Wallwork Chapter 1 Flashcards
What do you need a clear idea of before you start writing?
- What your research goal is.
- What your most important findings are and how you can demonstrate that they are true.
- How these things differ from, and add to, pervious knowledge
What are tips on determining the importance of your findings?
- Discussing and presenting to colleagues helps you determine what your key findings are.
- List your key findings and choose the most important ones.
- For each key finding, decide if there is an alternative explanation for what you have found.
- Write an explanation saying why you think each key finding is true in a way that shows you are open to other interpretations.
What is an impact factor?
A measure of how prestigious a journal is.
- A higher impact factor means the journal is more widely read. Thus, it is more likely that your paper will be cited by other researchers.
What should you do once you have chosen three or four potential journals?
- Look at their styles and think about their audience - what the editors and readers expect from the articles.
- Consider inserting your paper into an ongoing discussion that is currently being covered in the journal. This might increase the chances of approval by the editor.
- Occasionally, it might be worth choosing a journal first and then determining which angle of your research to focus on, so that you can match the expectations of the journal.
What are typical things that editors hope to find in manuscripts?
- Type of paper: original research, systematic review, or a position paper.
- Subject: hot topic (contemporary issues), original and innovative; or controversial; or classic.
- Clarity of purpose: the research objectives are clear.
- Research: Well conducted, methodology clear, ethical, reproducible, no bias, limitations admitted.
- Results: In line with research objective; entirely new or confirmation of other results already published in the same journal; not too broad as to be meaningless; can be generalized outside a very specific field.
- Length of paper: Short vs. long
- Style: Personal, impersonal, or mix.
What preparation should be undertaken once the journal has been chosen?
Look at the most frequently cited papers to see how the authors rationalize the various steps of their research.
- Try to use papers that you will likely quote in your section on the review of the literature, and which are highly relevant to your topic and/or classic papers in your general field.
What is the function of analyzing these other papers when preparing to approach a journal?
- It can help you write your own literature review, since you will be familiar with the literature after this analysis.
- It can help you identify the differences in other researchers’ approaches and results compared to your research.
- Note down the strengths and weaknesses (including possible bias) in the work of others.
How can you create a writing template?
Use a paper written by a native English speaker and take notes on the structure:
1. How does the author begin?
2. What points are made in each section?
3. How are paragraphs linked together?
4. How are the results connected to the discussion?
5. How is the conclusion presented.
Why is it a good idea to write the Results and Discussion before the Introduction?
Because you will only truly understand the significance of what you have done after you have written these two sections.
Where can you find what style and structure to use?
Each journal has its own requirements and style guide, usually found under a name such as “instructions for authors”, “notes for authors”, etc. Usually on an “author resources” page.
What keeps referees happy?
All referees appreciate the use of simple language.
- Native-speaker referees are often interested in how the paper flows and how easy it is to read.
- Non-native-speaker referees often focus more on grammatical and vocabulary mistakes.
What should you keep in mind about referees when writing your paper?
- A referee has no obligation to review your paper.
- Thus, it is in your benefit to make the referee’s work easier and more pleasurable, by having clear layout, clear tables, clear English, etc.
- Write in a way that a non-expert or less experienced person can understand.
- Bear in mind that the reader is not always as expert as you are on a certain topic, even if they are in the same field.
- Make your paper interesting enough for an expert.
- Look at the forms used in referees’ reports.
What types of questions are used in referees forms and are helpful for your writing?
- Is the research novel and of international relevance?
- Does the article fit the aims and scope of the journal?
- Is the paper written grammatically and clearly?
- Is the writing style succinct and appropriate to the work?
- Is the title appropriate to the content?
- Does the abstract accurately describe the content?
- Are the conclusions borne out by the evidence and arguments?
