhow/
mla_examples.cfm
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50. DOCUMENTATION YOUR SOURCES
•Chicago / Turabian style:
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citation
guide.html or
http://www.ubc.ca/okanagan/library/__shared/asset
s/chicago14394.pdf or
http://web.plattsburgh.edu/library/instruction/files/
chicago-turabian_guide.pdf
• Publication manual of the American
Psychological Association:
•http://www.landmark.edu/library/citation-
guides/landmark-college-citation-guides/apa-
citation-style-guide
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51. CHICAGO MANUAL: SAMPLE CITATION
Book
One author
1. Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four
Meals (New York: Penguin, 2006), 99–100.
2. Pollan, Omnivore’s Dilemma, 3.
Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four
Meals. New York: Penguin, 2006.
Two or more authors
1. Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns, The War: An Intimate History, 1941–
1945 (New York: Knopf, 2007), 52.
2. Ward and Burns, War, 59–61.
Ward, Geoffrey C., and Ken Burns. The War: An Intimate History, 1941–
1945. New York: Knopf, 2007.
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52. EVALUATING YOUR SOURCES
• Is the information presented objectively
from an unbiased viewpoint?
• Do the authors let you know their sources
of information?
• Do the authors let you know their
research methods as well as results?
• How Well does the Source answer the
Research Question?
• Is the writer field expert
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53. REORGANIZING YOUR NOTES
• Reorganizing your notes should enable
you to outline the major sections and
then the paragraphs of your research
paper
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54. BUILDING THE FIRST DRAFT
• Five points should be kept in mind
while writing the first draft:
• Start with a focused introduction
• Allow yourself to write a bad first draft
• Make a distinction between drafting and
editing
• Don't stick to your plan too closely
• Don't worry if you get stuck
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55. WHAT IS DRAFTING?
• Draft means rough copy of a writing.
• It is preliminary sketch from which final
copy is made.
• In drafting you are presenting your ideas
rather than refining your argument.
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56. WHAT IS PROOF READING?
• Proofreading is polishing and checking
over a draft to make sure that everything
is complete and correct ; spelling,
grammar, sentence structure,
punctuation so on & so forth
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57. WHAT IS EDITING?
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Editing is reviewing and changing a
document by making additions, deletions, or
other changes to conform to some agreed-
upon standard.

58. FINAL DRAFT
• After rereading, reorganizing
regrouping and proofreading you will
have a nice clean final draft
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59. PAPER INTRODUCTION INCLUDES
• In introduction state your topic, purpose,
reason, major points of your paper plan
and why readers should be interested in
your topic
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60. PAPER BODY INCLUDES
• Body – Here you present your arguments
to support your thesis statement. Begin
with a strong argument, then use a
stronger one, and end with the strongest
argument for your final point.
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61. PAPER CONCLUSION INCLUDES
• Conclusion - Restate your thesis.
Summarize your arguments. Explain why
you have come to this particular
conclusion.
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62. CRUX OF THE PROBLEM
• Your finished research paper should
present your own thinking backed up by
others' ideas and information.
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63. CONCLUSION
• Art is long and life is short. These slides
do not cover all aspects nevertheless it is
hoped that they have introduced you to
the major steps to be taken care of while
writing a research paper.
• Practice makes perfect. The taste of the
pudding is in the eating
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64. THANKS