Writing a Research Paper: Basic Steps
Before writing a research paper, it is essential to find out what a research paper is. Actually, it is a large academic paperwork that entails extensive research and logical and concise representation of the main arguments and findings in relation to the given topic.
When writing a research paper, you are expected to work with dozens of scholarly sources that should be preferable peer-reviewed and taken from credible databases and libraries. It is essential for research paper writing as you have to base it on expert opinion. In other words, the information you get from scholarly sources can be further used as supporting evidence for the claims you put forward. Still, writing a research paper entails far more than simply summarizing the sources and conducting a literature review. You need to implement analysis regarding your topic and discuss the given topic from multiple perspectives if needed. Further, you need to make sure that the research paper is united by a central idea that is clearly and precisely conveyed in the thesis statement. All in all, regardless of the topic or type of research paper you provide, it is essential to ensure that you provide your own arguments supported by expert opinion.
Just for a comparison: if a lawyer needs to write a research paper, he/ she fist needs to carry out a thorough research and investigate many cases that can help work on his/ her own case. Information and knowledge acquired from reading those case studies assist in supporting scientific principles and providing examples as supporting evidence. This strategy works well with different research paper topics (not only when it has to do with law). For example, when writing a paper on history, it is essential to study a lot of history materials in order to explore numerous sources and find similar and different views on the same topic.
Some people view a research paper as an extended essay that, apart from literature review, presents one’s own arguments, analysis, and evaluation supported with ample evidence. The main difference between an essay and a research paper is that the former can mainly involve your personal experience on a subject, whereas the latter deals with analysis and evaluation of information that you know about the subject along with supporting expert opinion. As such, when you write a research paper, you need to investigate and analyze information taken from reliable sources in the corresponding field of knowledge.
In this article, you will find guidelines on how to organize your research paper and make navigation through it as easy as possible. Besides, you will learn the basics of how to formulate a strong thesis statement, develop research questions, organize body paragraphs, and document your sources.
Tips on Research Paper Writing
1) If you were not assigned a topic by your professor, make sure you select a topic that matches your research field and academic interest. Make sure you select a topic you are curious about so that the whole process of research is not boring.
2) Design an outline. It will serve as a backbone for your paper and will help you maintain better organization of writing. If you need some outline examples, you can easily find them online.
3) Plan the pre-writing stage. Brainstorm ideas taken from multiple sources. As you read some information from textbooks, articles or journals, make sure you take notes and jot down important information that will fit well into your research.
4) Formulate a strong thesis statement, where you introduce the main focus of the paper in a brief and concise way. You may develop a rough version of thesis during your pre-writing stage. It is totally understandable that you may modify it. Nonetheless, it is essential to develop a thesis that will guide your research.
5) Double-check the paper for transitions to ensure that the paragraphs and ideas are logically united. Besides, make it clear what you plan to write next.
6) Make sure that the use of citations, quotes, statistics, facts, and figures is well-balanced. Do not ma