Substance and Style on Paper
One way of judging how successful you are is to ask another person to see a draft of your paper: if the other person can not make sense of everything you write, then you definitely want to work on clarifying what you're trying to say. Generally speaking, good organization helps make writing clearer planning for a logical sequence to the presentation of thoughts (some times making an outline helps), dividing the writing to paragraphs (using each paragraph focussing on one topic, suggested by the first paragraph), and (in more papers) using section headings. In many cases, the subject material of this paper will establish the total structure of the paper. (by way of example, the take home assignment with this particular class defines a overall structure.)
At precisely the exact same time, the way one introduces the material of a paper is influenced by considerations of style guidelines and rules which may cover both grammar as well as different matters. For instance, most research journals require that writing be carried out in the next person (e.g., "This paper deals with the role of attention in encoding information in memory.") Rather than the very first person (e.g., "I need to go over the function of attention in memory.") . This is a stylistic rule that is technically a formalism in the end, it's obviously a person that writes a paper, even if the paper is expressed in the third person grammatically! In my own assignments for introductory psychology, I accept utilization of either the very first or third person. Partly it is due to the fact that the information of the assignment usually makes the first person much easier to handle for most students, and partly because I am more focused on the information itself than with stylistic formalism. But whether you decide to use first or third person, you ought to be consistent within the paper!
Beyond stylistic rules, research papers tend to make use of formal language, perhaps not slang or other kinds of casual expression. Since research papers inevitably involve drawing on information from other sources, one must acknowledge these sources. (See below to learn more.) At times, this can quoting from of of your sources. If using a quotation, always supply the entire origin, including page number! (this provides credit where it is born, and allows a reader to readily check out the original source to see if the quote is accurate, also to verify that it has not been used out of context.)
Typically, it is feasible to summarize the ideas in your own words, called a paraphrase never the less, you still need to acknowledge the origin, in terms of giving credit for that information or idea you have used. Students frequently be concerned about when utilizing sources becomes plagiarism; in simple terms, the guideline is usually to give credit where it is due: cutting and pasting from an on-line origin, without acknowledging it, could be plagiarism. Using your own overview of the very same content material, and citing the foundation, would not. (in case you consider this, the criteria are mostly good sense.). As noted in first, this document isn't meant to supply a complete guide to all aspects of writing a research paper if you'd like more info, check some of the sources mentioned below. However, do not get too swept up in worrying about every detail. The truth is that writing research papers is a skill, and it takes a lot of people a great deal of practice to master to write well. As of this time (an introductory course), I would rather you concentrate on this content exploring new information, and considering your own learning and experience. Hopefully, expressing your ideas in a paper may be not only challenging, but also exciting!