A research paper is an expanded essay that presents your own interpretation or evaluation or argument. 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. Often you make a judgment, or just explain complex ideas to the reader. The length of the research paper depends on your teacher’s guidelines. It’s always a good idea to keep your teacher in mind while writing your paper because the teacher is your audience.A research paper involves surveying a field of knowledge in order to find the best possible information in that field. And that survey can be orderly and focused, if you know how to approach it. Don’t worry–you won’t get lost in a sea of sources.
There are three stages for doing a research paper. These stages are:
- Prewriting
- Writing
- Revising
Research Paper (also called scholarly paper), which is published in academic journals and contains original research results or reviews existing results or show a totally new invention
Research Paper : What is it?
A research paper is the culmination and final product of an involved process of research, critical thinking, source evaluation, organization, and composition. It is, perhaps, helpful to think of the research paper as a living thing, which grows and changes as the student explores, interprets, and evaluates sources related to a specific topic. Primary and secondary sources are the heart of a research paper, and provide its nourishment; without the support of and interaction with these sources, the research paper would morph into a different genre of writing (e.g., an encyclopedic article). The research paper serves not only to further the field in which it is written, but also to provide the student with an exceptional opportunity to increase her knowledge in that field. It is also possible to identify a research paper by what it is not.
Research: What is it not?
A research paper is not simply an informed summary of a topic by means of primary and secondary sources. It is neither a book report nor an opinion piece nor an expository essay consisting solely of one’s interpretation of a text nor an overview of a particular topic. Instead, it is a genre that requires one to spend time investigating and evaluating sources with the intent to offer interpretations of the texts, and not unconscious regurgitation’s of those sources. The goal of a research paper is not to inform the reader what others have to say about a topic, but to draw on what others have to say about a topic and engage the sources in order to thoughtfully offer a unique perspective on the issue at hand. This is accomplished through two major types of research papers.
Structure of a Research Paper
The structure of a research paper might seem quite stiff, but it serves a purpose: It will help find information you are looking for easily and also help structure your thoughts and communication.
An empiric paper frequently follows this structure:
- Title
- Table of Contents
- Abstract
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Methodology
- Results
- Discussion
- Conclusion
- References
- Appendices
A research paper, no matter what the subject, must achieve specific goals:
- A research paper meets the needs of the assignment
Many instructors give specific requirements for research papers, detailing topics, use of sources, and documentation methods.- Make sure you fully understand the scope of the assignment.
- Keep the needs of the assignment in mind as you work on your paper. Constantly refer to the instructor’s guidelines to keep your research on track.
- A research paper has a clear focus
The more narrow you make your subject, the easier your paper will be to write. It is better to write about one character in a novel or a play than attempt to comment on an entire work. It is easier to focus on one treatment for a single psychiatric disorder than trying to address mental health. - A research paper has a clear thesis
A research paper must express a point of view, not simply report on the ideas of others. The focus of the paper is not the views of others but your opinions and interpretations. - A research paper comments on the quantity and quality of sources
A research paper does not simply summarize and present the ideas of others. A good research paper distinguishes between reliable and biased sources, between authoritative and questionable statistics, between fact and opinion.
Major Types of Research Papers.
Argumentative research paper:
The argumentative research paper consists of an introduction in which the writer clearly introduces the topic and informs his audience exactly which stance he intends to take; this stance is often identified as the thesis statement. An important goal of the argumentative research paper is persuasion, which means the topic chosen should be debatable or controversial. For example, it would be difficult for a student to successfully argue in favor of the following stance.
Cigarette smoking poses medical dangers and may lead to cancer for both the smoker and those who experience secondhand smoke.
Perhaps 25 years ago this topic would have been debatable; however, today, it is assumed that smoking cigarettes is, indeed, harmful to one’s health. A better thesis would be the following.
Although it has been proven that cigarette smoking may lead to sundry health problems in the smoker, the social acceptance of smoking in public places demonstrates that many still do not consider secondhand smoke as dangerous to one’s health as firsthand smoke.
In this sentence, the writer is not challenging the current accepted stance that both firsthand and secondhand cigarette smoke is dangerous; rather, she is positing that the social acceptance of the latter over the former is indicative of a cultural double-standard of sorts. The student would support this thesis throughout her paper by means of both primary and secondary sources, with the intent to persuade her audience that her particular interpretation of the situation is viable.
Analytical research paper:
The analytical research paper often begins with the student asking a question (a.k.a. a research question) on which he has taken no stance. Such a paper is often an exercise in exploration and evaluation. For example, perhaps one is interested in the Old English poem Beowulf. He has read the poem intently and desires to offer a fresh reading of the poem to the academic community. His question may be as follows.
How should one interpret the poem Beowulf?
His research may lead him to the following conclusion.
Beowulf is a poem whose purpose it was to serve as an exemplum of heterodoxy for tenth- and eleventh-century monastic communities.
Though his topic may be debatable and controversial, it is not the student’s intent to persuade the audience that his ideas are right while those of others are wrong. Instead, his goal is to offer a critical interpretation of primary and secondary sources throughout the paper–sources that should, ultimately, buttress his particular analysis of the topic. The following is an example of what his thesis statement may look like once he has completed his research.
Though Beowulf is often read as a poem that recounts the heroism and supernatural exploits of the protagonist Beowulf, it may also be read as a poem that served as an exemplum of heterodoxy for tenth- and eleventh-century monastic communities found in the Danelaw.
This statement does not negate the traditional readings of Beowulf; instead, it offers a fresh and detailed reading of the poem that will be supported by the student’s research.
It is typically not until the student has begun the writing process that his thesis statement begins to take solid form. In fact, the thesis statement in an analytical paper is often more fluid than the thesis in an argumentative paper. Such is one of the benefits of approaching the topic without a predetermined stance.
Revising, Editing, Proofreading
Revising is the process consisting of:
- Major, sweeping, changes to the various drafts of a project
- An evaluation of word choice throughout the project
- The removal paragraphs and sometimes, quite painfully, complete pages of text
- Rethinking the whole project and reworking it as needed
Editing is a process interested in the general appearance of a text, and includes the following:
- Analysis of the consistency of tone and voice throughout the project
- Correction of minor errors in mechanics and typography
- Evaluation of the logical flow of thought between paragraphs and major ideas
This process is best completed toward the final stages of the project, since much of what is written early on is bound to change anyway.
Proofreading is the final stage in the writing process, and consists of a detailed final reread in order to find any mistakes that may have been overlooked in the previous revisions.