Writing the Research Paper

1: TITLE

Compare the following, which do you think is a better title?

A Study of the Effect of Fluoride Varnish and Fissure Sealant in Reducing Caries in Children.

Fluoride Varnish or Fissure Sealant? A Randomized Trial of Relative Effectiveness for preventing caries in permanent teeth of children.

Hopefully, you said B!

Think of the title as the “billboard” of your research paper. If you don’t have a well-structured title, do you think it will encourage readers to give your paper a read? Can your paper gain enough exposure for it to produce an impact? Or worse, can people even search for it using databases? The title seems like a small part of your paper, but it is actually the single most important line of your entire article. If it fails to connect the paper to potential readers, then the results will be useless no matter how well-written they are. An effective title needs to exhibit the following features (23, 24) : 

 
 

Elements to consider in your title includes:

 
 

2: Structured abstract

Think of this as the “trailer” for your research paper. This is a precise, short, and structured summary of your research paper content. The structured abstract is used to provide rapid comprehension for readers, enhance computerized literature searching, assist others in the selection of clinically and methodologically valid research, and also facilitate the peer-review process.24 To do this, you will need to include 5 distinct, labelled sections, which are (23, 24):

  • Introduction

  • Problem statement

  • Methods

  • Results

  • Conclusion

Note:

Problem statement may not be mandatory to be included. In dental context, it is not necessary to include this section unless it is suitable.

3: Introduction

Think of this as your “sales pitch”. You want to use this section to convince the readers why your work is important in advancing that particular field of study and to provide a context to your research paper. The overall goal here is to spark interest, signal the elements of your research, and highlight the novelty of your research (23, 24). As with anything else, you want to grab your readers’ attention and make sure they truly understand your research, which is why it cannot be written haphazardly. Instead, it needs to be structured and presented concisely using a general-to-specific approach, explaining the nature of your current research like peeling off the layers of an onion.

The following simple steps will help you structure your introduction (23) :

 
 

Tips for introduction (23, 24) : 

  • Be concise! You don’t want to be reviewing the entire history of the subject and bore the readers off with too much unnecessary information.

  • Include relevant and important citations from your literature review. You don’t want to be randomly citing sources. Instead, limit it to those that relate directly to your present study. 

  • Ensure a logical flow. Keep your introduction separate from other sections of your paper such as your results and discussion.

  • Define any jargon and non-standard abbreviation. 

4: Methods and Materials

Think of this as the “Behind the scene” of your research. In this section, you need to describe the experimental design and procedures as detailed and explicit as possible. But how much detail is considered detailed enough? Your ultimate goal is to allow other researchers to be able to evaluate and reproduce your work. 

One rule of thumb is to imagine you are sharing a recipe for a dish and the other person should be able to replicate that dish by reading your recipe. Therefore, the description should be meticulous and accurate. 

To illustrate this, compare the following, which description do you think is better?

A. Pit & Fissure Sealant will be applied onto the tooth surface and assessed periodically.

B. UltraProtect Light Curing Opaque Pit & Fissure Sealant (BrandXXX Ltd, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) will be applied topically as a thin layer to the occlusal surface of eligible first permanent molars by qualified dental hygienist within 2 weeks of the baseline dental examination and re-examined at 6, 12, 18, 24 and 30 months.

Hopefully, you said B!

With that in mind, details to include in Methods and Materials are (24) :

  • Target population

  • Inclusion and exclusion criteria

  • Sample size calculation

  • Sampling method and sample origin

  • Procedures of conducting the study (with appropriate referencing)

  • Equipment, its use and source

  • Measurement units

  • Data collection protocol

  • Data analysis technique

  • Statistical tests

  • Approaches to ensure validity and reliability

  • Assumptions

  • Time frame

Tips for Materials and Methods (23) : 

  • Avoid changing the ‘point of view’ within the same paragraph and if possible, use passive voice. This helps improve coherence and the fluency of paragraph

  • Ask your colleague for feedback to see whether they understand your experiment. This will help identify any missing detail for the experiment.

  • Provide citations and references if the method was previously published or if you are referring to any previous work when designing the research.

5: Results

Here is where you will be communicating the data and observations from your research to the readers. This section not only represents the heart of the experiment but also your hard work over the entire research journey. If the readers are interested in your research, they are interested in knowing your results! 

By using a combination of illustrative materials and text, your goal is to present your key findings objectively in a logical and orderly flow, ensuring that it is comprehensible to readers. (23)

 

Note:
You will only be reporting the data and not interpreting it, which will be done in the discussion section.

So, what is the best way to present your data in a way that makes the reader understand it?

  • To ensure a logical sequence, start with results that are easier to understand. (23)

  • Include summarized data, not raw data.

An analogy is that you are presenting ‘distilled’ data rather than ‘diluted’ data. You should include only experimental details that are essential for readers to understand the findings. This not only helps create a comprehensive and supported argument for the research but also omits excessive experimental details that could distract and confuse readers. Having said that, this is different from data manipulation which is the willful distortion of data and results!

A. Visuals (tables and figures) and text. (24)

Using visuals such as tables and figures will help provide an illustrative description of the subject of matter. You should choose the one that can communicate the data most efficiently. In cases where the visuals that you made are extremely simple, consider summarizing them using text instead. Each visual needs to have the following components:

  • Legend/caption to describe information presented. Captions should be able to stand alone, meaning they can help readers understand graphics without the need to read the entire paper. (Example: Table 1. DMFT of patients)

  • Numbered accordingly (Example: Figure 1, Figure 2)

     B.  Data commentary (23)

Provide a summary of the data presented in graphics. Instead of repeating the data, aim to draw attention to important findings or trends in the data. You should also refer the readers to the corresponding visuals.

     C.  Include statistical tests used with relevant parameters.

6: Discussion and conclusion

This is where you “sell” your data. Your mission here is to create a comprehensive interpretation of your results, highlight their importance, and place your findings in the research context. Basically, you are asking yourself, “What do my results mean?”. 

Note:  Depending on the journal of publication you are going for, “Conclusion” can either be included as part of the “Discussion” section or as a separate section on its own. In this guide, they are discussed together. The same goes with “Limitation”. 

Your writing style here should convey clarity and confidence. Therefore, first-person pronouns and active voice are preferred. Every research has its own results and findings, so the “Discussion” section differs in structure for every research. However, there are certain principles that you can follow that will help you structure your paper. (23, 24)

  1. Start with your major findings.

Do not repeat your data. Instead, pull the readers’ attention towards the study’s major findings that answer the research question. You should also emphasize new findings and conclusions drawn from the current study. 

To do this, you can use phrases such as :
“Our study demonstrates…”
“Our results suggest…”
“The current findings revealed that…”
“The present study showed that…”

This should then be followed by an explanation of the findings’ meaning and importance. Furthermore, you should also consider alternative explanations for those findings. This will help address potential doubts and demonstrate that the researchers are proactive in their thinking approach

2. Zoom out to the research context

This step is to demonstrate how your findings fit into the general picture and how they contribute to the existing body of knowledge. Here, you can relate and contrast your findings with other relevant published results, even those that are not consistent with your research. You should explain any discrepancies and unexpected findings. To add modesty to your tone, you should also outline the limitations, weaknesses, recommendations and assumptions of your research. Following this, try to suggest feasible explanations and solutions to those points stated.

3.  Conclusion/ Closing the paper

Finally, provide a “take-home message” for the readers. To do this, reiterate your answers to the research question and also indicate practical applications of your work. You should highlight the implications of the findings and implications for future research. If appropriate, also provide advice, recommendations and suggestions for future experiments that can be built on your work.

7: Roles of team members and authorship

Similar to the “Research proposal” section, this is where you clearly identify the team leader (aka principal investigator), researcher (s), and any other individuals that are involved in conducting the research such as support staff and contract staff. Their respective roles, authorship and co-authorship need to be clearly defined as well.

8: Acknowledgement

Use this section to acknowledge anyone who has assisted you with your research, including:

  • Advisors

  • Supervisors

  • Financial supporters

  • Suppliers

  • Proofreaders

9. References

Remember to check and use the appropriate referencing format that is required by your institution/journal. Some useful applications that aid in managing references include EndNote and Mendeley.

Take note of the format that would vary according to the source of reference. Here are some examples for each of them.

For APA style,

[ Website citation ]

Ismail, W. S. bt. W. (2020, February 19). Denture. PORTAL MyHEALTH. Retrieved from

http://www.myhealth.gov.my/en/denture/

[ Book ]

Venkatesh, D. & Sudhakar, H.H. (2013). Basics of Medical Physiology (3rd ed.). New Delhi: Wolters Kluwer

[ Journal article ]

Mitchell, J.A. (2017). Citation: Why is it so important. Mendeley Journal, 67(2), 81-95

For Harvard style,

[ Website citation ]

Ismail, W.S. bt W. (2011). Denture. [online] PORTAL MyHEALTH. Available at:

http://www.myhealth.gov.my/en/denture/ [Accessed 2 Jul. 2022].

[ Book ]

Venkatesh, D. and Sudhakar, H.H. (2013) Basics of Medical Physiology.3rd edn. New Delhi: Wolters Kluwer

[ Journal article ]

Mitchell, J.A. 'How citation changed the research world', The Mendeley, 62(9), p70-81.

For Vancouver style,

[ Website citation ]

Cancer-Pain.org [Internet]. New York: Association of Cancer Online Resources, Inc.; c2000-01 [updated 2002

May 16; cited 2022 Jul 1]. Available from: https://www.cancer-pain.org/.

[ Book ]

Venkatesh D, Sudhakar HH. Basics of Medical Physiology. 3rd ed. New Delhi: Wolters Kluwer; 2013. 281 p.

[ Journal article ]

Petitti DB, Crooks VC, Buckwalter JG, Chiu V. Blood pressure levels before dementia. Arch Neurol. 2005

Jan;62(1):112-6.

Refer links below to learn more about different styles

APA                  : https://www.mendeley.com/guides/apa-citation-guide/ 
Harvard           : https://www.mendeley.com/guides/harvard-citation-guide/
Vancouver       : https://guides.lib.monash.edu/citing-referencing/vancouver