1 What is a Research Paper?
How to Use This Guide
Overview: What is a Research Paper
Learning, Thinking, and Research Papers
The Evidence
Facts
Inferences
Judgments
Evaluating the Evidence
Sources of Evidence and Types of Research Projects
Summary
2 Where do I Begin?
Step 1 The Researcher's Notebook
Step 2 Deciding on the Research Question/Assumption That You Are Going to Test
Step 3 Formulating Your Research Question/Assumption
Step 4 Formulating Your Working Hypothesis/Thesis
Strategy 1 Discovering Assumptions About Your Area of Investigation
Strategy 2 Turning Judgmental Statements Into Inferences
Strategy 3 Defining Your Terms
Step 5 Choosing Your Research Strategy--Research Questions
A Few More Words About Research Projects and Testing
Studies and Experiments
A Review or a Review of the Literature Paper
Critical Papers
A Research Proposal
A Final Note
Planning Ahead: Developing a Work Schedule
3 Finding the Evidence
The Researcher's Stance
Sources and Resources
Sources: Where Do I Find What I Need to Know?
Authoritative Sources
Resources
The Research Process
What to Expect and How to Manage
Bibliographic "Filing" Systems
Searching for Potential Sources
Know Your Database
Searches by Subject and Keyword
What Your Search Will Produce
Locating Print Sources
Evaluating Online Sources
Information to Record About Electronic Sources
Summary
4 Reading Critically and Taking Notes
Reading Actively and Critically: An Overview
Previewing Your Sources
Determining the Quality of Your Sources
Deciding What to Read First
Coping With Difficult Material
Reading to Understand What an Author Is Doing and Saying
Questions to Ask About What an Author Is Doing
Questions To Ask About What An Author Is Saying
Writing To Comprehend What You Are Reading
Critiquing Your Sources
Keeping Track of Sources
Creating Files and a Cataloging System
Creating a Working Bibliography
Writing Summaries (with a Few Words about Annotated Bibliographies)
Recording Specific Pieces of Information
Facts or Data
Specifics about the Author's Views
Dealing with Material an Author Has Taken from Other Sources
Summary
5 Writing Your Paper
The Writing Process: An Overview
Writing for Readers
Working from Whole to Part
Maps of the Territory
Writing an Abstract: Your First Rough Draft
Reviewing Your Evidence
A Report on a Study or Experiment
General Format
The First Section: Introduction, review of the Literature, Statement of the Hypothesis
The Second Section: A Description of Your Study, Including Data and Methodology
The Third Section: Results, Discussion, Conclusions
Appendixes and Reference List
The Abstract
General Guidelines For Writing the Report
A Review or a Review of the Literature Paper
A Critical Paper
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Writing An Abstract of Your Paper: your Fist Draft
Creating a Map of the Territory
Drafting and Revising
May I Use The First Person in My Paper?
And Other Issues Related to Style
Summary
6 How To And How Not To Incorporate Your Evidence Into Your Paper
If You Don't Use and Acknowledge Your Sources Properly, You May End Up Plagiarizing
What Plagiarism Is
Common Sources of Unintentional Plagiarism
Using and Acknowledging Your Sources Properly
Use What You Need Where You Need It--And Document What you Have Used
Using Discrete Pieces of Information
Summarizing the Work of Others
Experts Openly Acknowledge Their Sources In The Body of Their Papers, So Should You
Summarizing The Work and Ideas of Another Expert: How Experienced Writers Do It
Using Direct Quotations Properly
7 Polishing Your Final Draft
Copyediting and Proofreading: Some Strategies
Copyediting and Proofreading: Issues to Consider
The Format of the Paper
8 Documenting Your Sources: The Basics
Choosing a Documentation Style
Understanding Documentation Systems and Styles
The Two Basic Premises of Documentation
Basic Systems and Styles of Documentation
Systems of Documentation
Numbers
In- text or Parenthetical Citations
Styles of Documentation
What You Need To Know About Style Guides and Manuals
What you Need to Know About Authors
Authors
Titles
Documenting Parts of Books
Documenting Books
Documenting Periodicals
Documenting Material Downloaded from Computers
Documenting Other Types of Sources
When It's Time to Document Sources in a Paper
The Steps to Take
Putting Together Your Final List
Some General Comments on In-text pr Parenthetical Citations
Some General Comments About Explanatory Notes
Appendix A The MLA Style
How the MLA Style Works
Parenthetical Citations
The Basic Form
Placement of Citations
Variations of the Best Form
Forms for Sources on the List of Works Cited
Books
Part of a Book, Including Reference Works
Articles from Journals and Magazines
Articles from Newspapers
Web Sites and other Electronic Sources
Other Types of Sources
The Final List of Works Cited, including a Sample
Appendix B CMS Notes and Bibliography Style
How the CMS Notes and Bibliography Style Works
Notes
Basic Information About Notes
First and Subsequent Notes
Forms for Subsequent Notes
Forms for Sources in First Notes and Bibliography
Differences between First Notes and the Bibliography Entry
Books
Part of a Book, Including Reference Works
Articles from Journals and Magazines
Articles from Newspapers
Web Sites and other Electronic Sources
The Final Bibliography, Including a Sample
Appendix C The APA Style
How the APA Style Works
In-Text Reference Citations
The Basic Form
Variations of the Basic Form
Forms for Sources on the Reference List
Books
Part of a Book, Including Reference Works
Articles From Journals and Magazines Articles From Newspapers
Web Sites and Other Electronic Sources
The Final Reference List, Including a Sample
Appendix D Scientific Styles: The CMS Author-Date Style and Two Systems in CSE Style
A General Introduction
The CMS Author-Date Style
How the CMS Author-Date Style Works
Text Citations
Basic Form
Variations of the Basic Form
Forms for Sources on the Reference List
Books
Part of a Book, Including Reference Works
Articles from Journals and Magazines
Web Sites and Other Electronic Sources
The Final Reference List, including a Sample
CSE Systems: Name-Year and Citation- Sequence
How the CSE Systems Work
In-text Citations
The Name-Year System
Basic Form
Variations of the Basic Form
The Citation-Sequence System
Forms of Sources on the Reference List
Books
Part of a Book, Including Reference Work
Articles from Journals and Magazine
Articles from Newspapers
Web Sites and Other Electronic Sources
The Final Reference List, Including Samples for Both Systems
Appendix E Interviews
Determining What You Need
Preparing for the Interview
Educating Yourself about the Subject Matter of the Interview
Preparing an Interview Script
Pilot Testing the Interview
Contacting Potential Interviewees
The Interview Itself
Writing Up the Interview
Sample Student Papers
"Willa Cather: Challenging the Canon." MLA Style Jen Welsh
Elizabeth Cookson
"The Forgotten Woman: British Nurses, VADs, and Doctors Across the Channel During Word War I."CMS Notes and Bibliography Style
Nicholas Joyce
"A Paradigm of Social Sorting Rituals: Differences Between Leaders and Outcasts." ALA Style
Mary Bricker
"An Investigation of Human Diving: How DO the AMA Avoid Decompression Sickness?" CSE Name-Year Style