WRITING A

RESEARCH
REPORT
RESEARCH

a systematic and scientific way of investigating and

gathering information to answer a particular problem,
establish facts, and reach conclusions

2
 TYPES OF RESEARCH REPORT

FIELD LABORATORY OR
SURVEY
SCIENTIFIC/
REPORT REPORT TECHNICAL REPORT
-used in the field of social
presents the written by those in the sciences
sciences to link theory and
results of the mainly to persuade others to
application.
author’s research accept or reject a hypothesis,
-contains the author’s
record the details for future
observations when out in the
researches, and document a
field and an analysis using
current phenomenon for future
theoretical concepts from
reference or comparison
the discipline
-personal and simple in tone
and style
3
 DETERMINING THE TOPIC OF A
RESEARCH PAPER

Relevant
addresses an existing problem or issue
*question form*

Interesting, especially for the researcher

interest and natural curiosity in the topic will encourage greater

commitment to the research.

Manageable

-something you are able to work on given your limitations

-neither too broad nor too narrow to keep the results relevant
5
GENERAL TOPIC DIETING

What are the major physical effects of too much

TOPIC IN QUESTION FORM
dieting?

Too much dieting can lead to starvation, loss of

THESIS STATEMENT
strength, and different diseases.

1. How does too much dieting lead to starvation?

2. How does too much dieting lead to loss of strength?
3. How does too much dieting lead to different diseases?

5
 Q
G
U
O
1. Clear, especially to a layperson A
O
L Q
D
2. Require the gathering of data to answer it I U
T E
R
3. Address an observed problem or issue I S
E
E T
S
4. Manageable in terms of your skills and resources S I
E
O
A
5. Answerable through ethical methods O N
R
F
C
6. Have a practical use
H
A

5
WRITING A RESEARCH REPORT
-an expanded paper that presents the results and the interpretation of a study so
that readers can better understand a particular phenomenon
-is produced through formal investigation and scientific inquiry

A research report requires the following:

topic (field specific or general)
type of paper (journal format or thesis format)
specific length
multiple sources (usually at least 10 reputable references
different types of source (books, journals, periodicals, and other online
sources
documentation style (APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE)
deadlines
format (depends on the documentation style)
complete parts
2
 PARTS OF A RESEARCH REPORT
1. Title page
contains an informative title which describes the content of the paper, name, address, and
affiliation of the author/s, and the date when it was submitted
Effects of Facebook on Academic Achievement of First-Year Students
Development and Validation of a Software for Detecting Plagiarism

2. Abstract
contains the summary of the findings and conclusions
briefly presents the context of the study, the research questions or objectives, the methodology, the major
findings, and the conclusions and their implications with minimal number of citations and statistical data
length ranges from 100-250 words

3. Introduction
explains the current state of the field of discipline and identifies research gaps addressed by
the research
presents the research focus and puts the research topic in context
length usually ranges from 3-5 paragraphs

2
4. Literature Review
contains the summary and synthesis of all available sources directly related to the study
divided into 2 sections:
1. Related concepts - define, explain, and describe the fundamental concepts and theories needed by the
readers to understand the study
2. Related studies - discuss previously conducted studies directly related to the report
ends with a paragraph that synthesizes all of the related studies presented and puts the study in context.
(Hence, the last paragraph may include the topic and specific research problems.)
length may range from 2-3 pages

5. Methodology
contains the processes and steps taken in
gathering data for the research
contains the following:
Context and participants - explains the number and demographic profile of participants involved as
well as the place or the environment where the study was conducted
Instrument section - presents the tools that you used in gathering the data ; may include
questionnaires, interviews, focus group discussions, and tests ; all instruments used as well as the
method of validating them should be described in detail
Data gathering - presents the details on how the data were collected
Data analysis - presents how the data were analyzed, whether it be qualitatively or quantitatively

2
6. Results
objectively describe the data gathered
usually contains tables and graphs that summarize the collected data ; along with the tables and graphs are
their respective interpretations
When interpreting graphs and tables, remember the following:
1. your first sentence should contain the figure or table number and its title
2. the succeeding sentences should focus on the most important information in the graph or table
3. the trends or the gaps that you notice may be included
4. the interpretation should end with a conclusion based on the given information
Flow of the results section should follow the flow of the research questions/problems/objectives ; it is expected
that for each research problem or objective, corresponding results are presented

7. Discussion
presents the analysis of the results

Provides an explanation for all the results in relation to the previous studies presented in the literature review
you need to restate your research problems or objectives in the first paragraph as well as the major findings
succeeding paragraphs should explain whether the study supports or rejects the previous findings and provide
the reasons why
new findings uncovered should also be stated here -with the results section, the discussion must follow the flow
of the research problems or objectives

2
8. Conclusion

contains the restatement of the major findings and the limitations of the study as well as the
researcher's recommendations and the implications of the results

9. References

contains the different sources used in the study ; may be academic books, journals, and
other online sources

2
 STEPS IN WRITING A RESEARCH
REPORT
1. Select and narrow down the topic. You may use any prewriting technique such as freewriting,

clustering, listing, and brainstorming.

2. Conduct a preliminary research by gathering the initial references.

3. Formulate the thesis statement and research questions.

4. Prepare a preliminary outline.

5. Gather additional references. Use the preliminary outline as a guide for this stage.

6. Prepare the final outline.

7. Prepare the necessary instruments for your research. 8. Pilot the instrument and revise

accordingly.

5
 STEPS IN WRITING A RESEARCH
REPORT
9. Gather the data.

10. Prepare the tables and graphs and analyze the collected data.

11. Write the methodology and the results.

12. Write the introduction and the literature review.

13. Write the discussion. Be sure to link the literature review to the discussion section.

14. Write the conclusion.

15. Write the abstract.

16. Prepare the reference list. List all items that are cited in the body of your paper.

17. Edit and format your paper.

5
 REMINDERS WHEN WRITING A
RESEARCH REPORT
1. Devote 50-75% of your paper to the results and the discussions.

2. Cite all your sources whether they are paraphrased or directly quoted.

3. Use direct quotation sparingly. Paraphrase as much as possible.

4. Strictly follow the required documentation style.

5. Choose topics that are relevant, interesting, current and manageable to research in terms of

resources, skills needed, and time. They should neither be too sensitive nor controversial.

6. Make your research questions directly address the given topic or thesis statement.

7. Use simple language and avoid verbose words.