an example of research article

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Primacy of the research question, structure of the paper, writing a research article: advice to beginners.

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Thomas V. Perneger, Patricia M. Hudelson, Writing a research article: advice to beginners, International Journal for Quality in Health Care , Volume 16, Issue 3, June 2004, Pages 191–192, https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzh053

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Writing research papers does not come naturally to most of us. The typical research paper is a highly codified rhetorical form [ 1 , 2 ]. Knowledge of the rules—some explicit, others implied—goes a long way toward writing a paper that will get accepted in a peer-reviewed journal.

A good research paper addresses a specific research question. The research question—or study objective or main research hypothesis—is the central organizing principle of the paper. Whatever relates to the research question belongs in the paper; the rest doesn’t. This is perhaps obvious when the paper reports on a well planned research project. However, in applied domains such as quality improvement, some papers are written based on projects that were undertaken for operational reasons, and not with the primary aim of producing new knowledge. In such cases, authors should define the main research question a posteriori and design the paper around it.

Generally, only one main research question should be addressed in a paper (secondary but related questions are allowed). If a project allows you to explore several distinct research questions, write several papers. For instance, if you measured the impact of obtaining written consent on patient satisfaction at a specialized clinic using a newly developed questionnaire, you may want to write one paper on the questionnaire development and validation, and another on the impact of the intervention. The idea is not to split results into ‘least publishable units’, a practice that is rightly decried, but rather into ‘optimally publishable units’.

What is a good research question? The key attributes are: (i) specificity; (ii) originality or novelty; and (iii) general relevance to a broad scientific community. The research question should be precise and not merely identify a general area of inquiry. It can often (but not always) be expressed in terms of a possible association between X and Y in a population Z, for example ‘we examined whether providing patients about to be discharged from the hospital with written information about their medications would improve their compliance with the treatment 1 month later’. A study does not necessarily have to break completely new ground, but it should extend previous knowledge in a useful way, or alternatively refute existing knowledge. Finally, the question should be of interest to others who work in the same scientific area. The latter requirement is more challenging for those who work in applied science than for basic scientists. While it may safely be assumed that the human genome is the same worldwide, whether the results of a local quality improvement project have wider relevance requires careful consideration and argument.

Once the research question is clearly defined, writing the paper becomes considerably easier. The paper will ask the question, then answer it. The key to successful scientific writing is getting the structure of the paper right. The basic structure of a typical research paper is the sequence of Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion (sometimes abbreviated as IMRAD). Each section addresses a different objective. The authors state: (i) the problem they intend to address—in other terms, the research question—in the Introduction; (ii) what they did to answer the question in the Methods section; (iii) what they observed in the Results section; and (iv) what they think the results mean in the Discussion.

In turn, each basic section addresses several topics, and may be divided into subsections (Table 1 ). In the Introduction, the authors should explain the rationale and background to the study. What is the research question, and why is it important to ask it? While it is neither necessary nor desirable to provide a full-blown review of the literature as a prelude to the study, it is helpful to situate the study within some larger field of enquiry. The research question should always be spelled out, and not merely left for the reader to guess.

Typical structure of a research paper

The Methods section should provide the readers with sufficient detail about the study methods to be able to reproduce the study if so desired. Thus, this section should be specific, concrete, technical, and fairly detailed. The study setting, the sampling strategy used, instruments, data collection methods, and analysis strategies should be described. In the case of qualitative research studies, it is also useful to tell the reader which research tradition the study utilizes and to link the choice of methodological strategies with the research goals [ 3 ].

The Results section is typically fairly straightforward and factual. All results that relate to the research question should be given in detail, including simple counts and percentages. Resist the temptation to demonstrate analytic ability and the richness of the dataset by providing numerous tables of non-essential results.

The Discussion section allows the most freedom. This is why the Discussion is the most difficult to write, and is often the weakest part of a paper. Structured Discussion sections have been proposed by some journal editors [ 4 ]. While strict adherence to such rules may not be necessary, following a plan such as that proposed in Table 1 may help the novice writer stay on track.

References should be used wisely. Key assertions should be referenced, as well as the methods and instruments used. However, unless the paper is a comprehensive review of a topic, there is no need to be exhaustive. Also, references to unpublished work, to documents in the grey literature (technical reports), or to any source that the reader will have difficulty finding or understanding should be avoided.

Having the structure of the paper in place is a good start. However, there are many details that have to be attended to while writing. An obvious recommendation is to read, and follow, the instructions to authors published by the journal (typically found on the journal’s website). Another concerns non-native writers of English: do have a native speaker edit the manuscript. A paper usually goes through several drafts before it is submitted. When revising a paper, it is useful to keep an eye out for the most common mistakes (Table 2 ). If you avoid all those, your paper should be in good shape.

Common mistakes seen in manuscripts submitted to this journal

Huth EJ . How to Write and Publish Papers in the Medical Sciences , 2nd edition. Baltimore, MD: Williams & Wilkins, 1990 .

Browner WS . Publishing and Presenting Clinical Research . Baltimore, MD: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, 1999 .

Devers KJ , Frankel RM. Getting qualitative research published. Educ Health 2001 ; 14 : 109 –117.

Docherty M , Smith R. The case for structuring the discussion of scientific papers. Br Med J 1999 ; 318 : 1224 –1225.

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Research Paper Examples

Research paper examples are of great value for students who want to complete their assignments timely and efficiently. If you are a student in the university, your first stop in the quest for research paper examples will be the campus library where you can get to view the research sample papers of lecturers and other professionals in diverse fields plus those of fellow students who preceded you in the campus. Many college departments maintain libraries of previous student work, including large research papers, which current students can examine.

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Importance of Research Paper Examples

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A Sample Research Paper on Child Abuse

A research paper represents the pinnacle of academic investigation, a scholarly manuscript that encapsulates a detailed study, analysis, or argument based on extensive independent research. It is an embodiment of the researcher’s ability to synthesize a wealth of information, draw insightful conclusions, and contribute novel perspectives to the existing body of knowledge within a specific field. At its core, a research paper strives to push the boundaries of what is known, challenging existing theories and proposing new insights that could potentially reshape the understanding of a particular subject area.

The objective of writing a research paper is manifold, serving both educational and intellectual pursuits. Primarily, it aims to educate the author, providing a rigorous framework through which they engage deeply with a topic, hone their research and analytical skills, and learn the art of academic writing. Beyond personal growth, the research paper serves the broader academic community by contributing to the collective pool of knowledge, offering fresh perspectives, and stimulating further research. It is a medium through which scholars communicate ideas, findings, and theories, thereby fostering an ongoing dialogue that propels the advancement of science, humanities, and other fields of study.

Research papers can be categorized into various types, each with distinct objectives and methodologies. The most common types include:

• Analytical Research Paper: This type focuses on analyzing different viewpoints represented in the scholarly literature or data. The author critically evaluates and interprets the information, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of the topic.
• Argumentative or Persuasive Research Paper: Here, the author adopts a stance on a contentious issue and argues in favor of their position. The objective is to persuade the reader through evidence and logic that the author’s viewpoint is valid or preferable.
• Experimental Research Paper: Often used in the sciences, this type documents the process, results, and implications of an experiment conducted by the author. It provides a detailed account of the methodology, data collected, analysis performed, and conclusions drawn.
• Survey Research Paper: This involves collecting data from a set of respondents about their opinions, behaviors, or characteristics. The paper analyzes this data to draw conclusions about the population from which the sample was drawn.
• Comparative Research Paper: This type involves comparing and contrasting different theories, policies, or phenomena. The aim is to highlight similarities and differences, thereby gaining a deeper understanding of the subjects under review.
• Cause and Effect Research Paper: It explores the reasons behind specific actions, events, or conditions and the consequences that follow. The goal is to establish a causal relationship between variables.
• Review Research Paper: This paper synthesizes existing research on a particular topic, offering a comprehensive analysis of the literature to identify trends, gaps, and consensus in the field.

Understanding the nuances and objectives of these various types of research papers is crucial for scholars and students alike, as it guides their approach to conducting and writing up their research. Each type demands a unique set of skills and perspectives, pushing the author to think critically and creatively about their subject matter. As the academic landscape continues to evolve, the research paper remains a fundamental tool for disseminating knowledge, encouraging innovation, and fostering a culture of inquiry and exploration.

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Each category of research paper examples provided by iResearchNet serves as a valuable resource for students and researchers seeking to deepen their understanding of a specific field. By offering a comprehensive collection of well-researched and thoughtfully written papers, iResearchNet aims to support academic growth and encourage scholarly inquiry across diverse disciplines.

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To ensure your research paper is of the highest quality and ready for submission, it undergoes a rigorous editor’s check. This final review process includes a thorough examination for any grammatical, punctuation, or spelling errors, as well as a verification that the paper meets all your specified requirements and academic standards. Our editors’ meticulous approach guarantees that your paper is polished, accurate, and exemplary.

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A research paper is an academic piece of writing, so you need to follow all the requirements and standards. Otherwise, it will be impossible to get the high results. To make it easier for you, we have analyzed the structure and peculiarities of a sample research paper on the topic ‘Child Abuse’.

The paper includes 7300+ words, a detailed outline, citations are in APA formatting style, and bibliography with 28 sources.

To write any paper you need to write a great outline. This is the key to a perfect paper. When you organize your paper, it is easier for you to present the ideas logically, without jumping from one thought to another.

In the outline, you need to name all the parts of your paper. That is to say, an introduction, main body, conclusion, bibliography, some papers require abstract and proposal as well.

A good outline will serve as a guide through your paper making it easier for the reader to follow your ideas.

I. Introduction

Ii. estimates of child abuse: methodological limitations, iii. child abuse and neglect: the legalities, iv. corporal punishment versus child abuse, v. child abuse victims: the patterns, vi. child abuse perpetrators: the patterns, vii. explanations for child abuse, viii. consequences of child abuse and neglect, ix. determining abuse: how to tell whether a child is abused or neglected, x. determining abuse: interviewing children, xi. how can society help abused children and abusive families, introduction.

An introduction should include a thesis statement and the main points that you will discuss in the paper.

A thesis statement is one sentence in which you need to show your point of view. You will then develop this point of view through the whole piece of work:

‘The impact of child abuse affects more than one’s childhood, as the psychological and physical injuries often extend well into adulthood.’

Child abuse is a very real and prominent social problem today. The impact of child abuse affects more than one’s childhood, as the psychological and physical injuries often extend well into adulthood. Most children are defenseless against abuse, are dependent on their caretakers, and are unable to protect themselves from these acts.

Childhood serves as the basis for growth, development, and socialization. Throughout adolescence, children are taught how to become productive and positive, functioning members of society. Much of the socializing of children, particularly in their very earliest years, comes at the hands of family members. Unfortunately, the messages conveyed to and the actions against children by their families are not always the positive building blocks for which one would hope.

In 2008, the Children’s Defense Fund reported that each day in America, 2,421 children are confirmed as abused or neglected, 4 children are killed by abuse or neglect, and 78 babies die before their first birthday. These daily estimates translate into tremendous national figures. In 2006, caseworkers substantiated an estimated 905,000 reports of child abuse or neglect. Of these, 64% suffered neglect, 16% were physically abused, 9% were sexually abused, 7% were emotionally or psychologically maltreated, and 2% were medically neglected. In addition, 15% of the victims experienced “other” types of maltreatment such as abandonment, threats of harm to the child, and congenital drug addiction (National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 2006). Obviously, this problem is a substantial one.

In the main body, you dwell upon the topic of your paper. You provide your ideas and support them with evidence. The evidence include all the data and material you have found, analyzed and systematized. You can support your point of view with different statistical data, with surveys, and the results of different experiments. Your task is to show that your idea is right, and make the reader interested in the topic.

In this example, a writer analyzes the issue of child abuse: different statistical data, controversies regarding the topic, examples of the problem and the consequences.

Several issues arise when considering the amount of child abuse that occurs annually in the United States. Child abuse is very hard to estimate because much (or most) of it is not reported. Children who are abused are unlikely to report their victimization because they may not know any better, they still love their abusers and do not want to see them taken away (or do not themselves want to be taken away from their abusers), they have been threatened into not reporting, or they do not know to whom they should report their victimizations. Still further, children may report their abuse only to find the person to whom they report does not believe them or take any action on their behalf. Continuing to muddy the waters, child abuse can be disguised as legitimate injury, particularly because young children are often somewhat uncoordinated and are still learning to accomplish physical tasks, may not know their physical limitations, and are often legitimately injured during regular play. In the end, children rarely report child abuse; most often it is an adult who makes a report based on suspicion (e.g., teacher, counselor, doctor, etc.).

Even when child abuse is reported, social service agents and investigators may not follow up or substantiate reports for a variety of reasons. Parents can pretend, lie, or cover up injuries or stories of how injuries occurred when social service agents come to investigate. Further, there is not always agreement about what should be counted as abuse by service providers and researchers. In addition, social service agencies/agents have huge caseloads and may only be able to deal with the most serious forms of child abuse, leaving the more “minor” forms of abuse unsupervised and unmanaged (and uncounted in the statistical totals).

While most laws about child abuse and neglect fall at the state levels, federal legislation provides a foundation for states by identifying a minimum set of acts and behaviors that define child abuse and neglect. The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), which stems from the Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003, defines child abuse and neglect as, at minimum, “(1) any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation; or (2) an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk or serious harm.”

Using these minimum standards, each state is responsible for providing its own definition of maltreatment within civil and criminal statutes. When defining types of child abuse, many states incorporate similar elements and definitions into their legal statutes. For example, neglect is often defined as failure to provide for a child’s basic needs. Neglect can encompass physical elements (e.g., failure to provide necessary food or shelter, or lack of appropriate supervision), medical elements (e.g., failure to provide necessary medical or mental health treatment), educational elements (e.g., failure to educate a child or attend to special educational needs), and emotional elements (e.g., inattention to a child’s emotional needs, failure to provide psychological care, or permitting the child to use alcohol or other drugs). Failure to meet needs does not always mean a child is neglected, as situations such as poverty, cultural values, and community standards can influence the application of legal statutes. In addition, several states distinguish between failure to provide based on financial inability and failure to provide for no apparent financial reason.

Statutes on physical abuse typically include elements of physical injury (ranging from minor bruises to severe fractures or death) as a result of punching, beating, kicking, biting, shaking, throwing, stabbing, choking, hitting (with a hand, stick, strap, or other object), burning, or otherwise harming a child. Such injury is considered abuse regardless of the intention of the caretaker. In addition, many state statutes include allowing or encouraging another person to physically harm a child (such as noted above) as another form of physical abuse in and of itself. Sexual abuse usually includes activities by a parent or caretaker such as fondling a child’s genitals, penetration, incest, rape, sodomy, indecent exposure, and exploitation through prostitution or the production of pornographic materials.

Finally, emotional or psychological abuse typically is defined as a pattern of behavior that impairs a child’s emotional development or sense of self-worth. This may include constant criticism, threats, or rejection, as well as withholding love, support, or guidance. Emotional abuse is often the most difficult to prove and, therefore, child protective services may not be able to intervene without evidence of harm to the child. Some states suggest that harm may be evidenced by an observable or substantial change in behavior, emotional response, or cognition, or by anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or aggressive behavior. At a practical level, emotional abuse is almost always present when other types of abuse are identified.

Some states include an element of substance abuse in their statutes on child abuse. Circumstances that can be considered substance abuse include (a) the manufacture of a controlled substance in the presence of a child or on the premises occupied by a child (Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Montana, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Virginia); (b) allowing a child to be present where the chemicals or equipment for the manufacture of controlled substances are used (Arizona, New Mexico); (c) selling, distributing, or giving drugs or alcohol to a child (Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, and Texas); (d) use of a controlled substance by a caregiver that impairs the caregiver’s ability to adequately care for the child (Kentucky, New York, Rhode Island, and Texas); and (e) exposure of the child to drug paraphernalia (North Dakota), the criminal sale or distribution of drugs (Montana, Virginia), or drug-related activity (District of Columbia).

One of the most difficult issues with which the U.S. legal system must contend is that of allowing parents the right to use corporal punishment when disciplining a child, while not letting them cross over the line into the realm of child abuse. Some parents may abuse their children under the guise of discipline, and many instances of child abuse arise from angry parents who go too far when disciplining their children with physical punishment. Generally, state statutes use terms such as “reasonable discipline of a minor,” “causes only temporary, short-term pain,” and may cause “the potential for bruising” but not “permanent damage, disability, disfigurement or injury” to the child as ways of indicating the types of discipline behaviors that are legal. However, corporal punishment that is “excessive,” “malicious,” “endangers the bodily safety of,” or is “an intentional infliction of injury” is not allowed under most state statutes (e.g., state of Florida child abuse statute).

Most research finds that the use of physical punishment (most often spanking) is not an effective method of discipline. The literature on this issue tends to find that spanking stops misbehavior, but no more effectively than other firm measures. Further, it seems to hinder rather than improve general compliance/obedience (particularly when the child is not in the presence of the punisher). Researchers have also explained why physical punishment is not any more effective at gaining child compliance than nonviolent forms of discipline. Some of the problems that arise when parents use spanking or other forms of physical punishment include the fact that spanking does not teach what children should do, nor does it provide them with alternative behavior options should the circumstance arise again. Spanking also undermines reasoning, explanation, or other forms of parental instruction because children cannot learn, reason, or problem solve well while experiencing threat, pain, fear, or anger. Further, the use of physical punishment is inconsistent with nonviolent principles, or parental modeling. In addition, the use of spanking chips away at the bonds of affection between parents and children, and tends to induce resentment and fear. Finally, it hinders the development of empathy and compassion in children, and they do not learn to take responsibility for their own behavior (Pitzer, 1997).

One of the biggest problems with the use of corporal punishment is that it can escalate into much more severe forms of violence. Usually, parents spank because they are angry (and somewhat out of control) and they can’t think of other ways to discipline. When parents are acting as a result of emotional triggers, the notion of discipline is lost while punishment and pain become the foci.

In 2006, of the children who were found to be victims of child abuse, nearly 75% of them were first-time victims (or had not come to the attention of authorities prior). A slight majority of child abuse victims were girls—51.5%, compared to 48% of abuse victims being boys. The younger the child, the more at risk he or she is for child abuse and neglect victimization. Specifically, the rate for infants (birth to 1 year old) was approximately 24 per 1,000 children of the same age group. The victimization rate for children 1–3 years old was 14 per 1,000 children of the same age group. The abuse rate for children aged 4– 7 years old declined further to 13 per 1,000 children of the same age group. African American, American Indian, and Alaska Native children, as well as children of multiple races, had the highest rates of victimization. White and Latino children had lower rates, and Asian children had the lowest rates of child abuse and neglect victimization. Regarding living arrangements, nearly 27% of victims were living with a single mother, 20% were living with married parents, while 22% were living with both parents but the marital status was unknown. (This reporting element had nearly 40% missing data, however.) Regarding disability, nearly 8% of child abuse victims had some degree of mental retardation, emotional disturbance, visual or hearing impairment, learning disability, physical disability, behavioral problems, or other medical problems. Unfortunately, data indicate that for many victims, the efforts of the child protection services system were not successful in preventing subsequent victimization. Children who had been prior victims of maltreatment were 96% more likely to experience another occurrence than those who were not prior victims. Further, child victims who were reported to have a disability were 52% more likely to experience recurrence than children without a disability. Finally, the oldest victims (16–21 years of age) were the least likely to experience a recurrence, and were 51% less likely to be victimized again than were infants (younger than age 1) (National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 2006).

Child fatalities are the most tragic consequence of maltreatment. Yet, each year, children die from abuse and neglect. In 2006, an estimated 1,530 children in the United States died due to abuse or neglect. The overall rate of child fatalities was 2 deaths per 100,000 children. More than 40% of child fatalities were attributed to neglect, but physical abuse also was a major contributor. Approximately 78% of the children who died due to child abuse and neglect were younger than 4 years old, and infant boys (younger than 1) had the highest rate of fatalities at 18.5 deaths per 100,000 boys of the same age in the national population. Infant girls had a rate of 14.7 deaths per 100,000 girls of the same age (National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 2006).

One question to be addressed regarding child fatalities is why infants have such a high rate of death when compared to toddlers and adolescents. Children under 1 year old pose an immense amount of responsibility for their caretakers: they are completely dependent and need constant attention. Children this age are needy, impulsive, and not amenable to verbal control or effective communication. This can easily overwhelm vulnerable parents. Another difficulty associated with infants is that they are physically weak and small. Injuries to infants can be fatal, while similar injuries to older children might not be. The most common cause of death in children less than 1 year is cerebral trauma (often the result of shaken-baby syndrome). Exasperated parents can deliver shakes or blows without realizing how little it takes to cause irreparable or fatal damage to an infant. Research informs us that two of the most common triggers for fatal child abuse are crying that will not cease and toileting accidents. Both of these circumstances are common in infants and toddlers whose only means of communication often is crying, and who are limited in mobility and cannot use the toilet. Finally, very young children cannot assist in injury diagnoses. Children who have been injured due to abuse or neglect often cannot communicate to medical professionals about where it hurts, how it hurts, and so forth. Also, nonfatal injuries can turn fatal in the absence of care by neglectful parents or parents who do not want medical professionals to possibly identify an injury as being the result of abuse.

Estimates reveal that nearly 80% of perpetrators of child abuse were parents of the victim. Other relatives accounted for nearly 7%, and unmarried partners of parents made up 4% of perpetrators. Of those perpetrators that were parents, over 90% were biological parents, 4% were stepparents, and 0.7% were adoptive parents. Of this group, approximately 58% of perpetrators were women and 42% were men. Women perpetrators are typically younger than men. The average age for women abusers was 31 years old, while for men the average was 34 years old. Forty percent of women who abused were younger than 30 years of age, compared with 33% of men being under 30. The racial distribution of perpetrators is similar to that of victims. Fifty-four percent were white, 21% were African American, and 20% were Hispanic/Latino (National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 2006).

There are many factors that are associated with child abuse. Some of the more common/well-accepted explanations are individual pathology, parent–child interaction, past abuse in the family (or social learning), situational factors, and cultural support for physical punishment along with a lack of cultural support for helping parents here in the United States.

The first explanation centers on the individual pathology of a parent or caretaker who is abusive. This theory focuses on the idea that people who abuse their children have something wrong with their individual personality or biological makeup. Such psychological pathologies may include having anger control problems; being depressed or having post-partum depression; having a low tolerance for frustration (e.g., children can be extremely frustrating: they don’t always listen; they constantly push the line of how far they can go; and once the line has been established, they are constantly treading on it to make sure it hasn’t moved. They are dependent and self-centered, so caretakers have very little privacy or time to themselves); being rigid (e.g., having no tolerance for differences—for example, what if your son wanted to play with dolls? A rigid father would not let him, laugh at him for wanting to, punish him when he does, etc.); having deficits in empathy (parents who cannot put themselves in the shoes of their children cannot fully understand what their children need emotionally); or being disorganized, inefficient, and ineffectual. (Parents who are unable to manage their own lives are unlikely to be successful at managing the lives of their children, and since many children want and need limits, these parents are unable to set them or adhere to them.)

Biological pathologies that may increase the likelihood of someone becoming a child abuser include having substance abuse or dependence problems, or having persistent or reoccurring physical health problems (especially health problems that can be extremely painful and can cause a person to become more self-absorbed, both qualities that can give rise to a lack of patience, lower frustration tolerance, and increased stress).

The second explanation for child abuse centers on the interaction between the parent and the child, noting that certain types of parents are more likely to abuse, and certain types of children are more likely to be abused, and when these less-skilled parents are coupled with these more difficult children, child abuse is the most likely to occur. Discussion here focuses on what makes a parent less skilled, and what makes a child more difficult. Characteristics of unskilled parents are likely to include such traits as only pointing out what children do wrong and never giving any encouragement for good behavior, and failing to be sensitive to the emotional needs of children. Less skilled parents tend to have unrealistic expectations of children. They may engage in role reversal— where the parents make the child take care of them—and view the parent’s happiness and well-being as the responsibility of the child. Some parents view the parental role as extremely stressful and experience little enjoyment from being a parent. Finally, less-skilled parents tend to have more negative perceptions regarding their child(ren). For example, perhaps the child has a different shade of skin than they expected and this may disappoint or anger them, they may feel the child is being manipulative (long before children have this capability), or they may view the child as the scapegoat for all the parents’ or family’s problems. Theoretically, parents with these characteristics would be more likely to abuse their children, but if they are coupled with having a difficult child, they would be especially likely to be abusive. So, what makes a child more difficult? Certainly, through no fault of their own, children may have characteristics that are associated with child care that is more demanding and difficult than in the “normal” or “average” situation. Such characteristics can include having physical and mental disabilities (autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder [ADHD], hyperactivity, etc.); the child may be colicky, frequently sick, be particularly needy, or cry more often. In addition, some babies are simply unhappier than other babies for reasons that cannot be known. Further, infants are difficult even in the best of circumstances. They are unable to communicate effectively, and they are completely dependent on their caretakers for everything, including eating, diaper changing, moving around, entertainment, and emotional bonding. Again, these types of children, being more difficult, are more likely to be victims of child abuse.

Nonetheless, each of these types of parents and children alone cannot explain the abuse of children, but it is the interaction between them that becomes the key. Unskilled parents may produce children that are happy and not as needy, and even though they are unskilled, they do not abuse because the child takes less effort. At the same time, children who are more difficult may have parents who are skilled and are able to handle and manage the extra effort these children take with aplomb. However, risks for child abuse increase when unskilled parents must contend with difficult children.

Social learning or past abuse in the family is a third common explanation for child abuse. Here, the theory concentrates not only on what children learn when they see or experience violence in their homes, but additionally on what they do not learn as a result of these experiences. Social learning theory in the context of family violence stresses that if children are abused or see abuse (toward siblings or a parent), those interactions and violent family members become the representations and role models for their future familial interactions. In this way, what children learn is just as important as what they do not learn. Children who witness or experience violence may learn that this is the way parents deal with children, or that violence is an acceptable method of child rearing and discipline. They may think when they become parents that “violence worked on me when I was a child, and I turned out fine.” They may learn unhealthy relationship interaction patterns; children may witness the negative interactions of parents and they may learn the maladaptive or violent methods of expressing anger, reacting to stress, or coping with conflict.

What is equally as important, though, is that they are unlikely to learn more acceptable and nonviolent ways of rearing children, interacting with family members, and working out conflict. Here it may happen that an adult who was abused as a child would like to be nonviolent toward his or her own children, but when the chips are down and the child is misbehaving, this abused-child-turned-adult does not have a repertoire of nonviolent strategies to try. This parent is more likely to fall back on what he or she knows as methods of discipline.

Something important to note here is that not all abused children grow up to become abusive adults. Children who break the cycle were often able to establish and maintain one healthy emotional relationship with someone during their childhoods (or period of young adulthood). For instance, they may have received emotional support from a nonabusing parent, or they received social support and had a positive relationship with another adult during their childhood (e.g., teacher, coach, minister, neighbor, etc.). Abused children who participate in therapy during some period of their lives can often break the cycle of violence. In addition, adults who were abused but are able to form an emotionally supportive and satisfying relationship with a mate can make the transition to being nonviolent in their family interactions.

Moving on to a fourth familiar explanation for child abuse, there are some common situational factors that influence families and parents and increase the risks for child abuse. Typically, these are factors that increase family stress or social isolation. Specifically, such factors may include receiving public assistance or having low socioeconomic status (a combination of low income and low education). Other factors include having family members who are unemployed, underemployed (working in a job that requires lower qualifications than an individual possesses), or employed only part time. These financial difficulties cause great stress for families in meeting the needs of the individual members. Other stress-inducing familial characteristics are single-parent households and larger family size. Finally, social isolation can be devastating for families and family members. Having friends to talk to, who can be relied upon, and with whom kids can be dropped off occasionally is tremendously important for personal growth and satisfaction in life. In addition, social isolation and stress can cause individuals to be quick to lose their tempers, as well as cause people to be less rational in their decision making and to make mountains out of mole hills. These situations can lead families to be at greater risk for child abuse.

Finally, cultural views and supports (or lack thereof) can lead to greater amounts of child abuse in a society such as the United States. One such cultural view is that of societal support for physical punishment. This is problematic because there are similarities between the way criminals are dealt with and the way errant children are handled. The use of capital punishment is advocated for seriously violent criminals, and people are quick to use such idioms as “spare the rod and spoil the child” when it comes to the discipline or punishment of children. In fact, it was not until quite recently that parenting books began to encourage parents to use other strategies than spanking or other forms of corporal punishment in the discipline of their children. Only recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics has come out and recommended that parents do not spank or use other forms of violence on their children because of the deleterious effects such methods have on youngsters and their bonds with their parents. Nevertheless, regardless of recommendations, the culture of corporal punishment persists.

Another cultural view in the United States that can give rise to greater incidents of child abuse is the belief that after getting married, couples of course should want and have children. Culturally, Americans consider that children are a blessing, raising kids is the most wonderful thing a person can do, and everyone should have children. Along with this notion is the idea that motherhood is always wonderful; it is the most fulfilling thing a woman can do; and the bond between a mother and her child is strong, glorious, and automatic—all women love being mothers. Thus, culturally (and theoretically), society nearly insists that married couples have children and that they will love having children. But, after children are born, there is not much support for couples who have trouble adjusting to parenthood, or who do not absolutely love their new roles as parents. People look askance at parents who need help, and cannot believe parents who say anything negative about parenthood. As such, theoretically, society has set up a situation where couples are strongly encouraged to have kids, are told they will love kids, but then society turns a blind or disdainful eye when these same parents need emotional, financial, or other forms of help or support. It is these types of cultural viewpoints that increase the risks for child abuse in society.

The consequences of child abuse are tremendous and long lasting. Research has shown that the traumatic experience of childhood abuse is life changing. These costs may surface during adolescence, or they may not become evident until abused children have grown up and become abusing parents or abused spouses. Early identification and treatment is important to minimize these potential long-term effects. Whenever children say they have been abused, it is imperative that they be taken seriously and their abuse be reported. Suspicions of child abuse must be reported as well. If there is a possibility that a child is or has been abused, an investigation must be conducted.

Children who have been abused may exhibit traits such as the inability to love or have faith in others. This often translates into adults who are unable to establish lasting and stable personal relationships. These individuals have trouble with physical closeness and touching as well as emotional intimacy and trust. Further, these qualities tend to cause a fear of entering into new relationships, as well as the sabotaging of any current ones.

Psychologically, children who have been abused tend to have poor self-images or are passive, withdrawn, or clingy. They may be angry individuals who are filled with rage, anxiety, and a variety of fears. They are often aggressive, disruptive, and depressed. Many abused children have flashbacks and nightmares about the abuse they have experienced, and this may cause sleep problems as well as drug and alcohol problems. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and antisocial personality disorder are both typical among maltreated children. Research has also shown that most abused children fail to reach “successful psychosocial functioning,” and are thus not resilient and do not resume a “normal life” after the abuse has ended.

Socially (and likely because of these psychological injuries), abused children have trouble in school, will have difficulty getting and remaining employed, and may commit a variety of illegal or socially inappropriate behaviors. Many studies have shown that victims of child abuse are likely to participate in high-risk behaviors such as alcohol or drug abuse, the use of tobacco, and high-risk sexual behaviors (e.g., unprotected sex, large numbers of sexual partners). Later in life, abused children are more likely to have been arrested and homeless. They are also less able to defend themselves in conflict situations and guard themselves against repeated victimizations.

Medically, abused children likely will experience health problems due to the high frequency of physical injuries they receive. In addition, abused children experience a great deal of emotional turmoil and stress, which can also have a significant impact on their physical condition. These health problems are likely to continue occurring into adulthood. Some of these longer-lasting health problems include headaches; eating problems; problems with toileting; and chronic pain in the back, stomach, chest, and genital areas. Some researchers have noted that abused children may experience neurological impairment and problems with intellectual functioning, while others have found a correlation between abuse and heart, lung, and liver disease, as well as cancer (Thomas, 2004).

Victims of sexual abuse show an alarming number of disturbances as adults. Some dislike and avoid sex, or experience sexual problems or disorders, while other victims appear to enjoy sexual activities that are self-defeating or maladaptive—normally called “dysfunctional sexual behavior”—and have many sexual partners.

Abused children also experience a wide variety of developmental delays. Many do not reach physical, cognitive, or emotional developmental milestones at the typical time, and some never accomplish what they are supposed to during childhood socialization. In the next section, these developmental delays are discussed as a means of identifying children who may be abused.

There are two primary ways of identifying children who are abused: spotting and evaluating physical injuries, and detecting and appraising developmental delays. Distinguishing physical injuries due to abuse can be difficult, particularly among younger children who are likely to get hurt or receive injuries while they are playing and learning to become ambulatory. Nonetheless, there are several types of wounds that children are unlikely to give themselves during their normal course of play and exploration. These less likely injuries may signal instances of child abuse.

While it is true that children are likely to get bruises, particularly when they are learning to walk or crawl, bruises on infants are not normal. Also, the back of the legs, upper arms, or on the chest, neck, head, or genitals are also locations where bruises are unlikely to occur during normal childhood activity. Further, bruises with clean patterns, like hand prints, buckle prints, or hangers (to name a few), are good examples of the types of bruises children do not give themselves.

Another area of physical injury where the source of the injury can be difficult to detect is fractures. Again, children fall out of trees, or crash their bikes, and can break limbs. These can be normal parts of growing up. However, fractures in infants less than 12 months old are particularly suspect, as infants are unlikely to be able to accomplish the types of movement necessary to actually break a leg or an arm. Further, multiple fractures, particularly more than one on a bone, should be examined more closely. Spiral or torsion fractures (when the bone is broken by twisting) are suspect because when children break their bones due to play injuries, the fractures are usually some other type (e.g., linear, oblique, compacted). In addition, when parents don’t know about the fracture(s) or how it occurred, abuse should be considered, because when children get these types of injuries, they need comfort and attention.

Head and internal injuries are also those that may signal abuse. Serious blows to the head cause internal head injuries, and this is very different from the injuries that result from bumping into things. Abused children are also likely to experience internal injuries like those to the abdomen, liver, kidney, and bladder. They may suffer a ruptured spleen, or intestinal perforation. These types of damages rarely happen by accident.

Burns are another type of physical injury that can happen by accident or by abuse. Nevertheless, there are ways to tell these types of burn injuries apart. The types of burns that should be examined and investigated are those where the burns are in particular locations. Burns to the bottom of the feet, genitals, abdomen, or other inaccessible spots should be closely considered. Burns of the whole hand or those to the buttocks are also unlikely to happen as a result of an accident.

Turning to the detection and appraisal of developmental delays, one can more readily assess possible abuse by considering what children of various ages should be able to accomplish, than by noting when children are delayed and how many milestones on which they are behind schedule. Importantly, a few delays in reaching milestones can be expected, since children develop individually and not always according to the norm. Nonetheless, when children are abused, their development is likely to be delayed in numerous areas and across many milestones.

As children develop and grow, they should be able to crawl, walk, run, talk, control going to the bathroom, write, set priorities, plan ahead, trust others, make friends, develop a good self-image, differentiate between feeling and behavior, and get their needs met in appropriate ways. As such, when children do not accomplish these feats, their circumstances should be examined.

Infants who are abused or neglected typically develop what is termed failure to thrive syndrome. This syndrome is characterized by slow, inadequate growth, or not “filling out” physically. They have a pale, colorless complexion and dull eyes. They are not likely to spend much time looking around, and nothing catches their eyes. They may show other signs of lack of nutrition such as cuts, bruises that do not heal in a timely way, and discolored fingernails. They are also not trusting and may not cry much, as they are not expecting to have their needs met. Older infants may not have developed any language skills, or these developments are quite slow. This includes both verbal and nonverbal means of communication.

Toddlers who are abused often become hypervigilant about their environments and others’ moods. They are more outwardly focused than a typical toddler (who is quite self-centered) and may be unable to separate themselves as individuals, or consider themselves as distinct beings. In this way, abused toddlers cannot focus on tasks at hand because they are too concerned about others’ reactions. They don’t play with toys, have no interest in exploration, and seem unable to enjoy life. They are likely to accept losses with little reaction, and may have age-inappropriate knowledge of sex and sexual relations. Finally, toddlers, whether they are abused or not, begin to mirror their parents’ behaviors. Thus, toddlers who are abused may mimic the abuse when they are playing with dolls or “playing house.”

Developmental delays can also be detected among abused young adolescents. Some signs include the failure to learn cause and effect, since their parents are so inconsistent. They have no energy for learning and have not developed beyond one- or two-word commands. They probably cannot follow complicated directions (such as two to three tasks per instruction), and they are unlikely to be able to think for themselves. Typically, they have learned that failure is totally unacceptable, but they are more concerned with the teacher’s mood than with learning and listening to instruction. Finally, they are apt to have been inadequately toilet trained and thus may be unable to control their bladders.

Older adolescents, because they are likely to have been abused for a longer period of time, continue to get further and further behind in their developmental achievements. Abused children this age become family nurturers. They take care of their parents and cater to their parents’ needs, rather than the other way around. In addition, they probably take care of any younger siblings and do the household chores. Because of these default responsibilities, they usually do not participate in school activities; they frequently miss days at school; and they have few, if any, friends. Because they have become so hypervigilant and have increasingly delayed development, they lose interest in and become disillusioned with education. They develop low self-esteem and little confidence, but seem old for their years. Children this age who are abused are still likely to be unable to control their bladders and may have frequent toileting accidents.

Other developmental delays can occur and be observed in abused and neglected children of any age. For example, malnutrition and withdrawal can be noticed in infants through teenagers. Maltreated children frequently have persistent or untreated illnesses, and these can become permanent disabilities if medical conditions go untreated for a long enough time. Another example can be the consequences of neurological damage. Beyond being a medical issue, this type of damage can cause problems with social behavior and impulse control, which, again, can be discerned in various ages of children.

Once child abuse is suspected, law enforcement officers, child protection workers, or various other practitioners may need to interview the child about the abuse or neglect he or she may have suffered. Interviewing children can be extremely difficult because children at various stages of development can remember only certain parts or aspects of the events in their lives. Also, interviewers must be careful that they do not put ideas or answers into the heads of the children they are interviewing. There are several general recommendations when interviewing children about the abuse they may have experienced. First, interviewers must acknowledge that even when children are abused, they likely still love their parents. They do not want to be taken away from their parents, nor do they want to see their parents get into trouble. Interviewers must not blame the parents or be judgmental about them or the child’s family. Beyond that, interviews should take place in a safe, neutral location. Interviewers can use dolls and role-play to help children express the types of abuse of which they may be victims.

Finally, interviewers must ask age-appropriate questions. For example, 3-year-olds can probably only answer questions about what happened and who was involved. Four- to five-year-olds can also discuss where the incidents occurred. Along with what, who, and where, 6- to 8-year-olds can talk about the element of time, or when the abuse occurred. Nine- to 10-year-olds are able to add commentary about the number of times the abuse occurred. Finally, 11-year-olds and older children can additionally inform interviewers about the circumstances of abusive instances.

A conclusion is not a summary of what a writer has already mentioned. On the contrary, it is the last point made. Taking every detail of the investigation, the researcher makes the concluding point. In this part of a paper, you need to put a full stop in your research. You need to persuade the reader in your opinion.

Never add any new information in the conclusion. You can present solutions to the problem and you dwell upon the results, but only if this information has been already mentioned in the main body.

Child advocates recommend a variety of strategies to aid families and children experiencing abuse. These recommendations tend to focus on societal efforts as well as more individual efforts. One common strategy advocated is the use of public service announcements that encourage individuals to report any suspected child abuse. Currently, many mandatory reporters (those required by law to report abuse such as teachers, doctors, and social service agency employees) and members of communities feel that child abuse should not be reported unless there is substantial evidence that abuse is indeed occurring. Child advocates stress that this notion should be changed, and that people should report child abuse even if it is only suspected. Public service announcements should stress that if people report suspected child abuse, the worst that can happen is that they might be wrong, but in the grander scheme of things that is really not so bad.

Child advocates also stress that greater interagency cooperation is needed. This cooperation should be evident between women’s shelters, child protection agencies, programs for at-risk children, medical agencies, and law enforcement officers. These agencies typically do not share information, and if they did, more instances of child abuse would come to the attention of various authorities and could be investigated and managed. Along these lines, child protection agencies and programs should receive more funding. When budgets are cut, social services are often the first things to go or to get less financial support. Child advocates insist that with more resources, child protection agencies could hire more workers, handle more cases, conduct more investigations, and follow up with more children and families.

Continuing, more educational efforts must be initiated about issues such as punishment and discipline styles and strategies; having greater respect for children; as well as informing the community about what child abuse is, and how to recognize it. In addition, Americans must alter the cultural orientation about child bearing and child rearing. Couples who wish to remain child-free must be allowed to do so without disdain. And, it must be acknowledged that raising children is very difficult, is not always gloriously wonderful, and that parents who seek help should be lauded and not criticized. These kinds of efforts can help more children to be raised in nonviolent, emotionally satisfying families, and thus become better adults.

Bibliography

When you write a paper, make sure you are aware of all the formatting requirements. Incorrect formatting can lower your mark, so do not underestimate the importance of this part.

Organizing your bibliography is quite a tedious and time-consuming task. Still, you need to do it flawlessly. For this reason, analyze all the standards you need to meet or ask professionals to help you with it. All the comas, colons, brackets etc. matter. They truly do.

Bibliography:

• American Academy of Pediatrics: https://www.aap.org/
• Bancroft, L., & Silverman, J. G. (2002). The batterer as parent. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, 42 U.S.C.A. § 5106g (1998).
• Childhelp: Child Abuse Statistics: https://www.childhelp.org/child-abuse-statistics/
• Children’s Defense Fund: https://www.childrensdefense.org/
• Child Stats.gov: https://www.childstats.gov/
• Child Welfare League of America: https://www.cwla.org/
• Crosson-Tower, C. (2008). Understanding child abuse and neglect (7th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
• DeBecker, G. (1999). Protecting the gift: Keeping children and teenagers safe (and parents sane). New York: Bantam Dell.
• Family Research Laboratory at the University of New Hampshire: https://cola.unh.edu/family-research-laboratory
• Guterman, N. B. (2001). Stopping child maltreatment before it starts: Emerging horizons in early home visitation services. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Herman, J. L. (2000). Father-daughter incest. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
• Medline Plus, Child Abuse: https://medlineplus.gov/childabuse.html
• Myers, J. E. B. (Ed.). (1994). The backlash: Child protection under fire. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
• National Center for Missing and Exploited Children: https://www.missingkids.org/home
• National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System. (2006). Child maltreatment 2006: Reports from the states to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.
• New York University Silver School of Social Work: https://socialwork.nyu.edu/
• Pitzer, R. L. (1997). Corporal punishment in the discipline of children in the home: Research update for practitioners. Paper presented at the National Council on Family Relations Annual Conference, Washington, DC.
• RAND, Child Abuse and Neglect: https://www.rand.org/topics/child-abuse-and-neglect.html
• Richards, C. E. (2001). The loss of innocents: Child killers and their victims. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources.
• Straus, M. A. (2001). Beating the devil out of them: Corporal punishment in American families and its effects on children. Edison, NJ: Transaction.
• Thomas, P. M. (2004). Protection, dissociation, and internal roles: Modeling and treating the effects of child abuse. Review of General Psychology, 7(15).
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/

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Learn from the great: Well-written research article examples

Reading well-written research papers is not only enjoyable — it’s also (passive) learning that helps you write better papers yourself. But in most fields it’s quite rare to encounter a research article that is clear and easy to follow and truly a pleasure to read. So I am curating a list of handpicked papers from different disciplines, for when you want to read something nice as an inspiration for your own writing. This is an ongoing project: your suggestions of great papers are always welcome!

Reading and writing are tightly coupled processes that support each other.

Reading creates a basis for writing: it helps you passively build up your (scientific) vocabulary and “assimilate” the writing style and conventions. It’s a source that you can tap into as you write — it’s the input .

Writing , then, is the output . When you write you are combining words and phrases you know from reading into a new and unique mixture.

As my favorite quote by Pam Allyn says:

Reading is like breathing in; writing is like breathing out.

You write like what you read

After reading the book Writing Without Bullshit , my writing became direct, concise and to the point. When I was reading Writing With Power , my writing was clear and persuasive even though I was using more complex sentences just like the author was doing. And ever since I am regularly reading the (evidence-based) self-help blog of Mark Manson , my writing became lighter and more conversational. (I hope you appreciate it 😉 )

So if you want to write great research articles, the only thing you need to do is to read great research articles. That’s easy, right?

Well — theoretically. As you have surely noticed, truly well-written research papers are not so common. I think that’s partly because writing clearly about complex matters is inherently difficult — but partly also because the standards and expectations of scientific writing are set fairly low.

That’s why I decided to create this list of well-written scientific articles .

So far I have mostly included papers that I know from my own research work, papers labeled by students in my courses as being easy to read and papers suggested in the Facebook group Reviewer 2 Must Be Stopped and on the Writing Scientist Facebook page .

I have combed through over 100 suggested papers, yet only around 10% made it to the final selection. Apparently, what is easy to read for a specialist doesn’t necessarily reflect overall great writing quality…

Selection criteria

The list below includes selected research articles and other formats (reviews, opinion pieces) that are easy to read and understand also for non-specialists . Here is an overview of the selection criteria:

1. Text is easy to read and follow. This is achieved by:

• good paragraph structure ;
• good sentence structure ;
• reader’s guidance: motivating each next step, explaining relevant concepts, introducing abbreviations, creating connections between sentences and paragraphs;
• clear and precise language ;
• using jargon reasonably and simple language whenever possible.

2. Paper is well structured. Namely:

• Abstract provides a good overview of the article.
• Introduction motivates the research project and describes its context/background.
• Results section presents the results clearly and in a logical order.
• Discussion explains the importance of the results and places them in the context of previous research.

Articles that fail to satisfy several of these points are not included in this list.

For each included article, aspects that are particularly well done ( ) and those that are suboptimal ( ) are highlighted.

So, here we go:

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Biomedical sciences

Laventie BJ et al. (2019). A surface-induced asymmetric program promotes tissue colonization by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Cell Host & Microbe , 25(1), 140-152.

Golding NL & Spruston N (1998). Dendritic sodium spikes are variable triggers of axonal action potentials in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons. Neuron , 21(5), 1189-1200.

Reviews & other formats

Watnick P & Kolter R (2000). Biofilm, city of microbes. Journal of Bacteriology , 182(10), 2675-2679.

Lazebnik Y (2002). Can a biologist fix a radio?—Or, what I learned while studying apoptosis. Cancer Cell , 2(3), 179-182.

Natural sciences

Zimmerer J et al. (2019). Integrated extraction and catalytic upgrading of microalgae lipids in supercritical carbon dioxide. Green Chemistry , 21(9), 2428-2435.

Computer science & engineering

Brunton SL et al. (2016) Discovering governing equations from data by sparse identification of nonlinear dynamical systems. PNAS , 113(15), 3932-3937.

Gebauer NWA et al. (2019). Symmetry-adapted generation of 3d point sets for the targeted discovery of molecules. arXiv preprint arXiv :1906.00957.

Pal A et al. (2020). Optimal turbine blade design enabled by auxetic honeycomb. Smart Materials and Structures , 29(12), 125004.

Banko M & Bril E (2001). Scaling to very very large corpora for natural language disambiguation. In Proceedings of the 39th annual meeting of the Association for Computational Linguistics (pp. 26-33).

Rivest RL et al (1978). A method for obtaining digital signatures and public-key cryptosystems. Communications of the ACM , 21(2), 120-126.

Social sciences

Boyd R & Richerson PJ (1996). Why culture is common, but cultural evolution is rare. In Proceedings-British Academy Vol. 88, pp. 77-94. Oxford University Press Inc.

Kildal N (2003). Perspectives on Policy Transfer. The Case of the OECD. [working paper 13-2003]

Iyengar SS & Lepper MR (2000). When choice is demotivating: Can one desire too much of a good thing? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 79(6), 995.

Healy K (2017). Fuck nuance. Sociological Theory , 35(2), 118-127.

Do you know a well-written research article?

Are you disappointed because none of these articles is from your discipline? Or would you simply like to have more well-written research articles to pick from for your reading?

Then please, help grow this list by suggesting a freely accessible article that you found easy to read: [email protected] .

Stay updated

I hope to continuously extend this list and provide you with always new great articles to read. To enjoy and learn from.

Would you like to be notified about new additions ? Then join our weekly newsletter with tips and resources for your scientific writing.

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10 thoughts on “ Learn from the great: Well-written research article examples ”

One which I think is easily accessible (even to a motivated high school student) is

“College Admissions and the Stability of Marriage” by Gale and Shapley.

It is very old though.

Thank you, I’ll check it out!

I like that one: Noorduin, Wim L., et al. “Rationally designed complex, hierarchical microarchitectures.” Science 340.6134 (2013): 832-837.

Thanks a lot!

Hi, Martina! If a shameless plug is allowed, maybe one of the following from our lab will work, too: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444820000580 – on applying social network analysis to peer networks of foreign language learners https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0081225 – on the interplay between emotions and social norms in bilingual swearing https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v25i1.2492 – findings from a global study of teachers’ engagement in and coping with emergency remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hi Mike, thanks a lot! I’ll check them out.

Ahoj, Martino!

I wanted to suggest the paper “Spatial and Temporal Resolution in Cardiovascular MR Imaging: Review and Recommendations” by G. Slavin and D. Bluemke ( https://pubs.rsna.org/doi/abs/10.1148/radiol.2342031990?journalCode=radiology ). Some time ago, someone asked me about spatial and temporal resolution, and in that moment, I found this well-written paper which is one of my favourites in the topic. I hope you like it.

Thanks a lot, I will check it out!

I would also recommend imho excellent reading from physics: Observation of Gravitational Waves from a Binary Black Hole Merger: https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.061102#fulltext I particularily like itroduction whcih can be accessible even to layperson outside this particular field.

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A Practical Guide to Writing Quantitative and Qualitative Research Questions and Hypotheses in Scholarly Articles

Edward barroga.

1 Department of General Education, Graduate School of Nursing Science, St. Luke’s International University, Tokyo, Japan.

Glafera Janet Matanguihan

2 Department of Biological Sciences, Messiah University, Mechanicsburg, PA, USA.

The development of research questions and the subsequent hypotheses are prerequisites to defining the main research purpose and specific objectives of a study. Consequently, these objectives determine the study design and research outcome. The development of research questions is a process based on knowledge of current trends, cutting-edge studies, and technological advances in the research field. Excellent research questions are focused and require a comprehensive literature search and in-depth understanding of the problem being investigated. Initially, research questions may be written as descriptive questions which could be developed into inferential questions. These questions must be specific and concise to provide a clear foundation for developing hypotheses. Hypotheses are more formal predictions about the research outcomes. These specify the possible results that may or may not be expected regarding the relationship between groups. Thus, research questions and hypotheses clarify the main purpose and specific objectives of the study, which in turn dictate the design of the study, its direction, and outcome. Studies developed from good research questions and hypotheses will have trustworthy outcomes with wide-ranging social and health implications.

INTRODUCTION

Scientific research is usually initiated by posing evidenced-based research questions which are then explicitly restated as hypotheses. 1 , 2 The hypotheses provide directions to guide the study, solutions, explanations, and expected results. 3 , 4 Both research questions and hypotheses are essentially formulated based on conventional theories and real-world processes, which allow the inception of novel studies and the ethical testing of ideas. 5 , 6

It is crucial to have knowledge of both quantitative and qualitative research 2 as both types of research involve writing research questions and hypotheses. 7 However, these crucial elements of research are sometimes overlooked; if not overlooked, then framed without the forethought and meticulous attention it needs. Planning and careful consideration are needed when developing quantitative or qualitative research, particularly when conceptualizing research questions and hypotheses. 4

There is a continuing need to support researchers in the creation of innovative research questions and hypotheses, as well as for journal articles that carefully review these elements. 1 When research questions and hypotheses are not carefully thought of, unethical studies and poor outcomes usually ensue. Carefully formulated research questions and hypotheses define well-founded objectives, which in turn determine the appropriate design, course, and outcome of the study. This article then aims to discuss in detail the various aspects of crafting research questions and hypotheses, with the goal of guiding researchers as they develop their own. Examples from the authors and peer-reviewed scientific articles in the healthcare field are provided to illustrate key points.

DEFINITIONS AND RELATIONSHIP OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES

A research question is what a study aims to answer after data analysis and interpretation. The answer is written in length in the discussion section of the paper. Thus, the research question gives a preview of the different parts and variables of the study meant to address the problem posed in the research question. 1 An excellent research question clarifies the research writing while facilitating understanding of the research topic, objective, scope, and limitations of the study. 5

On the other hand, a research hypothesis is an educated statement of an expected outcome. This statement is based on background research and current knowledge. 8 , 9 The research hypothesis makes a specific prediction about a new phenomenon 10 or a formal statement on the expected relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable. 3 , 11 It provides a tentative answer to the research question to be tested or explored. 4

Hypotheses employ reasoning to predict a theory-based outcome. 10 These can also be developed from theories by focusing on components of theories that have not yet been observed. 10 The validity of hypotheses is often based on the testability of the prediction made in a reproducible experiment. 8

Conversely, hypotheses can also be rephrased as research questions. Several hypotheses based on existing theories and knowledge may be needed to answer a research question. Developing ethical research questions and hypotheses creates a research design that has logical relationships among variables. These relationships serve as a solid foundation for the conduct of the study. 4 , 11 Haphazardly constructed research questions can result in poorly formulated hypotheses and improper study designs, leading to unreliable results. Thus, the formulations of relevant research questions and verifiable hypotheses are crucial when beginning research. 12

CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES

Excellent research questions are specific and focused. These integrate collective data and observations to confirm or refute the subsequent hypotheses. Well-constructed hypotheses are based on previous reports and verify the research context. These are realistic, in-depth, sufficiently complex, and reproducible. More importantly, these hypotheses can be addressed and tested. 13

There are several characteristics of well-developed hypotheses. Good hypotheses are 1) empirically testable 7 , 10 , 11 , 13 ; 2) backed by preliminary evidence 9 ; 3) testable by ethical research 7 , 9 ; 4) based on original ideas 9 ; 5) have evidenced-based logical reasoning 10 ; and 6) can be predicted. 11 Good hypotheses can infer ethical and positive implications, indicating the presence of a relationship or effect relevant to the research theme. 7 , 11 These are initially developed from a general theory and branch into specific hypotheses by deductive reasoning. In the absence of a theory to base the hypotheses, inductive reasoning based on specific observations or findings form more general hypotheses. 10

TYPES OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES

Research questions and hypotheses are developed according to the type of research, which can be broadly classified into quantitative and qualitative research. We provide a summary of the types of research questions and hypotheses under quantitative and qualitative research categories in Table 1 .

Research questions in quantitative research

In quantitative research, research questions inquire about the relationships among variables being investigated and are usually framed at the start of the study. These are precise and typically linked to the subject population, dependent and independent variables, and research design. 1 Research questions may also attempt to describe the behavior of a population in relation to one or more variables, or describe the characteristics of variables to be measured ( descriptive research questions ). 1 , 5 , 14 These questions may also aim to discover differences between groups within the context of an outcome variable ( comparative research questions ), 1 , 5 , 14 or elucidate trends and interactions among variables ( relationship research questions ). 1 , 5 We provide examples of descriptive, comparative, and relationship research questions in quantitative research in Table 2 .

Hypotheses in quantitative research

In quantitative research, hypotheses predict the expected relationships among variables. 15 Relationships among variables that can be predicted include 1) between a single dependent variable and a single independent variable ( simple hypothesis ) or 2) between two or more independent and dependent variables ( complex hypothesis ). 4 , 11 Hypotheses may also specify the expected direction to be followed and imply an intellectual commitment to a particular outcome ( directional hypothesis ) 4 . On the other hand, hypotheses may not predict the exact direction and are used in the absence of a theory, or when findings contradict previous studies ( non-directional hypothesis ). 4 In addition, hypotheses can 1) define interdependency between variables ( associative hypothesis ), 4 2) propose an effect on the dependent variable from manipulation of the independent variable ( causal hypothesis ), 4 3) state a negative relationship between two variables ( null hypothesis ), 4 , 11 , 15 4) replace the working hypothesis if rejected ( alternative hypothesis ), 15 explain the relationship of phenomena to possibly generate a theory ( working hypothesis ), 11 5) involve quantifiable variables that can be tested statistically ( statistical hypothesis ), 11 6) or express a relationship whose interlinks can be verified logically ( logical hypothesis ). 11 We provide examples of simple, complex, directional, non-directional, associative, causal, null, alternative, working, statistical, and logical hypotheses in quantitative research, as well as the definition of quantitative hypothesis-testing research in Table 3 .

Research questions in qualitative research

Unlike research questions in quantitative research, research questions in qualitative research are usually continuously reviewed and reformulated. The central question and associated subquestions are stated more than the hypotheses. 15 The central question broadly explores a complex set of factors surrounding the central phenomenon, aiming to present the varied perspectives of participants. 15

There are varied goals for which qualitative research questions are developed. These questions can function in several ways, such as to 1) identify and describe existing conditions ( contextual research question s); 2) describe a phenomenon ( descriptive research questions ); 3) assess the effectiveness of existing methods, protocols, theories, or procedures ( evaluation research questions ); 4) examine a phenomenon or analyze the reasons or relationships between subjects or phenomena ( explanatory research questions ); or 5) focus on unknown aspects of a particular topic ( exploratory research questions ). 5 In addition, some qualitative research questions provide new ideas for the development of theories and actions ( generative research questions ) or advance specific ideologies of a position ( ideological research questions ). 1 Other qualitative research questions may build on a body of existing literature and become working guidelines ( ethnographic research questions ). Research questions may also be broadly stated without specific reference to the existing literature or a typology of questions ( phenomenological research questions ), may be directed towards generating a theory of some process ( grounded theory questions ), or may address a description of the case and the emerging themes ( qualitative case study questions ). 15 We provide examples of contextual, descriptive, evaluation, explanatory, exploratory, generative, ideological, ethnographic, phenomenological, grounded theory, and qualitative case study research questions in qualitative research in Table 4 , and the definition of qualitative hypothesis-generating research in Table 5 .

Qualitative studies usually pose at least one central research question and several subquestions starting with How or What . These research questions use exploratory verbs such as explore or describe . These also focus on one central phenomenon of interest, and may mention the participants and research site. 15

Hypotheses in qualitative research

Hypotheses in qualitative research are stated in the form of a clear statement concerning the problem to be investigated. Unlike in quantitative research where hypotheses are usually developed to be tested, qualitative research can lead to both hypothesis-testing and hypothesis-generating outcomes. 2 When studies require both quantitative and qualitative research questions, this suggests an integrative process between both research methods wherein a single mixed-methods research question can be developed. 1

FRAMEWORKS FOR DEVELOPING RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES

Research questions followed by hypotheses should be developed before the start of the study. 1 , 12 , 14 It is crucial to develop feasible research questions on a topic that is interesting to both the researcher and the scientific community. This can be achieved by a meticulous review of previous and current studies to establish a novel topic. Specific areas are subsequently focused on to generate ethical research questions. The relevance of the research questions is evaluated in terms of clarity of the resulting data, specificity of the methodology, objectivity of the outcome, depth of the research, and impact of the study. 1 , 5 These aspects constitute the FINER criteria (i.e., Feasible, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, and Relevant). 1 Clarity and effectiveness are achieved if research questions meet the FINER criteria. In addition to the FINER criteria, Ratan et al. described focus, complexity, novelty, feasibility, and measurability for evaluating the effectiveness of research questions. 14

The PICOT and PEO frameworks are also used when developing research questions. 1 The following elements are addressed in these frameworks, PICOT: P-population/patients/problem, I-intervention or indicator being studied, C-comparison group, O-outcome of interest, and T-timeframe of the study; PEO: P-population being studied, E-exposure to preexisting conditions, and O-outcome of interest. 1 Research questions are also considered good if these meet the “FINERMAPS” framework: Feasible, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, Relevant, Manageable, Appropriate, Potential value/publishable, and Systematic. 14

As we indicated earlier, research questions and hypotheses that are not carefully formulated result in unethical studies or poor outcomes. To illustrate this, we provide some examples of ambiguous research question and hypotheses that result in unclear and weak research objectives in quantitative research ( Table 6 ) 16 and qualitative research ( Table 7 ) 17 , and how to transform these ambiguous research question(s) and hypothesis(es) into clear and good statements.

a These statements were composed for comparison and illustrative purposes only.

b These statements are direct quotes from Higashihara and Horiuchi. 16

a This statement is a direct quote from Shimoda et al. 17

The other statements were composed for comparison and illustrative purposes only.

CONSTRUCTING RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES

To construct effective research questions and hypotheses, it is very important to 1) clarify the background and 2) identify the research problem at the outset of the research, within a specific timeframe. 9 Then, 3) review or conduct preliminary research to collect all available knowledge about the possible research questions by studying theories and previous studies. 18 Afterwards, 4) construct research questions to investigate the research problem. Identify variables to be accessed from the research questions 4 and make operational definitions of constructs from the research problem and questions. Thereafter, 5) construct specific deductive or inductive predictions in the form of hypotheses. 4 Finally, 6) state the study aims . This general flow for constructing effective research questions and hypotheses prior to conducting research is shown in Fig. 1 .

Research questions are used more frequently in qualitative research than objectives or hypotheses. 3 These questions seek to discover, understand, explore or describe experiences by asking “What” or “How.” The questions are open-ended to elicit a description rather than to relate variables or compare groups. The questions are continually reviewed, reformulated, and changed during the qualitative study. 3 Research questions are also used more frequently in survey projects than hypotheses in experiments in quantitative research to compare variables and their relationships.

Hypotheses are constructed based on the variables identified and as an if-then statement, following the template, ‘If a specific action is taken, then a certain outcome is expected.’ At this stage, some ideas regarding expectations from the research to be conducted must be drawn. 18 Then, the variables to be manipulated (independent) and influenced (dependent) are defined. 4 Thereafter, the hypothesis is stated and refined, and reproducible data tailored to the hypothesis are identified, collected, and analyzed. 4 The hypotheses must be testable and specific, 18 and should describe the variables and their relationships, the specific group being studied, and the predicted research outcome. 18 Hypotheses construction involves a testable proposition to be deduced from theory, and independent and dependent variables to be separated and measured separately. 3 Therefore, good hypotheses must be based on good research questions constructed at the start of a study or trial. 12

In summary, research questions are constructed after establishing the background of the study. Hypotheses are then developed based on the research questions. Thus, it is crucial to have excellent research questions to generate superior hypotheses. In turn, these would determine the research objectives and the design of the study, and ultimately, the outcome of the research. 12 Algorithms for building research questions and hypotheses are shown in Fig. 2 for quantitative research and in Fig. 3 for qualitative research.

EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS FROM PUBLISHED ARTICLES

• EXAMPLE 1. Descriptive research question (quantitative research)
• - Presents research variables to be assessed (distinct phenotypes and subphenotypes)
• “BACKGROUND: Since COVID-19 was identified, its clinical and biological heterogeneity has been recognized. Identifying COVID-19 phenotypes might help guide basic, clinical, and translational research efforts.
• RESEARCH QUESTION: Does the clinical spectrum of patients with COVID-19 contain distinct phenotypes and subphenotypes? ” 19
• EXAMPLE 2. Relationship research question (quantitative research)
• - Shows interactions between dependent variable (static postural control) and independent variable (peripheral visual field loss)
• “Background: Integration of visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensations contributes to postural control. People with peripheral visual field loss have serious postural instability. However, the directional specificity of postural stability and sensory reweighting caused by gradual peripheral visual field loss remain unclear.
• Research question: What are the effects of peripheral visual field loss on static postural control ?” 20
• EXAMPLE 3. Comparative research question (quantitative research)
• - Clarifies the difference among groups with an outcome variable (patients enrolled in COMPERA with moderate PH or severe PH in COPD) and another group without the outcome variable (patients with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH))
• “BACKGROUND: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) in COPD is a poorly investigated clinical condition.
• RESEARCH QUESTION: Which factors determine the outcome of PH in COPD?
• STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We analyzed the characteristics and outcome of patients enrolled in the Comparative, Prospective Registry of Newly Initiated Therapies for Pulmonary Hypertension (COMPERA) with moderate or severe PH in COPD as defined during the 6th PH World Symposium who received medical therapy for PH and compared them with patients with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) .” 21
• EXAMPLE 4. Exploratory research question (qualitative research)
• - Explores areas that have not been fully investigated (perspectives of families and children who receive care in clinic-based child obesity treatment) to have a deeper understanding of the research problem
• “Problem: Interventions for children with obesity lead to only modest improvements in BMI and long-term outcomes, and data are limited on the perspectives of families of children with obesity in clinic-based treatment. This scoping review seeks to answer the question: What is known about the perspectives of families and children who receive care in clinic-based child obesity treatment? This review aims to explore the scope of perspectives reported by families of children with obesity who have received individualized outpatient clinic-based obesity treatment.” 22
• EXAMPLE 5. Relationship research question (quantitative research)
• - Defines interactions between dependent variable (use of ankle strategies) and independent variable (changes in muscle tone)
• “Background: To maintain an upright standing posture against external disturbances, the human body mainly employs two types of postural control strategies: “ankle strategy” and “hip strategy.” While it has been reported that the magnitude of the disturbance alters the use of postural control strategies, it has not been elucidated how the level of muscle tone, one of the crucial parameters of bodily function, determines the use of each strategy. We have previously confirmed using forward dynamics simulations of human musculoskeletal models that an increased muscle tone promotes the use of ankle strategies. The objective of the present study was to experimentally evaluate a hypothesis: an increased muscle tone promotes the use of ankle strategies. Research question: Do changes in the muscle tone affect the use of ankle strategies ?” 23

EXAMPLES OF HYPOTHESES IN PUBLISHED ARTICLES

• EXAMPLE 1. Working hypothesis (quantitative research)
• - A hypothesis that is initially accepted for further research to produce a feasible theory
• “As fever may have benefit in shortening the duration of viral illness, it is plausible to hypothesize that the antipyretic efficacy of ibuprofen may be hindering the benefits of a fever response when taken during the early stages of COVID-19 illness .” 24
• “In conclusion, it is plausible to hypothesize that the antipyretic efficacy of ibuprofen may be hindering the benefits of a fever response . The difference in perceived safety of these agents in COVID-19 illness could be related to the more potent efficacy to reduce fever with ibuprofen compared to acetaminophen. Compelling data on the benefit of fever warrant further research and review to determine when to treat or withhold ibuprofen for early stage fever for COVID-19 and other related viral illnesses .” 24
• EXAMPLE 2. Exploratory hypothesis (qualitative research)
• - Explores particular areas deeper to clarify subjective experience and develop a formal hypothesis potentially testable in a future quantitative approach
• “We hypothesized that when thinking about a past experience of help-seeking, a self distancing prompt would cause increased help-seeking intentions and more favorable help-seeking outcome expectations .” 25
• “Conclusion
• Although a priori hypotheses were not supported, further research is warranted as results indicate the potential for using self-distancing approaches to increasing help-seeking among some people with depressive symptomatology.” 25
• EXAMPLE 3. Hypothesis-generating research to establish a framework for hypothesis testing (qualitative research)
• “We hypothesize that compassionate care is beneficial for patients (better outcomes), healthcare systems and payers (lower costs), and healthcare providers (lower burnout). ” 26
• Compassionomics is the branch of knowledge and scientific study of the effects of compassionate healthcare. Our main hypotheses are that compassionate healthcare is beneficial for (1) patients, by improving clinical outcomes, (2) healthcare systems and payers, by supporting financial sustainability, and (3) HCPs, by lowering burnout and promoting resilience and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to establish a scientific framework for testing the hypotheses above . If these hypotheses are confirmed through rigorous research, compassionomics will belong in the science of evidence-based medicine, with major implications for all healthcare domains.” 26
• EXAMPLE 4. Statistical hypothesis (quantitative research)
• - An assumption is made about the relationship among several population characteristics ( gender differences in sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of adults with ADHD ). Validity is tested by statistical experiment or analysis ( chi-square test, Students t-test, and logistic regression analysis)
• “Our research investigated gender differences in sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of adults with ADHD in a Japanese clinical sample. Due to unique Japanese cultural ideals and expectations of women's behavior that are in opposition to ADHD symptoms, we hypothesized that women with ADHD experience more difficulties and present more dysfunctions than men . We tested the following hypotheses: first, women with ADHD have more comorbidities than men with ADHD; second, women with ADHD experience more social hardships than men, such as having less full-time employment and being more likely to be divorced.” 27
• “Statistical Analysis
• ( text omitted ) Between-gender comparisons were made using the chi-squared test for categorical variables and Students t-test for continuous variables…( text omitted ). A logistic regression analysis was performed for employment status, marital status, and comorbidity to evaluate the independent effects of gender on these dependent variables.” 27

EXAMPLES OF HYPOTHESIS AS WRITTEN IN PUBLISHED ARTICLES IN RELATION TO OTHER PARTS

• EXAMPLE 1. Background, hypotheses, and aims are provided
• “Pregnant women need skilled care during pregnancy and childbirth, but that skilled care is often delayed in some countries …( text omitted ). The focused antenatal care (FANC) model of WHO recommends that nurses provide information or counseling to all pregnant women …( text omitted ). Job aids are visual support materials that provide the right kind of information using graphics and words in a simple and yet effective manner. When nurses are not highly trained or have many work details to attend to, these job aids can serve as a content reminder for the nurses and can be used for educating their patients (Jennings, Yebadokpo, Affo, & Agbogbe, 2010) ( text omitted ). Importantly, additional evidence is needed to confirm how job aids can further improve the quality of ANC counseling by health workers in maternal care …( text omitted )” 28
• “ This has led us to hypothesize that the quality of ANC counseling would be better if supported by job aids. Consequently, a better quality of ANC counseling is expected to produce higher levels of awareness concerning the danger signs of pregnancy and a more favorable impression of the caring behavior of nurses .” 28
• “This study aimed to examine the differences in the responses of pregnant women to a job aid-supported intervention during ANC visit in terms of 1) their understanding of the danger signs of pregnancy and 2) their impression of the caring behaviors of nurses to pregnant women in rural Tanzania.” 28
• EXAMPLE 2. Background, hypotheses, and aims are provided
• “We conducted a two-arm randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate and compare changes in salivary cortisol and oxytocin levels of first-time pregnant women between experimental and control groups. The women in the experimental group touched and held an infant for 30 min (experimental intervention protocol), whereas those in the control group watched a DVD movie of an infant (control intervention protocol). The primary outcome was salivary cortisol level and the secondary outcome was salivary oxytocin level.” 29
• “ We hypothesize that at 30 min after touching and holding an infant, the salivary cortisol level will significantly decrease and the salivary oxytocin level will increase in the experimental group compared with the control group .” 29
• EXAMPLE 3. Background, aim, and hypothesis are provided
• “In countries where the maternal mortality ratio remains high, antenatal education to increase Birth Preparedness and Complication Readiness (BPCR) is considered one of the top priorities [1]. BPCR includes birth plans during the antenatal period, such as the birthplace, birth attendant, transportation, health facility for complications, expenses, and birth materials, as well as family coordination to achieve such birth plans. In Tanzania, although increasing, only about half of all pregnant women attend an antenatal clinic more than four times [4]. Moreover, the information provided during antenatal care (ANC) is insufficient. In the resource-poor settings, antenatal group education is a potential approach because of the limited time for individual counseling at antenatal clinics.” 30
• “This study aimed to evaluate an antenatal group education program among pregnant women and their families with respect to birth-preparedness and maternal and infant outcomes in rural villages of Tanzania.” 30
• “ The study hypothesis was if Tanzanian pregnant women and their families received a family-oriented antenatal group education, they would (1) have a higher level of BPCR, (2) attend antenatal clinic four or more times, (3) give birth in a health facility, (4) have less complications of women at birth, and (5) have less complications and deaths of infants than those who did not receive the education .” 30

Research questions and hypotheses are crucial components to any type of research, whether quantitative or qualitative. These questions should be developed at the very beginning of the study. Excellent research questions lead to superior hypotheses, which, like a compass, set the direction of research, and can often determine the successful conduct of the study. Many research studies have floundered because the development of research questions and subsequent hypotheses was not given the thought and meticulous attention needed. The development of research questions and hypotheses is an iterative process based on extensive knowledge of the literature and insightful grasp of the knowledge gap. Focused, concise, and specific research questions provide a strong foundation for constructing hypotheses which serve as formal predictions about the research outcomes. Research questions and hypotheses are crucial elements of research that should not be overlooked. They should be carefully thought of and constructed when planning research. This avoids unethical studies and poor outcomes by defining well-founded objectives that determine the design, course, and outcome of the study.

Disclosure: The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Author Contributions:

• Conceptualization: Barroga E, Matanguihan GJ.
• Methodology: Barroga E, Matanguihan GJ.
• Writing - original draft: Barroga E, Matanguihan GJ.
• Writing - review & editing: Barroga E, Matanguihan GJ.

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Home » Research Paper – Structure, Examples and Writing Guide

Research Paper – Structure, Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

Research Paper

Definition:

Research Paper is a written document that presents the author’s original research, analysis, and interpretation of a specific topic or issue.

It is typically based on Empirical Evidence, and may involve qualitative or quantitative research methods, or a combination of both. The purpose of a research paper is to contribute new knowledge or insights to a particular field of study, and to demonstrate the author’s understanding of the existing literature and theories related to the topic.

Structure of Research Paper

The structure of a research paper typically follows a standard format, consisting of several sections that convey specific information about the research study. The following is a detailed explanation of the structure of a research paper:

The title page contains the title of the paper, the name(s) of the author(s), and the affiliation(s) of the author(s). It also includes the date of submission and possibly, the name of the journal or conference where the paper is to be published.

The abstract is a brief summary of the research paper, typically ranging from 100 to 250 words. It should include the research question, the methods used, the key findings, and the implications of the results. The abstract should be written in a concise and clear manner to allow readers to quickly grasp the essence of the research.

Introduction

The introduction section of a research paper provides background information about the research problem, the research question, and the research objectives. It also outlines the significance of the research, the research gap that it aims to fill, and the approach taken to address the research question. Finally, the introduction section ends with a clear statement of the research hypothesis or research question.

Literature Review

The literature review section of a research paper provides an overview of the existing literature on the topic of study. It includes a critical analysis and synthesis of the literature, highlighting the key concepts, themes, and debates. The literature review should also demonstrate the research gap and how the current study seeks to address it.

The methods section of a research paper describes the research design, the sample selection, the data collection and analysis procedures, and the statistical methods used to analyze the data. This section should provide sufficient detail for other researchers to replicate the study.

The results section presents the findings of the research, using tables, graphs, and figures to illustrate the data. The findings should be presented in a clear and concise manner, with reference to the research question and hypothesis.

The discussion section of a research paper interprets the findings and discusses their implications for the research question, the literature review, and the field of study. It should also address the limitations of the study and suggest future research directions.

The conclusion section summarizes the main findings of the study, restates the research question and hypothesis, and provides a final reflection on the significance of the research.

The references section provides a list of all the sources cited in the paper, following a specific citation style such as APA, MLA or Chicago.

How to Write Research Paper

You can write Research Paper by the following guide:

• Choose a Topic: The first step is to select a topic that interests you and is relevant to your field of study. Brainstorm ideas and narrow down to a research question that is specific and researchable.
• Conduct a Literature Review: The literature review helps you identify the gap in the existing research and provides a basis for your research question. It also helps you to develop a theoretical framework and research hypothesis.
• Develop a Thesis Statement : The thesis statement is the main argument of your research paper. It should be clear, concise and specific to your research question.
• Plan your Research: Develop a research plan that outlines the methods, data sources, and data analysis procedures. This will help you to collect and analyze data effectively.
• Collect and Analyze Data: Collect data using various methods such as surveys, interviews, observations, or experiments. Analyze data using statistical tools or other qualitative methods.
• Organize your Paper : Organize your paper into sections such as Introduction, Literature Review, Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion. Ensure that each section is coherent and follows a logical flow.
• Write your Paper : Start by writing the introduction, followed by the literature review, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion. Ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and follows the required formatting and citation styles.
• Edit and Proofread your Paper: Review your paper for grammar and spelling errors, and ensure that it is well-structured and easy to read. Ask someone else to review your paper to get feedback and suggestions for improvement.
• Cite your Sources: Ensure that you properly cite all sources used in your research paper. This is essential for giving credit to the original authors and avoiding plagiarism.

Research Paper Example

Note : The below example research paper is for illustrative purposes only and is not an actual research paper. Actual research papers may have different structures, contents, and formats depending on the field of study, research question, data collection and analysis methods, and other factors. Students should always consult with their professors or supervisors for specific guidelines and expectations for their research papers.

Research Paper Example sample for Students:

Title: The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health among Young Adults

Abstract: This study aims to investigate the impact of social media use on the mental health of young adults. A literature review was conducted to examine the existing research on the topic. A survey was then administered to 200 university students to collect data on their social media use, mental health status, and perceived impact of social media on their mental health. The results showed that social media use is positively associated with depression, anxiety, and stress. The study also found that social comparison, cyberbullying, and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) are significant predictors of mental health problems among young adults.

Introduction: Social media has become an integral part of modern life, particularly among young adults. While social media has many benefits, including increased communication and social connectivity, it has also been associated with negative outcomes, such as addiction, cyberbullying, and mental health problems. This study aims to investigate the impact of social media use on the mental health of young adults.

Literature Review: The literature review highlights the existing research on the impact of social media use on mental health. The review shows that social media use is associated with depression, anxiety, stress, and other mental health problems. The review also identifies the factors that contribute to the negative impact of social media, including social comparison, cyberbullying, and FOMO.

Methods : A survey was administered to 200 university students to collect data on their social media use, mental health status, and perceived impact of social media on their mental health. The survey included questions on social media use, mental health status (measured using the DASS-21), and perceived impact of social media on their mental health. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis.

Results : The results showed that social media use is positively associated with depression, anxiety, and stress. The study also found that social comparison, cyberbullying, and FOMO are significant predictors of mental health problems among young adults.

Discussion : The study’s findings suggest that social media use has a negative impact on the mental health of young adults. The study highlights the need for interventions that address the factors contributing to the negative impact of social media, such as social comparison, cyberbullying, and FOMO.

Conclusion : In conclusion, social media use has a significant impact on the mental health of young adults. The study’s findings underscore the need for interventions that promote healthy social media use and address the negative outcomes associated with social media use. Future research can explore the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing the negative impact of social media on mental health. Additionally, longitudinal studies can investigate the long-term effects of social media use on mental health.

Limitations : The study has some limitations, including the use of self-report measures and a cross-sectional design. The use of self-report measures may result in biased responses, and a cross-sectional design limits the ability to establish causality.

Implications: The study’s findings have implications for mental health professionals, educators, and policymakers. Mental health professionals can use the findings to develop interventions that address the negative impact of social media use on mental health. Educators can incorporate social media literacy into their curriculum to promote healthy social media use among young adults. Policymakers can use the findings to develop policies that protect young adults from the negative outcomes associated with social media use.

References :

• Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2019). Associations between screen time and lower psychological well-being among children and adolescents: Evidence from a population-based study. Preventive medicine reports, 15, 100918.
• Primack, B. A., Shensa, A., Escobar-Viera, C. G., Barrett, E. L., Sidani, J. E., Colditz, J. B., … & James, A. E. (2017). Use of multiple social media platforms and symptoms of depression and anxiety: A nationally-representative study among US young adults. Computers in Human Behavior, 69, 1-9.
• Van der Meer, T. G., & Verhoeven, J. W. (2017). Social media and its impact on academic performance of students. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 16, 383-398.

Appendix : The survey used in this study is provided below.

Social Media and Mental Health Survey

• How often do you use social media per day?
• Less than 30 minutes
• 30 minutes to 1 hour
• 1 to 2 hours
• 2 to 4 hours
• More than 4 hours
• Which social media platforms do you use?
• Others (Please specify)
• How often do you experience the following on social media?
• Social comparison (comparing yourself to others)
• Cyberbullying
• Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)
• Have you ever experienced any of the following mental health problems in the past month?
• Do you think social media use has a positive or negative impact on your mental health?
• Very positive
• Somewhat positive
• Somewhat negative
• Very negative
• In your opinion, which factors contribute to the negative impact of social media on mental health?
• Social comparison
• In your opinion, what interventions could be effective in reducing the negative impact of social media on mental health?
• Education on healthy social media use
• Counseling for mental health problems caused by social media
• Social media detox programs
• Regulation of social media use

Thank you for your participation!

Applications of Research Paper

Research papers have several applications in various fields, including:

• Advancing knowledge: Research papers contribute to the advancement of knowledge by generating new insights, theories, and findings that can inform future research and practice. They help to answer important questions, clarify existing knowledge, and identify areas that require further investigation.
• Informing policy: Research papers can inform policy decisions by providing evidence-based recommendations for policymakers. They can help to identify gaps in current policies, evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, and inform the development of new policies and regulations.
• Improving practice: Research papers can improve practice by providing evidence-based guidance for professionals in various fields, including medicine, education, business, and psychology. They can inform the development of best practices, guidelines, and standards of care that can improve outcomes for individuals and organizations.
• Educating students : Research papers are often used as teaching tools in universities and colleges to educate students about research methods, data analysis, and academic writing. They help students to develop critical thinking skills, research skills, and communication skills that are essential for success in many careers.
• Fostering collaboration: Research papers can foster collaboration among researchers, practitioners, and policymakers by providing a platform for sharing knowledge and ideas. They can facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships that can lead to innovative solutions to complex problems.

When to Write Research Paper

Research papers are typically written when a person has completed a research project or when they have conducted a study and have obtained data or findings that they want to share with the academic or professional community. Research papers are usually written in academic settings, such as universities, but they can also be written in professional settings, such as research organizations, government agencies, or private companies.

Here are some common situations where a person might need to write a research paper:

• For academic purposes: Students in universities and colleges are often required to write research papers as part of their coursework, particularly in the social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities. Writing research papers helps students to develop research skills, critical thinking skills, and academic writing skills.
• For publication: Researchers often write research papers to publish their findings in academic journals or to present their work at academic conferences. Publishing research papers is an important way to disseminate research findings to the academic community and to establish oneself as an expert in a particular field.
• To inform policy or practice : Researchers may write research papers to inform policy decisions or to improve practice in various fields. Research findings can be used to inform the development of policies, guidelines, and best practices that can improve outcomes for individuals and organizations.
• To share new insights or ideas: Researchers may write research papers to share new insights or ideas with the academic or professional community. They may present new theories, propose new research methods, or challenge existing paradigms in their field.

Purpose of Research Paper

The purpose of a research paper is to present the results of a study or investigation in a clear, concise, and structured manner. Research papers are written to communicate new knowledge, ideas, or findings to a specific audience, such as researchers, scholars, practitioners, or policymakers. The primary purposes of a research paper are:

• To contribute to the body of knowledge : Research papers aim to add new knowledge or insights to a particular field or discipline. They do this by reporting the results of empirical studies, reviewing and synthesizing existing literature, proposing new theories, or providing new perspectives on a topic.
• To inform or persuade: Research papers are written to inform or persuade the reader about a particular issue, topic, or phenomenon. They present evidence and arguments to support their claims and seek to persuade the reader of the validity of their findings or recommendations.
• To advance the field: Research papers seek to advance the field or discipline by identifying gaps in knowledge, proposing new research questions or approaches, or challenging existing assumptions or paradigms. They aim to contribute to ongoing debates and discussions within a field and to stimulate further research and inquiry.
• To demonstrate research skills: Research papers demonstrate the author’s research skills, including their ability to design and conduct a study, collect and analyze data, and interpret and communicate findings. They also demonstrate the author’s ability to critically evaluate existing literature, synthesize information from multiple sources, and write in a clear and structured manner.

Characteristics of Research Paper

Research papers have several characteristics that distinguish them from other forms of academic or professional writing. Here are some common characteristics of research papers:

• Evidence-based: Research papers are based on empirical evidence, which is collected through rigorous research methods such as experiments, surveys, observations, or interviews. They rely on objective data and facts to support their claims and conclusions.
• Structured and organized: Research papers have a clear and logical structure, with sections such as introduction, literature review, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion. They are organized in a way that helps the reader to follow the argument and understand the findings.
• Formal and objective: Research papers are written in a formal and objective tone, with an emphasis on clarity, precision, and accuracy. They avoid subjective language or personal opinions and instead rely on objective data and analysis to support their arguments.
• Citations and references: Research papers include citations and references to acknowledge the sources of information and ideas used in the paper. They use a specific citation style, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago, to ensure consistency and accuracy.
• Peer-reviewed: Research papers are often peer-reviewed, which means they are evaluated by other experts in the field before they are published. Peer-review ensures that the research is of high quality, meets ethical standards, and contributes to the advancement of knowledge in the field.
• Objective and unbiased: Research papers strive to be objective and unbiased in their presentation of the findings. They avoid personal biases or preconceptions and instead rely on the data and analysis to draw conclusions.

Advantages of Research Paper

Research papers have many advantages, both for the individual researcher and for the broader academic and professional community. Here are some advantages of research papers:

• Contribution to knowledge: Research papers contribute to the body of knowledge in a particular field or discipline. They add new information, insights, and perspectives to existing literature and help advance the understanding of a particular phenomenon or issue.
• Opportunity for intellectual growth: Research papers provide an opportunity for intellectual growth for the researcher. They require critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity, which can help develop the researcher’s skills and knowledge.
• Career advancement: Research papers can help advance the researcher’s career by demonstrating their expertise and contributions to the field. They can also lead to new research opportunities, collaborations, and funding.
• Academic recognition: Research papers can lead to academic recognition in the form of awards, grants, or invitations to speak at conferences or events. They can also contribute to the researcher’s reputation and standing in the field.
• Impact on policy and practice: Research papers can have a significant impact on policy and practice. They can inform policy decisions, guide practice, and lead to changes in laws, regulations, or procedures.
• Advancement of society: Research papers can contribute to the advancement of society by addressing important issues, identifying solutions to problems, and promoting social justice and equality.

Limitations of Research Paper

Research papers also have some limitations that should be considered when interpreting their findings or implications. Here are some common limitations of research papers:

• Limited generalizability: Research findings may not be generalizable to other populations, settings, or contexts. Studies often use specific samples or conditions that may not reflect the broader population or real-world situations.
• Potential for bias : Research papers may be biased due to factors such as sample selection, measurement errors, or researcher biases. It is important to evaluate the quality of the research design and methods used to ensure that the findings are valid and reliable.
• Ethical concerns: Research papers may raise ethical concerns, such as the use of vulnerable populations or invasive procedures. Researchers must adhere to ethical guidelines and obtain informed consent from participants to ensure that the research is conducted in a responsible and respectful manner.
• Limitations of methodology: Research papers may be limited by the methodology used to collect and analyze data. For example, certain research methods may not capture the complexity or nuance of a particular phenomenon, or may not be appropriate for certain research questions.
• Publication bias: Research papers may be subject to publication bias, where positive or significant findings are more likely to be published than negative or non-significant findings. This can skew the overall findings of a particular area of research.
• Time and resource constraints: Research papers may be limited by time and resource constraints, which can affect the quality and scope of the research. Researchers may not have access to certain data or resources, or may be unable to conduct long-term studies due to practical limitations.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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The top 10 journal articles of 2020

In 2020, APA’s 89 journals published more than 5,000 articles—the most ever and 25% more than in 2019. Here’s a quick look at the 10 most downloaded to date.

Vol. 52 No. 1 Print version: page 24

1. Me, My Selfie, and I: The Relations Between Selfie Behaviors, Body Image, Self-Objectification, and Self-Esteem in Young Women

Veldhuis, j., et al..

Young women who appreciate their bodies and consider them physical objects are more likely to select, edit, and post selfies to social media, suggests this study in Psychology of Popular Media (Vol. 9, No. 1). Researchers surveyed 179 women, ages 18 to 25, on how often they took selfies, how they selected selfies to post, how often they used filters and editing techniques, and how carefully they planned their selfie postings. They also assessed participants’ levels of body appreciation and dissatisfaction, self-objectification, and self-esteem. Higher levels of self-objectification were linked to more time spent on all selfie behaviors, while body appreciation was related to more time spent selecting selfies to post, but not frequency of taking or editing selfies. Body dissatisfaction and self-esteem were not associated with selfie behaviors. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000206

2. A Closer Look at Appearance and Social Media: Measuring Activity, Self-Presentation, and Social Comparison and Their Associations With Emotional Adjustment

Zimmer-gembeck, m. j., et al..

This Psychology of Popular Media (online first publication) article presents a tool to assess young people’s preoccupation with their physical appearance on social media. Researchers administered a 21-item survey about social media to 281 Australian high school students. They identified 18 items with strong inter-item correlation centered on three categories of social media behavior: online self-presentation, appearance-related online activity, and appearance comparison. In a second study with 327 Australian university students, scores on the 18-item survey were found to be associated with measures of social anxiety and depressive symptoms, appearance-related support from others, general interpersonal stress, coping flexibility, sexual harassment, disordered eating, and other factors. The researchers also found that young women engaged in more appearance-related social media activity and appearance comparison than did young men. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000277

3. The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-2019) Outbreak: Amplification of Public Health Consequences by Media Exposure

Garfin, d. r., et al..

Repeated media exposure to the COVID-19 pandemic may be associated with psychological distress and other public health consequences, according to this commentary in Health Psychology (Vol. 39, No. 5). The authors reviewed research about trends in health behavior and psychological distress as a response to media coverage of crises, including terrorist attacks, school shootings, and disease outbreaks. They found that repeated media exposure to collective crises was associated with increased anxiety and heightened acute and post-traumatic stress, with downstream effects on health outcomes such as new incidence of cardiovascular disease. Moreover, misinformation can further amplify stress responses and lead to misplaced or misguided health-protective and help-seeking behaviors. The authors recommended public health agencies use social media strategically, such as with hashtags, to keep residents updated during the pandemic. They also urged the public to avoid sensationalism and repeated coverage of the same information. DOI: 10.1037/hea0000875

4. Barriers to Mental Health Treatment Among Individuals With Social Anxiety Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Goetter, e. m., et al..

This study in Psychological Services (Vol. 17, No. 1) indicates that 3 in 4 people who suffer from anxiety do not receive proper care. Researchers recruited 226 participants in the United States who were previously diagnosed with social anxiety disorder or generalized anxiety disorder and assessed their symptom severity and asked them to self-report any barriers to treatment. Shame and stigma were the highest cited barriers, followed by logistical and financial barriers and not knowing where to seek treatment. Participants with more severe symptoms reported more barriers to treatment than those with milder symptoms. Racial and ethnic minorities reported more barriers than racial and ethnic majorities even after controlling for symptom severity. The researchers called for increased patient education and more culturally sensitive outreach to reduce treatment barriers. DOI: 10.1037/ser0000254

5. The Construction of “Critical Thinking”: Between How We Think and What We Believe

This History of Psychology (Vol. 23, No. 3) article examines the emergence of “critical thinking” as a psychological concept. The author describes how, between World War I and World War II in the United States, the concept emerged out of growing concerns about how easily people’s beliefs could be changed and was constructed in a way that was independent of what people believed. The author delves into how original measurements of critical thinking avoided assumptions about the accuracy of specific real-world beliefs and details how subsequent critical thinking tests increasingly focused on logical abilities, often favoring outcome (what we believe) over process (how we think). DOI: 10.1037/hop0000145

6. Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder: Integration of Alcoholics Anonymous and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Breuninger, m. m., et al..

This article in Training and Education in Professional Psychology (Vol. 14, No. 1) details how to work with alcohol use disorder patients who are participating in both cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). The authors point to distinctions between AA and CBT: The goal of AA is total abstinence and the primary therapeutic relationship is with a peer in recovery, while CBT takes a less absolute approach and the primary relationship is with a psychotherapist. The authors also point to commonalities: both approaches emphasize identifying and replacing dysfunctional beliefs and place value in social support. The authors recommend clinicians and trainees become more educated about AA and recommend a translation of the 12-step language into CBT terminology to bridge the gap. DOI: 10.1037/tep0000265

7. Positivity Pays Off: Clients’ Perspectives on Positive Compared With Traditional Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression

Geschwind, n., et al..

Positive cognitive behavioral therapy, a version of CBT focused on exploring exceptions to the problem rather than the problem itself, personal strengths, and embracing positivity, works well to counter depressive symptoms and build well-being, according to this study in Psychotherapy (Vol. 57, No. 3). Participants received a block of eight sessions of traditional CBT and a block of eight sessions of positive CBT. Researchers held in-depth interviews with 12 of these participants. Despite initial skepticism, most participants reported preferring positive CBT but indicated experiencing a steeper learning curve than with traditional CBT. Researchers attributed positive CBT’s favorability to four factors: feeling empowered, benefiting from effects of positive emotions, learning to appreciate baby steps, and rediscovering optimism as a personal strength. DOI: 10.1037/pst0000288

8. Targeted Prescription of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Versus Person-Centered Counseling for Depression Using a Machine Learning Approach

Delgadillo, j., & gonzalez salas duhne, p..

Amachine learning algorithm can identify which patients would derive more benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) versus counseling for depression, suggests research in this Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (Vol. 88, No. 1) article. Researchers retrospectively explored data from 1,085 patients in the United Kingdom treated with either CBT or counseling for depression and discovered six patient characteristics—age, employment status, disability, and three diagnostic measures of major depression and social adjustment—relevant to developing an algorithm for prescribing the best approach. The researchers then used the algorithm to determine which therapy would work best for an additional 350 patients with depression. They found that patients receiving their optimal treatment type were twice as likely to improve significantly. DOI: 10.1037/ccp0000476

9. Traumatic Stress in the Age of COVID-19: A Call to Close Critical Gaps and Adapt to New Realities

Horesh, d., & brown, a. d..

This article in Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (Vol. 12, No. 4) argues that COVID-19 should be examined from a post-traumatic stress perspective. The authors call for mental health researchers and clinicians to develop better diagnoses and prevention strategies for COVID-related traumatic stress; create guidelines and talking points for the media and government officials to use when speaking to an anxious, and potentially traumatized, public; and provide mental health training to professionals in health care, education, childcare, and occupational support in order to reach more people. DOI: 10.1037/tra0000592

10. Emotional Intelligence Predicts Academic Performance: A Meta-Analysis

Maccann, c., et al..

Students with high emotional intelligence get better grades and score higher on standardized tests, according to the research presented in this article in Psychological Bulletin (Vol. 146, No. 2). Researchers analyzed data from 158 studies representing more than 42,529 students—ranging in age from elementary school to college—from 27 countries. The researchers found that students with higher emotional intelligence earned better grades and scored higher on achievement tests than those with lower emotional intelligence. This finding was true even when controlling for intelligence and personality factors, and the association held regardless of age. The researchers suggest that students with higher emotional intelligence succeed because they cope well with negative emotions that can harm academic performance; they form stronger relationships with teachers, peers, and family; and their knowledge of human motivations and socialinteractions helps them understand humanities subject matter. DOI: 10.1037/bul0000219

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Psychology’s most innovative thinkers are featured on APA’s Speaking of Psychology podcast , which highlights important research and helps listeners apply psychology to their lives. The most popular episodes of 2020, as measured by the number of downloads in the first 30 days, were: 

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• The challenges faced by women in leadership , with  Alice Eagly, PhD
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• Psychedelic therapy , with Roland Griffiths, PhD  

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Different types of research articles

A guide for early career researchers.

In scholarly literature, there are many different kinds of articles published every year. Original research articles are often the first thing you think of when you hear the words ‘journal article’. In reality, research work often results in a whole mixture of different outputs and it’s not just the final research article that can be published.

Finding a home to publish supporting work in different formats can help you start publishing sooner, allowing you to build your publication record and research profile.

But before you do, it’s very important that you check the  instructions for authors  and the  aims and scope  of the journal(s) you’d like to submit to. These will tell you whether they accept the type of article you’re thinking of writing and what requirements they have around it.

Understanding the different kind of articles

There’s a huge variety of different types of articles – some unique to individual journals – so it’s important to explore your options carefully. While it would be impossible to cover every single article type here, below you’ll find a guide to the most common research articles and outputs you could consider submitting for publication.

Book review

Many academic journals publish book reviews, which aim to provide insight and opinion on recently published scholarly books. Writing book reviews is often a good way to begin academic writing. It can help you get your name known in your field and give you valuable experience of publishing before you write a full-length article.

If you’re keen to write a book review, a good place to start is looking for journals that publish or advertise the books they have available for review. Then it’s just a matter of putting yourself forward for one of them.

You can check whether a journal publishes book reviews by browsing previous issues or by seeing if a book review editor is listed on the editorial board. In addition, some journals publish other types of reviews, such as film, product, or exhibition reviews, so it’s worth bearing those in mind as options as well.

Get familiar with instructions for authors

Be prepared, speed up your submission, and make sure nothing is forgotten by understanding a journal’s individual requirements.

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Case report

A medical case report – also sometimes called a clinical case study – is an original short report that provides details of a single patient case.

Case reports include detailed information on the symptoms, signs, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of an individual patient. They remain one of the cornerstones of medical progress and provide many new ideas in medicine.

Depending on the journal, a case report doesn’t necessarily need to describe an especially novel or unusual case as there is benefit from collecting details of many standard cases.

Take a look at  F1000Research’s guidance on case reports , to understand more about what’s required in them. And don’t forget that for all studies involving human participants, informed written consent to take part in the research must be obtained from the participants –  find out more about consent to publish.

Clinical study

In medicine, a clinical study report is a type of article that provides in-depth detail on the methods and results of a clinical trial. They’re typically similar in length and format to original research articles.

Most journals now require that you register protocols for clinical trials you’re involved with in a publicly accessible registry. A list of eligible registries can be found on the  WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) . Trials can also be registered at  clinicaltrials.gov  or the  EU Clinical Trials Register . Once registered, your trial will be assigned a clinical trial number (CTN).

Before you submit a clinical study, you’ll need to include clinical trial numbers and registration dates in the manuscript, usually in the abstract and methods sections.

Commentaries and letters to editors

Letters to editors, as well as ‘replies’ and ‘discussions’, are usually brief comments on topical issues of public and political interest (related to the research field of the journal), anecdotal material, or readers’ reactions to material published in the journal.

Commentaries are similar, though they may be slightly more in-depth, responding to articles recently published in the journal. There may be a ‘target article’ which various commentators are invited to respond to.

You’ll need to look through previous issues of any journal you’re interested in writing for and review the instructions for authors to see which types of these articles (if any) they accept.

Conference materials

Many of our medical journals  accept conference material supplements. These are open access peer-reviewed, permanent, and citable publications within the journal. Conference material supplements record research around a common thread, as presented at a workshop, congress, or conference, for the scientific record. They can include the following types of articles:

Poster extracts

Conference abstracts

Presentation extracts

Find out more about submitting conference materials.

Data notes  are a short peer-reviewed article type that concisely describe research data stored in a repository. Publishing a data note can help you to maximize the impact of your data and gain appropriate credit for your research.

Data notes promote the potential reuse of research data and include details of why and how the data were created. They do not include any analysis but they can be linked to a research article incorporating analysis of the published dataset, as well as the results and conclusions.

F1000Research  enables you to publish your data note rapidly and openly via an author-centric platform. There is also a growing range of options for publishing data notes in Taylor & Francis journals, including in  All Life  and  Big Earth Data .

Read our guide to data notes to find out more.

Letters or short reports

Letters or short reports (sometimes known as brief communications or rapid communications) are brief reports of data from original research.

Editors publish these reports where they believe the data will be interesting to many researchers and could stimulate further research in the field. There are even entire journals dedicated to publishing letters.

As they’re relatively short, the format is useful for researchers with results that are time sensitive (for example, those in highly competitive or quickly-changing disciplines). This format often has strict length limits, so some experimental details may not be published until the authors write a full original research article.

Brief reports  (previously called Research Notes) are a type of short report published by  F1000Research  – part of the Taylor & Francis Group. To find out more about the requirements for a brief report, take a look at  F1000Research’s guidance .

Method article

A method article is a medium length peer-reviewed, research-focused article type that aims to answer a specific question. It also describes an advancement or development of current methodological approaches and research procedures (akin to a research article), following the standard layout for research articles. This includes new study methods, substantive modifications to existing methods, or innovative applications of existing methods to new models or scientific questions. These should include adequate and appropriate validation to be considered, and any datasets associated with the paper must publish all experimental controls and make full datasets available.  

Posters and slides

With F1000Research, you can publish scholarly posters and slides covering basic scientific, translational, and clinical research within the life sciences and medicine. You can find out more about how to publish posters and slides  on the F1000Research website .

Registered report

A  Registered Report  consists of two different kinds of articles: a study protocol and an original research article.

This is because the review process for Registered Reports is divided into two stages. In Stage 1, reviewers assess study protocols before data is collected. In Stage 2, reviewers consider the full published study as an original research article, including results and interpretation.

Taking this approach, you can get an in-principle acceptance of your research article before you start collecting data. We’ve got  further guidance on Registered Reports here , and you can also  read F1000Research’s guidance on preparing a Registered Report .

Research article

Original research articles are the most common type of journal article. They’re detailed studies reporting new work and are classified as primary literature.

You may find them referred to as original articles, research articles, research, or even just articles, depending on the journal.

Typically, especially in STEM subjects, these articles will include Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion sections. However, you should always check the instructions for authors of your chosen journal to see whether it specifies how your article should be structured. If you’re planning to write an original research article, take a look at our guidance on  writing a journal article .

Review article

Review articles provide critical and constructive analysis of existing published literature in a field. They’re usually structured to provide a summary of existing literature, analysis, and comparison. Often, they identify specific gaps or problems and provide recommendations for future research.

Unlike original research articles, review articles are considered as secondary literature. This means that they generally don’t present new data from the author’s experimental work, but instead provide analysis or interpretation of a body of primary research on a specific topic. Secondary literature is an important part of the academic ecosystem because it can help explain new or different positions and ideas about primary research, identify gaps in research around a topic, or spot important trends that one individual research article may not.

There are 3 main types of review article

Literature review

Presents the current knowledge including substantive findings as well as theoretical and methodological contributions to a particular topic.

Systematic review

Identifies, appraises and synthesizes all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria to answer a specific research question. Researchers conducting systematic reviews use explicit, systematic methods that are selected with a view aimed at minimizing bias, to produce more reliable findings to inform decision making.

Meta-analysis

A quantitative, formal, epidemiological study design used to systematically assess the results of previous research to derive conclusions about that body of research. Typically, but not necessarily, a meta-analysis study is based on randomized, controlled clinical trials.

Take a look at our guide to  writing a review article  for more guidance on what’s required.

Software tool articles

A  software tool article  – published by  F1000Research  – describes the rationale for the development of a new software tool and details of the code used for its construction.

The article should provide examples of suitable input data sets and include an example of the output that can be expected from the tool and how this output should be interpreted. Software tool articles submitted to F1000Research should be written in open access programming languages. Take a look at  their guidance  for more details on what’s required of a software tool article.

Further resources

Ready to write your article, but not sure where to start?

For more guidance on how to prepare and write an article for a journal you can download the  Writing your paper eBook .

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Research Paper Example

To fully understand what information particular parts of the paper should discuss, here’s another example of a research paper.

This article is a part of the guide:

• Outline Examples
• Example of a Paper
• Write a Hypothesis
• Introduction

Browse Full Outline

• 1 Write a Research Paper
• 2 Writing a Paper
• 3.1 Write an Outline
• 3.2 Outline Examples
• 4.1 Thesis Statement
• 4.2 Write a Hypothesis
• 5.2 Abstract
• 5.3 Introduction
• 5.4 Methods
• 5.5 Results
• 5.6 Discussion
• 5.7 Conclusion
• 5.8 Bibliography
• 6.1 Table of Contents
• 6.2 Acknowledgements
• 6.3 Appendix
• 7.1 In Text Citations
• 7.2 Footnotes
• 7.3.1 Floating Blocks
• 7.4 Example of a Paper
• 7.5 Example of a Paper 2
• 7.6.1 Citations
• 7.7.1 Writing Style
• 7.7.2 Citations
• 8.1.1 Sham Peer Review
• 8.1.2 Advantages
• 8.1.3 Disadvantages
• 8.2 Publication Bias
• 8.3.1 Journal Rejection
• 9.1 Article Writing
• 9.2 Ideas for Topics

It includes some key parts of the paper such as the Abstract , Introduction , Discussion and References :

Text center-aligned and placed at the middle of the page, stating the title of the paper, name of author and affiliation.

A Study on the Factors Affecting the Infant Feeding Practices

Of Mothers in Las Piñas City

By [Author], University of the Philippines

The abstract starts on the next page, page 2. The text starts at the top, left flushed, double-spaced.

Abstract [Abstract here]

The body text starts on the next page, page 3. The text starts at the top, left flushed, double-spaced.

Introduction The melamine controversy that erupted during the last quarter of year 2008 brought people’s attention back to the debates between breastfeeding and the use of breast milk substitutes like commercial infant formula. This wasn’t the first time that infant formula had caused illnesses and even deaths to infants worldwide - hence the continuous campaign of World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF along with other breastfeeding advocates, for mothers to breastfeed their children at least until 6 months of age. Infant feeding practices refer generally to meet the nutritional and immunological needs of the baby. A study of infant feeding practices was carried out on a sample of 100 mother and infant pairs. The results revealed that only 20% of mothers in the study currently exclusively breastfeed their babies. It also shows that socio-economic factors like mother’s work status, marital status and educational attainment had direct bearing on these practices. Employed mothers tend to cease from breastfeeding their babies and eventually stop and just resort to formula feeding as they go back to work. The study also showed that mothers who are married and living with their partners are more likely to breastfeed their infants than single mothers. Those with higher educational attainment resort more to formula feeding and mixed feeding than those with lower educational attainment. Health care professionals influence mothers the most when it comes to infant feeding decisions. Methodology Type of Research The type of research that will be used in this study is qualitative research and quantitative research. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behavior. The discipline investigates the “why” and “how” of decision making. Besides this, the researcher will also examine the phenomenon through observations in numerical representations and through statistical analysis. Along with questionnaires that will be given out to respondents for the statistical representation of the findings in the study, interviews with the respondents and a few experts in this field will also be conducted. Sampling Method The research sampling method that will be used in this study is random sampling to obtain a more scientific result that could be used to represent the entirety of the population. A list of all health care facilities (maternity and lying-in clinics, public and private hospitals, health centers) was acquired from the Las Piñas City Hall. From 20 barangays, 3 will be picked through random sampling. The health care facilities and institutions in these three barangays will then be the target sources of respondents of the researcher. The health care facilities and institutions will be contacted to obtain a verbal consent to administer the questionnaire to mothers at their places. A letter of consent will also be sent to them along with a sample copy of the questionnaire that will be used, as well as the protocol of the researcher. A letter was also addressed to the City Health Officer to obtain endorsement and consent to conduct a research in selected barangays and distribute questionnaires to the mothers in the vicinity. Data collection was conducted throughout the facilities‟ and health centers‟ operating hours from Mondays through Sundays in order to include both working and non-working mothers. Respondents The respondents in this research will all be coming from one single location - Las Piñas City, specifically the randomly selected barangays of Pamplona I, CAA/BF International and Pamplona III. The researcher chose Las Piñas City because of the socio-economic conditions present in the area that is relevant to the study and also as it fits the time frame and resources of the researcher. The randomly sampled respondents will be asked by the researcher for consent and approval to answer the questionnaire until the desired number of respondents which is 100 is reached. The opinion of experts will also be sought in this research to provide explanations regarding the respondents‟ infant feeding behaviors and practices. Questionnaire The questionnaire requires information about the socio-economic and demographic background of the mother. It also has questions related to previous infant feeding practices and the birth of her youngest infant and also regarding the baby’s general health and age. Statements that are perceived to be factors that influence mothers‟ infant feeding decisions were presented. The description of the type of infant formula given by formula and mixed feeding mothers will also be asked in the material. Conclusion Majority of the mothers formula feed their child and only a minority exclusively breastfeeds their children, especially as per recommendation of the World Health Organization. While majority of the mothers in this study showed a positive attitude towards breastfeeding, most of them decided only to formula feed due to the reasons of insufficient milk supply and work. Based on the results of the study, the educational attainment, work status, marital status, and seminars in the barangay the respondents are part of, about breastfeeding, are the significant factors that affect the infant feeding decision of mothers in Las Piñas City. Majority of the mothers that served as respondents in this study fall under the age range of 17-30 years old. More than half of them were also college graduates while a significant number are undergraduates and have only reached until high school. Most of the mothers are housewives and the others remaining have full-time jobs, part-time jobs and self-employed. A few of them are still students. While majority of them were married, a lot were still in a status of live-in and are single. More than half of the mothers did not have previous children before the current one. Majority of the respondents also have an annual gross household income that does not exceed P50,000. Among the several information sources namely, media through televisions/radios and printed/published materials, the social support system comprised of the mother’s family, friends and other relatives and health institutions, the mothers who give their babies infant formula are influenced the most by health care institutions through health professionals and other health care personnel. They influence the mothers in deciding to feed the baby with formula and in choosing, as well, which brand of formula is best for their babies. Mothers trust their baby’s doctor because of their expertise in the said field hence this kind of relation is achieved. Mothers were overall not concerned about the possible side effects of breastfeeding as a few were only worried as shown in the data presented.       It can be concluded that numerous internal as well as external factors influence a mother in making infant feeding decisions, and a greater fraction of these is socio-economic in nature.

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What is an original research article?

An original research article is a report of research activity that is written by the researchers who conducted the research or experiment. Original research articles may also be referred to as: “primary research articles” or “primary scientific literature.” In science courses, instructors may also refer to these as “peer-reviewed articles” or “refereed articles.”

Original research articles in the sciences have a specific purpose, follow a scientific article format, are peer reviewed, and published in academic journals.

Identifying Original Research: What to Look For

An "original research article" is an article that is reporting original research about new data or theories that have not been previously published. That might be the results of new experiments, or newly derived models or simulations. The article will include a detailed description of the methods used to produce them, so that other researchers can verify them. This description is often found in a section called "methods" or "materials and methods" or similar. Similarly, the results will generally be described in great detail, often in a section called "results."

Since the original research article is reporting the results of new research, the authors should be the scientists who conducted that research. They will have expertise in the field, and will usually be employed by a university or research lab.

In comparison, a newspaper or magazine article (such as in  The New York Times  or  National Geographic ) will usually be written by a journalist reporting on the actions of someone else.

An original research article will be written by and for scientists who study related topics. As such, the article should use precise, technical language to ensure that other researchers have an exact understanding of what was done, how to do it, and why it matters. There will be plentiful citations to previous work, helping place the research article in a broader context. The article will be published in an academic journal, follow a scientific format, and undergo peer-review.

Original research articles in the sciences follow the scientific format. ( This tutorial from North Carolina State University illustrates some of the key features of this format.)

Look for signs of this format in the subject headings or subsections of the article. You should see the following:

Scientific research that is published in academic journals undergoes a process called "peer review."

The peer review process goes like this:

• A researcher writes a paper and sends it in to an academic journal, where it is read by an editor
• The editor then sends the article to other scientists who study similar topics, who can best evaluate the article
• The scientists/reviewers examine the article's research methodology, reasoning, originality, and sginificance
• The scientists/reviewers then make suggestions and comments to impove the paper
• The original author is then given these suggestions and comments, and makes changes as needed
• This process repeats until everyone is satisfied and the article can be published within the academic journal

For more details about this process see the Peer Reviewed Publications guide.

This journal article  is an example. It was published in the journal  Royal Society Open Science  in 2015. Clicking on the button that says "Review History" will show the comments by the editors, reviewers and the author as it went through the peer review process. The "About Us" menu provides details about this journal; "About the journal" under that tab includes the statement that the journal is peer reviewed.

Review articles

There are a variety of article types published in academic, peer-reviewed journals, but the two most common are original research articles and review articles . They can look very similar, but have different purposes and structures.

Like original research articles, review articles are aimed at scientists and undergo peer-review. Review articles often even have “abstract,” “introduction,” and “reference” sections. However, they will not (generally) have a “methods” or “results” section because they are not reporting new data or theories. Instead, they review the current state of knowledge on a topic.

Press releases, newspaper or magazine articles

These won't be in a formal scientific format or be peer reviewed. The author will usually be a journalist, and the audience will be the general public. Since most readers are not interested in the precise details of the research, the language will usually be nontechnical and broad. Citations will be rare or nonexistent.

Tips for Finding Original research Articles

Search for articles in one of the library databases recommend for your subject area . If you are using Google, try searching in Google Scholar instead and you will get results that are more likely to be original research articles than what will come up in a regular Google search!

For tips on using library databases to find articles, see our Library DIY guides .

Tips for Finding the Source of a News Report about Science

If you've seen or heard a report about a new scientific finding or claim, these tips can help you find the original source:

• Often, the report will mention where the original research was published; look for sentences like "In an article published yesterday in the journal  Nature ..." You can use this to find the issue of the journal where the research was published, and look at the table of contents to find the original article.
• The report will often name the researchers involved. You can search relevant databases for their name and the topic of the report to find the original research that way.
• Sometimes you may have to go through multiple articles to find the original source. For example, a video or blog post may be based on a newspaper article, which in turn is reporting on a scientific discovery published in another journal; be sure to find the original research article.
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Identifying Empirical Research Articles

Identifying empirical articles.

• Searching for Empirical Research Articles

What is Empirical Research?

An empirical research article reports the results of a study that uses data derived from actual observation or experimentation. Empirical research articles are examples of primary research. To learn more about the differences between primary and secondary research, see our related guide:

• Primary and Secondary Sources

By the end of this guide, you will be able to:

• Identify common elements of an empirical article
• Use a variety of search strategies to search for empirical articles within the library collection

Look for the  IMRaD  layout in the article to help identify empirical research. Sometimes the sections will be labeled differently, but the content will be similar. 

• I ntroduction: why the article was written, research question or questions, hypothesis, literature review
• M ethods: the overall research design and implementation, description of sample, instruments used, how the authors measured their experiment
• R esults: output of the author's measurements, usually includes statistics of the author's findings
• D iscussion: the author's interpretation and conclusions about the results, limitations of study, suggestions for further research

Parts of an Empirical Research Article

Parts of an empirical article.

The screenshots below identify the basic IMRaD structure of an empirical research article. 

Introduction

The introduction contains a literature review and the study's research hypothesis.

The method section outlines the research design, participants, and measures used.

Results 

The results section contains statistical data (charts, graphs, tables, etc.) and research participant quotes.

The discussion section includes impacts, limitations, future considerations, and research.

Learn the IMRaD Layout: How to Identify an Empirical Article

This short video overviews the IMRaD method for identifying empirical research.

• Next: Searching for Empirical Research Articles >>
• Last Updated: Nov 16, 2023 8:24 AM

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• Synthesizing Sources | Examples & Synthesis Matrix

Synthesizing Sources | Examples & Synthesis Matrix

Published on July 4, 2022 by Eoghan Ryan . Revised on May 31, 2023.

Synthesizing sources involves combining the work of other scholars to provide new insights. It’s a way of integrating sources that helps situate your work in relation to existing research.

Synthesizing sources involves more than just summarizing . You must emphasize how each source contributes to current debates, highlighting points of (dis)agreement and putting the sources in conversation with each other.

You might synthesize sources in your literature review to give an overview of the field or throughout your research paper when you want to position your work in relation to existing research.

Table of contents

Example of synthesizing sources, how to synthesize sources, synthesis matrix, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about synthesizing sources.

Let’s take a look at an example where sources are not properly synthesized, and then see what can be done to improve it.

This paragraph provides no context for the information and does not explain the relationships between the sources described. It also doesn’t analyze the sources or consider gaps in existing research.

Research on the barriers to second language acquisition has primarily focused on age-related difficulties. Building on Lenneberg’s (1967) theory of a critical period of language acquisition, Johnson and Newport (1988) tested Lenneberg’s idea in the context of second language acquisition. Their research seemed to confirm that young learners acquire a second language more easily than older learners. Recent research has considered other potential barriers to language acquisition. Schepens, van Hout, and van der Slik (2022) have revealed that the difficulties of learning a second language at an older age are compounded by dissimilarity between a learner’s first language and the language they aim to acquire. Further research needs to be carried out to determine whether the difficulty faced by adult monoglot speakers is also faced by adults who acquired a second language during the “critical period.”

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To synthesize sources, group them around a specific theme or point of contention.

As you read sources, ask:

• What questions or ideas recur? Do the sources focus on the same points, or do they look at the issue from different angles?
• How does each source relate to others? Does it confirm or challenge the findings of past research?
• Where do the sources agree or disagree?

Once you have a clear idea of how each source positions itself, put them in conversation with each other. Analyze and interpret their points of agreement and disagreement. This displays the relationships among sources and creates a sense of coherence.

Consider both implicit and explicit (dis)agreements. Whether one source specifically refutes another or just happens to come to different conclusions without specifically engaging with it, you can mention it in your synthesis either way.

Synthesize your sources using:

• Topic sentences to introduce the relationship between the sources
• Signal phrases to attribute ideas to their authors
• Transition words and phrases to link together different ideas

To more easily determine the similarities and dissimilarities among your sources, you can create a visual representation of their main ideas with a synthesis matrix . This is a tool that you can use when researching and writing your paper, not a part of the final text.

In a synthesis matrix, each column represents one source, and each row represents a common theme or idea among the sources. In the relevant rows, fill in a short summary of how the source treats each theme or topic.

This helps you to clearly see the commonalities or points of divergence among your sources. You can then synthesize these sources in your work by explaining their relationship.

If you want to know more about ChatGPT, AI tools , citation , and plagiarism , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• ChatGPT vs human editor
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Synthesizing sources means comparing and contrasting the work of other scholars to provide new insights.

It involves analyzing and interpreting the points of agreement and disagreement among sources.

You might synthesize sources in your literature review to give an overview of the field of research or throughout your paper when you want to contribute something new to existing research.

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .

It is often written as part of a thesis, dissertation , or research paper , in order to situate your work in relation to existing knowledge.

Topic sentences help keep your writing focused and guide the reader through your argument.

In an essay or paper , each paragraph should focus on a single idea. By stating the main idea in the topic sentence, you clarify what the paragraph is about for both yourself and your reader.

At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises).

Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text.

The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago .

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• Published: 19 June 2024

Detection of microplastics in the human penis

• Jason Codrington   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0003-1490-4211 1 ,
• Alexandra Aponte Varnum 1 ,
• Lars Hildebrandt 2 ,
• Daniel Pröfrock 2 ,
• Joginder Bidhan 1 ,
• Kajal Khodamoradi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2951-4382 1 ,
• Anke-Lisa Höhme 3 ,
• Martin Held   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-1869-463X 3 ,
• Aymara Evans 1 ,
• David Velasquez   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0003-0475-4918 1 ,
• Christina C. Yarborough 1 ,
• Bahareh Ghane-Motlagh 4 ,
• Ashutosh Agarwal 1 , 5 ,
• Justin Achua   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4159-439X 6 ,
• Edoardo Pozzi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0228-7039 1 , 7 , 8 ,
• Francesco Mesquita 1 ,
• Francis Petrella 1 ,
• David Miller 1 &
• Ranjith Ramasamy 1  

International Journal of Impotence Research ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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• Medical research
• Sexual dysfunction

The proliferation of microplastics (MPs) represents a burgeoning environmental and health crisis. Measuring less than 5 mm in diameter, MPs have infiltrated atmospheric, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems, penetrating commonplace consumables like seafood, sea salt, and bottled beverages. Their size and surface area render them susceptible to chemical interactions with physiological fluids and tissues, raising bioaccumulation and toxicity concerns. Human exposure to MPs occurs through ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact. To date, there is no direct evidence identifying MPs in penile tissue. The objective of this study was to assess for potential aggregation of MPs in penile tissue. Tissue samples were extracted from six individuals who underwent surgery for a multi-component inflatable penile prosthesis (IPP). Samples were obtained from the corpora using Adson forceps before corporotomy dilation and device implantation and placed into cleaned glassware. A control sample was collected and stored in a McKesson specimen plastic container. The tissue fractions were analyzed using the Agilent 8700 Laser Direct Infrared (LDIR) Chemical Imaging System (Agilent Technologies. Moreover, the morphology of the particles was investigated by a Zeiss Merlin Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), complementing the detection range of LDIR to below 20 µm. MPs via LDIR were identified in 80% of the samples, ranging in size from 20–500 µm. Smaller particles down to 2 µm were detected via SEM. Seven types of MPs were found in the penile tissue, with polyethylene terephthalate (47.8%) and polypropylene (34.7%) being the most prevalent. The detection of MPs in penile tissue raises inquiries on the ramifications of environmental pollutants on sexual health. Our research adds a key dimension to the discussion on man-made pollutants, focusing on MPs in the male reproductive system.

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All relevant data to the current study that was generated and analyzed is available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.

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Desai Sethi Urology Institute, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

Jason Codrington, Alexandra Aponte Varnum, Joginder Bidhan, Kajal Khodamoradi, Aymara Evans, David Velasquez, Christina C. Yarborough, Ashutosh Agarwal, Edoardo Pozzi, Francesco Mesquita, Francis Petrella, David Miller & Ranjith Ramasamy

Institute of Coastal Environmental Chemistry, Department for Inorganic Environmental Chemistry, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Max-Planck-Str 1, 21502, Geesthacht, Germany

Lars Hildebrandt & Daniel Pröfrock

Institute of Membrane Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Max-Planck-Str 1, 21502, Geesthacht, Germany

Anke-Lisa Höhme & Martin Held

Dr. J.T. MacDonald Foundation BioNIUM, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

Bahareh Ghane-Motlagh

Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

Ashutosh Agarwal

University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA

Justin Achua

Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy

Edoardo Pozzi

IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele, Urology, Milan, Italy

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Contributions

Jason Codrington—conceptualization, methodology, investigation, project administration, data curation, visualization, writing—original draft, editing. Alexandra Aponte Varnum—investigation, writing—original draft, editing, data curation, visualization. Lars Hildebrandt—investigation, writing—original draft, validation, resources. Daniel Pröfrock—investigation, editing, validation, resources. Joginder Bidhan—resources, writing—original draft. Kajal Khodamoradi—project administration, resources. Anke-Lisa Höhme—investigation, visualization. Martin Held—writing—original draft, editing. Aymara Evans—writing—original draft. David Velasquez—writing—original draft. Christina C. Yarborough—writing—original draft. Bahareh Ghane-Motlagh—investigation. Ashutosh Agarwal—investigation. Justin Achua—writing—original draft. Edoardo Pozzi—editing. Francesco Mesquita—editing. Francis Petrella—writing—review. David Miller—writing—review. Ranjith Ramasamy—conceptualization, methodology, project administration, resources, supervision, editing, funding acquisition

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Correspondence to Ranjith Ramasamy .

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Dr. Edoardo Pozzi is currently an Associate Editor for the International Journal of Impotence Research.

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The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University of Miami (Study # 20150740) and conducted following the Declaration of Helsinki. All patients provided written and informed consent to participate in the study.

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Codrington, J., Varnum, A.A., Hildebrandt, L. et al. Detection of microplastics in the human penis. Int J Impot Res (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-024-00930-6

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Received : 21 March 2024

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Accepted : 04 June 2024

Published : 19 June 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-024-00930-6

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• Published: 14 June 2024

Associations between deep venous thrombosis and thyroid diseases: a two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization study

• Lifeng Zhang 1   na1 ,
• Kaibei Li 2   na1 ,
• Qifan Yang 1 ,
• Yao Lin 1 ,
• Caijuan Geng 1 ,
• Wei Huang 1 &
• Wei Zeng 1  

European Journal of Medical Research volume  29 , Article number:  327 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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Some previous observational studies have linked deep venous thrombosis (DVT) to thyroid diseases; however, the findings were contradictory. This study aimed to investigate whether some common thyroid diseases can cause DVT using a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach.

This two-sample MR study used single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified by the FinnGen genome-wide association studies (GWAS) to be highly associated with some common thyroid diseases, including autoimmune hyperthyroidism (962 cases and 172,976 controls), subacute thyroiditis (418 cases and 187,684 controls), hypothyroidism (26,342 cases and 59,827 controls), and malignant neoplasm of the thyroid gland (989 cases and 217,803 controls. These SNPs were used as instruments. Outcome datasets for the GWAS on DVT (6,767 cases and 330,392 controls) were selected from the UK Biobank data, which was obtained from the Integrative Epidemiology Unit (IEU) open GWAS project. The inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger and weighted median methods were used to estimate the causal association between DVT and thyroid diseases. The Cochran’s Q test was used to quantify the heterogeneity of the instrumental variables (IVs). MR Pleiotropy RESidual Sum and Outlier test (MR-PRESSO) was used to detect horizontal pleiotropy. When the causal relationship was significant, bidirectional MR analysis was performed to determine any reverse causal relationships between exposures and outcomes.

This MR study illustrated that autoimmune hyperthyroidism slightly increased the risk of DVT according to the IVW [odds ratio (OR) = 1.0009; p  = 0.024] and weighted median methods [OR = 1.001; p  = 0.028]. According to Cochran’s Q test, there was no evidence of heterogeneity in IVs. Additionally, MR-PRESSO did not detect horizontal pleiotropy ( p  = 0.972). However, no association was observed between other thyroid diseases and DVT using the IVW, weighted median, and MR-Egger regression methods.

Conclusions

This study revealed that autoimmune hyperthyroidism may cause DVT; however, more evidence and larger sample sizes are required to draw more precise conclusions.

Introduction

Deep venous thrombosis (DVT) is a common type of disease that occurs in 1–2 individuals per 1000 each year [ 1 ]. In the post-COVID-19 era, DVT showed a higher incidence rate [ 2 ]. Among hospitalized patients, the incidence rate of this disease was as high as 2.7% [ 3 ], increasing the risk of adverse events during hospitalization. According to the Registro Informatizado Enfermedad Tromboembolica (RIETE) registry, which included data from ~ 100,000 patients from 26 countries, the 30-day mortality rate was 2.6% for distal DVT and 3.3% for proximal DVT [ 4 ]. Other studies have shown that the one-year mortality rate of DVT is 19.6% [ 5 ]. DVT and pulmonary embolism (PE), collectively referred to as venous thromboembolism (VTE), constitute a major global burden of disease [ 6 ].

Thyroid diseases are common in the real world. Previous studies have focused on the relationship between DVT and thyroid diseases, including thyroid dysfunction and thyroid cancer. Some case reports [ 7 , 8 , 9 ] have demonstrated that hyperthyroidism is often associated with DVT and indicates a worse prognosis [ 10 ]. The relationship between thyroid tumors and venous thrombosis has troubled researchers for many years. In 1989, the first case of papillary thyroid carcinoma presenting with axillary vein thrombosis as the initial symptom was reported [ 11 ]. In 1995, researchers began to notice the relationship between thyroid tumors and hypercoagulability [ 12 ], laying the foundation for subsequent extensive research. However, the aforementioned observational studies had limitations, such as small sample sizes, selection bias, reverse causality, and confounding factors, which may have led to unreliable conclusions [ 13 ].

Previous studies have explored the relationship of thyroid disease and DVT and revealed that high levels of thyroid hormones may increase the risk of DVT. Hyperthyroidism promotes a procoagulant and hypofibrinolytic state by affecting the von Willebrand factor, factors VIII, IV, and X, fibrinogen, and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 [ 14 , 15 ]. At the molecular level, researchers believe that thyroid hormones affect coagulation levels through an important nuclear thyroid hormone receptor (TR), TRβ [ 16 ], and participate in pathological coagulation through endothelial dysfunction. Thyroid hormones may have non-genetic effects on the behavior of endothelial cells [ 17 , 18 ]. In a study regarding tumor thrombosis, Lou [ 19 ] found that 303 circular RNAs were differentially expressed in DVT using microarray. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis revealed that the most significantly enriched pathways included thyroid hormone-signaling pathway and endocytosis, and also increased level of proteoglycans in cancer. This indicated that tumor cells and thyroid hormones might interact to promote thrombosis. Based on these studies, we speculated that thyroid diseases, including thyroid dysfunction and thyroid tumors, may cause DVT.

Mendelian randomization (MR) research is a causal inference technique that can be used to assess the causal relationship and reverse causation between specific exposure and outcome factors. If certain assumptions [ 20 ] are fulfilled, genetic variants can be employed as instrumental variables (IVs) to establish causal relationships. Bidirectional MR analysis can clarify the presence of reverse causal relationships [ 21 ], making the conclusions more comprehensive. Accordingly, we aimed to apply a two-sample MR strategy to investigate whether DVT is related to four thyroid diseases, including autoimmune hyperthyroidism, subacute thyroiditis, hypothyroidism, and thyroid cancer.

Study design

MR relies on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) as IVs. The IVs should fulfill the following three criteria [ 22 ]: (1) IVs should be strongly associated with exposure. (2) Genetic variants must be independent of unmeasured confounding factors that may affect the exposure–outcome association. (3) IVs are presumed to affect the outcome only through their associations with exposure (Fig.  1 ). IVs that met the above requirements were used to estimate the relationship between exposure and outcome. Our study protocol conformed to the STROBE-MR Statement [ 23 ], and all methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations.

The relationship between instrumental variables, exposure, outcome, and confounding factors

Data sources and instruments

Datasets (Table  1 ) in this study were obtained from a publicly available database (the IEU open genome-wide association studies (GWAS) project [ 24 ] ( https://gwas.mrcieu.ac.uk )). There was no overlap in samples between the data sources of outcome and exposures. Using de-identified summary-level data, privacy information such as overall age and gender were hidden. Ethical approval was obtained for all original work. This study complied with the terms of use of the database.

MR analysis was performed using the R package “TwoSampleMR”. SNPs associated with each thyroid disease at the genome-wide significance threshold of p  < 5.0 × 10 –8 were selected as potential IVs. To ensure independence between the genetic variants used as IVs, the linkage disequilibrium (LD) threshold for grouping was set to r 2  < 0.001 with a window size of 10,000 kb. The SNP with the lowest p -value at each locus was retained for analyses.

Statistical analysis

Multiple MR methods were used to infer causal relationships between thyroid diseases and DVT, including the inverse variance weighted (IVW), weighted median, and MR-Egger tests, after harmonizing the SNPs across the GWASs of exposures and outcomes. The main analysis was conducted using the IVW method. Heterogeneity and pleiotropy were also performed in each MR analysis. Meanwhile, the MR-PRESSO Global test [ 25 ] was utilized to detect horizontal pleiotropy. The effect trend of SNP was observed through a scatter plot, and the forest plot was used to observe the overall effects. When a significant causal relationship was confirmed by two-sample MR analysis, bidirectional MR analysis was performed to assess reverse causal relationships by swapping exposure and outcome factors. Parameters were set the same as before. All abovementioned statistical analyses were performed using the package TwoSampleMR (version 0.5.7) in the R program (version 4.2.1).

After harmonizing the SNPs across the GWASs for exposures and outcomes, the IVW (OR = 1.0009, p  = 0.024, Table  2 ) and weighted median analyses (OR = 1.001, p  = 0.028) revealed significant causal effects between autoimmune hyperthyroidism and DVT risk. Similar results were observed using the weighted median approach Cochran’s Q test, MR-Egger intercept, and MR-PRESSO tests suggested that the results were not influenced by pleiotropy and heterogeneity (Table  2 ). However, the leave-one-out analysis revealed a significant difference after removing some SNPs (rs179247, rs6679677, rs72891915, and rs942495, p  < 0.05, Figure S2a), indicating that MR results were dependent on these SNPs (Figure S2, Table S1). No significant effects were observed in other thyroid diseases (Table  2 ). The estimated scatter plot of the association between thyroid diseases and DVT is presented in Fig.  2 , indicating a positive causal relationship between autoimmune hyperthyroidism and DVT (Fig.  2 a). The forest plots of single SNPs affecting the risk of DVT are displayed in Figure S1.

The estimated scatter plot of the association between thyroid diseases and DVT. MR-analyses are derived using IVW, MR-Egger, weighted median and mode. By fitting different models, the scatter plot showed the relationship between SNP and exposure factors, predicting the association between SNP and outcomes

Bidirectional MR analysis was performed to further determine the relationship between autoimmune hyperthyroidism and DVT. The reverse causal relationship was not observed (Table S2), which indicated that autoimmune hyperthyroidism can cause DVT from a mechanism perspective.

This study used MR to assess whether thyroid diseases affect the incidence of DVT. The results showed that autoimmune hyperthyroidism can increase the risk of DVT occurrence, but a reverse causal relationship was not observed between them using bidirectional MR analysis. However, other thyroid diseases, such as subacute thyroiditis, hypothyroidism, and thyroid cancer, did not show a similar effect.

Recently, several studies have suggested that thyroid-related diseases may be associated with the occurrence of DVT in the lower extremities, which provided etiological clues leading to the occurrence of DVT in our subsequent research. In 2006, a review mentioned the association between thyroid dysfunction and coagulation disorders [ 26 ], indicating a hypercoagulable state in patients with hyperthyroidism. In 2011, a review further suggested a clear association between hypothyroidism and bleeding tendency, while hyperthyroidism appeared to increase the risk of thrombotic events, particularly cerebral venous thrombosis [ 27 ]. A retrospective cohort study [ 28 ] supported this conclusion, but this study only observed a higher proportion of concurrent thyroid dysfunction in patients with cerebral venous thrombosis. The relationship between thyroid function and venous thromboembolism remains controversial. Krieg VJ et al. [ 29 ] found that hypothyroidism has a higher incidence rate in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension and may be associated with more severe disease, which seemed to be different from previous views that hyperthyroidism may be associated with venous thrombosis. Alsaidan [ 30 ] also revealed that the risk of developing venous thrombosis was almost increased onefold for cases with a mild-to-moderate elevation of thyroid stimulating hormone and Free thyroxine 4(FT4). In contrast, it increased twofold for cases with a severe elevation of thyroid stimulating hormone and FT4. Raised thyroid hormones may increase the synthesis or secretion of coagulation factors or may decrease fibrinolysis, which may lead to the occurrence of coagulation abnormality.

Other thyroid diseases are also reported to be associated with DVT. In a large prospective cohort study [ 31 ], the incidence of venous thromboembolism was observed to increase in patients with thyroid cancer over the age of 60. However, other retrospective studies did not find any difference compared with the general population [ 32 ]. In the post-COVID-19 era, subacute thyroiditis has received considerable attention from researchers. New evidence suggests that COVID-19 may be associated with subacute thyroiditis [ 33 , 34 ]. Mondal et al. [ 35 ] found that out of 670 COVID-19 patients, 11 presented with post-COVID-19 subacute thyroiditis. Among them, painless subacute thyroiditis appeared earlier and exhibited symptoms of hyperthyroidism. Another case report also indicated the same result, that is, subacute thyroiditis occurred after COVID-19 infection, accompanied by thyroid function changes [ 36 ]. This led us to hypothesize that subacute thyroiditis may cause DVT through alterations in thyroid function.

This study confirmed a significant causal relationship between autoimmune hyperthyroidism and DVT ( p  = 0.02). The data were tested for heterogeneity and gene pleiotropy using MR-Egger, Cochran’s Q, and MR-PRESSO tests. There was no evidence that the results were influenced by pleiotropy or heterogeneity. In the leave-one-out analysis, four of the five selected SNPs showed significant effects of autoimmune hyperthyroidism on DVT, suggesting an impact of these SNPs on DVT outcome. Previous studies have focused on the relationship between hyperthyroidism and its secondary arrhythmias and arterial thromboembolism [ 37 , 38 ]. This study emphasized the risk of DVT in patients with hyperthyroidism, which has certain clinical implications. Prophylactic anticoagulant therapy was observed to help prevent DVT in patients with hyperthyroidism. Unfortunately, the results of this study did not reveal any evidence that suggests a relationship between other thyroid diseases and DVT occurrence. This may be due to the limited database, as this study only included the GWAS data from a subset of European populations. Large-scale multiracial studies are needed in the future.

There are some limitations to this study. First, it was limited to participants of European descent. Consequently, further investigation is required to confirm these findings in other ethnicities. Second, this study did not reveal the relationship between complications of hyperthyroidism and DVT. Additionally, this study selected IVs from the database using statistical methods rather than selecting them from the real population. This may result in weaker effects of the screened IVs and reduce the clinical significance of MR analysis. Moreover, the definitions of some diseases in this study were not clear in the original database, and some of the diseases were self-reported, which may reduce the accuracy of diagnosis. Further research is still needed to clarify the causal relationship between DVT and thyroid diseases based on prospective cohort and randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

This study analyzed large-scale genetic data and provided evidence of a causal relationship between autoimmune hyperthyroidism and the risk of DVT, Compared with the other thyroid diseases investigated. Prospective RCTs or MR studies with larger sample sizes are still needed to draw more precise conclusions.

Availability of data and materials

The IEU open gwas project, https://gwas.mrcieu.ac.uk/

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Lifeng Zhang and Kaibei Li have contributed equally to this work and share the first authorship.

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Department of Vascular Surgery, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 39, Shierqiao Road, Jinniu District, Chengdu, 610072, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China

Lifeng Zhang, Qifan Yang, Yao Lin, Caijuan Geng, Wei Huang & Wei Zeng

Disinfection Supply Center, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 39, Shierqiao Road, Jin Niu District, Chengdu, 610072, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China

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Conception and design: LFZ and WZ. Analysis and interpretation: LFZ, KBL and WZ. Data collection: LFZ, QFY, YL, CJG and WH. Writing the article: LFZ, KBL. Critical revision of the article: LFZ, GFY and WZ. Final approval of the article: LFZ, KBL, YL, CJG, WH, QFY and WZ. Statistical analysis: YL, QFY.

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Zhang, L., Li, K., Yang, Q. et al. Associations between deep venous thrombosis and thyroid diseases: a two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization study. Eur J Med Res 29 , 327 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40001-024-01933-1

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Four Types of Exercise Can Improve Your Health and Physical Ability

Learn about the four types of exercises and how they can benefit you. For workout videos and examples of how to do some of the exercises listed below, visit NIA’s YouTube channel .

Most people tend to focus on one type of exercise or activity and think they’re doing enough. Research has shown that it’s important to get all four types of exercise: endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility. Each one has different benefits . Doing one kind also can improve your ability to do the others, and variety helps reduce boredom and risk of injury. No matter your age, you can find activities that meet your fitness level and needs!

On this page:

• Flexibility

Endurance exercises for older adults

Endurance activities, often referred to as aerobic, increase your breathing and heart rates. These activities help keep you healthy, improve your fitness, and help you perform the tasks you need to do every day. Endurance exercises improve the health of your heart , lungs, and circulatory system. They also can delay or prevent many diseases that are common in older adults such as diabetes , colon and breast cancers, heart disease , and others. Physical activities that build endurance include:

• Brisk walking or jogging
• Yard work (mowing, raking)
• Climbing stairs or hills
• Playing tennis or basketball

Increase your endurance or “staying power” to help keep up with your grandchildren during a trip to the park, dance to your favorite songs at a family wedding, and rake the yard and bag up leaves. Build up to at least 150 minutes of activity a week that makes you breathe hard. Try to be active throughout your day to reach this goal and avoid sitting for long periods of time.

Safety tips

• Do a little light activity, such as easy walking, before and after your endurance activities to warm up and cool down.
• Listen to your body: endurance activities should not cause dizziness, chest pain or pressure, or a feeling like heartburn.
• Be sure to drink liquids when doing any activity that makes you sweat. If your doctor has told you to limit your fluids, be sure to check before increasing the amount of fluid you drink while exercising.
• If you are going to be exercising outdoors , be aware of your surroundings.
• Dress in layers so you can add or remove clothes as needed for hot and cold weather.
• To prevent injuries, use safety equipment, such as a helmet when bicycling .

Strength exercises for older adults

Your muscular strength can make a big difference. Strong muscles help you stay independent and make everyday activities feel easier, like getting up from a chair, climbing stairs, and carrying groceries. Keeping your muscles strong can help with your balance and prevent falls and fall-related injuries . You are less likely to fall when your leg and hip muscles are strong. Some people call using weight to improve your muscle strength “strength training” or “resistance training.”

Some people choose to use weights to help improve their strength. If you do, start by using light weights at first, then gradually add more. Other people use resistance bands, stretchy elastic bands that come in varying strengths. If you are a beginner, try exercising without the band or use a light band until you are comfortable. Add a band or move on to a stronger band (or more weight) when you can do two sets of 10 to 15 repetitions easily. Try to do strength exercises for all of your major muscle groups at least 2 days per week, but don’t exercise the same muscle group on any 2 days in a row. Below are a few examples of strength exercises:

• Lifting weights
• Carrying groceries
• Gripping a tennis ball
• Overhead arm curl
• Wall push-ups
• Lifting your body weight
• Using a resistance band
• Don’t hold your breath during strength exercises and breathe regularly.
• Breathe out as you lift or push, and breathe in as you relax.
• Talk with your doctor if you are unsure about doing a particular exercise.

Balance exercises for older adults

Balance exercises help prevent falls , a common problem in older adults that can have serious consequences. Many lower-body strength exercises also will improve your balance. Balance exercises include:

• Tai Chi , a "moving meditation" that involves shifting the body slowly, gently, and precisely, while breathing deeply.
• Standing on one foot.
• The heel-to-toe walk.
• The balance walk.
• Standing from a seated position.
• Have a sturdy chair or a person nearby to hold on to if you feel unsteady.
• Talk with your doctor if you are unsure about a particular exercise.

Flexibility exercises for older adults

Stretching can improve your flexibility. Moving more freely will make it easier for you to reach down to tie your shoes or look over your shoulder when you back your car out of the driveway. Flexibility exercises include:

• The back stretch exercise
• The inner thigh stretch
• The ankle stretch
• The back of leg stretch
• Stretch when your muscles are warmed up.
• Stretch after endurance or strength exercises.
• Don’t stretch so far that it hurts.
• Always remember to breathe normally while holding a stretch.

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Organic Matter and Soil Amendments

Compost (dark brown material) mixed with soil to create planting mounds for squash. The area is covered with residues of a cover crop that was cut down in late April.

• Organic matter includes plants and animals that are alive, dead, or in some stage of decomposition .
• Organic matter is a major contributor to soil health . Most garden and landscape plants benefit from increases in soil organic matter.
• Soil amendments are materials applied to or mixed into the topsoil to change or change soil properties and improve plant growth. For example, compost improves soil structure and lime increases soil pH. Most soil amendments supply some plant nutrients and some compost and manure products double as fertilizers with a guaranteed nutrient analysis.

Organic matter 

• Soil organic matter (OM) is made up of living, dead, and decomposing plants, small animals, and microorganisms. Materials we think of as dead, like brown, dried up leaves or banana peels, are teeming with microbial life. There can be a billion microorganisms in a teaspoon of compost or soil!
• Adding organic matter improves soils high in clay or sand .
• Soils high in OM retain more moisture, have a crumbly structure that resists soil compaction, and contain a reservoir of nutrients that are slowly released over time.
• OM improves soil aeration, water drainage, root growth, and biological activity.
• Compost and pine bark fines are good peat moss substitutes (a mined and non-renewable natural resource).
• Most garden and landscape plants perform best when the  soil organic matter level is at least 2%  (the goal for vegetable and flower beds should be 5%-10%). These soils are loose, easy to prepare for planting seeds and plants and have a large number of earthworms.
• Organic matter is measured by weight, not volume. Most soil testing labs include the organic matter test in their basic soil test.

Soil amendments

• Soil amendments are applied to or mixed into the topsoil to improve soil properties and plant growth.  
• Practice sustainable gardening by using no-cost or low-cost amendments such as locally available manure and compost and "home-grown" compost, leaves, grass clippings, cover crops, and kitchen scraps.
• pH adjusters (lime and sulfur) can be found on the Soil Testing page.
• Listed products are only examples and not endorsements. Read all product label instructions before you open the bag.

Common soil amendments and sources of organic matter

U.S. EPA Class A "Exceptional Quality" biosolids (composted sewer sludge) are allowed for use around all types of garden plants. Examples:

• BLOOM , a product of Washington, D.C. biosolids
• Milorganite , a product of Milwaukee biosolids that have been heat-dried resulting in a relatively high guaranteed nutrient analysis (5-2-5). 
• This is a relatively new soil amendment for the U.S. Research studies are attempting to determine biochar’s effects on soil carbon storage, soil reclamation, and improving the nutrient and water retention of soils.
• Biochar is charred organic matter, made by burning biomass such as wood waste and agricultural residues in the absence of oxygen (pyrolysis).
• The end product is a fine-grained charcoal that is stable (resists further decomposition), porous, and variable depending on the feedstock and the process used.
• Although low in nutrients, biochar can hold nutrients that might otherwise be lost to leaching or runoff.
• Commercial products are available for gardeners and farmers but their value, relative to the many other ways of increasing soil organic matter, has not yet been established.
• Home-made compost or purchased compost can be added at any time of year and can be used as a top-dressing or mulch during the growing season.
• To improve the soil where trees, shrubs, and herbaceous perennials are planted, remove mulch, spread an inch of compost over the area, and move the mulch back in place.
• Incorporate 2-4 inches of compost into new plant beds that are high clay or have thin topsoil.
• Organic matter moves downward through the soil profile and is continuously used up through oxidation. It should be replenished each year in flower and vegetable beds. Just 1 inch of compost per year can help maintain garden productivity.
• 8.33 cubic feet of compost will cover a 100 sq. ft. garden to a depth of one inch; 3 cubic yards of compost will cover a 1,000 sq. ft. garden to a depth of one inch.
• One cubic ft. of compost weighs about 40 lbs. And one cubic yd. weighs about 1,100 lbs. This will vary depending on moisture content.
• Plant-based composts have an N-P-K analysis of approximately 1.0-0.5-1.0. Only 5%-10% of the N (nitrogen) is mineralized (plant-available) in the year of application. Most of the K (potassium) and a small percentage of the P (phosphorus) are available in the first year.
• Manure-based composts are higher in nutrients and more of the N and P is in an inorganic, plant-available form.
• Make your own backyard compost from leaves, grass clippings, kitchen scraps, and other materials. Every gardener can recycle at least some of their organic waste into compost and keep it out of the landfill.
• Purchase compost
• Commercial composts are made from a wide variety of organic materials such as agricultural and food wastes, animal manure, grass clippings, and leaves. Many commercial composts are made using U.S. Composting Council guidelines and are regularly tested for content, quality, and contaminants.
• The risk from pesticide residues in commercially available compost is extremely low. Herbicides are short-lived in soil and compost and rarely show up as a problem. Producers and sellers have their composts tested regularly and should be able to provide result reports. However, a few long-residual herbicides (aminopyralid and clopyralid) have contaminated manure and commercial compost in recent years.
• Purchase compost by the bag or cubic yard (pick-up truck size load). LeafGro® is an example of a commercial compost made from yard waste and food scraps. Some county/city solid waste and recycling units make and sell compost for pickup. Check with your local agencies.

Compost tea

• Made by "steeping" compost in a bucket of water (5 parts water to 1 part compost by volume) for 1-3 days, then straining and applying the liquid to plants. Make compost tea using plant-based compost or vermicompost (worm compost). Do not use compost made from animal manure. Compost tea is low in a wide range of nutrients and good for fertilizing seedlings and transplants.

Cover crops

• Growing plants year-round is a great way to store carbon in the soil and support the soil food web. Cover crops reduce soil erosion and recycle nutrients which can reduce the need for fertilizers. They can also be used as a mulch after cutting and are an essential part of no-till farming and gardening.

Corn gluten

• Has a relatively high N organic fertilizer (10-0-0) content and is also labeled as a preemergent herbicide. However, it is not recommended for use on Maryland lawns as an organic preemergent herbicide because the recommended rate for weed control would exceed the amount of nitrogen allowed by Maryland's Lawn Fertilizer Law .
• A highly soluble form of magnesium (10%) and sulfur (13% sulfur). It should not be applied to the soil unless recommended in a soil test report. Epsom salt will not prevent or reverse blossom end rot of vegetables. A shortage of calcium causes the cell wall breakdown resulting in the sunken, brown/black areas on the bottoms and sides of fruits. Excess magnesium can make the problem worse by making calcium less available for plant uptake.
• A mineral that does not affect soil pH. It is approximately 23% calcium and 18% sulfur by weight. The calcium is quickly available making it a good choice for mixing into soil to prevent blossom end rot in vegetable crops. Despite the "clay-buster" claim on product bags, gypsum does not improve the structure of clayey soils in Maryland. Gypsum can be applied to soil at a rate of ½ lb. per square foot to prevent salt injury to plants from de-icing salts and salt spray (removes sodium from the soil).
• Animal manure has a higher plant-available nutrient content than plant-based or manure-based compost. Poultry, sheep, and rabbit manure are higher in nutrients than cow or horse manure.
• Horse manure, even if "aged," may contain many viable weed seeds.
• Lightly incorporate manure into soil to prevent nutrients from washing away or volatilizing.
• Never add dog or cat manure to your compost pile or vegetable garden soil.
• Bagged manure products are usually composted or dehydrated (17% moisture) and often carry an N-P-K fertilizer guarantee on their label.

Reduce Human Pathogen Risks

• Fully composted manures can be applied to the soil at any time of the year. Manures are considered fully composted when a static, aerated pile reaches at least 131ºF. for 3 consecutive days. This kills most plant and human diseases. Temperatures >145 ºF. will kill weed seeds. Not all farmers actively manage and monitor their manure to this standard. So, it's best to treat any local animal manure as un-composted and add it to gardens in the fall.
• You can safely mix un-composted manures (ranging from fresh through well-decomposed) into the topsoil in fall and then cover the soil with mulched leaves, if possible, to reduce leaching, run-off, and erosion risks.
• You can also spread and incorporate un-composted manure during the growing season at least 90 days prior to harvesting crops with edible parts off the ground (pepper, tomato, corn, eggplant) and 120 days prior to harvesting crops with edible parts touching the soil (leafy greens, root crops, bush beans). These guidelines reduce the likelihood of un-composted manure contacting your food. And, of course, always wash produce prior to fresh eating or preparation.

Organic mulches, including tree leaves, grass clippings, straw, wood bark, and wood chips, decompose and contribute to soil organic matter. Using organic materials available from your yard or neighboring yards keeps them out of landfills and recycles nutrients from plants to soil and back to plants.

• Mulched or shredded leaves rot faster than whole leaves and are an excellent substitute for wood or bark mulches. They can also be spread on vegetable and flower beds to protect soil over the winter. Move the leaves to plant in spring and then re-apply them as mulch.
• Grass clippings (no herbicides) can be used as a mulch around plants or added to your compost pile.
• Leave plant roots in the soil to decompose by cutting off the tops of annual plants when their season is over.

Mushroom compost

• Compost from mushroom farming (aka "mushroom soil" or "spent mushroom substrate") is made from a variety of materials including manures, wheat straw, corn cobs, feathermeal, peanut meal, peat moss, and lime. Once the mushrooms are harvested the compost they grew in is removed, steam-sterilized, and sold. According to Penn State Extension , it contains 1.5-3.0% nitrogen, 0.5-2.0% phosphorous (phosphate), and 1.0-3.0% potassium (potash).The approximate N-P-K analysis is 2.75-1.5-1.5. It may contain higher soluble salt levels than other composts. Mixing it into the soil or watering the compost prior to use to leach excess salts will reduce the risk of salt injury to plant roots. 

Mycorrhizae

• Beneficial fungi that occur naturally in soil and grow symbiotically on plant roots (ectomycorrhizae) or in plant roots (endomycorrhizae). It's estimated that 80% of all land plants on Earth are colonized by endomycorrhizae.They extend the root system by sending out tiny filaments to forage for water and nutrients used by plants. They have been shown to also help plants fend off pathogens. Some crops, like blueberry, rely heavily on mycorrhizae for nutrient uptake. These fungi are prevalent in Maryland soils. Research does not show any benefit to garden plants when mycorrhizae are purchased and applied to soil. This is especially true when plant nutrients and soil moisture are plentiful, and also because commercial mixes contain a narrow subset of mycorrhizal species. You can increase the populations of beneficial fungi through plant diversity (especially native plants), reduced soil disturbance, and planting cover crops.
• Peat partially composted moss mined from prehistoric non-renewable bogs. Peat moss is light and porous, absorbing 10-20 times its weight in water. It contains little nutrient value, but has a high nutrient-holding capacity. Harvesting peat releases CO2, a greenhouse gas contributing to climate change . More sustainable options like compost and pine bark fines should be substituted when possible. Learn more about this topic: peat-free potting mixes . 

Pine bark fines

• Finely shredded pine bark product that retains moisture. Sometimes a component of soilless growing media. It can be incorporated into annual and perennial beds. Very acidic, so watch soil pH levels if large quantities are used.
• Can be used to improve soil for succulents, but a minimum of 50% by volume is necessary. Use only coarse builder's sand, not play sand. Adding organic matter, not sand, on a yearly basis is the key to improving clayey soils.
• Only well-decayed sawdust should be incorporated into the soil. Fresh sawdust can burn plant roots and "tie up" nitrogen as it decomposes. (Soil microbes that break down the high-carbon sawdust need nitrogen and can access available nitrogen more easily than plant roots.) Good for mulching blueberry beds.
• There are no quality standards for topsoil and it is not a regulated product in Maryland. If you plan to buy topsoil in bulk, go to a reputable nursery or topsoil dealer and ask for soil test results and information on the origin of the soil, on-site mixing, and storage practices. Examine the soil before purchase or delivery. Topsoil should be dark and crumbly with an earthy smell. Do not purchase soil that is very high in sand or clay, foul-smelling, or has grayish mottling or a chalky, sticky, or rough texture. Some businesses sell a topsoil/compost mix which can make an excellent growing media for raised beds .
• The bags of "organic soil" you may see for sale typically don't contain topsoil (i.e. mineral soil with clay, silt, and sand particles). These products contain various combinations of wood waste, bark fines, compost, peat moss, and other organic materials.
• Ashes from wood and pellet stoves contain large amounts of potash (10%) and calcium carbonate (25%). For liming purposes, two pounds of wood ash is equivalent to approximately one pound of calcitic limestone or dolomitic limestone. Use ashes based on soil test results and don't exceed 20 lbs./1,000 sq. ft. per year. Apply wood ashes in the fall or winter. Dispose of excess ashes in the trash, not the compost bin.

Worm castings

• Worm 'poop' produced by red wiggler (Eisenia fetida) and other earthworms that is rich in nutrients and microbes. Commercial castings are produced by vermicompost businesses that use worms to convert organic materials into compost in a controlled environment. Vermicompost is a combination of worm castings and partially decomposed organic materials. You can produce your own vermicompost in a homemade or purchased bin.

Related information

Soil Testing and Soil Testing Labs

Soil Basics

Soil for Containers

Soil to Fill Raised Beds

How to Make Your Own Compost 

Author: Jon Traunfeld, Director HGIC, Extension Specialist, Fruits and Vegetables. 11/2020

Still have a question? Contact us at Ask Extension .

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World Leaders in Research-Based User Experience

Glassmorphism: definition and best practices.

June 7, 2024 2024-06-07

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Glassmorphism is a visual-design trend  gaining popularity since 2020 and is prominent in Apple and Microsoft's design systems. Glassmorphic elements look like frosted glass. Thoughtful use of glassmorphism can help designers effectively establish visual hierarchy and depth. However, without a solid grasp of visual-design principles or if overused, glassmorphism can pose significant accessibility and usability challenges.

In This Article:

What is glassmorphism, glassmorphism in design systems, characteristics of glassmorphism  , designing with glassmorphism: best practices.

Glassmorphism is a visual-design style that utilizes different levels of translucency to create depth and contrast between foreground and background elements, mimicking frosted glass. 

Typically, glassmorphic UI elements stand out when placed in front of gradients or complex backgrounds to accentuate depth.

While “glassmorphism” is a commonly used term, design systems tend to label this style under the broader category of “material” since these elements replicate the look of physical material in a digital space. For instance, Microsoft’s Fluent Design System defines a material called “Acrylic,” which embodies the characteristics of glassmorphism.

These design systems aim to create depth against complex backgrounds in order to emphasize or contain specific parts of an interface. In virtual- or mixed-reality spaces, glassmorphic elements help maintain a 3D experience by providing texture to objects that might otherwise seem two-dimensional on a standard screen. For example, the Apple Vision Pro uses glassmorphic SwiftUI materials in translucent UI overlays to effectively blur the virtual-reality environments behind them while keeping them perceptible.

Two main characteristics create glassmorphism’s translucency: opacity and background blur. To achieve a glassmorphic effect, designers can vary the opacity and background blur of components to affect how much background information is visible and distinguishable. Designers can also opt to use strokes and gradients for more depth and contrast if the glassmorphic elements will be placed on both complex and simple backgrounds.

To achieve a glassmorphic look, you need to be able to see through the element you are designing. You can achieve this by adjusting the opacity of your component’s fill (the color, pattern, or gradient inside of an object). 

Opacity defines how much you can see through an element. The more opaque an element is, the less you can see the contents behind it. The less opaque, the more you can see. For example, the glass windows in your home probably have 0% opacity, meaning you can see everything outside clearly.

Background Blur

Background blur distorts objects behind the main component, giving background elements a fuzzy, out-of-focus appearance. Examples of background blur in the physical world are a walk-in shower with a frosted glass door or a conference room with privacy glass. You can still see objects on the other side, but they are blurred to a point where you might be unable to identify them. 

Background blur provides this same effect for low-opacity digital elements. For instance, a white rectangle with 30% opacity and a 25-pixel blur will distort background elements but still have somewhat distinguishable edges. However, by adjusting the blur to 100 pixels, those same background elements become more out-of-focus and blend together.

Strokes and Gradients

In addition to opacity and background blur, strokes (borders) and gradients can emphasize depth of glassmorphic elements, especially when these elements are placed on simple or one-color backgrounds. 

A gradient takes two or more colors, color shades, or color opacities and blends them together seamlessly. Gradients can be applied to both fills and strokes of an element. You can add a low-opacity or gradient stroke around a component to create an illusion of thickness. Gradients can also be applied to the fill of the component to mimic the reflection of light on actual glass.

When incorporating glass-like materials in your UI, it is essential to understand the accessibility constraints of translucent components. One of the most significant issues with glassmorphism stems from text readability problems, with text either being too light or too dark or backgrounds being too busy. Follow these three best practices when incorporating glass-like materials into your design system

Meet Contrast Requirements

Ensure that text and graphical elements meet contrast requirements. Since glassmorphic components are translucent, textual elements can fall over multiple colors, which can affect readability. For instance, if you are designing a card component over a busy background, your text might only have enough contrast over certain areas and be challenging to read. If you are designing in Figma, I recommend checking out the plugin Contrast by Willowtree, which lets you quickly check the contrast ratios of text and other design elements.

More Blur Is Better

More background blur is better, especially with intricate backgrounds (e.g., video, photography, animations). Many UI designs on Behance or Dribble try too hard to keep background elements distinguishable. However, overwhelming backgrounds can make it hard for users to focus on meaningful content and affect text readability.

In instances where components can appear in various contexts, like an overlay on a website or contextual menu on a desktop application, the background blur must account for the many possible backgrounds on which the item may appear. For example, the contextual menu below uses Microsoft’s acrylic material that appears over a complex image.

On the other hand, if you have control of what appears behind a translucent component, opt for simple or single-color backgrounds.

Let Users Adjust Transparency

If feasible, give users the option to control contrast or transparency settings. For example, Apple’s accessibility features allow users to reduce transparency or increase contrast, minimizing or removing the blur of glassmorphic components altogether. These options enable the interface to be adaptable for low-vision users.

If your budget or time constraints do not allow this type of customization , then make sure that any glassmorphic elements in your interface are WCAG-compliant .

Overall, glassmorphism is best when utilized sparingly to create an illusion of depth. Consider using already established design systems, like Apple’s SwfitUI, to avoid any potential issues with creating glassmorphic materials from scratch. Otherwise, be mindful of how translucent components are affected by background elements while maintaining visual hierarchy and accessibility requirements.

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Onboarding New Employees in a Hybrid Workplace

• Dawn Klinghoffer,
• Karen Kocher,
• Natalie Luna

New research from Microsoft on how much time new hires should spend in the office during their first 90 days.

As you’re navigating hybrid work, it’s a good moment to assess how your onboarding processes enable or empower your new hires to thrive. Researchers at Microsoft have conducted and identified studies that suggest that onboarding to a new role, team, or company is a key moment for building connections with the new manager and team and doing so a few days in person provides unique benefits. But just requiring newcomers to be onsite full time doesn’t guarantee success. The authors explain and offer examples of how onboarding that truly helps new employees thrive in the modern workplace is less about face time and more about intention, structure, and resources.

During the pandemic, companies around the world explored new ways of working that challenged long-held assumptions and beliefs about where work gets done. Many companies, including Microsoft , saw the benefits of flexible work and wanted to offer employees a chance to continue to work in a hybrid environment, while balancing the needs of the organization.

• Dawn Klinghoffer is the head of people analytics at Microsoft.
• KK Karen Kocher leads the future of work, workforce of the future and talent & learning experiences at Microsoft.
• NL Natalie Luna is on Microsoft’s employee listening team, leading employee lifecycle and daily surveys, and researching onboarding, culture and hybrid ways of working.

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