Many students, after doing the legwork, end up ruining everything by failing to get the right result section of their research papers.
A result section of a research paper aims at narrating the findings of a specific study without evaluating, interpreting, or providing a direction in the discussion section. The results should reveal the analysis.
Additionally, the analysis section allows the writer to explain what happened to the collected data. But most students struggle to come up with this essential part of the essay. Here is a simple guide on how to do it.
Significance of the Results Section in a Research Paper
All academic papers should be impartial, precise and objective. When writing your findings, you need to present them in an unbiased manner. These will increase the credibility of your research. The results section helps you:
- Report findings in a logical way
- Summarize available information in the form of descriptive statistics.
- Divide the research problem into different concepts
- Understand a research problem from within
- Explore a problem from various points of view
Contents of a Research Paper Result Section
As seen earlier, the results section should present the findings of your study. The findings may have:
- The data that supports the research question
- A report on participants and data collection
- Data presented in charts, tables, graphs, or any other applicable figures
- The explanation of data in sentence form
Steps by step guide in writing the results section
Please note that your results must be brief, clear, and unbiased. Leave out information that does not link to the direct findings. The discussion, interpretations, and explanations are not part of the section. In other words, you are reporting, not explaining.
The following steps are practical when writing the results of most scientific studies.
Step 1: Read the guidelines and instructions
Look for guidelines that the target publisher provides authors and read through them. Take note of the limitations and restrictions on content, point out the specific requirements for the findings section, and read the aims and scope provided in the “guide for authors” section.
Step 2: Choose the results that relate to the journal requirements
First, document your findings, use subheadings to clarify your report, and give it a good flow. These will help you avoid including excessive details, as you write. It will also assist your reader in remembering your findings.
Secondly, focus on experimental results that are relevant to the research question or the thesis statement. Please include them in the section without supporting your hypothesis.
Lastly, come up with a way of structuring your results. You can choose to arrange them in the order presented in the Methods section or math them with the research question. Either way will be ideal.
Step 3: Design figure, graphs, or tables to illustrate your findings
Using a table in your illustration makes your words readable and easier to understand. You must number your tables and figures according to the order you present them in the main text. You want your work to be clear and logical.
On the other hand, the information illustrated in the figure should be self-explanatory. The design should always include all the necessary information to improve the reader’s understanding. The tables and figures should help you tell an informative but precise story about your study.
Step 4: Write the results section using the finding
It is crucial to keep in mind the aim of a results section is to communicate the complex information in a clear and precise way. In the first paragraph of your results section, restate the research aims to bring the reader’s attention to the results you are trying to illustrate.
Try writing in the past tense and the active voice to present the findings since the study is complete. These will make your points appear logical.
Step 5: Revise your work
When writing, it is possible to make mistakes and leave out essential phrases. To ensure your work read as you would have loved, double-check the accuracy of your information. Check your language, and ensure you present all the results in the right order while focusing on your objectives.
Key aspects and tips when writing result paper results section
The aspect listed below will improve the structure and organization of your research.
- Start writing your results section by restating the research question.
- Make use of a table, figure, and paragraphs that can simplify your data
- Include details of the data analysis and interpretation
- Use past tense when describing results
- Be concise
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