So you have been staring at the blank page for hours, thinking, “How to start off a research paper?”
Well, it’s hard to gather up ideas together and pen them down on paper whilst ensuring that it makes perfect sense. Research papers are complex assignments, yet the most important ones since it makes up a significant part of students’ grades. There is no way in hell you can get away from these tasks! So dread it, run from it; research papers are inevitable, and you will have to face one, sooner rather than later, in your academic career.
So instead of running from them, embrace them, befriend them, and learn how to handle them!
That said, a certain set of rules needs to be considered while writing a research paper. Since you couldn’t get past the introduction, we assume you might be experiencing writer’s block or simply don’t know how to begin a research paper. But you know what? It’s completely fine. We are here to help! All you need is a little bit of push to get you started!
What is the purpose of the introduction?
Writing an introduction is always the toughest part of an assignment. There are plenty of things that a writer needs to consider while writing an introduction. For example, it should have an element of “hook” for driving the readers in, capturing their attention while delivering important background information in a perfect research paper format. It prepares the reader for what’s coming next in the paper.
When writing a research paper, some students may assume that the introduction is nothing more than an obligatory summary of the paper’s important points – or maybe a fancy paragraph that aims to capture readers’ attention. However, introductions are actually the most crucial part of academic papers.
Basically, it’s the foundation of a research paper – you can’t construct a robust research paper when your foundation is weak. If you don’t get your introduction accurate, you risk losing the interest of your readers, and ultimately your grade.
How to Start a Research Paper?
Before we jump into explaining how to start writing a research paper, let’s first understand what a research paper actually is?
A research paper is a form of academic writing where students are required to conduct an independent analysis of a particular topic and explain their findings through extensive research. In addition to this, they need to identify the strengths and weakness of a topic and suggest possible solutions. All of the arguments made in a research paper should properly be backed by strong evidence taken from legitimate sources.
A research paper can also be considered a scholarly article that contains results of an original research or analysis/ assessment of research conducted by others.
Now coming back to the point, “how to start a research paper?” Well, the recommended way to start a research paper is to introduce your topic to the readers and let them know what you’re writing about.
You can start with some interesting facts or statistical data to make your readers read the paper. Treat your introduction as if you’re writing an advertisement copy to sell your product. If it’s not compelling enough, people won’t buy it! The same applies to your readers; they would be least interested in reading a boring research paper, let alone an introduction.
How to plan a research paper
Planning has always been associated with efficiency and effectiveness. To make your research paper effective, you need to develop a proper strategy. What? Why would I need a plan? It’s not like that we’re going on a war or something?
Well, you need a plan for everything, even for writing a research paper! Students find it difficult to organize their research paper when given a lot of information. A disorganized paper can confuse your reader and make your arguments look all over the place. That’s why planning a research paper is important to ensure the perfect alignment of your arguments with proper structure.
Obviously, you wouldn’t want to get stuck in the middle of the research paper and not knowing how to proceed further.
Here’s how to plan a research paper:
Shortlist possible topics:
Visit your campus library and look for possible topics. Check all the sources available and see which topic interests you the most. You can even take assistance from your librarian to help you with shortlisting the topics.
Choose a topic:
Once done with shortlisting your topics, choose a topic that interests you and has plenty of room to dig in through. Your research topic sets the groundwork for the introduction and helps you create a thesis statement. Here are a few tips on selecting a perfect topic:
- It should be interesting.
- Have plenty of resources available online.
- Avoid choosing a vague topic: be specific!
- Don’t forget to get your professor’s approval before diving into the writing stage.
Research, Research and Research!
It goes without saying that research is the most important part of a research paper. So here’s how you can research a subject:
- Skim
- Find reliable and legitimate resources
- Take notes
Skim: There’s no need to read the entire paper. Just skim through the headlines, and find the relevant information about the topic. You just need to have a knack for identifying key arguments without getting bogged down and reach each word.
Find reliable and legitimate resources: Always look for reliable sources to gather your information from. And no, Wikipedia is not the reliable one!
Take notes: Don’t forget to make notes as you skim through the paper. The larger the research project, the more you will have to keep everything organized, including your sources! Keep extensive notes of your sources: publisher’s name, author name, publishing date, etc. Similar to law proposal writing, you’re required to cite this information at the end of the paper.
Set a date for writing and editing stages:
Now comes the final two stages: writing and editing! Set a specific date to begin writing your research paper and complete it before the editing date. Create an outline and assign a deadline for each section to complete. Your first draft will give you an idea about the paper and potential errors that you need to fix before turning the final draft in. The earlier the mistakes are caught, the easier it will be to finish the research project on time.
How to write a research paper introduction?
Following are the things you should consider when asked how to write a research paper introduction. Writing a research paper introduction is as follows:
Introduce your essay topic:
The essence of every research paper is its topic. So kick off your introduction by announcing what your topic is and the reason why you choose it. When writing your introduction, make sure to include the objective of your research paper – what you aim to achieve, what readers will get out of it, and why it needs our attention. This will put your research subject into perspective for readers’ general understanding, and they will know what to expect from the rest of your paper.
Provide Context and Information
Your topic is likely very familiar to you since you have been doing all the research to select it in the first place. But what about your readers? For starters, the context is determined by what your readers already know – though; you can set a bigger window of assumption to ensure everyone’s needs are met. Just think of what your reader might be thinking. Are they aware of this subject? If yes, what is the extent of it?
Your introduction should be balanced and provide the right amount of information. Avoid adding any basic information to make it redundant and boring, or too complicated to understand. It is recommended to write an introduction while specifically considering the thought process of your readers.
As a researcher, your job is to provide the right amount of context or background to your subject, allowing your readers to easily grasp and understand the topic. Construct your introduction in a way that you would enjoy reading it yourself, and not just the readers.
Tell them why your research is important
Given the amount of research you have already done, you must be an expert in your subject! But your readers aren’t! They don’t know the reason behind your research; it is objective and why it is worthy of their attention. Look, everyone needs a reason to do a certain action. So, your readers also want a reason to invest their time and effort in your research paper. In the introduction, you need to provide them with strong reasoning as to why they should invest their time. You need to showcase the extent of your research and the technique you used in achieving your results. This will help you to convey your ideas to readers effectively.
Don’t forget to mention all the research and work you have done on this subject to let your readers know your expertise. This will make your write up authentic, and your readers will assume that you have a command over the subject you’re writing about. It’s also essential to cite all your sources in order to avoid plagiarism.
Include a Rationale
In the introduction, add a rationale behind your research paper; motivations drive you to conduct this research. You need to explain how your paper will contribute to the field and fit into all the research work that has been done so far. This is also how to start a research essay.
Show the significance of your research
Your introduction should communicate the importance of your research and the justification of its existence. Add the basic and the most important points to support your ideas. Treat it like a lawsuit – your claims should be strong enough to make juries turn the decision in your favor. Similarly, you need to show how important your research is for the readers to consider investing their time. This will show your solid writing skills, analytical capabilities, and ability to make strong arguments.
As a writer, it’s your responsibility to make a strong case why your research is important to society, the field, the world, and most particularly, to the readers.
Ensure your thesis is loud and clear
A thesis statement is a sentence that communicates the central idea of a research paper. It makes a claim by answering the question directly. A compelling thesis statement should be precise, represents the key points that need to be discussed in a paper with supporting strong evidence. The thesis statement must be included in the very first sentence of a research paper.
Before writing down your thesis statement, it’s important to know the difference between a research papers’ thesis statement and a thesis for an essay. An academic essay’s thesis statement makes a claim and expresses the writer’s opinion, while the thesis of the research paper communicates the main idea with strong evidence to prove a point. Even though you look for resources to support your thoughts, your introduction’s thesis statement should be original and reflect your own ideas and opinions.
Research paper examples of thesis statement:
It’s worth repeating that a good thesis statement is precise and short! If you find yourself using words such as “very,” “good,” and “bad,” it means you’re not digging deep enough!
For example, writing “Alcohol is bad for you” is not specific enough! How is it bad exactly? You need to assess the heart of your topic and analyze the specific detriments of alcohol consumption that you would like to explain in your paper.
A correct way of writing this thesis statement would be “Increase intake of alcohol consumption can lead to severe effects to one’s physical and mental health, such as heart disease, weight gain, and depression and other liver complications.” You don’t need to lay down every single detriment of alcohol consumption, rather than the ones you want to expand and research in your paper. Having specific objectives will make your research process easier.
Hope this blog answers all your questions about “how to start a paper?” Be it any paper, like, “how to start a thesis paper?” Or even, “how to write a research paper?” Good luck! In case of any confusion, feel free to reach out to us anytime.