Scientific research is one of the most complex, time-consuming, and effort-consuming homework assignments out there. However, it is of great importance at the same time, since its mark constitutes a large part of the students’ marks in various academic subjects. Rather, many universities and institutes offer specialized courses in scientific research methodologies and methods. If you haven’t had the opportunity to take these courses, or if your study plan does not include them, you may find yourself staring at a blank page, unsure how to begin writing your paper!But do not worry; in today’s article, we will summarize for you the most important steps of scientific research in an easy and concise manner that will put you on the right path in the field of academic writing.
Scientific research concept
Scientific research is a form of academic writing that presents an analysis, interpretation, and clarification of a specific topic based on in-depth and independent research. Research papers are somewhat similar to academic reports, but they are usually longer and more detailed. As it aims not only to assess your writing skills but also your skills in academic research, writing scientific research requires you to show strong knowledge about the topic you are writing about and knowledge of various relevant sources. Most of all, make an original contribution to the field of research through your writing.
Steps for writing a scientific research paper
In order for you to be able to write and prepare valid scientific research, we provide you with a comprehensive step-by-step guide on how to do it, starting from understanding the research topic all the way to the final review:
1- Choose a topic
It is the first step in scientific research. The research topic is often chosen by the subject teacher, but it also happens that the field is left open for the student to choose the topic of his research, and here it is necessary to use this opportunity wisely and choose the topic properly. Follow these tips when considering a topic for your research:
- Find a topic that interests you and sparks your enthusiasm and curiosity so that you won’t get bored while writing about it.
- Avoid choosing topics that are too specialized or too general.
- Pose the topic as a question that needs an answer or a problem that needs to be solved.
- Talk about your topic with your classmates and consult your teacher about it before you start writing it.
2- Define the research problem.
It is one of the most important steps in scientific research. Before you start writing your research, you must define the most important problem or issue that your research will revolve around. Knowing the research problem will act as a road map for you, revealing all of the aspects and stations where you must stop in your research.In order to correctly identify the research problem, be sure to follow these steps:
- Determine your current position in relation to previous research on the same topic.
- Make sure you choose the right type of research that matches the problem you are raising, as there are three main categories of research as follows:
- Argumentative research, in which you discuss a specific topic before reaching a specific end result.
- Interpretive research in which specific information is clarified.
- Analytical research is research in which data and information related to an issue are analyzed.
- Make sure that the problem or issue you are raising is coherent and strong, so that your research is robust.
- State the research problem at the end of the first paragraph in the introduction to your research.
3- Do research on the topic you are going to write about.
Before you start writing your research, you must first investigate and browse the information around you. Make sure to find reliable sources that serve as evidence and arguments that support your research case. In order for the initial search to be correct, adhere to the following tips:
- Read a lot about the topic your research is about and get a good idea of it.
- Take advantage of the various available research sources, which can be classified as follows:
- Library catalogs, periodical catalogs, bibliographies, and resources suggested by your instructor or research supervisor.
- Primary sources and secondary sources.
- Newspapers, books, and other documents of all kinds
- After reviewing the different resources available to you, start evaluating them and taking notes about them to refer back to when needed.
- Be sure to document your sources first using the documentation system specified by your supervisor (APA system, MLA system, Harvard system, etc.).
- Be sure to use the latest version of the reference documentation system, and make sure to write down all sources and references to avoid falling into the plagiarism trap.
4- Develop a good outline for your research.
It’s time to arrange all the information and data that you found through the search process in the various references and sources. Start collecting and organizing information using three platforms:
- A system for keeping and arranging references.
- A system to arrange search content based on its importance.
- A system for taking notes and keeping them well organized for easy reference.
Do not forget to take this step, because without a clear outline of your research, you will not be able to focus, and you will find it very difficult to audit and review the research and try to understand its ideas. Consider the following questions as a first step in developing your research outline:
- What is the topic of research?
- What is the importance of this research?
- What information or issues exist today that are relevant to research?
- What is the main research problem?
- What is the best writing plan that allows me to achieve the desired goal of the research?
When writing a research outline, do not forget the conventional research structure, which often includes the following:
- Title page
- Summary
- Research Methodology
- The results that have been reached
- Discuss the findings or the research problem.
- Conclusion.
5- Start writing the initial draft.
You’re 50% of the way to completing your paper, and now it’s time to start writing the initial copy of it. You now have a destination or a basic goal that you want to reach, and here is the problem of research. You also have a road map that helps you reach this goal. You must first choose the appropriate title for the research, which is a very important step because the title is the first thing the reader sees and, based on it, decides whether to continue reading the research or not. So make sure that the title includes the most important keywords around which your search revolves and that it is attractive and motivating.
After the title comes the introduction, followed by the content of the main research, and then the conclusion. Here are some important tips for writing each part of the paper:
Writing the search introduction
- Provide a background on your research or an idea of context.
- Define concepts and terms related to your research.
- Explain the focus of the research and indicate your own goals behind it.
- Explain the general plan of the research.
Writing basic research content
This section occupies the largest part of the research, so it must be given its due attention and work. Here are the most important steps that you must follow in order to be able to write a sound and consistent academic research paper:
- Make the research outline your map by writing, arranging, and sequencing ideas.
- Build your research content based on what you want to write and illustrate, not on the sources you found.
- Mention the sources that you have used in the content of your research, and do not suffice with addressing them only on the References page.
- Provide an explanation, analysis, summary, or even a comment on the published works and literature that you mentioned in your research, rather than mentioning them briefly.
- Make sure to strike a balance between explanation and interpretation, and between brevity and generalization. Do not be satisfied with one of them only, but use explanation and interpretation in the places that need that and resort to abbreviation and generalization in other places so that your research is comprehensive and balanced.
Write the conclusion.
You can write the conclusion in several forms, depending on the nature and type of research, but we can summarize the most important advice that you should follow as follows:
- If the research problem is complex, you can summarize its most important aspects in the conclusion to ensure that the reader is not confused or lost.
- In the event that you did not clarify in your research what the results that you reached or the outputs of your study mean, make the conclusion an opportunity to mention these results again and clarify their importance.
- Move from specification and detailing to generalization and summarization, then return again to talk about the context of the topic as mentioned in the introduction to your research. In other words, do not make the conclusion complicated and difficult to understand, but make sure that it is clear and easy for the reader to understand.
- In the conclusion of the research, you can suggest some aspects that future research can address but that you did not have the time or circumstances to talk about in your research.
6- Refer to the research to reach the final version.
The next step in scientific research is review. After writing and completing the first draft, move on to the stage of editing, refining, and correcting, which will lead you to the final version of the research ready for delivery. You can review and revise your research on four basic stages or levels, as follows:
- The level of general organization: Ensure that all parts of the research are consistent and interconnected, starting from the introduction, passing through the research problem and its content, all the way to the conclusion.
- Paragraph level: This includes the main ideas in each sentence, linking ideas together in one paragraph, mentioning appropriate details to clarify specific ideas, and using linking tools to move between paragraphs smoothly.
- Sentence level: It includes sentence structure, proper word choice, punctuation, correction of typos, linguistic and grammatical errors, and others.
- Documentation level: This includes ensuring that all references used are properly documented according to the approved system and that footnotes are well used and accurate.
You can read your research several times so that each time you aim to focus on one of the audit’s mentioned above, you can avoid as many errors in the research as possible.
Thus, we find that the impossible task of writing the research is no longer impossible. After dividing it into small, organized steps and completing each step to the end before moving on to the next step, the process becomes easier and more achievable.
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