RESEARCH PAPER OUTLINE

Research Question: What question are you seeking to answer through your research for this paper? 

Thesis: This isn’t a persuasive paper. Instead of trying to persuade your audience, your thesis or argument should explain what your research suggests is true about the topic. What answer to your research question did you find?

Title: A good title identifies your audience, describes your position on the topic, and identifies the topic. A title should also make the reader interested in learning more. Review the title-crafting strategies on JAC pg. 42,  and draft a creative title.

Often, scholars use a “title: subtitle” format in which the title is creative and fun and the subtitle is specific and informative. Draft a subtitle for your paper.

Introduction: Think about hooking your reader with a compelling introduction. In addition to the ideas on JAC pg. 71, you can think about:

• Discussing current events related to your topic;
• Describing someone dealing with an issue related to your topic;
• Imagining a world that has been changed by the object of your research, or
• Imagining a world in which your object of research did not exist or in which it functioned differently.

What is your hook?

What are the goals of your essay? How will you establish these in the opening paragraph(s)? 

Literature Review: The literature review puts your project into the context of research in your field. It shows readers that you know what others in the field are saying about your topic. It should summarize what other scholars or sources are saying about your topic, as well as giving any necessary background information.

What are others saying about your topic?

What background information do you need to provide?

Methods: Discuss your research methods. What search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing), Web resources (Youtube, expert blogs, news websites, government and military websites), or databases (Academic Search Complete, Ebscohost, CQ Researcher) did you use for your research? What keywords did you enter? What skimming strategies did you use to choose articles for closer reading? How were you able to refine your search strategies as you progressed further into the process? How did you evaluate your sources?

Results: What information did you find in your research?

Discussion: How is your research important to your audience? How does it answer your research question? 

What are the limitations of your research? If you had more time, how would you improve upon this research project? What do you still need to know about the topic?

Conclusion: Rephrase your central claim or thesis statement.

Why does this topic deserve your readers’ attention?

Choose a conclusion strategy from JAC pg. 60 that will create a sense of closure for your paper.


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