Please select a page. OWL Home Page Writing Lab and OWL Info Handouts and Materials Workshops and Presentations Internet Resources owl home || writing lab and owl || handouts || workshops and presentations || internet resources

Introduction Genre Introduction What is a research paper? Types of research papers Audience Plagiarism Topic Scope Thesis or Question Research Outline First Draft Revisions Proofreads Additional Resources

Writing a Research Paper Genre What is a research paper? A research paper is a piece of academic writing that requires a more abstract, critical, and thoughtful level of inquiry than you might be used to. But not to worry, you'll gradually pick up that mindset the more you envelop yourself in tutorial discussions and lectures at the college level, and of course, the more you write. Not just research papers but any paper, period. Writing a research paper involves (1) first familiarizing yourself with the works of "experts"--for example, on the page, in cyberspace, or in the flesh through personal interviews--to build upon what you know about a subject and then (2) comparing their thoughts on the topic with your own. You'll end up using relevant information--facts and/or opinions--from these expert sources, these "others," to support the topic you have been given or chosen to explore. Then, as our subsequent steps will outline, the final product will be a unique and appropriate integration of evidence you have located outside yourself and personal insights generated from your own internal think tank--your mind! The final product will be a unique and appopriate integration of evidence you have located outside yourself and personal insights. Often to the surprise of many a first-year student, it is the latter that your professors are most interested in. The inclusion of sources isn't just some arbitrary can-you-use-the-library? test in disguise, but complements your own ideas by providing academic context and credibility to what you are asserting. No professor will be marking what the published experts have to say, only how well you use what the experts have to say to advance your paper's purpose. Note: A mere review of the academic "literature" in a field--i.e. a summary of the existing body of knowledge on your subject--does not make a research paper. If you think about it, it's indeed reminiscent of those high school reports on Japanese culture or papyrus mentioned earlier except that instead of using encyclopedias, you'd be consulting academic journals. By itself then, such a review is not often assigned because it wouldn't test your capacity for critical thinking. That doesn't mean you won't see or write these kinds of summaries though, but usually only as part of longer write-ups for actual research studies in the social or physical sciences.

owl home || writing lab and owl || handouts || workshops and presentations || internet resources This page is located at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/workshops/hypertext/ResearchW/what.html Receive weekly tips and updates from Purdue's OWL and Writing Lab!         Copyright ©1995-2004 by OWL at Purdue University and Purdue University. All rights reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use. To contact OWL, please refer to our contact information page so that you email the appropriate person. Requests for help sent to the wrong address may not receive a timely response.