How to write a scientific paper Flashcards
What are the types of publications?
Original research papers
Review articles and meta-analyses
Technical reports
Letters to the editor
Invited review articles
Case histories
Brief communication
What should a paper include?
Title
Authors
Institutions
Keywords
Abstract
Intro
Methods/Materials
Results
Discussion/Conclusion
References
Acknowledgements
Written in correct format for chosen journal
What are the ways that a title can be written?
Pose a question
Answer a question
Give independent and dependent variables and population
What does an abstract do?
Summarises the paper in much shortened version.
Should be clear and concise.
What should an introduction include?
Context
What is known
What isn’t known
Why the study was carried out (research question)
Research aim and objective
What is a research aim?
Single sentence summarising what you hope to achieve at the end of the project
What is a research objective?
Specific steps which will be taken to achieve the research aim
(what, why, who, when and how)
What should methods/materials include?
Study design (participants, ethical approval, interventions, clinical assessment, statistical analysis)
Enough detail so can be repeated
What should results include?
Description of the data in clear sentences
Figures and tables (labelled)
What should the discussion include?
The findings of the study
Discussion of how the results support or disagree with current literature
Strengths and weaknesses of methods
Future direction for research
Impact on current views or practice
Clear take home message in final paragraph
How should you choose a journal?
Find most appropriate to your subject
Where have previous similar papers been published?
Who is your target audience?
What is the scope of the journal?
What is the impact factor?
How quickly can a paper be published after submission?
Decisions for full review are made in a few days
Full review done within 6 weeks
Publication within 6 months of submission of revised paper
What are the range of outcomes after submitting a paper?
Accepted with no changes (rare)
Accepted with minor changes
Accepted after major revisions
Revise and resubmit
Rejection
What is a proof and how quickly should it be returned?
Copy of what will be published - needs to be proofread for any copy editing or type setting errors.
Return within 48 hours.
What are some common reasons for rejection?
Paper doesn’t fall within aims and scope of journal
No clear hypothesis or research aim
Research question not of interest in the field
Flaws in procedures and/or analysis of data
Conclusions can’t be justified
Arguments illogical, unstructured or invalid
Data doesn’t support the conclusions
Conclusions ignore large parts of the literature
