Sructure of research paper

10th April, 2020
Dr. Abhishek Srivastava
Associate Professor, Dept. of Education
Career Point University, Kota
4/10/2020Career Point University, Kota

OBJECTIVE OF THIS SESSION
At the end of this session participants
will be able to… ƒ
Identify the components of Research Paper ƒ
Define the various terminologies involved in
Structure of Research Paper
Overview referencing practices in research
Explain WHY it is necessary to cite the sources we
use to support what we write in our papers; and
Explain HOW to cite these sources in correct style

DEFINITION OF RESEARCH PAPER
A research paper is a written work
published in a print or electronic
medium. It may be for the purpose
of propagating the news, research
results, academic analysis or debate

TYPES OF RESEARCH PAPER/ ARTICLES
1. FULL ARTICLES
2. REVIEW PAPERS
3. BOOK REVIEWS (NOT IN SCOPUS)
4. CASE SERIES
5. CASE STUDIES
6. EDITORIAL
7. SHORT COMMUNICATION

STRUCTURE OF RESEARCH PAPER
There are 10 components of a Research
Paper. Which are given below-
 Title
 Abstract & Key Words
 Introduction
 Literature Review
 Methodology
 Results/ Finding
 Discussion
 Conclusion
 References
 Appendices

WORD PROCESSING OF RESEARCH PAPER
Components of Research Paper Words
Title 8 – 10 words
Abstract and Key Words 200 – 250 words
Introduction 500 – 1000 words
Literature Review 1ooo – 2000 words
Methods and Methodology 500 – 1000 words
Findings 1000 – 1500 words
Discussion 1000 – 1500 words
Conclusion 500 – 1000 words
References
Total 4500 – 8000 words

TITLE OF THE PAPER
There are some characteristics of Title.
Which are given below-
Title should reflect the main theme.
Some of keywords of paper should appear in title.
There should be no full stop after title.
Title expects to provide answers to:
1. What will be studied/researched?
2. How will be researched?
3. With whom and where it will be researched?

ABSTRACT
The Abstract is a summary of a body of
information; it expresses the main claim and
argument of a paper. Which briefly
introduces the reader the aims of the study,
the methodology, results and findings.
Questions that an abstract answers:
• Why did you do this study ?
• What did you do and how?
• What did you find?
• What do your findings mean?
To be contd………..

ABSTRACT……
Some of the key Elements of the Abstract are
described below:
Element 1 : Start with key problem/ theme of the paper.
Element 2 : Main purpose/aim of the study
Element 3 : Importance of Study
Element 4 : Methodology used
Element 5 : Main findings/Expected findings
Element6 : Statement of Conclusion/Implications of
study

INTRODUCTION
The primary purpose of an introduction is to frame the paper
for its readers. Introduction typically should be funnel
shaped, moving from general to specific It should provide:
 Brief description of the topic
 Statement as to why the topic is worth researching or why it
could be found interesting
 Highlights of relevant previous research
 Statement of the research objectives.
 Identification of unanswered question(s)
 Statement of the method(s) and the scope of study.
 An overview of the rest of the paper.
To be contd…….
4/10/2020

INTRODUCTION…..
Key Elements of introduction
Element 1 : State broad theme or topic of the paper.
Element 2 : Academic importance or relevance (Why my
paper is worth a read)
Element 3 : Summarize available literature and cite
important studies in the field.
Element 4 : Main gaps of the paper or main contribution
of the paper.
Element 5 : Research Questions/Context/Theoretical
Framework/Method

LITERATURE REVIEW
The questions of Literature Review are following-
• What is the present state of knowledge regarding the
topic under consideration?
• How are the studies related to the one being
proposed?
• What is the quality of the studies reviewed?
• How will the proposed study contribute to the
existing literature?

LITERATURE REVIEW……..
 Finding suitable literature on a specific
topic.
 Managing information
 Presenting logical, synthesized, reader
friendly review of current knowledge.
Three challenges of Literature Review:

METHODOLOGY
Basic Information to Include:
 In most cases, overview of study design
 Identification of (if applicable)
Equipment, organisms, reagents, etc used (and
sources thereof)
Populations & Sampling
Approval of human or animal research by an
appropriate committee
Statistical methods

METHODOLOGY……..
The Words and More:
 Should be written in past tense
 May include tables and figures—for example:
 Flowcharts
 Diagrams of apparatus
 Tables of experimental conditions

RESULTS
Some of the features of the Result are
described below:
Result is the core of the paper
Often includes tables, figures, or both
Should summarize findings rather than providing
data in great detail
Should present results but not comment on
them
(Note: Some journals combine the Results
and the Discussion.)

RESULTS…..
Verb Tense for the Results Section:
Result should be written in Past Tense
Examples:
 A total of 417 of the customers replied.
 _____ increased, but _____ decreased.
 The average temperature was _____.
 This difference was not statistically significant.

RESULTS…..
A Few Suggestions
Use tables only if text will not suffice.
Design tables to be understandable without the
text.
 If a paper includes a series of tables, use the same
format for each.
Use figures (graphs, diagrams, maps, photographs,
etc) only if they help in conveying your
information.

RESULTS…..
A Few Suggestions……
Avoid including too much information in one
figure.
Make sure any lettering will be large enough once
published.
Follow the journal’s instructions.

DISCUSSION
Discussion
is one of the more difficult parts to write, because
have more choice of what to say
Often should begin with a brief summary of the main
findings
Should answer the question(s) stated in the
introduction
Sometimes is followed by a conclusions section

DISCUSSION……
Some Possible Contents
 Strengths of the study
For example:
superior methods, extensive data etc.
 Limitations of the study
For example:
small sample size, short follow-up, incomplete
data, possible sources of bias, problems with
experimental procedures
 If the limitations seem unlikely to affect the
conclusions, can explain why

DISCUSSION…..
Some Possible Contents…..
Relationship to findings of other research—
for example:
 Similarities to previous findings (your
own, others’, or both)
 Differences from previous findings
 Possible reasons for similarities and
differences

DISCUSSION…..
Some Possible Contents…..
Applications and implications—
for example:
Possible uses of the findings (in business,
public policy, agriculture, medicine, etc)
Relationship of the findings to theories or
models:
Do the findings support them?
Do they refute them?
Do they suggest modifications?

CONCLUSION
Some of the features of the Conclusion are
described below:
 To sum up your findings and highlight the
significance of the outcomes of your study.
 To outline any implication or recommendations
indicated by the findings.

REFERENCING/ CITATION
Definition:
Broadly, a citation is a reference to a published or
unpublished source (not always the original source)
Generally the combination of both the in-body
citation and the bibliographic entry constitutes what
is commonly thought of as a citation.

REFERENCING/ CITATION……
purposes:
To uphold intellectual honesty (or avoiding
plagiarism)
To attribute prior or unoriginal work and ideas to the
correct sources,
To allow the reader to determine independently
whether the referenced material supports the
author's argument in the claimed way, and
To help the reader gauge the strength and validity of
the material the author has used.

Which referencing style is the right one ?
There are literally hundreds of different referencing
styles from which to choose when you are citing
the sources of your research material different
publishing houses have differing rules, about the
citation of sources.
Usually, Indian Publishing houses use APA
style for citation

Some styles in Practice
FACULTY RECOMMENDED REFERENCING STYLES
Arts Harvard, Chicago, MLA, APA, University of
Auckland Style
Business and
Economics
APA, The Business of Writing: Written Communication
Skills for Business Students
Creative Arts and
Industries
APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA
Education APA
Engineering Harvard, Chicago, UOA Engineering Numbered Style,
APA

FACULTY RECOMMENDED REFERENCING STYLES
Law New Zealand Law Style Guide
Medical and Health Sciences Vancouver , APA
Science Referencing styles recommended by Science
Departments Scientific style and format : the CBE
manual for authors, editors, and publishers
Theology Chicago
Some styles in Practice……

A few of the common referencing styles
and their origins
1. APA stands for "American Psychological
Association" and comes from the association of
the same name.
2. MLA comes from the "Modern Language
Association of America" and is used mainly in
English and the Humanities.

A brief outlines and difference of the APA system,
the MLA system
Focus Point MLA Guidelines APA Guidelines
Paper Standard size (8.5 x 11" in
the U.S.)
Page Margins 1" on all sides (top, bottom,
left, right)
1" on all sides (top, bottom, left,
right)
Font 12-pt. easily readable
(e.g.,Times New Roman)
12-pt. Times New Roman or
Courier. For figures, however,
use a sans serif font such as
Arial.
Spacing Double-spaced throughout,
including captions and
bibliography
Double-spaced

Focus Point MLA Guidelines APA Guidelines
Alignment of
Text
Flush left (with an uneven right
margin)
Flush left (with an uneven right
margin)
Paragraph Indentation 1/2" (or five spaces) 5–7 spaces
Tables &
Illustrations
Place tables and illustrations as
close as possible to the text they
refer to.
A table is labeled Table and
given a number (e.g., Table 1).
The table label and caption or
title appear above the table,
capitalized like a title, flush left.
Tables and illustrations appear at the
end of the paper.
Each table begins on a separate page
with the label Table 1 (etc.) typed
flush left on the first line below the
page number. Double space and type
the table title flush left (italicized
using uppercase and lowercase
letters).

Bibliography
MLA Format APA Format
BOOKS
Author's last name, first name. Book title.
Additional information. City of publication:
Publishing Company, publication date.
Author's last name, first initial. (Publication
date). Book title. Additional information. City
of publication: Publishing company.
Allen, Thomas B. Vanishing Wildlife of North
America. Washington, D.C.: National
Geographic Society, 1974.
Searles, Baird, and Martin Last. A Reader's
Guide to Science Fiction. New York: Facts on
File, Inc., 1979.
Toomer , Jean. Cane. Ed. Darwin T. Turner.
New York: Norton, 1988.
Allen, T. (1974). Vanishing wildlife of North
America. Washington, D.C.: National
Geographic Society.
Searles, B., & Last, M. (1979). A reader's guide
to science fiction. New York: Facts on File,
Inc.
Toomer , J. (1988). Cane. Ed. Darwin T.
Turner. New York: Norton.

ENCYCLOPEDIA AND DICTIONARY
Author's last name, first name. "Title of
Article." Title of Encyclopedia. Date.
Author's last name, first initial. (Date).
Title of Article. Title of Encyclopedia
(Volume, pages). City of publication:
Publishing company.
Tobias, Richard. "Thurber, James.“
Encyclopedia Americana. 1991 ed.
Pettingill, Olin Sewall, Jr. "Falcon and
Falconry." World Book Encyclopedia.
1980.
Tobias, R. (1991). Thurber, James.
Encyclopedia americana. (p. 600). New
York: Scholastic Library Publishing.
Pettingill, O. S., Jr. (1980). Falcon
and Falconry. World book
encyclopedia. (pp. 150-155).
Chicago: World Book.

MAGAZINE & NEWSPAPER, ARTICLES
Author's last name, first name. "Article
title." Periodical title Volume # Date:
inclusive pages.
Author's last name, first initial.
(Publication date). Article title.
Periodical title, volume number (issue
number if available), inclusive pages.
Trillin, Calvin. "Culture Shopping.“ New
Yorker 15 Feb. 1993: 48-51.
Kalette, Denise. "California Town
Counts Down to Big Quake." USA Today
9 21 July 1986: sec. A: 1.
Trillin, C. (1993, February 15).
Culture shopping. New Yorker, pp.
48-51.
Kalette, D. (1986, July 21). California
town counts town to big quake. USA
Today, 9, p. A1.

Websites
Last Name, first name. Site title,
Publisher publishing date day year
URL
Author's last name, first initial. Year,
Month day of Publishing Title
Retrieved From URL
Mitchell, James A., and Martha
Thomson. How and When to Reference.
25 Jan.
2017:https://www.howandwhentorefer
ence.com.
Mendeley, J.A., Thomson, M., & Coyne,
R.P. (2017, January 16). How and when
to reference. Retrieved from
https://www.howandwhentoreference.c
om

Web Page
Last name, first name. “Page Title”. Site
Title. Sponsoring institution/publisher.
Publication date day month
abbreviation. year, URL.
Month day of Publishing Title website
Retrieved from URL
Thomson, Martha. “APA
Citation”. How and When to Reference.
2 Feb. 2017
: https://www.howandwhentoreference.
com/APAcitation.
Mitchell, J.A., Thomson, M., & Coyne,
R.P. (2017, January 25) APA
citation. How and when to reference.
Retrieved
from https://www.howandwhentorefer
ence.com/APAcitation

Blog Post
Last name, first name. “Page Title”. Site
Title of Blog Post. Sponsoring
institution/publisher. Publication date
month abbreviation. year, URL.
Month day of Publishing Title of Blog
Post website Retrieved from URL
Defeo, Christian. “New Webinar on
Research Careers”. Mendeley Blog. 4
Aug.2017, https://blog.mendeley.com/2
017/08/04/new-webinar-on-research-
careers/.
Defeo, C. (2017, August 4). New
webinar on research careers [Blog post].
Retrieved from
https://blog.mendeley.com/2017/08/0
4/new-webinar-on-research-careers/

Tweet
Author Handle. “Text of Tweet” date
Month year time of post URL
Handle of tweet author. (Year, month
date of tweet). Full text of tweet
[Tweet]. Retrieved from URL
Mendeley_com. “We applauded our
final @pintofscience talk & feeling sad.
But we literally zoomed from
#atomstogalaxies and it was a perfect
finale”. Twitter, 17 May 2017,
1:57p.m., https://twitter.com/mendeley
_com/status/864947989797896194.
Mendeley_com. (2017, May 17). We
applauded our final @pintofscience talk
& feeling sad. But we literally zoomed
from #atomstogalaxies and it was a
perfect finale [Tweet]. Retrieved from
https://twitter.com/mendeley_com/sta
tus/864947989797896194

Face book
Author surname, account name .
Description of post. Facebook, date
month year, time of post, URL
Author name/Group surname (year,
month date of posting) Text of post
Retrieved URL
Mendeley. Announcement of Mendeley
funding. Facebook, 16 May 2017,
11:05a.m., https://www.facebook.com/
mendeley/photos/a.1015015699964861
1.291608.42920143610/1015486677035
8611/?type=3.
Mendeley. (2017, May 16). The pressure
is always on for researchers to fund
their research careers [ Facebook status
update]. Retrieved from
https://www.Facebook.com/mendeley/
photos/a.10150156999648611.291608.4
2920143610/10154866770358611/?type
=3

Online Video (YouTube)
“Title of video”. Title of site video is
found on, uploaded by uploader name,
role of contributors First name , last
name, date month year URL
Name of creator [user name] (year
month date of posting) Title of video
[Video file] retrieved from URL
“Getting Started With
Mendeley”. Youtube, uploaded by
Mendeley, 3 Apr. 2014,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv
6_HuCYExM
[Mendeley]. (2014, April 3). Getting
started with Mendeley [Video File].
Retrieved
fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Gv6_HuCYExM

Patterns of In-text Citations :
ORIGINAL IDEA + CITATION:
Buddhism did not originate in Thailand (Wangmo, 1954).
REFERENCE:
Wangmo, P., (1954). History of Buddhism. Random
House, USA.

REPEATING THE SAME CITATIONS:
Use Of ibid. & loc. cit.
1. Citing the Same Source Again (use of ibid.)
Example:
The first time : (Sharma, 2011, p.2)
The repeated citation : (Sharma, ibid.)

REPEATING THE SAME CITATIONS……
2. Repeating The Same Citations With Other Sources
In Between (use of loc. cit.)
Example:
The first time : (Sharma, 2011, p.2)
The repeated citation : (Sharma, loc. cit.)

FOOTNOTE
A footnote is a notation at the bottom of the page in a
printed document. Footnotes are usually presented
in smaller print than the dominant text, and they are
used for a variety of purposes. The “foot” in
“footnote” refers to the fact that the notation is
located in the “footer” or “bottom” of the document

FOOTNOTE….
Add a footnote
step I: Click where you want to add a footnote.
Step II: Click References > Insert Footnote.
Step III: Type the footnote text.

FOOTNOTE….
Customize footnotes
After you add your
footnotes, you can change
the way they appear. For
example, you can change
the number format or
where they show up in
your document.

Sructure of research paper

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