Writing an Abstract

Writing your

Abstract

How to write an abstract of your investigation

What is an abstract?

01

What is an abstract?

Abstracts are formal summaries writers prepare of their completed work. Abstracts are important tools for readers, especially as they try to keep up with an explosion of information in print and on the Internet.

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Importance of a Good Abstract

The abstract allows you to write the most important information of your investigation and helps readers decide whether they want to read the rest of the paper. Thus, you need to include enough key information [e.g., summary results, observations, trends, etc.] to make it useful to someone who may want to examine your work.

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PARTS OF AN ABSTRACT

• Introductory statement describing the main problem.
• The purpose of the investigation. (Introduction)

• Clear descriptions of the methods.
• Explanation of the results.
• The most important contribution of the investigation. (Implications)

A good abstract gives readers an opportunity to check if they want to find out more about the findings and accomplishments of the investigation.

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02

The introductory statement

Introductory statement

Start by focusing on the problem

Problem

01.The investigation begins with a problem

Writing the introductory statemnt

Research

02.Do research

Objectives

03.Find the main objective or purpose

Find the purpose

The introductory statement

Provides background information that is essential to support the research.

Example:

"The cell phone is ever-present on college campuses and is frequently used in settings where learning occurs. This study assessed the relationship between cell phone use and actual college grade point average (GPA) after controlling for known predictors..."

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03

The Purpose

Finding the purpose

What is the aim of your investigation? After describing the problem, the abstract should focus on describing the main question that motivated the research. A good Abstract begins with a clear description of:

The aim

What was done?

the topic

Example:

"This study explored the pattern of video game usage and video game addiction among male college students and examined how video game addiction was related to expectations of college engagement, college grade point average (GPA), and on-campus drug and alcohol violations..."

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04

The methods or procedures

Summarizing the methods

Focus on the most important activities carried out in the investigation.

What you did

The instruments used to gather information.

Instruments

Use simple language to convey the information in a clear way.

Explain what was done? to fullfil the main goal.

Be clear

Procedures

Example:

"...To answer this question, we compared academic performance against questionnaires that detailed the sleep schedules of 122 high school students..."

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05

The results

Explaining the results

It is important to focus on the findings of your investigation. Explain the main results, but avoid going into details. It is important to help readers understand the conclusions.

Example:

"This research paper analyzes the correlation that exists between sleep and high school student performance in class. To answer this question, we compared academic performance against questionnaires that detailed the sleep schedules of 122 high school students...."

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06

The implicationsor conclusions

State the main conclusions

Remember:

Have in mind

• The implications must be written in the present simple tense.
• Be concise.

• Help readers understand what the research has proved.

• What is the answer to the problem?
• The importance of these findings for the investigator or the community.

Example:

"...The implications of this study could be used to promote high schoolers sleeping at least 8 hours a night."

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