research writing starter phrases

50 Useful Academic Words & Phrases for Research

Like all good writing, writing an academic paper takes a certain level of skill to express your ideas and arguments in a way that is natural and that meets a level of academic sophistication. The terms, expressions, and phrases you use in your research paper must be of an appropriate level to be submitted to academic journals.

Therefore, authors need to know which verbs , nouns , and phrases to apply to create a paper that is not only easy to understand, but which conveys an understanding of academic conventions. Using the correct terminology and usage shows journal editors and fellow researchers that you are a competent writer and thinker, while using non-academic language might make them question your writing ability, as well as your critical reasoning skills.

What are academic words and phrases?

One way to understand what constitutes good academic writing is to read a lot of published research to find patterns of usage in different contexts. However, it may take an author countless hours of reading and might not be the most helpful advice when faced with an upcoming deadline on a manuscript draft.

Briefly, “academic” language includes terms, phrases, expressions, transitions, and sometimes symbols and abbreviations that help the pieces of an academic text fit together. When writing an academic text–whether it is a book report, annotated bibliography, research paper, research poster, lab report, research proposal, thesis, or manuscript for publication–authors must follow academic writing conventions. You can often find handy academic writing tips and guidelines by consulting the style manual of the text you are writing (i.e., APA Style , MLA Style , or Chicago Style ).

However, sometimes it can be helpful to have a list of academic words and expressions like the ones in this article to use as a “cheat sheet” for substituting the better term in a given context.

How to Choose the Best Academic Terms

You can think of writing “academically” as writing in a way that conveys one’s meaning effectively but concisely. For instance, while the term “take a look at” is a perfectly fine way to express an action in everyday English, a term like “analyze” would certainly be more suitable in most academic contexts. It takes up fewer words on the page and is used much more often in published academic papers.

You can use one handy guideline when choosing the most academic term: When faced with a choice between two different terms, use the Latinate version of the term. Here is a brief list of common verbs versus their academic counterparts:

Although this can be a useful tip to help academic authors, it can be difficult to memorize dozens of Latinate verbs. Using an AI paraphrasing tool or proofreading tool can help you instantly find more appropriate academic terms, so consider using such revision tools while you draft to improve your writing.

Top 50 Words and Phrases for Different Sections in a Research Paper

The “Latinate verb rule” is just one tool in your arsenal of academic writing, and there are many more out there. But to make the process of finding academic language a bit easier for you, we have compiled a list of 50 vital academic words and phrases, divided into specific categories and use cases, each with an explanation and contextual example.

Best Words and Phrases to use in an Introduction section

1. historically.

An adverb used to indicate a time perspective, especially when describing the background of a given topic.

2. In recent years

A temporal marker emphasizing recent developments, often used at the very beginning of your Introduction section.

3. It is widely acknowledged that

A “form phrase” indicating a broad consensus among researchers and/or the general public. Often used in the literature review section to build upon a foundation of established scientific knowledge.

4. There has been growing interest in

Highlights increasing attention to a topic and tells the reader why your study might be important to this field of research.

5. Preliminary observations indicate

Shares early insights or findings while hedging on making any definitive conclusions. Modal verbs like may , might , and could are often used with this expression.

6. This study aims to

Describes the goal of the research and is a form phrase very often used in the research objective or even the hypothesis of a research paper .

7. Despite its significance

Highlights the importance of a matter that might be overlooked. It is also frequently used in the rationale of the study section to show how your study’s aim and scope build on previous studies.

8. While numerous studies have focused on

Indicates the existing body of work on a topic while pointing to the shortcomings of certain aspects of that research. Helps focus the reader on the question, “What is missing from our knowledge of this topic?” This is often used alongside the statement of the problem in research papers.

9. The purpose of this research is

A form phrase that directly states the aim of the study.

10. The question arises (about/whether)

Poses a query or research problem statement for the reader to acknowledge.

Best Words and Phrases for Clarifying Information

11. in other words.

Introduces a synopsis or the rephrasing of a statement for clarity. This is often used in the Discussion section statement to explain the implications of the study .

12. That is to say

Provides clarification, similar to “in other words.”

13. To put it simply

Simplifies a complex idea, often for a more general readership.

14. To clarify

Specifically indicates to the reader a direct elaboration of a previous point.

15. More specifically

Narrows down a general statement from a broader one. Often used in the Discussion section to clarify the meaning of a specific result.

16. To elaborate

Expands on a point made previously.

17. In detail

Indicates a deeper dive into information.

Points out specifics. Similar meaning to “specifically” or “especially.”

19. This means that

Explains implications and/or interprets the meaning of the Results section .

20. Moreover

Expands a prior point to a broader one that shows the greater context or wider argument.

Best Words and Phrases for Giving Examples

21. for instance.

Provides a specific case that fits into the point being made.

22. As an illustration

Demonstrates a point in full or in part.

23. To illustrate

Shows a clear picture of the point being made.

24. For example

Presents a particular instance. Same meaning as “for instance.”

25. Such as

Lists specifics that comprise a broader category or assertion being made.

26. Including

Offers examples as part of a larger list.

27. Notably

Adverb highlighting an important example. Similar meaning to “especially.”

28. Especially

Adverb that emphasizes a significant instance.

29. In particular

Draws attention to a specific point.

30. To name a few

Indicates examples than previously mentioned are about to be named.

Best Words and Phrases for Comparing and Contrasting

31. however.

Introduces a contrasting idea.

32. On the other hand

Highlights an alternative view or fact.

33. Conversely

Indicates an opposing or reversed idea to the one just mentioned.

34. Similarly

Shows likeness or parallels between two ideas, objects, or situations.

35. Likewise

Indicates agreement with a previous point.

36. In contrast

Draws a distinction between two points.

37. Nevertheless

Introduces a contrasting point, despite what has been said.

38. Whereas

Compares two distinct entities or ideas.

Indicates a contrast between two points.

Signals an unexpected contrast.

Best Words and Phrases to use in a Conclusion section

41. in conclusion.

Signifies the beginning of the closing argument.

42. To sum up

Offers a brief summary.

43. In summary

Signals a concise recap.

44. Ultimately

Reflects the final or main point.

45. Overall

Gives a general concluding statement.

Indicates a resulting conclusion.

Demonstrates a logical conclusion.

48. Therefore

Connects a cause and its effect.

49. It can be concluded that

Clearly states a conclusion derived from the data.

50. Taking everything into consideration

Reflects on all the discussed points before concluding.

Edit Your Research Terms and Phrases Before Submission

Using these phrases in the proper places in your research papers can enhance the clarity, flow, and persuasiveness of your writing, especially in the Introduction section and Discussion section, which together make up the majority of your paper’s text in most academic domains.

However, it's vital to ensure each phrase is contextually appropriate to avoid redundancy or misinterpretation. As mentioned at the top of this article, the best way to do this is to 1) use an AI text editor , free AI paraphrase tool or AI proofreading tool while you draft to enhance your writing, and 2) consult a professional proofreading service like Wordvice, which has human editors well versed in the terminology and conventions of the specific subject area of your academic documents.

For more detailed information on using AI tools to write a research paper and the best AI tools for research , check out the Wordvice AI Blog .

Academic Phrasebank

• GENERAL LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
• Being cautious
• Being critical
• Classifying and listing
• Compare and contrast
• Defining terms
• Describing trends
• Describing quantities
• Explaining causality
• Giving examples
• Signalling transition
• Writing about the past

The Academic Phrasebank is a general resource for academic writers. It aims to provide you with examples of some of the phraseological ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing organised according to the main sections of a research paper or dissertation (see the top menu ). Other phrases are listed under the more general communicative functions of academic writing (see the menu on the left). The resource should be particularly useful for writers who need to report their research work. The phrases, and the headings under which they are listed, can be used simply to assist you in thinking about the content and organisation of your own writing, or the phrases can be incorporated into your writing where this is appropriate. In most cases, a certain amount of creativity and adaptation will be necessary when a phrase is used. The items in the Academic Phrasebank are mostly content neutral and generic in nature; in using them, therefore, you are not stealing other people’s ideas and this does not constitute plagiarism. For some of the entries, specific content words have been included for illustrative purposes, and these should be substituted when the phrases are used. The resource was designed primarily for academic and scientific writers who are non-native speakers of English. However, native speaker writers may still find much of the material helpful. In fact, recent data suggest that the majority of users are native speakers of English. More about  Academic Phrasebank .

This site was created by  John Morley .  

Academic Phrasebank is the Intellectual Property of the University of Manchester.

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Impressive Academic Phrases for Writing Manuscripts

If you are a graduate student or a researcher, you definitely know the challenges involved in composing academic documents. Right from the abstract to the conclusion, every section must follow a logical structure. Using appropriate language, tense, voice, and perspective to present your ideas is very important. As a good practice, researchers prior to writing a manuscript extensively read previously published literature. However, scanning for the right phrases and then using them as templates to fill in data obtained from their work can be extremely time-consuming! In the following article we present to you a “quick reference guide for impressive academic phrases”. Collated from hundreds of published manuscripts, these frequently used academic phrases are tailored to what every section of your article should achieve.

Benefits of Using Tailor-made Academic Phrases

• Using these phrases will simplify your writing process. You can invest your time and efforts for something more productive.
• These phrases will help you write in a clear and concise manner.
• Ready-made phrases can expedite your process of organizing your data in a logical manner.
• There are far less chances of plagiarism as these are generic phrases that find acceptance across all disciplines.
• Editors and peer reviewers may find it easier to run through your data when expressed using standard or conventional phrases. This may assist in speeding up the review process and increasing your chances of a faster publication.
• Think about your target audience – busy researchers and academicians! They will surely enjoy reading a manuscript that is crisp and engaging.
• Structure of a manuscript is paramount! These phrases may also help you create a logical framework for your data.

Abstract is that element of a manuscript that convinces your reader why your article is worth reading. It is like a miniature article that clearly states the objectives and briefly explains all your key findings.

XYZ is the primary/main/leading/major cause of… XYZ is /are attracting considerable interest/gaining widespread attention due to… An intriguing/important/challenging aspect of XYZ is… As far as we know/to our knowledge this is the first study/no previous research has investigated… Very few studies have investigated/have shown/examined/focused on… One approach /alternative approach to solve these problems… The aim /overall objective/ultimate goal of… This paper reports/outlines/proposes/describes/presents a novel approach.. This manuscript examines/focusses on/addresses/investigates/sheds light on how to.. The aim of this study/work/research was to broaden/widen/extend/further the current knowledge about… Here, we describe/present a simple/novel/radical/effective/interesting solution for

Introduction and literature review

This section focuses on – what did you investigate and why it is important? Consequently, you have to provide some background information and thereafter introduce the aims or arguments of the paper.

An ever-increasing body of literatures shows that.. Very recently, XYZ have provided new evidences for… Several studies have hypothesized /proposed/put forward.. In recent years, there has been growing/considerable interest in… The last few years has witnessed/ seen a huge growth in XYZ. This study constitutes a relatively new area of research which has emerged from… In order to elucidate/reveal/understand the XYZ mechanism… For several years, researchers have been focusing on XYZ in an attempt to understand… To address these three gaps in research outlined above, we formulated the following research question… Overall, this review paper puts an emphasis on… Preliminary/ initial studies on XYZ primarily focused on… An increase/decrease in factor X was first reported/noted/identified by… Several studies, for instance [1], [4], and [9]  have suggested/highlighted/revealed/proposed/demonstrated…. XYZ et al. calculated/analyzed/estimated… ABC traced the developments/advancements /evolution of XYZ… PQR  maintains/suggests/underlines/argues/suggests that… Few authors have also suggested that… Although there are several studies consistent with XYZ , no study has till date examined… Previous studies reported by [A], [B] and [C] cannot be considered conclusive as…. Studies by XYZ have led to a more profound understanding of… Only a few studies in literature demonstrate… To fill this gap in literature, this manuscript/paper identifies… To develop/establish a novel/effective alternative… Our findings might be useful/vital/crucial for developing a simple/effective/cost-effective…method for.. Despite several reviews in the literature that address the importance of XYZ none of the recently published articles have comprehensively discussed the important roles of… While XYZ is well documented in literature ([1],[5],[8],[16]), to date, no research has… However, we argue that the reported literature suffers from certain limitations…

Materials and Methods

This sections provides details about the study site, organisms studies, experimental design, and computational or statistical methods used to analyze the data.

In our preliminary experiments, we determined that… This phenomenon was experimentally investigated by… The principle focus of this experiment was to calculate… The XYZ strain used in this study was kindly supplied by… Statistical analyses were performed by using … test with a significance level of … Data analysis (regression analysis/correlation studies) and graphical representations were performed using…

Results and Discussion

This section discusses all the outcomes relevant to the research question. One needs to highlight the significance of the results and indicate whether your findings support or reject the hypothesis.

When analyzing the data, we applied XYZ technique and… The current study confirmed the findings/found clear support for the… Our results demonstrated/found evidence that… From the results it is evident/clear that… Moreover, the results of the empirical studies showed that… Additionally, researchers have found a positive/negative relationship/correlation between… These findings/results are consistent/in line/in accordance with… in addition we assessed…, the findings revealed significant differences in… On the contrary, very few studies have reported… Equally important is the fact that there is strong correlation between… The limitations of the present study include… Although widely accepted, this method suffers from certain limitations .. It is interesting to note that… Further investigation/studies are required to precisely/accurately understand/elucidate… In addition to these findings, the results of our previous studies demonstrate…

Conclusions

The conclusions section highlights all the important trends and comparisons identified in the study. It also states the limitations as well as future recommendations to carry out subsequent research.

XYZ has shown promising results and thus could be a powerful technique/tool/method for… These findings could provide new insights into… The significant benefits/key contributions/main achievements of this study can be summarized as.. We believe that XYZ merits further research to discover/explore… and potential for… Also this remains a subject for future studies/experiments. Although further investigations are needed, the present study contributes to a better understanding/characterization of… In this review/article we addressed the current progress and challenges in… Nevertheless, there are still critical challenges regarding.. Furthermore, XYZ is a domain where much remains to be studied… As a final remark, it is also vital to mention…

We hope these academic phrases will assist you in the logical development of your manuscript and making it impactful. Let us know your feedback in the comments section below!

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Academic Phrasebank Enhanced Version

Navigable PDF – 2023 Edition

The Academic Phrasebank is an essential writing resource for researchers, academics, and students. You can download the enhanced version of the Academic Phrasebank as a 158 page navigable PDF file here:

You can view sample pages of the enhanced PDF version by clicking on the icon below:

Enhanced PDF includes:

Hundreds more phrases, additional sections on:, writing abstracts, indicating shared knowledge, writing acknowledgements, written academic style, using gender-neutral language, british and us spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, paragraph structure, commonly confused words, phrases used to connect ideas, commonly used verbs.

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How to Introduce Evidence: 41 Effective Phrases & Examples

Research requires us to scrutinize information and assess its credibility. Accordingly, when we think about various phenomena, we examine empirical data and craft detailed explanations justifying our interpretations. An essential component of constructing our research narratives is thus providing supporting evidence and examples.

The type of proof we provide can either bolster our claims or leave readers confused or skeptical of our analysis. Therefore, it’s crucial that we use appropriate, logical phrases that guide readers clearly from one idea to the next. In this article, we explain how evidence and examples should be introduced according to different contexts in academic writing and catalog effective language you can use to support your arguments, examples included.

When to Introduce Evidence and Examples in a Paper

Evidence and examples create the foundation upon which your claims can stand firm. Without proof, your arguments lack credibility and teeth. However, laundry listing evidence is as bad as failing to provide any materials or information that can substantiate your conclusions. Therefore, when you introduce examples, make sure to judiciously provide evidence when needed and use phrases that will appropriately and clearly explain how the proof supports your argument.

There are different types of claims and different types of evidence in writing. You should introduce and link your arguments to evidence when you

• state information that is not “common knowledge”;
• draw conclusions, make inferences, or suggest implications based on specific data;
• need to clarify a prior statement, and it would be more effectively done with an illustration;
• need to identify representative examples of a category;
• desire to distinguish concepts; and
• emphasize a point by highlighting a specific situation.

Introductory Phrases to Use and Their Contexts

To assist you with effectively supporting your statements, we have organized the introductory phrases below according to their function. This list is not exhaustive but will provide you with ideas of the types of phrases you can use.

Although any research author can make use of these helpful phrases and bolster their academic writing by entering them into their work, before submitting to a journal, it is a good idea to let a professional English editing service take a look to ensure that all terms and phrases make sense in the given research context. Wordvice offers paper editing , thesis editing , and dissertation editing services that help elevate your academic language and make your writing more compelling to journal authors and researchers alike.

For more examples of strong verbs for research writing , effective transition words for academic papers , or commonly confused words , head over to the Wordvice Academic Resources website.

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Academic writing – phrases you can use in your dissertations

by Leanne · Published June 30, 2020 · Updated September 23, 2022

If you’re working on your dissertation and you’re looking for some academic phrases that you can use when writing up your research you will find the University of Manchester Academic Phrasebank very useful.

About the Academic Phrasebank

The Academic Phrasebank is a general resource for academic writers. It aims to provide you with examples of some of the phraseological ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing organised according to the main sections of a research paper or dissertation.

Whether you want to introduce your work, describe methods, discuss findings, report results or write a conclusion there are generic and neutral phrases that you can adapt.

Other resources to develop your academic writing

• Improve your academic writing (study skills guides)
• Ebooks on improving your academic writing

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How to connect your sentences in academic writing: an analysis

Linking your sentences is important to make your text flow. you probably know the most common academic transition words like however and therefore , but there are many other words and phrases to use. we analyzed the most common sentence starters in published research papers to show you how to link your sentences..

Our analysis

To see how authors start their sentences, we analyzed 30 million sentences from a data set of Hindawi papers. We extracted all one-, two-, three-, four-, and five-word sentence starts, ranked these by frequency, extracted the connectors, and then grouped these according to their purpose.

Most frequent sentence starts

The sheet below shows the 20 most frequent sentence starts. We see most of them are transition words used to link sentences ( However , In addition , etc.) while some are pointers to the paper or sections within it ( In this paper , In this study , etc.).

Connectors grouped by purpose

Next, we extracted all connectors. We manually grouped these by type and subtype: for example, were they used to contrast, add, or summarize? We removed the long tail of infrequent phrases - think of misspellings or very creative wordings - so that we were left with the most frequently used transition words only.

The tree diagram below shows the landscape of academic writing connectors. The inner circle shows the types, the second circle the subtypes, and the outer circle the connectors. The color and size of the nodes indicate connectors' relative frequency within their subtype.

We hope this is a useful resource that helps you link your sentences! Should you wish to receive any of these visuals in higher quality for pedagogical purposes, please don’t hesitate to get in touch at [email protected] .

About the author

Hilde is Chief Applied Linguist at Writefull.

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13 awesome academic phrases to write your methodology (+ real examples)

Writing a methodology can be painful but there are generally accepted and popular academic phrases that help you to convey your research design, methods, limitations and awareness of ethical challenges in a poignant and effective manner. Additionally examples are given to show you how academics do this in real publications.

Academic key phrases explaining the research design in a methodology

The study follows a … design..

Example: “ The study follows a case study design, with group interviews with teachers. Observation in class, video recording and interviews with students form a backdrop of the main interview data. ” ( Bungum and Mogstad, 2022, p. 2 )

This study employs a … approach.

Following the guidelines for conducting….

Following the guidelines for conducting valid content analysis (Bengtsson, 2016; Elo & Kyngas, 2008; Kohlbacher, 2006; Krippendorff, 2012; Seuring & Müller, 2008), i.e. reading the papers several times to become familiar with the topic and to make sense of the data, we identified the definitions of resilience provided by the authors in the selected documents.  ( Conz and Magnani, 2020, p. 402 )

Academic key phrases describing research methods in a methodology

The study is undertaken by means of….

Example: “The study is undertaken by means of interviews with teachers in the KreTek project…” ( Bungum and Mogstad, 2022, p. 3 )

Data were collected through…

Hypotheses were tested through…, we assess… through using….

Example:  “ Exploiting bilateral data on asylum seeking applications for 157 countries over the period 2006–2015, we assess the determinants of refugee flows using a  gravity model  which accounts for endogenous selection in order to examine the causal link between climate, conflict and forced migration.”  ( Abel et al., 2019, p. 239 )

Academic key phrases addressing limitations in a methodology

One major drawback of this method…, the limitations of this study include….

Example: “ The limitations of this research include the limitation of the distance with the dangerous criteria, which according to the experts, if these distances are not observed, it will not be possible to accommodate the injured in times of crisis. ” ( Pakpahan and Augustine, 2019, p. 340 )

We acknowledge limitations in our research method…

Academic key phrases addressing ethical considerations in a methodology, there were several ethical risks and challenges…, ethical approval was obtained by….

Example: “ Ethical approval was obtained by the National Research Ethics Service, London Committee – Camberwell St Giles (ref no 14/LO/0075). All participants provided written informed consent after receiving a complete description of the study and getting the opportunity to ask questions. ” ( Nath et al., 2020, p. 2 )

To ensure the soundness of the study, …

Master academia, get new content delivered directly to your inbox, 17 strong academic phrases to write your literature review (+ real examples), chatgpt for academics ethical considerations of ai in research, related articles, types of editorial decisions after peer review (+ how to react), the different stages in the manuscript publication process, 10 tips for engaging your audience in academic writing, juggling research and teaching obligations.

Academic Phrases to Use in Different Scenarios (Part 1 of 3)

In academic documents, authors need to explain or report a wide range of research activities. For instance, they need to describe the purpose of their research, refer to other research papers, specify the procedures used, and compare the outcomes of their study.

The phrases used to report such information varies from spoken English. For instance, for explaining the aim of a study, when addressing another person face-to-face, one could say, “I want to tell you about….” But, in an academic context, one should write, “This study aims to explain….” Note how this academic version avoids direct reference to either the writer ( I, we ) or the reader ( you ) and favors the choice of vocabulary specific to that field of study—“ aims”  rather than  “want to”  and  “explain”  rather than  “tell.” It is also beneficial for authors to use a writing assistant such as Trinka . It is an AI-powered tool and is trained with the best academic papers in diverse subject areas to give the most relevant phrasing suggestion that makes academic writing more effective.

In this article, we will discuss various types of phrases to introduce or report information in academic writing .

Table of Contents

Phrases to Define the Scope of a Study

Scope  refers to either the objectives or subject matter which is (not) covered in a text.

• This paper presents  a new method for localizing the electric activity in the brain based on multichannel surface EEG recordings.
• This thesis intends to  demystify the facilitation of participatory processes to enhance the performance of the facilitation professional.
• This thesis focuses on  the issue of text retrieval allowing mistakes, also called “approximate” string matching.
• This study does not consider  whether parents and friends actually smoke at the levels reported by subjects.
• The case of supersaturation, with fog formation, lies beyond the scope of this study .

Phrases to Describe What is About to Follow

Such phrases frequently occur at transitions between sections of the text.

• In this section, we   compare  the prices of bond options implied by each of the different interest rate processes.
• This section   reviews  certain concepts of multi-index asymptotics that were introduced in Phillips and Moon (1999).
• Furthermore, this section   discusses  both clinical and laboratory methods of eye movement examination.
• We now return to  the question of estimating the extent of the fluctuations in I.

Besides the statements given at the start of individual sections, theses, journal articles, and reports often include a paragraph that previews the whole structure of the document. This convention is standard for research articles in fields such as engineering, physics, and biochemistry. For instance:

The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2  describes  the details of our image analysis system, which extracts descriptive features from the prepared sample. In Section 3, we  present  the inductive learning technique that was used to solve the diagnostic problem. Two different methods for prognosis are  shown  in Section 4. Section 5  summarizes  the technical issues involved with making Xcyt remotely executable.  Finally, we conclude  the study with a discussion of future directions in Section 6.

Phrases to Connect Sentences

Phrases used to connect sentences , generally called “connectives” or “linking words,” connect ideas and help the writer construct arguments. For instance:

• Showing contrast:  In contrast , the endonuclease inhibitor, aurintricarboxylic acid acts at later stages of apoptosis
• Showing addition:  In addition , much progress has been made in reducing IR detector cost and proposing new detector debar assemblies.

However, the use of these phrases forms a part of a much bigger topic.  

Phrases to Point to Data

Academic conventions require that writers clearly state their information sources. This can be seen in statements that direct the reader whether to look within or outside the text. For instance:

• ( See  Section 4 and Section 5A for comparison with Hopf’s formulae).
• For an expanded, annotated view of these clusters,  see  (5).

Given below are a few common phrases in academic writing to show your readers which  table ,  figure , or  diagram  they should turn to when reading data.

• Table 3 presents  the relative risks of first MI in analyses.
• A high-performance clocked CVSL circuit  is illustrated in Figure 5 .
• Therefore, the B matrix will be skewed,  as shown in Figure 3(b) .

Look for more pointers in Part 2 and Part 3 of this series.

Go beyond grammar & spelling

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RESEARCH WRITING: STARTER PHRASES - RMIT University

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<strong>RESEARCH</strong> <strong>WRITING</strong>: <strong>STARTER</strong> <strong>PHRASES</strong> Sometimes we find it difficult to find the right phrase to start our sentences. In this case, a useful strategy is to borrow the phrases of others through ‘syntactic borrowing’ (Swales & Feak, 1994; Kamler & Thomson, 2006). To do this, look at some sentences in various sections of a research journal in your discipline and remove all the content, leaving a sentence skeleton. This should give you some ideas for phrases that are often used. Perhaps you could set up your own wiki site and share phrases with colleagues in your discipline. To help you along with the process, here are some lists of common phrases you might want to use in particular sections of your thesis or exegesis. Please note, however, that they are not discipline-specific—there may be phrases in the list that are not used in your discipline. Introduction … is an important component of … Central to the discipline of … is … …is an increasingly important issue in … Recent developments in … have shown the need for … Recent developments in the field of … have led to a renewed interest in … This study builds on … and contributes to … Over the past century, there has been a (major) decline in … Recently there has been renewed interest in … To date, there has been little agreement on … A theoretical issue that has dominated the field for many years is … The controversy over … has raged for many years. The issue of … has recently grown in importance. Most studies of … have only been carried out on … Until now, little importance has been given to … Until now, this method has only been applied to … Literature review A considerable amount of literature has been published on … However, there has been relatively little literature published on … Numerous studies have argued that … Several studies have revealed … The research to date has tended to focus on … Data from several studies have identified the … It has been suggested that … It has been conclusively shown that … It has been demonstrated that … Study Tips: Research writing: Starter phrases Page 1 of 3 May 2012

• Page 2 and 3: It is thought that … Other studie

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Academic Phrases for Writing Methods Section of a Research Paper

Overview |   Abstract   | Introduction | Literature Review | Materials & Methods | Results & Discussion | Conclusion & Future Work | Acknowledgements & Appendix

The methods section that follows the introduction section should provide a clear description of the experimental procedure, and the reasons behind the choice of specific experimental methods. The methods section should be elaborate enough so that the readers can repeat the experimental procedure and reproduce the results. The scientific rigor of the paper is judged by your materials and methods section, so make sure you elaborate on all the fine details of your experiment. Explain the procedures step-by-step by splitting the main section into multiple sub-sections. Order procedures chronologically with subheadings. Use past tense to describe what you did since you are reporting on a completed experiment. The methods section should describe how the research question was answered and explain how the results were analyzed. Clearly explain various statistical methods used for significance testing and the reasons behind the choice.

 The methods section of your research paper should include the following:

• Experimental setup
• Data collection
• Data analysis
• Statistical testing
• Assumptions
• Remit of the experiment

1. Experimental setup

This experimental design was employed because __ In the course of the experiment, __ played an important role. The experiments were performed with __ This was experimentally investigated by __ Most experiments have been carried out with __ The main focus of the experiments was to calculate __ Prior to each experiment __ The experiments are completely based on __ In our preliminary experiments we estimated that __ In this experiment, we introduced a __ Methods were based on previous experiments __ This  proceeds in two stages: __ After a series of experiments it was found that __ Therefore, in this experiment we define goals as __ In this experiment, we introduced a __ We consider the setup generic, however, __  This was designed to acquire approximately __ These were designed in such a way that __ This experimental design was employed because __ This was specifically designed for __ This was designed to acquire approximately __

2. Data collection

There were __ participants in this sample. Participants first provided informed consent about __ We performed additional data collection with __ For this study, we analyzed the data collected from __ The data are less clear-cut than __ Data were collected and maintained by __ For this purpose, we employ survey data collected from __ The application employs data obtained from __ The analyzed data included: __ The procedures of handling the data followed the suggestions of __ Subsequently, __ were then used to elicit further data. The experimental data on __ is very scarce. The data in this work consists of __ Survey data were collected from __ This study used different data collection methods such as __ The quality can be enhanced by providing additional data for__ Such data are prone to __ We utilize secondary data from __ The data was divided into __ Participants in the first data collection were __ The sample was heterogeneous with respect to __ The sample size in this study was not considered large enough for__ We cannot deny the presence of some sample selection biases because __ The sample of respondents included __ The researchers pooled samples to __ The sample strategy was the same as for__

3. Data analysis

However, there are trends in our data to suggest that __ The trend values were then subjected to __ We analysed data as a function of __ We used an established technique, namely __, to analyse __ This showed a judgement error of __ To investigate this statistically, we calculated __ A __ test was used to determine the significance of data Our data show that there is __ Our data suggest that __ which  may be based partly on __ Data also revealed a significant __ Our data also address the __ Data were analyzed and correlated with __ The data are presented in Table __ However, according to our data __ We undertake the empirical analysis using data collected in __ The data is analyzed from different points of view such as __ The data reveals significant differences in __ Thus, the data supports the premise that __ Results provides a good fit to the data __ We compared the results with the original data in ways __ The evaluation of the data is shown in __ We explicitly accounted for __ Missing values were replaced using __ This analysis was confined to __ The evaluation of the data presented in this work leads to __

4. Statistical testing

We explored these effects statistically by __ Statistical analyses was performed by using the __ applying a significance level of __ The results were statistically significant when compared using __ This was normally distributed throughout the study population. This distribution resulted in __ Significant differences in the __ remained. This was the only parameter that had a statistically significant correlation with __ We used __ statistics to report __ This had a statistically significant impact on __ The correlation between __ and __ is positive and statistically significant at __ We calculate __ statistic to test the null hypothesis that __ As shown in Table __ are statistically significant at all levels. We can clearly see that the estimated values are positive and statistically significant at __ This revealed no statistical differences on __ The test for __ found no significant differences. Our results show a statistically significant improvement in __ All differences in performance were statistically significant in __ The method achieves a statistically significant improvement compared to __ In order to obtain statistically representative __ it is required to __ To investigate this statistically, we calculated __ Descriptive statistics were calculated for all variables used in the study using __ The significance testing was based on __ All statistical analyses were performed using __

5. Assumptions

Such a potentially unrealistic assumption arises from the fact that __ Based on these assumptions, hypotheses were developed: __ Based on these assumptions, __ have been treated as __ This is based on assumptions that __ These assumptions are generally accepted these days__ The fundamental assumptions of the  models are: __ This assumption is supported by the fact that __ Under certain assumptions, __ can be construed as __ These assumptions result in __ This assumption might be addressed in future studies by __ This compilation of research assumptions should result in __ These assumptions have been disproved by __ According to __ assumption, the study reports faithfully __

6. Remit of the experiment

For the current work, it is sufficient to point out that __ Because we were interested in __, we considered only __ This was sufficient to __ This is sufficiently generic to be adapted to other __ This is generally sufficient to produce good results. Still, results might be sufficient, especially in __ This was not possible due to insufficient observations. After a series of experiments __ was considered as sufficient. It has been proven that __ must be sufficient to __ This was not sensitive enough to __ This study cannot be considered large enough for __ This is simpler and usually sufficient to __ It turns out that it is sufficiently accurate for __ There is in fact sufficient information present in __ This is considered sufficiently unique for __ This is enough to get a sufficiently accurate solution.

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Thank for useful guidelines.

It is very useful for Master and ph.D students.

• Pingback: Research Paper Structure – Main Sections and Parts of a Research Paper

Thank you so much

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