How to Start a Research Paper: Easy Guide for Students

Writing a research paper intro may be compared to feeling at the bottom of a mountain with no clue on how one is going to get to the top. But do not worry, it is as easy as it has been described above, or at least even that. This way the process of how to start a research paper can be made quite simple and can even turn into something that people like doing.

A research paper, on the other hand, is a comprehensive analysis of a subject in which one educates other people. That’s like being a detective; looking for clues and piecing them to come up with a single picture. Here, you will find the detailed description of each of the steps of how to start a research paper, so you can start preparing for writing the great paper right now.

A research paper is actually, a big school work where one gets to investigate on something with a purpose of passing the findings. You begin with something which attracts you and go through other things so as to gain knowledge. Then you describe in layman language what you have just found out all in an article form.

In a research paper, you go through books, articles and any other source so as to get factual information. This way the information you get is credible and from the right sources. Ponder it as a reporter who has to get the story okay.

There is always the need to state why your topic of research is important in the development of a research paper. This assists the readers to be informed on how to start a research paper and why they should have interest on what you have written. It is not only about enlisting data but also about establishing its relevance.

Last but not least, a research paper encloses the author’s ideas and attitudes toward the subject. Once you get all the data you organize it, interpret it and then present it. This makes your paper unique and interesting to read as it is important to note that there are many research papers being written out there and always seeking to stand out from the rest of the crowd is very important.

A research paper as discussed is a paramount instrument in enhancing our knowledge through provision of new information or ideas in the society. The particularised kind enables one to examine some areas in detail and pass the information to other people. Here are a few reasons why research papers matter:Here are a few reasons why research papers matter:

• Learning and Discovery: Research papers are a tool to expand the research topics and discover new information about them. Whether student want to learn about a history topic or deepen their knowledge about a piece of science, a research paper is beneficial.
• Building Knowledge: It has been already mentioned that by writing a research paper, you add to the body of knowledge. Your results can contribute to what other people have stated before you and further the knowledge and benefit of other consequent researchers.
• Developing Critical Thinking: Research papers entail a person to sift through information and determine what conclusions can be made for oneself. Doing this makes you more capable of analyzing data which is very important whether you continue with academics or not.
• Communication Skills: This can be summarized as laying down the ideas in your mind and putting them professionally in writing. It enhances the general communication skills that can be applied in various occasions, it can be used in presentations in academic institutions, or in even in preparing formal reports at workplaces.
• Preparing for the Future: Research papers help you to deal with future academic and professional activities. From them you learn how to operate as a researcher, discern credible source, and learn how to sell your ideas – essentials for university and the workplace.

Every research paper is respectable, knowing their value, we engage them with focus and concern that our input in enlarging the knowledge base is productive.

Perhaps nothing is as daunting as beginning a research paper, but when put into steps, it is quite easy. First, decide on the topic you care about and that you think would be engaging to you. Be careful not to choose a topic that is too broad or too narrow, so that there is enough material that one can write about.

Thereafter, a few steps are taken to make some preliminary search in order to know what others have already done. This assists you to know which areas have not had ample information produced on them and which your paper can help to address. When reporting on your information, make sure you employ scholarly articles and books as your references to begin how to start a research paper.

One of the important steps in the work on the paper is the selection of the topic. Choose something which you think would be useful and fun to do because the process of doing research and writing would become much easier. Your topic should be targeted yet generic so that you can easily get enough resources to write about.

For example, instead of claiming that ‘climate change is a reality’ you can write ‘polar bears in the Arctic have been affected by climate change.’ Such a subject is interesting and permits extensive investigation.

Points to consider:

• Interest: Select a subject that you have an interest in.
• Specificity: Do not start with a broad topic to cover large areas of research; rather, choose and area and focus more on it.
• Resources: It is also important that there should be sufficient supply of sources.
• Relevance: Select one that you are interested in or relates to the area of study that you are undertaking.

It also matters to carry out an initial search prior to extensively wading into the area of your paper. This first step enables you to discover the views other people have about your topic and which areas you can fill with your paper. The first approach is; a literature search on databases and libraries.

For instance, when the topic involves a subject such as “the impact of social media on mental health”, start by sampling current literature pieces on the issue. Search for the certain results, the methods applied and further research opportunities.

Points to consider:

• Explore Academic Databases: Recommended sources are such databases as PubMed, JSTOR, or IEEE XPLORE.
• Keyword Search: Search with specific keywords to get hold of information on the areas of your interest.
• Identify Gaps: Identify gaps where literature can still afford to be scanty.
• Take Notes: Make notes of the important things that have been discovered and the bibliographic details that would be used for other purposes in future.

One of the most important steps in any research work is the formulation of a ask which will define the scope of your work. It is one thing to have a well defined question that will guide the research but it also has the advantage of helping in formulating the papers. Start by asking yourself essential questions related to your topic:Start by asking yourself essential questions related to your topic:

• Why is this topic important or relevant?
• What is my research objective or goal?
• What existing knowledge exists on the topic?
• Are there any gaps or controversies in the literature?
• What methodology will I employ to investigate this topic?

For example, if you are researching “the impact of technology on student learning outcomes,” your research question could guide your investigation. This is a critical part of learning how to start a research paper.

Thus, formulating the specific research question will help you to focus your literature review in order to find adequate data in support of your thesis. It useful in creating a background that will guide the remaining of the research paper to avoid a lot of confusion once the writing process is initiated.

Hypothesis development is very important in the course of the research since it gives a probationary answer to the research question that has been developed. A well-developed hypothesis should be:A well-developed hypothesis should be:

• Debatable Nature: It should formulate a hypothesis that can be challenged or supported by carrying out a research.
• Grounded in Evidence: This should entail borrowing of hypothesis from literature work and other research articles that relate to your area of study.
• Aligned with Research Question: Some of the key considerations that you should make when developing your hypothesis include;

For example, based on the research question “How does regular exercise impact academic performance in college students?”, a hypothesis could be: The study revealed that exercising increases the brain’s abilities to perform better academically, hence improving student performance. This step is crucial in the process of how to start a research paper.

• Identify Variables: In your hypothesis, ensure that the independent and dependent variables are identified in a bid to have causality.
• Establish Directionality: Theoretical framework and prior research findings should be explained in order to identify the expected direction of the variable relationship (positive, negative, none).

Forming a hypothesis also assists guides the research study and acts as a framework via which the outcomes of the study will be examined. This is where you carry out initial testing of your ideas and produced new information to the discipline you specialize in.

Making an outline is an essential part of how to start a research paper as it helps you structure your ideas and ensures that you stay on topic. Here’s how to make an effective outline:

• Divide Your Paper: Break your paper into sections, such as introduction, literature review, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion. Each section should cover an aspect of your study when starting how to start a research paper.
• Outline Key Points: Write down the major points you want to discuss in each section. This keeps you organized and ensures that all essential material is included while working on how to start a research paper.

For example, if your research paper is about “the impact of social media on adolescent mental health,” your outline could include:For example, if your research paper is about “the impact of social media on adolescent mental health,” your outline could include:

• Introduction: Introduction to the topic of the study and formulation of the research question.
• Literature Review: Literature survey concerning the relationship between social media and mental health.
• Methodology: Explanations for the methods of research and ways of data collection.
• Results: Presentation of your research finding is the other factor that is important when undertaking the research.
• Discussion: Discussing the findings and their application for the future research in the field of migrant’s integration into the society.
• Conclusion: Main conclusions and recommendations.

Outlining your research paper will therefore help you to arrange ideas in a coherent manner, and attain flow from one section of the paper to the next. This further enables readers to move through the paper with a lot of ease and easily appreciate the flow of your arguments and feats.

Collection of reference materials must be done carefully since you will be using them to support your research paper. Here’s how you can effectively gather sources:Here’s how you can effectively gather sources:

• Use Academic Databases: You can search out scholarly articles and research papers in such databases as PubMed, Jstor or IEEE Xplore to find material on your topic which is relevant to research studies. These databases ensure that all the sources that is used is reputable and therefor reliable.
• Explore Various Formats: Searching in books, articles, conference papers, and other formats should also be prioritized as well as searching in the credible Websites. It each format contain more information and perspective in which enhance the research study.

For example, if your subject is ‘‘the impact of artificial intelligence in healthcare,’’ ensure you collect sources that discuss recent developments, pros and cons, and the usage of artificial intelligence. These efforts are key to mastering how to start a research paper.

When working on how to start a research paper, it is essential to thoroughly understand the guidelines set by your instructor or the journal to which you’re submitting. Guidelines may include citation styles (APA, MLA), page numbers, and formatting rules. These are important aspects of mastering how to start a research paper.

Here’s an example: When writing a title page in APA, the running head and the page numbers are required if the instructor has advised to follow APA. In MLA, the title page has a somewhat different appearance: students’ full name, the instructor’s name, and the name of the course are all placed in the center of the page. Recognising such subtle distinctions is important. This way, the rules described above can make your paper look more professional and, therefore, structured.

The introduction is the first area of the paper that the reader will read, and it’s crucial to know how to start a research paper with a strong introduction. Begin by naming the topic being discussed and present it in the clearest and most engaging way possible. This initial part sets the tone for the rest of your paper, making it a key aspect of how to start a research paper.

Provide some basic context to help the reader understand your topic of focus. Explain why your research is important and what problem it addresses. Then, clearly express your thesis statement—this will be your central argument, and understanding how to start a research paper with a strong thesis helps guide the rest of your work.

Whenever one begins an introduction, he or she should make sure the reader has a clear picture of what you are going to present in you research paper. Pretend you are explaining your topic to a fifth-grader; avoid complex and compound language to explain what your topic is about. Do not use technical terms and complicated terminologies. Thus it is easier for everyone to grasp. For instance, in case your topic is on the impacts of pollution on marine animals you could begin with statements like ‘this paper will seek to explain how pollution aents the lives of marine animals in our seas’.

An interesting introduction is the one which contains a fact or a question that is surprising to the reader. For example, you could use phrases such as ‘For instance’, ‘For example, ‘To illustrate’, ‘In each case’, ‘In this instance’ Some examples are ‘Did you know that over 1 million seabirds die each year from plastic pollution?’ You can also begin with a question such as ‘How does pollution affect marine life’ This makes the reader open the flood gates and prepare him/her for the research.

Besides, it is necessary to define briefly what is going to be discussed in your paper. For instance, you may list the ideas you will be reading, for instance, the kinds of pollution, impact on different marine animals, and ways of solving the problem. It informs your readers of what you are going to discuss and aides them in read and following your flow of thoughts.

After presenting the topic you need to provide some context information When a person has presented his/her topic, they have to give some background information. This makes your readers appreciate the background of your research and relate it a certain manner. Before presenting the sample, introduce any terminologies which are important for the understanding of the topic in question. For instance, if you are doing a composition on climate change, you might have to write about what greenhouse gases entail.

Further on, you should also give general information about the research or literature review on the topic that you have chosen. Online writing has become inevitable and hence this confirms that you have done your best basic foundation. For example, you may reference other research works on studies done regarding effects of pollution that affect the sea animals, potential discoveries or deficiencies that your research will try to address.

If there is some history to the situation, it can also be useful to mention that. For instance, the topic could be how pollution has evolved over some time and to what effects. This can also orally explain to the readers the relevance of your research in order that they get a broad perspective of the research topic.

Last but not the least, always bear in mind not to pack too much information to your article as it creates a negative impact towards the readers. Your background section must be brief and should aim at creating the research question. This will assist in eliminating or reducing long and complicated sentences that may make your paper very much congested and difficult to comprehend.

Often, writing the significance of your research assists your readers to know why they need to pay attention to your subject area. Begin by setting the context on what your research is all about can be achieved by answering broad questions. For instance, if you are writing a paper on pollution and its impact on the marine life you may want to highlight how this issue affects the environment and human beings and the economy.

After that, it is necessary to reveal any of the existing research studies’ shortcomings that your paper will address. For example, if previous studies have targeted only fish and their implications in relation to the pollution by plastics you may state that your study will also cover seabirds and other sea creatures. This will demonstrate that your work is filled a gap by contributing to the body of knowledge in the field.

You will also state any applied feature of your research that is possible. For instance, your results might be used in the development of legislations and standards to control emissions or in conserving the ocean and aquatic lives. This makes your research to appear more useful to a broader range of audience such as the policy makers, the advocates of ecological concerns and the common population.

Thus, by providing the focus of your study, you also make it possible for your readers to appreciate why your research is important in the field. This can make them get more involved and call for more content from you and thus make them read more.

Main arguments should be formally introduced in the beginning part of the work, where the reader is introduced to the topic of the discussion, as well. It should be clear and unambiguous, and should identify the thesis in relation to your study, which may be a statement of the problem or the question being addressed by the research paper. Here’s a checklist to ensure your thesis statement is effective:Here’s a checklist to ensure your thesis statement is effective:

• Assertive: Stand I know your position you have to state it on confident way.
• Example: This paper aims at proving that plastic waste disposal need s to be more regulated to save the aquatic life.
• Specific: At this point, make sure that the reader knows what you are going to cover in your paper.
• Example: ‘The impact of plastic and marine debris on local fisheries and fish populations in the Pacific Ocean: A case study analysis’.
• Debatable: You want your thesis to boil down to a statement that an antagonist can give a speech on or debate.
• Example: This paper will as well refute the view that holds that climate change is due to natural causes since human beings make a great contribution to global warming.
• Relevant: Make certain that an issue or problem exists in your field which your thesis seeks to solve.
• Example: One of the branches of knowledge which is worth studying is the effect of deforestation on the species richness.
• Supported: It is notable that your thesis should be backed with evidence and research work that you will be delivering in your body part of the paper.
• Example: Some of the outcomes of the most recent researches done provide substantial proof that air pollution has a causative relationship with respiratory diseases.

With such guidelines, your readers will be cautiously guided through the remaining part of your research paper, by your thesis statement of what you intend to argue and conclude on.

The title page of your research paper involves the creation of the first impression about the work. Correct formatting helps avoid the appearance of carelessness, and allow your work to fit easily into the requirements of academic writing. Each style has its own specific requirements, for instance, MLA and APA, concerning the title page.

When you are writing MLA style, Formatting your MLA title page is very important so as to produce professional looking research paper. Follow these steps:

• Double Space: The whole title page must be typed spaciously, preferably double space.
• Center the Text: All the text that is written should be aligned toward the center of the page.
• University Name: It is advisable to begin by writing on the header of the page the name of the University or the College which you are studying from.
• Title and Subtitle: Go down approximately one third of the page and write your research paper title. If you have a subtitle, use it also for your title.
• Personal Information: Go down to the next blank line and tab over and put your name, the name of your course along with the number, your instructor’s name, and the date you need to turn in your paper.

By reading through the above guidelines you will be in a position to format your MLA title page, to meet the standard.

Apart from the information that was mentioned above, the APA title page has its own format requirements. Here’s how to do it:Here’s how to do it:

• Running Head: On the top of the page, provide a running head. Start with the label “Running head:>” followed by a shorter title in the upper case letters written at the left side of the page.
• Page Number: Put the page number at the header bar on the right side of the header section.
• Title: Place your title of the paper in the middle of the first page and you have to capitalize the first letter of the major words.
• Author’s Name: Place your typed full name right at the bottom of the page and leave a full blank line before typing it.
• Institutional Affiliation: On the line following your name, write the name of the university or college as you want it to appear on your paper, again double-space this line.

Applying these suggestions will assist you to prepare the APA title page right.

A good research paper introduction always gives the readers the background on which your research paper will lay down on. Here is an example of how to start your research paper effectively:Here is an example of how to start your research paper effectively:

Introduction Example

Topic:  The Impact of Social Media on Teen Mental Health

Hence the social site such as facebook, Instagram, twitter, have become almost a part and parcel of teenager in this world. They provide the scope for interaction and self-promotion but at the same time are highly detrimental to mental well-being. Modern research indicates that there is increased rate of anxiety, depression as well as loneliness among teenagers who are active users of social networks. To be able to come up with ways through which the adverse effects brought about by social media on teenagers can be reduced, it is important to understand the effects it has on the mental health of teenagers.

This research paper will therefore find out how internet and specifically but not limited to social networks affect teenage distress. Using the current empirical research and conduction of a new survey, the goals of this study are to determine the factors leading to mental health issues and to review the potential solutions. The objective is to come up with findings that will assist parents, teachers, and other policy makers to promote healthier social media use among teenagers.

Picking a topic, outlining, writing, editing, and formatting a research paper might not be an easy task but using the last tips outlined below, it is easy to complete the paper. The first personal tip to sustaining growth strategies is a good time management. Divide each problem among some sections and try to assign some time limits for each part of your paper. It will also ensure you do not get pressured by time hence doing your research and revisions in ample time.

Second, stay organized. Make all notes, all information you have gathered, and all drafts in one compartment only. Organize your information either in folders, or in digital tools according to the topic, or part of the newspaper. It will also help in quick reference when writing, and also helps your work to appear sequential to the reader. When one is stiff on certain organizational routines and time schedules, then stress is minimized and the quality of the research paper is enhanced.

A proofreading is actually an important process that should be followed while writing a research paper. It helps you to produce error-free work which can minimize misunderstanding of ideas to other people. Read your paper from top to bottom one time over very, very carefully with a pen in your hand, and only marking down typo’s grammatical misses, and/or punctuation mistakes. In particular, focus on the misuse of some words and make sure that the sentences that you have written are free from petty mistakes.

Lastly, it is also recommended that one get someone else to read through the paper. It is always good to have a different opinion or perspective which can spot the error that one might not see and also critiques the organization of the work. Emploything such as spell check but do not depend on them because they sometimes ignore words that are spelled wrong in certain context. Proofreading will assist in coming up with a perfect paper that would be devoid of these common mistakes.

In a research paper internal and external readability should be free from complex writing and jargons. Knowing that it makes your ideas simple to comprehend and makes your readers relate well with what you express. They include the following; Technical Writing – this is the use of simple and accurate language to convey information that would otherwise be complex. It is recommended not to use many and long words and specific terms that may confuse a reader.

Wu’s (2012) paper also shows that excessive use of complex terms makes writing less effective, through poor results in the readability test, and weakens the work’s reliability and validity. Proofreading helps one to review each word, the correctness of the grammar, and punctuations therefore giving the best output the client expects. This not only makes your paper more reader-friendly but also more persuasively present your findings, about the research you’ve done.

When contributing your research paper, it important that you avail yourself the opportunity to go over your guidelines. Find out about the general guidelines including writing style (APA, MLA and the likes), number of pages, guidelines on citations as well as any other condition that may have been provided by your teacher or the particular publisher.

Make sure your paper adheres to all these features to reduce on the possibility of losing points. Renting your citations and references to make sure that their formatting is valid and proper to the required style. By adhering strictly to these guidelines, you are showing how serious you are about doing a professional job in your writing and in your academic writing particularly.