You have done your experiments or collected your data. You have chosen your target journal successfully, maybe with our expert Journal Selection Advice. Now you have to show your results in a way which is most convincing and understandable. The gist of your scientific paper is the Results and Discussion sections. In these parts, you demonstrate to the world what you discovered and what it was all about. A large number of good researches are not published due to the inability of researchers to organize these important sections. The flow has to be logical, clear and purposeful.
I. Organization of the Results Section: Transparency and Objectivity
Results section is simply concerned with the objective presentation of your data. You do not interpret what you have found, you state it clearly. You ought to organize this part in a logical way, in order of sequence in your procedures and research questions.
A. Group Your Results Systematically
Results need to be organized presenting the most significant or most important findings first. Begin with the information that directly addresses your overall research question. Logically, you then move on to secondary findings. In the event that you employed more than one experiment or data, then you ought to create subsections and label them. This rational flow will make the reader move through your complicated data set.
B. Use Visuals Effectively
You are not just telling your information, but you need to summarise with the help of tables and figures. A well-constructed figure can communicate intricate relationships than several paragraphs of text. You have to provide high-quality and clear pictures. A researcher needs to cite all the figures and tables in the text and inform the reader what to expect. You should make sure that your text emphasises the most important trends and statistical results presented in your graphics. One is not supposed to repeat all the numbers in the table in your text. You are required to provide the statistical analysis that you used to test your hypotheses.
C. Maintain a Factual Voice
In the Results section, you are supposed to write the past tense (e.g., The mean weight increased, or The analysis revealed). You must by no means interpret the data here. Delay speculation, comparison and explanation to Discussion section. You must present the results clearly, both in terms of statistical significance (p-values) and in terms of effect sizes, in strictly factual terms.
II. Organizing the Discussion Section: Interpretation and Significance
The role of interpreter is played in the Discussion section. You transcend what you discovered to tell why it is important. It is a part that can easily determine whether you were accepted or rejected because this section will determine your grasp of the bigger picture of your research. You must then put this section together in terms of individual findings to general conclusions.
A. Summarize Your principal Results
It is a good practice to start the Discussion by restating briefly your key findings, most particularly those you are answering your main research question. Do not blindly repeat sentences of the Results section. Rather, you make the findings coherent and insightful statements.
B. Interpret Your Results
This forms the essence of the Discussion. You need to describe the meaning of your results. You perceive relationships and patterns of observation. Were the results consistent with what you initially hypothesized? Any unforeseen results are to be properly mentioned. You provide the possible explanations to your results referring to the literature to prove your points. Your conclusions must be referred to the mechanisms, theories or models that you have discussed in your Introduction.
C. Comparison with Existing Literature
You have to contextualize your findings in the context of the past research. You are supposed to talk about how your findings relate, contradict or elaborate the existing knowledge in your area of expertise. Such comparison determines the originality and value of your work. You need to take note of and make efforts to clarify differences between your findings and findings of others showing that you think critically.
D. Discussion of the Limitations and Future Research
No study is perfect. You should clearly and succinctly explain the limitations to your research (e.g., sample size, certain methods). Importantly, then you are supposed to discuss how these limitations influence the interpretation of your findings and propose how the limitations can be dealt with in future research. This is a reasonable and moderate approach towards your work.
E. Conclusion with Significance and Implications
You ought to leave the Discussion on a strong note. You repeat the general meaning of your work. What are the major lessons to learn? How do your results have theoretical/practical implications? This concluding paragraph gives the reader a clear cut on the significance of your research and what you have contributed to the research industry.
Mars Publications: How to write a story
The Results and Discussion sections should be properly organized so that it is necessary to be strategic by including objective data presentation and insightful interpretation. You should be a powerful storyteller, a story which is easy to follow due to smooth flow of information and its groundbreaking conclusions.
Mars Publications know that a great discovery requires great marketing. Our highly qualified consultants will focus on tightening the narrative arc of your manuscript. Our team of editors will be highly attentive to provide your Results section with excellent clarity and your Discussion section with convincing and well-placed ideas. You have gone through the first Journal Selection Advice or polishing of your final manuscript, we make sure that your paper is of the best standards of clarity and rigor required by the highest standard journals. Work with Mars Publications and turn your raw data into known impact.