The purpose of reporting research results is to communicate information clearly and efficiently. To that end, the publication format for the journal article is designed to provide the greatest access to your work. The structure of a research article often follows a standard format that includes a title, an abstract, a reference list, and one or more related tables or figures.
In the world of research and academic writing, the purpose of reporting research results is to communicate information clearly and efficiently. Providing access to your work is another important point: you want as many people as possible to read, understand, and use your results.
Definition of Research Reporting:
According to Prof. MarkAnthony Nze, the academic director of New York Learning Hub, ‘Research reporting is the process of developing, sharing, and using knowledge about research activities. It is a key component in the development, application, and integration of scientific research for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).’
Prof. Nze, further posits that ‘There are many kinds of research reports that exist today: books, articles, press releases, media coverage, conference papers, policy briefs, reports to governments, journals, etc. Many of these types of publications do not meet the standards of clarity or rigor needed to share evidence-based information with decision makers for informed policies or actions. This may be because research findings are often presented without the context required by policy makers and practitioners, or because they lack an understanding of how their audiences will use that information to inform their work and decisions.’
In addition to producing high quality research, it is important to make this research available and accessible to target audiences such as policymakers, civil society organizations, and other interested stakeholders. This can only happen if researchers understand what their readers need from them and communicate clearly—through clear language, structure, design, and illustrations. In a world where information flows freely, researchers cannot afford to create and disseminate knowledge without considering its broader impact on policy making, implementation and social change.
In order to achieve SDG 17, which calls for effective global partnerships for sustainable development, there needs to be greater collaboration among researchers, media professionals, and the public. Researchers need to find ways to integrate their expertise into existing communication channels in meaningful ways. The role of journalists is critical in helping to facilitate this conversation. However, when reporters have limited time and resources, they may not always be able to review every piece of research produced and/or commissioned. As a result, newsroom editors must decide whether or not to publish a story based on incomplete information. There also exists a gap between researchers who want to reach out to journalists and newsrooms to tell their story, and those working in media institutions who want to learn more about research.
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It is widely recognised that research plays an integral role in informing policy and practice around the world. Yet, too often, much of this research is poorly communicated, leading to gaps in knowledge and misinformed decision making. For instance, many countries are faced with increasing rates of overweight and obesity, but most nutritionists and health professionals are unaware of recent studies demonstrating the relationship between diet and cancer. Without access to this information, these experts may continue to advise their patients against eating certain foods, even though current evidence suggests that these food groups are safe to consume. Similarly, some reporters may still report on myths and misconceptions surrounding HIV/AIDS, despite having been debunked over two decades ago.
There are myriad reasons why research findings fail to be shared effectively. Some of the most common include: unclear conclusions, a lack of context, inadequate explanations, poor use of data visualisation, lack of storytelling, and lack of understanding of audience needs. To overcome these challenges, researchers need to develop skills to better communicate their research findings, and newsrooms need to educate themselves about how to best incorporate this new knowledge into their daily operations.
The following five steps can help researchers and journalists improve the quality of their work so that both parties can work together to strengthen the global research ecosystem and contribute towards realizing the SDGs.
1) Identify target audiences:
To ensure your research reaches the right people, you first need to identify whom you want to reach. Think about the various actors who might be interested in the topic of your research. Who reads newspapers, magazines, or blogs? Which organisations influence policy and practice around the world? What are their interests? Who should know about your research? Which groups of people will benefit from its findings?
2) Understand your readers:
Before starting to write anything, ask yourself: who is going to read this? If someone was just assigned to edit this story, what would they look for? Try to imagine the questions that your reader might have. Consider factors like location, culture, education, gender, and age, which will help you to tailor the information to your specific audience.
3) Create a plan:
Once you’ve identified your target audiences, think about how you’ll reach them. Do you have the time and resources to conduct interviews with potential interviewees, or do you need to rely on existing materials (e.g., reports, policy documents, presentations, etc.)? Will you focus on writing, photography, audio, video, or graphics? Or, perhaps you would prefer to release a summary article, infographic, podcast, or another medium entirely?
4) Communicate effectively:
Now that you’ve thought through your plan, it’s time to make it happen. Be sure to consider all possible aspects of your story before publishing. Check to see that the spelling of names and titles is correct, that the language is appropriate for your audience, and that you’re using correct grammar. Pay attention to visual elements such as font size, colour, and spacing; check for typos; and make sure that you’re using images appropriately. Avoid jargon and overly technical language, unless it is necessary to explain concepts clearly. When crafting your story, pay close attention to the following:
Be clear and concise.
Make use of concrete examples whenever possible.
Use “you” when speaking directly to the reader.
Think about the sequence of events and how that impacts your audience.
Show rather than tell.
5) Design your story:
Regardless of the format, you should remember that every story has three parts—the headline, lead paragraph and body copy—and each of these should be written with one goal in mind – to grab the reader’s attention. Each part should convey a simple idea, or theme, that is reinforced throughout the rest of the story.
Before you begin to write, it is crucial that you answer the following questions:
What is the main point of the story?
Who is your audience?
How does your research fit into the bigger picture of what you are trying to say?
Is the tone of your story appropriate? Are you being too serious or too lighthearted?
Does your opening line draw the reader in? Does it spark curiosity?
Are there any misleading statements, omissions, or exaggerations in your story?
The purpose of research
The primary goal of research reporting is to provide the greatest access to your work. It helps readers locate specific information and addresses all aspects of the research, including methods, results, and discussion. The standards also allow readers to understand and replicate the study.
The standards include:
A clear description of data collection methods that includes a description of sampling procedures used in sampling design and analysis
A description of any statistical analysis performed on collected data.
A description of any ethical considerations related to the study.
A detailed description of any human subjects or animal studies involved with the project.
Any limitations to the research, including why those limitations occurred
An explanation of whether the findings are generalisable
In addition to these elements, you have many options for presenting your report. You can use text, tables and figures, photographs, video, audio, and animation. These different formats allow you to effectively convey your message across multiple platforms.
There are three basic types of research reports. Each has its own purpose and structure, but they all provide similar information to your audience.
Descriptive Reports: This type of report provides details about an event, process or phenomenon. For example, it would be useful to describe a new treatment that is currently being researched by doctors in the field. A descriptive report could also be used to explain how a particular disease affects people.
Analysis Reports: Analysis reports provide insight into trends and patterns within existing data sets. For example, a market research company might analyse the spending habits of consumers over time to determine shifts in their purchasing decisions.
Evaluation Reports: Evaluation reports are designed to evaluate the success of a certain product or procedure based on previous attempts at solving the same problem. Evaluative reports are often used to help companies and organisations determine if they should continue to invest money into a particular program or procedure.
The most important element of any research report is the content itself. All other components such as layout, design and length depend on the information contained within the report.
As the author of a research paper, you should always verify your sources and cite them correctly. When citing your sources, you must identify the original source. If possible, this should be done using the author’s name, date of publication, title of the resource and publisher. Citing sources correctly will ensure that you do not plagiarize another person’s work or misappropriate someone else’s ideas.
Remember that research reports are written for a specific audience so make sure you write in an accessible way. Avoid jargon and technical terms that may confuse your reader. Instead, keep your sentences short and simple. Use common words and avoid long, complicated phrases.
Writing a research report can seem like an overwhelming task. However, understanding the format and structure of these documents will help you create an effective one that is well received by your audience.
How To Write A Research Report:
If you’re writing a research report, the following tips can help you stay organized and complete the assignment successfully.
Use an outline:
Start by creating an outline before you start writing your research report. An outline helps you plan out your content and keep track of what information needs to go where in your essay. By organizing your content into sections, you’ll know exactly where to put each piece of information.
Choose a topic:
Before you begin writing, you need to choose a topic. This topic will dictate everything from the length of your research report to the type of information you include.
Brainstorming ideas:
Once you have chosen a topic, brainstorm ideas for your research report. Brainstorming is the process of generating as many ideas as you can to find innovative solutions to problems. It allows you to look beyond the obvious and think creatively about ways to solve your research question.
Organize your thoughts:
After brainstorming, organize your ideas into a logical order. Your ideas must flow logically from one section to the next. This ensures that your report is easy to follow and keeps your reader engaged.
Write a rough draft:
Now that you’ve organized your information and written out your outline, it’s time to write your final research report. Start with your introduction and then move onto your body paragraphs. Finish with a conclusion. Once you’ve finished your rough draft, revise it until it’s perfect.
Proofread your work:
At this stage, you don’t want to leave your work alone. Take a break and then return to your rough draft. Proofreading will help you catch mistakes that you missed during your first read through. If you notice any errors, fix them immediately.
Revise your work:
The best way to ensure that your final draft is error-free is to revise it again and again. Keep making changes until you feel satisfied with your work. When you’re done, give your report to a friend and ask them to review it. Ask them to point out anything that seems confusing or difficult to understand.
Turnitin.com is a great tool for checking for plagiarism. The site compares your paper against millions of examples to detect similarities between your work and that of others.
Formatting:
To ensure that your research report is properly formatted, use a standard style guide. Be sure to check that you have correctly cited all sources.
Your final step is to submit your work. If you’re working with a professor or instructor, they may require you to turn in your final research report online. If you’re submitting it yourself, upload your document to a website such as Google Drive or Dropbox.
Research reports are a valuable tool for scientists and researchers. They allow you to communicate complex information in an accessible way. With practice, you’ll be able to create high quality research reports that will get you noticed by your professors.
The seven main areas of research report include:
Abstract or Summary.
Introduction.
Review of Literature.
Methods.
Results.
Conclusions and Discussion.
References.
Abstract or Summary:
This is a summary only, not the complete paper. The abstract should be no more than 150 words long. It contains some but not all of the information contained in the introduction section. This section provides a general overview of the study. Inclusion of key words helps to categorize your work so it will be available for searching on the Internet. In general, avoid jargon that readers may not understand; instead, try to use terms in everyday language. If you have included graphs and/or photographs, include captions beneath them as well. A good abstract gives an idea of what the completed paper looks like without giving away too much detail about your results or methods.
Introduction:
This section tells us why this study was done and why it is important. Start with a concise statement of the problem. State the question your investigation seeks to answer. Provide background information if necessary, but keep the introduction short and precise. Introduce your hypotheses or theories as well. You will probably need to refer back to this section when you write up your final report.
Review of Literature:
In order to demonstrate that your research is relevant to existing knowledge, you must provide a literature review (including books, journal articles, conference proceedings, etc.) that explains what has already been said about your topic in scholarly works. It can help to use a standard format such as APA 6th edition to ensure that your citations follow accepted standards. Avoid merely summarizing published papers. Instead, show how your work builds on previous findings. Be sure to cite each source used.
Methods:
Describe the methodology you used to conduct your research. Explain the procedures, instruments, equipment, and statistical techniques that you employed. Describe the participants who participated in your study. Be specific about the subjects’ ages, sex, race, ethnicity, income levels, education level, religion, marital status, number of children, employment status, and other personal characteristics. Identify the sources of data collected and the measures used to collect those data. Make sure you identify any potentially confounding variables and explain how they were controlled for. Be sure to describe any special considerations related to the method of analysis employed.
Results:
State the findings in simple language. Do not get bogged down in technical details if you do not need to. State any significant differences between groups, along with their significance. Discuss whether there are obvious limitations to the sample size and/or the nature of the study. Use tables and/or figures to illustrate the results of your research.
Conclusions:
What did you learn? What is the significance of your results? Are they likely to be generalized to a larger population of people? Is anything still unclear? Did you find evidence of bias? Does your research contradict previous studies? Were you able to draw valid conclusions based on your findings?
Discussion:
Discuss possible implications of your results. Suggest practical applications. Where do your results fit into current thinking about the problem? In addition, discuss any ethical issues raised by your results.
References:
All references used to support your argument need to be cited in the bibliography at the end of your paper. The references should come from scholarly sources such as peer-reviewed journals, edited volumes, and conference proceedings.
Considerations for writing a research paper:
First, choose your topic carefully. If you are a student who is required to write an academic essay, make sure that there is enough information available on your chosen subject. Conducting thorough research requires time, effort and patience. When writing a term paper, remember that you are expected to analyze and interpret. Be aware of the following points:
- Include background material.
- Cite all sources.
- Keep track of where you got your information.
- Organise your notes.
- Gather information.
If you have never written a paper before, you could start with a simple outline. After you have gathered information and organized it, you should be ready to begin writing. You will probably want to consult your instructor for advice on the best way to structure your paper and what to include. An outline will help you organise your ideas and improve the coherence of your work. A good outline will save you hours of rework later. It may also help you to develop your own organisational style.
When you write about something that you know nothing about, you will probably end up sounding vague and uninformative. However, if you have an interest in your topic, you will want to write passionately about it and avoid boring the reader. The aim of your paper is to convince the reader that your point of view makes sense. Avoid using subjective statements, such as ‘I think’ or ‘In my opinion.’ Instead, provide objective reasons for your opinions.
Remember to maintain logical flow throughout the paper. Your readers will not read one paragraph after another. They will skip over many paragraphs because they lack a clear connection to the ideas in the previous paragraphs. To prevent this from happening, you should try to link your ideas together with transitions. Also, resist the temptation to present irrelevant information just for the sake of filling space.
Avoid using words and phrases that are unfamiliar to your target audience. If you cannot define a word, it is better to leave it out rather than risk confusing your readers. Do not be tempted to use jargon and clichés. These terms may impress your professor, but they will have little meaning for your audience. You may end up alienating your readers.
The body of your paper consists of paragraphs that give arguments, explanations, and examples to support your thesis. Each paragraph needs to contain a single idea. Paragraphs should be easy to comprehend. Try to avoid using complex sentences with long words. Long-winded sentences often make your writing difficult to follow. Always keep your readers in mind while you write.
You should always check your writing for grammatical mistakes, spelling errors, and typos. A spell-checker is not sufficient to catch these errors. Therefore, you should ask someone else to proofread your paper. If possible, try reading your document aloud to yourself. You will probably see numerous errors that you would otherwise miss.
The conclusion briefly summarises your main ideas and restates your thesis. It may also make recommendations for future research.
Before you submit a draft to your instructor, be sure to run it through a plagiarism detection programme. Even if you have written entirely original text, it is possible to inadvertently use phrases that are similar to those you have found in other sources.
Keep in mind that you may encounter difficulties when writing your first paper. Remember, however, that a good writer spends a lot of time practicing and learning from his or her mistakes. Writing a research paper is a skill that you will develop with time.
Why Research Reporting is important:
Research reports play an important role in science. In fact, every scientific paper begins with a research report. A research report provides basic information regarding the study’s design, methods, participants, and findings.
Let us understand the importance of research reporting with an example. Suppose you are given a task to investigate the effect of a particular drug on rats. You need to set up an experiment that involves feeding different doses of the drug to the rats. Then you need to record the effects of the drug on their health. The results of your experimentation will be discussed in your research report.
The research report helps the reader to understand the relevance of your study. It also gives them the rationale behind your experimental designs. Without a proper research report, your experiment would be meaningless. Moreover, without a research report, no other researcher can repeat your experiment. For this reason, you should always include a research report with your paper.
When you write a research report, you should follow a standard format. The most common formats for research reports are APA 6th Edition and AMA Manual of Style.
APA 6th Edition:
This is an American Psychological Association style guide that was developed primarily for psychology researchers and authors. It includes detailed instructions on how to write papers for a variety of disciplines, including social sciences and biological and medical sciences.
AMA Manual of Style:
The AMA Manual of Style is used by the editors of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). This manual includes guidelines for writing papers, book reviews, and other items. In addition, it offers detailed specifications on how to cite books, websites, databases, and more.
These two styles serve as reference guides to help you organize your paper and cite any references mentioned in your paper. When you use these guides, you give credit to the original authors who created these manuals. For instance, if you quote someone from a source listed in the APA Manual of Style, then you must provide a citation so that your readers know whom to credit when they read your paper.
Research reporting plays an important role in every area of science because it gives credibility to your work. Readers may not find your research interesting or relevant unless you provide enough details about your experiments. Therefore, it is very important that you include a well-written research report with each of your papers.
Why writing skills are important:
A good research paper requires good writing skills. You will need to explain the results and implications of your experiment. In some cases, you will be required to make recommendations based on your results. You will also have to draw conclusions from all aspects of your study and present them clearly in written form. Moreover, you should be able to back up everything you say using evidence. If possible, try to use scientific terminology instead of layman’s terms. It helps if you use a consistent style throughout the entire document. Also remember that academic journals prefer papers that are easy to understand for both novice and experienced researchers alike.
You will gain confidence by writing several research papers. As you write more, you will learn what works best and what does not. With practice, you will get better at conveying complex ideas in simple words. It is important that you master the art of writing before you start publishing your own work.
Why learning cite sources is important:
One of the key components of a successful research paper is citing sources properly. Every time you use someone else’s words or ideas, you must give credit to the original author. Otherwise, you are committing plagiarism. Plagiarism refers to copying another person’s work without giving him/her due credit.
Plagiarism is considered a serious offense in academia. Students often think that since they do not copy word-for-word, they cannot be guilty of plagiarism. However, students often forget that they are merely rephrasing someone’s idea and presenting it as their own. They fail to realize that such paraphrasing still constitutes plagiarism.
In some cases, students copy quotes or lines from the Internet without providing proper citations. It is important to remember that you are responsible for ensuring that your references are accurate. It is also advisable that you cross check your references with other databases to ensure that you did not miss out on any important research.
How to keep track of your references:
There are many ways to keep track of your references. Some people like to save articles directly into their computer’s memory. Others prefer to print the article and store it in a binder. Still others take the pen and paper route. Whichever method you choose, it is essential that you keep your notes organised.
It helps if you create a separate folder for each of your references. You can name it ‘author’ or something similar. Inside this folder, you can place photocopies of journal articles or books that you have cited. This way, you can easily refer to the documents whenever you want.
