Journal articles, Results section

In chapter 1, we learned that genres have both broad and fine organizational structures. In this chapter, we focus on the broad organizational structure of the journal article, signaled by identifiable sections and headings. In general, journal articles are divided into four major sections. These sections have the familiar names Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion collectively, this organizational structure is referred to as the IMRD format. In addition to these four... 

The Introduction section of a journal article Identlhes the research area, explains the Importance of the research, provides background Information, cites and summarizes key literature in the held, points out what still needs to be studied, and Introduces the reader to the work presented In the article. The Methods section—formally known as Materials and Methods or Experimental (Section)— describes how the study was conducted. The Results section summarizes quantitative (and possibly qualitative) data collected during the study. In the Discussion section, authors interpret their data and suggest the larger implications and/or applications of their results. Each of these major sections can be further divided into moves, as we will see in subsequent chapters. 

All sections of a journal article lead up to or away from the results section, and the results section may retain its value long after the methods and conclusions have become obsolete. 

In many journal articles, the Results section is actually a combined Results and Discussion (R D) section. Combined R D sections are preferred by many scientists who want to present and discuss results in an unbroken chain of thought. The combination is often more concise because less time is spent reminding the reader which results are being discussed. Combined R D sections are not all alike rather, they fall on a continuum with fully separated R D sections at one end and fully integrated R D sections at the other. Within this continuum, three patterns emerge blocked R D, iterative R D, and integrated R D. 

Read the Results sections of the journal articles thatyou collected during your literature search (starting with Writing on Your Own task 2C). As you read these articles, pay attention to how the authors organized their results and what results they chose to emphasize in both text and graphics. What ideas do these articles give you about ways to write your own Results section ... 

In hgure 3.3 (chapter 3), we reported the frequencies of passive voice in each section of a journal article. If you look back at figure 3.3, you will see that passive voice is used more frequently in Methods sections than in Results (or Discussion) sections. This distribution suggests that both active voice and passive voice are used in Results sections. Past and present tense, when combined with active and passive voice, form four different tense-voice combinations. Each combination has its own function, several of which are illustrated in table 4.1. 

Also explain the following to a friend who hasn t yet given much thought to writing a Results section for a journal article ... 

Look at the Results sections of three journal articles. Examine the authors use of tense, voice, we, respectively, neutral and precise language, very, and scientihc plurals. Are their uses consistent with your expectations Explain. 

ITow might the following text and table from a Results section be improved Modify both to be more in line with journal article expectations. Consult chapter 16 if necessary. 

In this part of the chapter, we revisit the journal articles that were introduced in chapter 4, where we focused on Results. Here we focus on the Discussion sections of these articles. We examine how well the authors follow the move structure in figure 5.1, how they interpret their results, and how they conclude their work. 

The phrases in table 6.3 are often followed by the personal pronoun we (e.g., In the present study, we...). In such instances, we is used to signal the beginning of the authors presented work in the journal article. (Recall that we is also used in Results sections to signal human choice and in Discussion sections to signal interpretative remarks.) Table 6.4 lists some verbs that typically follow we in the fill-the-gap statement. Note that the verbs are in present tense when they refer to what is presented in the paper (e.g., we present ) they are in past tense when they refer to work done in the past (e.g., we measured ). (See table 6.5 for a summary of common functions of verb tense—voice combinations in Introductions.)... 

In what ways is an Introduction different from the Methods, Results, and Discussion sections of a journal article ... 

Verb tenses Verb tenses in the abstract are consistent with conventions used in other sections of the journal article. Past tense is used to refer to work completed in the past and to describe results ... 

The poster text is divided into the same general IMRD sections as the journal article Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. Similarly, most posters include an Acknowledgments section, some have an abbreviated References section, and all have a title and author list. Most posters do not include an abstract, in part because of space limitations and in part because an abstract already appears in the conference proceedings. Like the journal article, the IMRD structure of the poster follows an hourglass shape. The top (Introduction) and bottom (Discussion) sections have a broader focus, while the middle sections (Methods and Results) have a narrower focus. Each section of the poster can be divided into individual moves or steps that guide viewers in a conventional way through the content of each section. These moves are analyzed in the next part of the chapter. 

As you read through these Discussion sections, you will notice that they are quite short. Moreover, the discussion points within these sections are often used to highlight, explain, or reiterate key findings rather than to truly interpret data. In addition, unlike a journal article, few references are made to the literature. These common practices illustrate that the main emphasis in posters is to present, rather than interpret, results. This emphasis reflects both the newness of the data presented (late-breaking results may not yet be fully understood) and the interactive role of the poster (to promote an exchange of ideas and dialog). 

Sentences a-c are taken from journal articles. For each, (1) indicate which poster section the information would belong in (Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion) and (2) rewrite the information so that it is appropriate for a poster. 

Read over the combined Results and Discussion section in excerpt 4A, written for a journal article. In one or two sentences, summarize the key findings of that study as they might appear in submove 2.2 (provide essential background information) of a research proposal. Refer to Writing on Your Own task 6A for tips on paraphrasing. 

The largest number of citations is found in the Introduction sections of journal articles, posters, and research proposals, consistent with the purposes of the section. Introductions of both journal articles and research proposals often include 15 or more citations in opening paragraphs (often with multiple citations in a single sentence). Far fewer citations (sometimes even none) are included in poster Introductions because of space limitations and the poster s role in emphasizing new results. 

Another common place for redundancy is in transitional sentences. In journal articles, there are two transitional moves at the start of the Results section (to remind readers about methods) and at the start of the Discussion section (to remind readers about results). Caution is needed not to repeat the same sentence in these moves. For example, if you wrote in the Results section As shown in Figure 1, the rate increased with the addition of the catalyst, you could not use this sentence again at the start of the Discussion section. To avoid repetition, you must either state the repeated information differently, or combine it with new information. An example of the latter approach is shown in excerpt 18B, where the authors combine repeated information from the Methods section (that rats were fed 3 pg Se/g of diet) with new information from the Results section (that this diet significantly reduced the incidence of mammary tumors). 

These patterns are intended to serve as guiding constructs only. In practice, most authors who use combined R D sections will combine features of two or three patterns in their writing, making it difficult to find a pure example. For example, in some articles, the R D section may generally follow the blocked R D pattern, but authors may add some brief interpretative comments into their presentation of results. Some journals specify a required format for the R D section hence, it is always a good idea to refer to the Information for Authors section of a journal before beginning to write a manuscript for publication. 

Elompart et al. (2001), like Jozefaciuk et al. (2003), use a combined R D section (the preferred format in Analytical Chemistry, the journal that published this article). Their R D section describes both preliminary tests and optimization procedures. Results and discussion of the preliminary tests were presented in excerpt 4C results and discussion of the optimization procedures are presented in excerpt 5A. The optimization process used a factorial design in which five experimental parameters were systematically varied and tested to improve the saponification technique. These variables included the concentration of NaOH, the volume of NaOH, the extraction and stirring times, and the kind of SPME fiber used. 

The major purpose of the title is to inform readers about the specific content of the work, ideally identifying both what was studied and how it was studied. The major purpose of an abstract is to summarize, in one clear and concise paragraph, the purpose, experimental approach, principal results, and major conclusions of the work. In most journals, the abstract includes only text in some journals (e.g.. The Journal of Organic Chemistry and Organic Letters), the abstract also includes a graphic. Importantly, both the abstract and title must be able to stand on their own. This is because these two sections (and only these two sections) are reprinted by abstracting services (e.g.. Chemical Abstracts Service, or CAS) in separate documents for literature searches. Also, many chemists read titles and abstracts to obtain a quick overview of the journal s contents but do not read the articles in full. 

In the following sections, major emphasis has been placed on recent literature, appearing in the years 1955-62. The term literature means those technical journals in which research or experimental conclusions are commonly published much excellent data, and many useful correlations and observations, are available only in theses, or in institutional, industrial, or government reports. Although reports of this type which contain unique results are included in the present discussion, a deliberate attempt has been made to give priority in discussion to those articles which have been most widely circulated and are therefore most readily available. 

It was noted in the previous section that studies with positive findings are more likely to be published in English language journals. The first criterion in the bulleted list just presented therefore gives articles with positive findings a better chance of capture in the computer search process and, therefore, inclusion in the systematic review or meta-analysis. The fact that studies with positive results are more likely to be published in more than one journal (noted in the previous section) also gives these articles a better chance of capture in the computer search process and inclusion in the systematic review or meta-analysis. 

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