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Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research is and why is it important?

Affiliations.

1 Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center, Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
2 Digital Content Services, Operations, Elsevier Ltd., 125 London Wall, London, EC2Y 5AS, UK.
3 School of Nursing, McMaster University, Health Sciences Centre, Room 2J20, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, L8S 4K1; Section for Evidence-Based Practice, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Inndalsveien 28, Bergen, P.O.Box 7030 N-5020 Bergen, Norway.
4 Department of Sport Science and Clinical Biomechanics, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230, Odense M, Denmark; Department of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Herlev & Gentofte, Kildegaardsvej 28, 2900, Hellerup, Denmark.
5 Musculoskeletal Statistics Unit, the Parker Institute, Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg Hospital, Copenhagen, Nordre Fasanvej 57, 2000, Copenhagen F, Denmark; Department of Clinical Research, Research Unit of Rheumatology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense University Hospital, Denmark.
6 Section for Evidence-Based Practice, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Inndalsveien 28, Bergen, P.O.Box 7030 N-5020 Bergen, Norway. Electronic address: [email protected].
PMID: 32979491
DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2020.07.020

Objectives: There is considerable actual and potential waste in research. Evidence-based research ensures worthwhile and valuable research. The aim of this series, which this article introduces, is to describe the evidence-based research approach.

Study design and setting: In this first article of a three-article series, we introduce the evidence-based research approach. Evidence-based research is the use of prior research in a systematic and transparent way to inform a new study so that it is answering questions that matter in a valid, efficient, and accessible manner.

Results: We describe evidence-based research and provide an overview of the approach of systematically and transparently using previous research before starting a new study to justify and design the new study (article #2 in series) and-on study completion-place its results in the context with what is already known (article #3 in series).

Conclusion: This series introduces evidence-based research as an approach to minimize unnecessary and irrelevant clinical health research that is unscientific, wasteful, and unethical.

Keywords: Clinical health research; Clinical trials; Evidence synthesis; Evidence-based research; Medical ethics; Research ethics; Systematic review.

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The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

What this handout is about

This handout will provide a broad overview of gathering and using evidence. It will help you decide what counts as evidence, put evidence to work in your writing, and determine whether you have enough evidence. It will also offer links to additional resources.

Introduction

Many papers that you write in college will require you to make an argument ; this means that you must take a position on the subject you are discussing and support that position with evidence. It’s important that you use the right kind of evidence, that you use it effectively, and that you have an appropriate amount of it. If, for example, your philosophy professor didn’t like it that you used a survey of public opinion as your primary evidence in your ethics paper, you need to find out more about what philosophers count as good evidence. If your instructor has told you that you need more analysis, suggested that you’re “just listing” points or giving a “laundry list,” or asked you how certain points are related to your argument, it may mean that you can do more to fully incorporate your evidence into your argument. Comments like “for example?,” “proof?,” “go deeper,” or “expand” in the margins of your graded paper suggest that you may need more evidence. Let’s take a look at each of these issues—understanding what counts as evidence, using evidence in your argument, and deciding whether you need more evidence.

What counts as evidence?

Before you begin gathering information for possible use as evidence in your argument, you need to be sure that you understand the purpose of your assignment. If you are working on a project for a class, look carefully at the assignment prompt. It may give you clues about what sorts of evidence you will need. Does the instructor mention any particular books you should use in writing your paper or the names of any authors who have written about your topic? How long should your paper be (longer works may require more, or more varied, evidence)? What themes or topics come up in the text of the prompt? Our handout on understanding writing assignments can help you interpret your assignment. It’s also a good idea to think over what has been said about the assignment in class and to talk with your instructor if you need clarification or guidance.

What matters to instructors?

Instructors in different academic fields expect different kinds of arguments and evidence—your chemistry paper might include graphs, charts, statistics, and other quantitative data as evidence, whereas your English paper might include passages from a novel, examples of recurring symbols, or discussions of characterization in the novel. Consider what kinds of sources and evidence you have seen in course readings and lectures. You may wish to see whether the Writing Center has a handout regarding the specific academic field you’re working in—for example, literature , sociology , or history .

What are primary and secondary sources?

A note on terminology: many researchers distinguish between primary and secondary sources of evidence (in this case, “primary” means “first” or “original,” not “most important”). Primary sources include original documents, photographs, interviews, and so forth. Secondary sources present information that has already been processed or interpreted by someone else. For example, if you are writing a paper about the movie “The Matrix,” the movie itself, an interview with the director, and production photos could serve as primary sources of evidence. A movie review from a magazine or a collection of essays about the film would be secondary sources. Depending on the context, the same item could be either a primary or a secondary source: if I am writing about people’s relationships with animals, a collection of stories about animals might be a secondary source; if I am writing about how editors gather diverse stories into collections, the same book might now function as a primary source.

Where can I find evidence?

Here are some examples of sources of information and tips about how to use them in gathering evidence. Ask your instructor if you aren’t sure whether a certain source would be appropriate for your paper.

Print and electronic sources

Books, journals, websites, newspapers, magazines, and documentary films are some of the most common sources of evidence for academic writing. Our handout on evaluating print sources will help you choose your print sources wisely, and the library has a tutorial on evaluating both print sources and websites. A librarian can help you find sources that are appropriate for the type of assignment you are completing. Just visit the reference desk at Davis or the Undergraduate Library or chat with a librarian online (the library’s IM screen name is undergradref).

Observation

Sometimes you can directly observe the thing you are interested in, by watching, listening to, touching, tasting, or smelling it. For example, if you were asked to write about Mozart’s music, you could listen to it; if your topic was how businesses attract traffic, you might go and look at window displays at the mall.

An interview is a good way to collect information that you can’t find through any other type of research. An interview can provide an expert’s opinion, biographical or first-hand experiences, and suggestions for further research.

Surveys allow you to find out some of what a group of people thinks about a topic. Designing an effective survey and interpreting the data you get can be challenging, so it’s a good idea to check with your instructor before creating or administering a survey.

Experiments

Experimental data serve as the primary form of scientific evidence. For scientific experiments, you should follow the specific guidelines of the discipline you are studying. For writing in other fields, more informal experiments might be acceptable as evidence. For example, if you want to prove that food choices in a cafeteria are affected by gender norms, you might ask classmates to undermine those norms on purpose and observe how others react. What would happen if a football player were eating dinner with his teammates and he brought a small salad and diet drink to the table, all the while murmuring about his waistline and wondering how many fat grams the salad dressing contained?

Personal experience

Using your own experiences can be a powerful way to appeal to your readers. You should, however, use personal experience only when it is appropriate to your topic, your writing goals, and your audience. Personal experience should not be your only form of evidence in most papers, and some disciplines frown on using personal experience at all. For example, a story about the microscope you received as a Christmas gift when you were nine years old is probably not applicable to your biology lab report.

Using evidence in an argument

Does evidence speak for itself.

Absolutely not. After you introduce evidence into your writing, you must say why and how this evidence supports your argument. In other words, you have to explain the significance of the evidence and its function in your paper. What turns a fact or piece of information into evidence is the connection it has with a larger claim or argument: evidence is always evidence for or against something, and you have to make that link clear.

As writers, we sometimes assume that our readers already know what we are talking about; we may be wary of elaborating too much because we think the point is obvious. But readers can’t read our minds: although they may be familiar with many of the ideas we are discussing, they don’t know what we are trying to do with those ideas unless we indicate it through explanations, organization, transitions, and so forth. Try to spell out the connections that you were making in your mind when you chose your evidence, decided where to place it in your paper, and drew conclusions based on it. Remember, you can always cut prose from your paper later if you decide that you are stating the obvious.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself about a particular bit of evidence:

OK, I’ve just stated this point, but so what? Why is it interesting? Why should anyone care?
What does this information imply?
What are the consequences of thinking this way or looking at a problem this way?
I’ve just described what something is like or how I see it, but why is it like that?
I’ve just said that something happens—so how does it happen? How does it come to be the way it is?
Why is this information important? Why does it matter?
How is this idea related to my thesis? What connections exist between them? Does it support my thesis? If so, how does it do that?
Can I give an example to illustrate this point?

Answering these questions may help you explain how your evidence is related to your overall argument.

How can I incorporate evidence into my paper?

There are many ways to present your evidence. Often, your evidence will be included as text in the body of your paper, as a quotation, paraphrase, or summary. Sometimes you might include graphs, charts, or tables; excerpts from an interview; or photographs or illustrations with accompanying captions.

When you quote, you are reproducing another writer’s words exactly as they appear on the page. Here are some tips to help you decide when to use quotations:

Quote if you can’t say it any better and the author’s words are particularly brilliant, witty, edgy, distinctive, a good illustration of a point you’re making, or otherwise interesting.
Quote if you are using a particularly authoritative source and you need the author’s expertise to back up your point.
Quote if you are analyzing diction, tone, or a writer’s use of a specific word or phrase.
Quote if you are taking a position that relies on the reader’s understanding exactly what another writer says about the topic.

Be sure to introduce each quotation you use, and always cite your sources. See our handout on quotations for more details on when to quote and how to format quotations.

Like all pieces of evidence, a quotation can’t speak for itself. If you end a paragraph with a quotation, that may be a sign that you have neglected to discuss the importance of the quotation in terms of your argument. It’s important to avoid “plop quotations,” that is, quotations that are just dropped into your paper without any introduction, discussion, or follow-up.

Paraphrasing

When you paraphrase, you take a specific section of a text and put it into your own words. Putting it into your own words doesn’t mean just changing or rearranging a few of the author’s words: to paraphrase well and avoid plagiarism, try setting your source aside and restating the sentence or paragraph you have just read, as though you were describing it to another person. Paraphrasing is different than summary because a paraphrase focuses on a particular, fairly short bit of text (like a phrase, sentence, or paragraph). You’ll need to indicate when you are paraphrasing someone else’s text by citing your source correctly, just as you would with a quotation.

When might you want to paraphrase?

Paraphrase when you want to introduce a writer’s position, but their original words aren’t special enough to quote.
Paraphrase when you are supporting a particular point and need to draw on a certain place in a text that supports your point—for example, when one paragraph in a source is especially relevant.
Paraphrase when you want to present a writer’s view on a topic that differs from your position or that of another writer; you can then refute writer’s specific points in your own words after you paraphrase.
Paraphrase when you want to comment on a particular example that another writer uses.
Paraphrase when you need to present information that’s unlikely to be questioned.

When you summarize, you are offering an overview of an entire text, or at least a lengthy section of a text. Summary is useful when you are providing background information, grounding your own argument, or mentioning a source as a counter-argument. A summary is less nuanced than paraphrased material. It can be the most effective way to incorporate a large number of sources when you don’t have a lot of space. When you are summarizing someone else’s argument or ideas, be sure this is clear to the reader and cite your source appropriately.

Statistics, data, charts, graphs, photographs, illustrations

Sometimes the best evidence for your argument is a hard fact or visual representation of a fact. This type of evidence can be a solid backbone for your argument, but you still need to create context for your reader and draw the connections you want them to make. Remember that statistics, data, charts, graph, photographs, and illustrations are all open to interpretation. Guide the reader through the interpretation process. Again, always, cite the origin of your evidence if you didn’t produce the material you are using yourself.

Do I need more evidence?

Let’s say that you’ve identified some appropriate sources, found some evidence, explained to the reader how it fits into your overall argument, incorporated it into your draft effectively, and cited your sources. How do you tell whether you’ve got enough evidence and whether it’s working well in the service of a strong argument or analysis? Here are some techniques you can use to review your draft and assess your use of evidence.

Make a reverse outline

A reverse outline is a great technique for helping you see how each paragraph contributes to proving your thesis. When you make a reverse outline, you record the main ideas in each paragraph in a shorter (outline-like) form so that you can see at a glance what is in your paper. The reverse outline is helpful in at least three ways. First, it lets you see where you have dealt with too many topics in one paragraph (in general, you should have one main idea per paragraph). Second, the reverse outline can help you see where you need more evidence to prove your point or more analysis of that evidence. Third, the reverse outline can help you write your topic sentences: once you have decided what you want each paragraph to be about, you can write topic sentences that explain the topics of the paragraphs and state the relationship of each topic to the overall thesis of the paper.

For tips on making a reverse outline, see our handout on organization .

Color code your paper

You will need three highlighters or colored pencils for this exercise. Use one color to highlight general assertions. These will typically be the topic sentences in your paper. Next, use another color to highlight the specific evidence you provide for each assertion (including quotations, paraphrased or summarized material, statistics, examples, and your own ideas). Lastly, use another color to highlight analysis of your evidence. Which assertions are key to your overall argument? Which ones are especially contestable? How much evidence do you have for each assertion? How much analysis? In general, you should have at least as much analysis as you do evidence, or your paper runs the risk of being more summary than argument. The more controversial an assertion is, the more evidence you may need to provide in order to persuade your reader.

Play devil’s advocate, act like a child, or doubt everything

This technique may be easiest to use with a partner. Ask your friend to take on one of the roles above, then read your paper aloud to them. After each section, pause and let your friend interrogate you. If your friend is playing devil’s advocate, they will always take the opposing viewpoint and force you to keep defending yourself. If your friend is acting like a child, they will question every sentence, even seemingly self-explanatory ones. If your friend is a doubter, they won’t believe anything you say. Justifying your position verbally or explaining yourself will force you to strengthen the evidence in your paper. If you already have enough evidence but haven’t connected it clearly enough to your main argument, explaining to your friend how the evidence is relevant or what it proves may help you to do so.

Common questions and additional resources

I have a general topic in mind; how can I develop it so I’ll know what evidence I need? And how can I get ideas for more evidence? See our handout on brainstorming .
Who can help me find evidence on my topic? Check out UNC Libraries .
I’m writing for a specific purpose; how can I tell what kind of evidence my audience wants? See our handouts on audience , writing for specific disciplines , and particular writing assignments .
How should I read materials to gather evidence? See our handout on reading to write .
How can I make a good argument? Check out our handouts on argument and thesis statements .
How do I tell if my paragraphs and my paper are well-organized? Review our handouts on paragraph development , transitions , and reorganizing drafts .
How do I quote my sources and incorporate those quotes into my text? Our handouts on quotations and avoiding plagiarism offer useful tips.
How do I cite my evidence? See the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .
I think that I’m giving evidence, but my instructor says I’m using too much summary. How can I tell? Check out our handout on using summary wisely.
I want to use personal experience as evidence, but can I say “I”? We have a handout on when to use “I.”

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Lunsford, Andrea A., and John J. Ruszkiewicz. 2016. Everything’s an Argument , 7th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Miller, Richard E., and Kurt Spellmeyer. 2016. The New Humanities Reader , 5th ed. Boston: Cengage.

University of Maryland. 2019. “Research Using Primary Sources.” Research Guides. Last updated October 28, 2019. https://lib.guides.umd.edu/researchusingprimarysources .

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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What type of evidence should I use?

There are two types of evidence.

First hand research is research you have conducted yourself such as interviews, experiments, surveys, or personal experience and anecdotes.

Second hand research is research you are getting from various texts that has been supplied and compiled by others such as books, periodicals, and Web sites.

Regardless of what type of sources you use, they must be credible. In other words, your sources must be reliable, accurate, and trustworthy.

How do I know if a source is credible?

You can ask the following questions to determine if a source is credible.

Who is the author? Credible sources are written by authors respected in their fields of study. Responsible, credible authors will cite their sources so that you can check the accuracy of and support for what they've written. (This is also a good way to find more sources for your own research.)

How recent is the source? The choice to seek recent sources depends on your topic. While sources on the American Civil War may be decades old and still contain accurate information, sources on information technologies, or other areas that are experiencing rapid changes, need to be much more current.

What is the author's purpose? When deciding which sources to use, you should take the purpose or point of view of the author into consideration. Is the author presenting a neutral, objective view of a topic? Or is the author advocating one specific view of a topic? Who is funding the research or writing of this source? A source written from a particular point of view may be credible; however, you need to be careful that your sources don't limit your coverage of a topic to one side of a debate.

What type of sources does your audience value? If you are writing for a professional or academic audience, they may value peer-reviewed journals as the most credible sources of information. If you are writing for a group of residents in your hometown, they might be more comfortable with mainstream sources, such as Time or Newsweek . A younger audience may be more accepting of information found on the Internet than an older audience might be.

Be especially careful when evaluating Internet sources! Never use Web sites where an author cannot be determined, unless the site is associated with a reputable institution such as a respected university, a credible media outlet, government program or department, or well-known non-governmental organizations. Beware of using sites like Wikipedia , which are collaboratively developed by users. Because anyone can add or change content, the validity of information on such sites may not meet the standards for academic research.

A Guide to Evidence Synthesis: What is Evidence Synthesis?

Meet Our Team
Our Published Reviews and Protocols
What is Evidence Synthesis?
Types of Evidence Synthesis
Evidence Synthesis Across Disciplines
Finding and Appraising Existing Systematic Reviews
0. Develop a Protocol
1. Draft your Research Question
2. Select Databases
3. Select Grey Literature Sources
4. Write a Search Strategy
5. Register a Protocol
6. Translate Search Strategies
7. Citation Management
8. Article Screening
9. Risk of Bias Assessment
10. Data Extraction
11. Synthesize, Map, or Describe the Results
Evidence Synthesis Institute for Librarians
Open Access Evidence Synthesis Resources

What are Evidence Syntheses?

What are evidence syntheses.

According to the Royal Society, 'evidence synthesis' refers to the process of bringing together information from a range of sources and disciplines to inform debates and decisions on specific issues. They generally include a methodical and comprehensive literature synthesis focused on a well-formulated research question. Their aim is to identify and synthesize all of the scholarly research on a particular topic, including both published and unpublished studies. Evidence syntheses are conducted in an unbiased, reproducible way to provide evidence for practice and policy-making, as well as to identify gaps in the research. Evidence syntheses may also include a meta-analysis, a more quantitative process of synthesizing and visualizing data retrieved from various studies.

Evidence syntheses are much more time-intensive than traditional literature reviews and require a multi-person research team. See this PredicTER tool to get a sense of a systematic review timeline (one type of evidence synthesis). Before embarking on an evidence synthesis, it's important to clearly identify your reasons for conducting one. For a list of types of evidence synthesis projects, see the next tab.

How Does a Traditional Literature Review Differ From an Evidence Synthesis?

How does a systematic review differ from a traditional literature review.

One commonly used form of evidence synthesis is a systematic review. This table compares a traditional literature review with a systematic review.


Review Question/Topic	Topics may be broad in scope; the goal of the review may be to place one's own research within the existing body of knowledge, or to gather information that supports a particular viewpoint.	Starts with a well-defined research question to be answered by the review. Reviews are conducted with the aim of finding all existing evidence in an unbiased, transparent, and reproducible way.
Searching for Studies	Searches may be ad hoc and based on what the author is already familiar with. Searches are not exhaustive or fully comprehensive.	Attempts are made to find all existing published and unpublished literature on the research question. The process is well-documented and reported.
Study Selection	Often lack clear reasons for why studies were included or excluded from the review.	Reasons for including or excluding studies are explicit and informed by the research question.
Assessing the Quality of Included Studies	Often do not consider study quality or potential biases in study design.	Systematically assesses risk of bias of individual studies and overall quality of the evidence, including sources of heterogeneity between study results.
Synthesis of Existing Research	Conclusions are more qualitative and may not be based on study quality.	Bases conclusion on quality of the studies and provide recommendations for practice or to address knowledge gaps.

Video: Reproducibility and transparent methods (Video 3:25)

Reporting Standards

There are some reporting standards for evidence syntheses. These can serve as guidelines for protocol and manuscript preparation and journals may require that these standards are followed for the review type that is being employed (e.g. systematic review, scoping review, etc).

PRISMA checklist Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) is an evidence-based minimum set of items for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
PRISMA-P Standards An updated version of the original PRISMA standards for protocol development.
PRISMA - ScR Reporting guidelines for scoping reviews and evidence maps
PRISMA-IPD Standards Extension of the original PRISMA standards for systematic reviews and meta-analyses of individual participant data.
EQUATOR Network The EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research) Network is an international initiative that seeks to improve the reliability and value of published health research literature by promoting transparent and accurate reporting and wider use of robust reporting guidelines. They provide a list of various standards for reporting in systematic reviews.

Video: Guidelines and reporting standards

PRISMA Flow Diagram

The PRISMA flow diagram depicts the flow of information through the different phases of an evidence synthesis. It maps the search (number of records identified), screening (number of records included and excluded), and selection (reasons for exclusion). Many evidence syntheses include a PRISMA flow diagram in the published manuscript.

See below for resources to help you generate your own PRISMA flow diagram.

PRISMA Flow Diagram Tool
PRISMA Flow Diagram Word Template
<< Previous: Our Published Reviews and Protocols
Next: Types of Evidence Synthesis >>
Last Updated: Aug 5, 2024 2:03 PM
URL: https://guides.library.cornell.edu/evidence-synthesis

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Online Guide to Writing and Research

The research process, explore more of umgc.

Online Guide to Writing

Planning and Writing a Research Paper

Collect Evidence

The evidence you collect will shape your research paper tremendously. You will have to decide what evidence is appropriate for your audience, purpose, and thesis. To help you make this decision, consider what kind of appeal you are making to your audience—logical, emotional, or ethical. Click on the tabs below for more information.

LOGOS OR LOGICAL APPEAL
PATHOS OR EMOTIONAL APPEAL
ETHOS OR ETHICAL APPEAL

You appeal to the reader’s intellect through factual or objective evidence.

You appeal to the reader’s feelings and their heart.

You appeal to the reader’s sense of justice, fair play or trust. The writer is seen to have authority regarding what they are writing about.

EXAMPLE OF A RESEARCH QUESTION AND ARGUMENT

Here is an example that describes research evidence to support an observable trend; this collection of evidence appeals to the readers’ logic and intelligence.

Research Question:  What trends in research led to the computer industry segmentation that has occurred since the 1960s?

Argument Appealing to Logic and Intelligence:   You might learn from early research that the initial phase of the US space program generated much interest in robotics and in programmable machines. That interest led to government funding for research in these areas during the 1960s. This evidence might suggest to you that the government’s role in financing research was instrumental in nurturing the fledgling computer industry of the 1960s. At the same time, you might learn that the government came into conflict with proponents of the growing industry in the 1970s by attempting to curtail domination by a single manufacturer through enforcement of the Sherman Antitrust Act. This evidence, in turn, will help you write about and explain the industry segmentation that has occurred since the 1960s, with its attendant competitive emphasis on constant improvement and innovation, realized in paradigm shifts such as those that occur in object-oriented programming.

Key Takeaways

The evidence you collect will shape your research paper tremendously.
To help you make this decision, consider what kind of appeal you are making to your audience—logical, emotional, or ethical.

Mailing Address: 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD 20783 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License . © 2022 UMGC. All links to external sites were verified at the time of publication. UMGC is not responsible for the validity or integrity of information located at external sites.

Table of Contents: Online Guide to Writing

Chapter 1: College Writing

How Does College Writing Differ from Workplace Writing?

What Is College Writing?

Why So Much Emphasis on Writing?

Chapter 2: The Writing Process

Doing Exploratory Research

Getting from Notes to Your Draft

Introduction

Prewriting - Techniques to Get Started - Mining Your Intuition

Prewriting: Targeting Your Audience

Prewriting: Techniques to Get Started

Prewriting: Understanding Your Assignment

Rewriting: Being Your Own Critic

Rewriting: Creating a Revision Strategy

Rewriting: Getting Feedback

Rewriting: The Final Draft

Techniques to Get Started - Outlining

Techniques to Get Started - Using Systematic Techniques

Thesis Statement and Controlling Idea

Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Freewriting

Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Summarizing Your Ideas

Writing: Outlining What You Will Write

Chapter 3: Thinking Strategies

A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone

A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone: Style Through Vocabulary and Diction

Critical Strategies and Writing

Critical Strategies and Writing: Analysis

Critical Strategies and Writing: Evaluation

Critical Strategies and Writing: Persuasion

Critical Strategies and Writing: Synthesis

Developing a Paper Using Strategies

Kinds of Assignments You Will Write

Patterns for Presenting Information

Patterns for Presenting Information: Critiques

Patterns for Presenting Information: Discussing Raw Data

Patterns for Presenting Information: General-to-Specific Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Problem-Cause-Solution Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Specific-to-General Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Summaries and Abstracts

Supporting with Research and Examples

Writing Essay Examinations

Writing Essay Examinations: Make Your Answer Relevant and Complete

Writing Essay Examinations: Organize Thinking Before Writing

Writing Essay Examinations: Read and Understand the Question

Chapter 4: The Research Process

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Ask a Research Question

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Cite Sources

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Collect Evidence

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Decide Your Point of View, or Role, for Your Research

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Draw Conclusions

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Find a Topic and Get an Overview

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Manage Your Resources

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Outline

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Survey the Literature

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Work Your Sources into Your Research Writing

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Human Resources

Research Resources: What Are Research Resources?

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found?

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Electronic Resources

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Print Resources

Structuring the Research Paper: Formal Research Structure

Structuring the Research Paper: Informal Research Structure

The Nature of Research

The Research Assignment: How Should Research Sources Be Evaluated?

The Research Assignment: When Is Research Needed?

The Research Assignment: Why Perform Research?

Chapter 5: Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity

Giving Credit to Sources

Giving Credit to Sources: Copyright Laws

Giving Credit to Sources: Documentation

Giving Credit to Sources: Style Guides

Integrating Sources

Practicing Academic Integrity

Practicing Academic Integrity: Keeping Accurate Records

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Paraphrasing Your Source

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Quoting Your Source

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Summarizing Your Sources

Types of Documentation

Types of Documentation: Bibliographies and Source Lists

Types of Documentation: Citing World Wide Web Sources

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - APA Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - CSE/CBE Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - Chicago Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - MLA Style

Types of Documentation: Note Citations

Chapter 6: Using Library Resources

Finding Library Resources

Chapter 7: Assessing Your Writing

How Is Writing Graded?

How Is Writing Graded?: A General Assessment Tool

The Draft Stage

The Draft Stage: The First Draft

The Draft Stage: The Revision Process and the Final Draft

The Draft Stage: Using Feedback

The Research Stage

Using Assessment to Improve Your Writing

Chapter 8: Other Frequently Assigned Papers

Reviews and Reaction Papers: Article and Book Reviews

Reviews and Reaction Papers: Reaction Papers

Writing Arguments

Writing Arguments: Adapting the Argument Structure

Writing Arguments: Purposes of Argument

Writing Arguments: References to Consult for Writing Arguments

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Anticipate Active Opposition

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Determine Your Organization

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Develop Your Argument

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Introduce Your Argument

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - State Your Thesis or Proposition

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Write Your Conclusion

Writing Arguments: Types of Argument

Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing

Dictionaries

General Style Manuals

Researching on the Internet

Special Style Manuals

Writing Handbooks

Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing

Collaborative Writing: Assignments to Accompany the Group Project

Collaborative Writing: Informal Progress Report

Collaborative Writing: Issues to Resolve

Collaborative Writing: Methodology

Collaborative Writing: Peer Evaluation

Collaborative Writing: Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members

Collaborative Writing: Writing Plan

General Introduction

Peer Reviewing

Appendix C: Developing an Improvement Plan

Working with Your Instructor’s Comments and Grades

Appendix D: Writing Plan and Project Schedule

Devising a Writing Project Plan and Schedule

Reviewing Your Plan with Others

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Research paper

How to Write a Research Paper | A Beginner's Guide

A research paper is a piece of academic writing that provides analysis, interpretation, and argument based on in-depth independent research.

Research papers are similar to academic essays , but they are usually longer and more detailed assignments, designed to assess not only your writing skills but also your skills in scholarly research. Writing a research paper requires you to demonstrate a strong knowledge of your topic, engage with a variety of sources, and make an original contribution to the debate.

This step-by-step guide takes you through the entire writing process, from understanding your assignment to proofreading your final draft.

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Understand the assignment, choose a research paper topic, conduct preliminary research, develop a thesis statement, create a research paper outline, write a first draft of the research paper, write the introduction, write a compelling body of text, write the conclusion, the second draft, the revision process, research paper checklist, free lecture slides.

Completing a research paper successfully means accomplishing the specific tasks set out for you. Before you start, make sure you thoroughly understanding the assignment task sheet:

Read it carefully, looking for anything confusing you might need to clarify with your professor.
Identify the assignment goal, deadline, length specifications, formatting, and submission method.
Make a bulleted list of the key points, then go back and cross completed items off as you’re writing.

Carefully consider your timeframe and word limit: be realistic, and plan enough time to research, write, and edit.

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There are many ways to generate an idea for a research paper, from brainstorming with pen and paper to talking it through with a fellow student or professor.

You can try free writing, which involves taking a broad topic and writing continuously for two or three minutes to identify absolutely anything relevant that could be interesting.

You can also gain inspiration from other research. The discussion or recommendations sections of research papers often include ideas for other specific topics that require further examination.

Once you have a broad subject area, narrow it down to choose a topic that interests you, m eets the criteria of your assignment, and i s possible to research. Aim for ideas that are both original and specific:

A paper following the chronology of World War II would not be original or specific enough.
A paper on the experience of Danish citizens living close to the German border during World War II would be specific and could be original enough.

Note any discussions that seem important to the topic, and try to find an issue that you can focus your paper around. Use a variety of sources , including journals, books, and reliable websites, to ensure you do not miss anything glaring.

Do not only verify the ideas you have in mind, but look for sources that contradict your point of view.

Is there anything people seem to overlook in the sources you research?
Are there any heated debates you can address?
Do you have a unique take on your topic?
Have there been some recent developments that build on the extant research?

In this stage, you might find it helpful to formulate some research questions to help guide you. To write research questions, try to finish the following sentence: “I want to know how/what/why…”

A thesis statement is a statement of your central argument — it establishes the purpose and position of your paper. If you started with a research question, the thesis statement should answer it. It should also show what evidence and reasoning you’ll use to support that answer.

The thesis statement should be concise, contentious, and coherent. That means it should briefly summarize your argument in a sentence or two, make a claim that requires further evidence or analysis, and make a coherent point that relates to every part of the paper.

You will probably revise and refine the thesis statement as you do more research, but it can serve as a guide throughout the writing process. Every paragraph should aim to support and develop this central claim.

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A research paper outline is essentially a list of the key topics, arguments, and evidence you want to include, divided into sections with headings so that you know roughly what the paper will look like before you start writing.

A structure outline can help make the writing process much more efficient, so it’s worth dedicating some time to create one.

Your first draft won’t be perfect — you can polish later on. Your priorities at this stage are as follows:

Maintaining forward momentum — write now, perfect later.
Paying attention to clear organization and logical ordering of paragraphs and sentences, which will help when you come to the second draft.
Expressing your ideas as clearly as possible, so you know what you were trying to say when you come back to the text.

You do not need to start by writing the introduction. Begin where it feels most natural for you — some prefer to finish the most difficult sections first, while others choose to start with the easiest part. If you created an outline, use it as a map while you work.

Do not delete large sections of text. If you begin to dislike something you have written or find it doesn’t quite fit, move it to a different document, but don’t lose it completely — you never know if it might come in useful later.

Paragraph structure

Paragraphs are the basic building blocks of research papers. Each one should focus on a single claim or idea that helps to establish the overall argument or purpose of the paper.

Example paragraph

George Orwell’s 1946 essay “Politics and the English Language” has had an enduring impact on thought about the relationship between politics and language. This impact is particularly obvious in light of the various critical review articles that have recently referenced the essay. For example, consider Mark Falcoff’s 2009 article in The National Review Online, “The Perversion of Language; or, Orwell Revisited,” in which he analyzes several common words (“activist,” “civil-rights leader,” “diversity,” and more). Falcoff’s close analysis of the ambiguity built into political language intentionally mirrors Orwell’s own point-by-point analysis of the political language of his day. Even 63 years after its publication, Orwell’s essay is emulated by contemporary thinkers.

Citing sources

It’s also important to keep track of citations at this stage to avoid accidental plagiarism . Each time you use a source, make sure to take note of where the information came from.

You can use our free citation generators to automatically create citations and save your reference list as you go.

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The research paper introduction should address three questions: What, why, and how? After finishing the introduction, the reader should know what the paper is about, why it is worth reading, and how you’ll build your arguments.

What? Be specific about the topic of the paper, introduce the background, and define key terms or concepts.

Why? This is the most important, but also the most difficult, part of the introduction. Try to provide brief answers to the following questions: What new material or insight are you offering? What important issues does your essay help define or answer?

How? To let the reader know what to expect from the rest of the paper, the introduction should include a “map” of what will be discussed, briefly presenting the key elements of the paper in chronological order.

The major struggle faced by most writers is how to organize the information presented in the paper, which is one reason an outline is so useful. However, remember that the outline is only a guide and, when writing, you can be flexible with the order in which the information and arguments are presented.

One way to stay on track is to use your thesis statement and topic sentences . Check:

topic sentences against the thesis statement;
topic sentences against each other, for similarities and logical ordering;
and each sentence against the topic sentence of that paragraph.

Be aware of paragraphs that seem to cover the same things. If two paragraphs discuss something similar, they must approach that topic in different ways. Aim to create smooth transitions between sentences, paragraphs, and sections.

The research paper conclusion is designed to help your reader out of the paper’s argument, giving them a sense of finality.

Trace the course of the paper, emphasizing how it all comes together to prove your thesis statement. Give the paper a sense of finality by making sure the reader understands how you’ve settled the issues raised in the introduction.

You might also discuss the more general consequences of the argument, outline what the paper offers to future students of the topic, and suggest any questions the paper’s argument raises but cannot or does not try to answer.

You should not :

Offer new arguments or essential information
Take up any more space than necessary
Begin with stock phrases that signal you are ending the paper (e.g. “In conclusion”)

There are four main considerations when it comes to the second draft.

Check how your vision of the paper lines up with the first draft and, more importantly, that your paper still answers the assignment.
Identify any assumptions that might require (more substantial) justification, keeping your reader’s perspective foremost in mind. Remove these points if you cannot substantiate them further.
Be open to rearranging your ideas. Check whether any sections feel out of place and whether your ideas could be better organized.
If you find that old ideas do not fit as well as you anticipated, you should cut them out or condense them. You might also find that new and well-suited ideas occurred to you during the writing of the first draft — now is the time to make them part of the paper.

The goal during the revision and proofreading process is to ensure you have completed all the necessary tasks and that the paper is as well-articulated as possible. You can speed up the proofreading process by using the AI proofreader .

Global concerns

Confirm that your paper completes every task specified in your assignment sheet.
Check for logical organization and flow of paragraphs.
Check paragraphs against the introduction and thesis statement.

Fine-grained details

Check the content of each paragraph, making sure that:

each sentence helps support the topic sentence.
no unnecessary or irrelevant information is present.
all technical terms your audience might not know are identified.

Next, think about sentence structure , grammatical errors, and formatting . Check that you have correctly used transition words and phrases to show the connections between your ideas. Look for typos, cut unnecessary words, and check for consistency in aspects such as heading formatting and spellings .

Finally, you need to make sure your paper is correctly formatted according to the rules of the citation style you are using. For example, you might need to include an MLA heading or create an APA title page .

Scribbr’s professional editors can help with the revision process with our award-winning proofreading services.

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Checklist: Research paper

I have followed all instructions in the assignment sheet.

My introduction presents my topic in an engaging way and provides necessary background information.

My introduction presents a clear, focused research problem and/or thesis statement .

My paper is logically organized using paragraphs and (if relevant) section headings .

Each paragraph is clearly focused on one central idea, expressed in a clear topic sentence .

Each paragraph is relevant to my research problem or thesis statement.

I have used appropriate transitions to clarify the connections between sections, paragraphs, and sentences.

My conclusion provides a concise answer to the research question or emphasizes how the thesis has been supported.

My conclusion shows how my research has contributed to knowledge or understanding of my topic.

My conclusion does not present any new points or information essential to my argument.

I have provided an in-text citation every time I refer to ideas or information from a source.

I have included a reference list at the end of my paper, consistently formatted according to a specific citation style .

I have thoroughly revised my paper and addressed any feedback from my professor or supervisor.

I have followed all formatting guidelines (page numbers, headers, spacing, etc.).

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Home » Evidence – Definition, Types and Example

Evidence – Definition, Types and Example

Table of Contents

Definition:

Evidence is any information or data that supports or refutes a claim, hypothesis, or argument. It is the basis for making decisions, drawing conclusions, and establishing the truth or validity of a statement.

Types of Evidence

Types of Evidence are as follows:

Empirical evidence

This type of evidence comes from direct observation or measurement, and is usually based on data collected through scientific or other systematic methods.

Expert Testimony

This is evidence provided by individuals who have specialized knowledge or expertise in a particular area, and can provide insight into the validity or reliability of a claim.

Personal Experience

This type of evidence comes from firsthand accounts of events or situations, and can be useful in providing context or a sense of perspective.

Statistical Evidence

This type of evidence involves the use of numbers and data to support a claim, and can include things like surveys, polls, and other types of quantitative analysis.

Analogical Evidence

This involves making comparisons between similar situations or cases, and can be used to draw conclusions about the validity or applicability of a claim.

Documentary Evidence

This includes written or recorded materials, such as contracts, emails, or other types of documents, that can provide support for a claim.

Circumstantial Evidence

This type of evidence involves drawing inferences based on indirect or circumstantial evidence, and can be used to support a claim when direct evidence is not available.

Examples of Evidence

Here are some examples of different types of evidence that could be used to support a claim or argument:

A study conducted on a new drug, showing its effectiveness in treating a particular disease, based on clinical trials and medical data.
A doctor providing testimony in court about a patient’s medical condition or injuries.
A patient sharing their personal experience with a particular medical treatment or therapy.
A study showing that a particular type of cancer is more common in certain demographics or geographic areas.
Comparing the benefits of a healthy diet and exercise to maintaining a car with regular oil changes and maintenance.
A contract showing that two parties agreed to a particular set of terms and conditions.
The presence of a suspect’s DNA at the crime scene can be used as circumstantial evidence to suggest their involvement in the crime.

Applications of Evidence

Here are some applications of evidence:

Law : In the legal system, evidence is used to establish facts and to prove or disprove a case. Lawyers use different types of evidence, such as witness testimony, physical evidence, and documentary evidence, to present their arguments and persuade judges and juries.
Science : Evidence is the foundation of scientific inquiry. Scientists use evidence to support or refute hypotheses and theories, and to advance knowledge in their fields. The scientific method relies on evidence-based observations, experiments, and data analysis.
Medicine : Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is a medical approach that emphasizes the use of scientific evidence to inform clinical decision-making. EBM relies on clinical trials, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses to determine the best treatments for patients.
Public policy : Evidence is crucial in informing public policy decisions. Policymakers rely on research studies, evaluations, and other forms of evidence to develop and implement policies that are effective, efficient, and equitable.
Business : Evidence-based decision-making is becoming increasingly important in the business world. Companies use data analytics, market research, and other forms of evidence to make strategic decisions, evaluate performance, and optimize operations.

Purpose of Evidence

The purpose of evidence is to support or prove a claim or argument. Evidence can take many forms, including statistics, examples, anecdotes, expert opinions, and research studies. The use of evidence is important in fields such as science, law, and journalism to ensure that claims are backed up by factual information and to make decisions based on reliable information. Evidence can also be used to challenge or question existing beliefs and assumptions, and to uncover new knowledge and insights. Overall, the purpose of evidence is to provide a foundation for understanding and decision-making that is grounded in empirical facts and data.

Characteristics of Evidence

Some Characteristics of Evidence are as follows:

Relevance : Evidence must be relevant to the claim or argument it is intended to support. It should directly address the issue at hand and not be tangential or unrelated.
Reliability : Evidence should come from a trustworthy and reliable source. The credibility of the source should be established, and the information should be accurate and free from bias.
Sufficiency : Evidence should be sufficient to support the claim or argument. It should provide enough information to make a strong case, but not be overly repetitive or redundant.
Validity : Evidence should be based on sound reasoning and logic. It should be based on established principles or theories, and should be consistent with other evidence and observations.
Timeliness : Evidence should be current and up-to-date. It should reflect the most recent developments or research in the field.
Accessibility : Evidence should be easily accessible to others who may want to review or evaluate it. It should be clear and easy to understand, and should be presented in a way that is appropriate for the intended audience.

Advantages of Evidence

The use of evidence has several advantages, including:

Supports informed decision-making: Evidence-based decision-making enables individuals or organizations to make informed choices based on reliable information rather than assumptions or opinions.
Enhances credibility: The use of evidence can enhance the credibility of claims or arguments by providing factual support.
Promotes transparency: The use of evidence promotes transparency in decision-making processes by providing a clear and objective basis for decisions.
Facilitates evaluation : Evidence-based decision-making enables the evaluation of the effectiveness of policies, programs, and interventions.
Provides insights: The use of evidence can provide new insights and perspectives on complex issues, enabling individuals or organizations to approach problems from different angles.
Enhances problem-solving : Evidence-based decision-making can help individuals or organizations to identify the root causes of problems and develop more effective solutions.

Limitations of Evidence

Some Limitations of Evidence are as follows:

Limited availability : Evidence may not always be available or accessible, particularly in areas where research is limited or where data collection is difficult.
Interpretation challenges: Evidence can be open to interpretation, and individuals may interpret the same evidence differently based on their biases, experiences, or values.
Time-consuming: Gathering and evaluating evidence can be time-consuming and require significant resources, which may not always be feasible in certain contexts.
May not apply universally : Evidence may be context-specific and may not apply universally to other situations or populations.
Potential for bias: Even well-designed studies or research can be influenced by biases, such as selection bias, measurement bias, or publication bias.
Ethical concerns : Evidence may raise ethical concerns, such as the use of personal data or the potential harm to research participants.

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Academic writing often requires students to use evidence, and learning how to use evidence effectively is an important skill for college writers to master. Often, the evidence college writers are asked to use comes from their textbooks, course readings, or other written work by professional scholars. It is important to learn how to use these writings responsibly and accurately.

General Considerations

There are three methods of incorporating the writing of others into your paper as evidence:

quotation , which is anything from a word to several sentences taken word-for-word from the original source and enclosed in quotation marks
paraphrase , which is a rephrasing in your own voice and sentence structure of one portion of the original source and is about the same length as the original sentence or sentences you are paraphrasing
summary , which is shorter than the original source and gives the text’s central idea in your own words

Some words to use in signal phrases are argues, asserts, contends, emphasizes, explains, observes, suggests, writes.

In what follows, you will learn some strategies for using these methods of incorporating evidence into your paper.

In Practice

When you use a quotation as evidence, you should integrate it into your own writing using a “signal phrase.” Take, for example, this quotation, taken from page 418 of the essay “Prejudice and the Individual” by Gordon Allport: “Much prejudice is caught rather than directly taught.” Here are three ways to integrate Allport’s quotation into a sentence of your own with a signal phrase:

Allport claims that “prejudice is caught rather than directly taught” (418). “Much prejudice is caught rather than directly taught,” claims Allport (418). “Much prejudice,” Allport claims, “is caught rather than directly taught” (418).

You can adapt a quotation to fit your own paragraph and sentence structure by making small changes to words and indicating those changes with square brackets. Say, for example, you liked this quotation from Allport:

“It should be added that overgeneralized prejudgments of this sort are prejudices only if they are not reversible when exposed to new knowledge” (417).

However, you want to apply Allport’s words to a specific example of your own. You could adapt the quotation like this:

The young man in my example was not prejudiced, according to Allport’s definition; his opinion was “reversible when [he was] exposed to new knowledge” (417).

You can also use ellipses to indicate that you have left irrelevant words out of a quotation. Again, say you wanted to use this quotation from Allport:

“The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination, then—as people become acquainted with one another on equal terms—attitudes are likely to change, perhaps more rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of tolerance” (417).

But the middle part is less important to your paper than what Allport says at the start and the end. You could modify the quotation like this:

“The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination . . . attitudes are likely to change, perhaps more rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of tolerance” (417).

Longer quotations must be formatted in a special way; usually, they are indented from the left margin and/or single-spaced. Depending on what citation style you use, guidelines differ regarding what defines a long quotation and how a long quotation should be formatted. Typically, a quotation of four or five lines is considered long.

Paraphrasing

To paraphrase a source for use as evidence, you should use as little of the original language as possible and put the passage in your own voice and sentence structure. Also, because paraphrasing involves wrapping your words around someone else’s idea, people often forget to give credit to the author. Even though a paraphrase is in your words, it is not your idea. Remember to cite your source when you paraphrase. Here is another quotation from Allport and an example of weak and strong paraphrase:

“Education combats easy overgeneralizations, and as the educational level rises we find a reduction in stereotyped thinking” (Allport 422).

WEAK PARAPHRASE: Learning fights against stereotypes, and as more people are more educated we notice a decrease in prejudice (422).

STRONG PARAPHRASE: Allport explains that the more we learn, the harder we will find it to make unfair assumptions about groups of people, which means as more people pursue more education, prejudice decreases (422).

In the weak example above, you can see the sentence structure in the paraphrase is very similar to the quotation—notice, for instance, the use in both the original sentence and the weak paraphrase of a comma plus the conjunction “and.” Also, the replacement of Allport’s words with synonyms makes the paraphrase too close to the original—Allport’s “education” is replaced with “learning” in the paraphrase; his “combats” is exchanged for “fights”; “overgeneralizations” becomes “stereotypes.” The strong example above does a better job of restating Allport’s idea in a new sentence structure and without simple word substitution. Also, notice the weak paraphrase does not give Allport credit by mentioning him, but the strong one does.

Summarizing

When you summarize another writer’s idea to use as evidence in a paper of your own, you are taking the essence of the writer’s idea and stating it more briefly, with less detail and explanation, than in the original. You may summarize an article or a chapter, or even a book, in a sentence, a paragraph, a page, or more—the purpose of your summary should dictate how specific you are. Summaries should be mostly in your own words, but often summaries include quotations or paraphrases when it is necessary to highlight a certain key point. When you are writing a summary, you need to be very careful not to use the original writer’s words without putting those words in quotation marks. You also need to be sure that when you summarize, you are fairly representing the original writer’s main idea. Here is a paragraph from Allport and examples of weak and strong summary:

“While discrimination ultimately rests on prejudice, the two processes are not identical. Discrimination denies people their natural or legal rights because of their membership in some unfavored group. Many people discriminate automatically without being prejudiced; and others, the “gentle people of prejudice,” feel irrational aversion, but are careful not to show it in discriminatory behavior. Yet in general, discrimination reinforces prejudices, and prejudices provide rationalizations for discrimination. The two concepts are most distinct when it comes to seeking remedies. The corrections for discrimination are legal, or lie in a direct change of social practices; whereas the remedy for prejudice lies in education and the conversion of attitudes. The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination, then—as people become acquainted with one another on equal terms—attitudes are likely to change, perhaps more rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of tolerance.” (Allport 417)

WEAK SUMMARY: Discrimination is when people are denied their rights because they belong to some unfavored group, and it is addressed with legal action or a change in social practices. Eliminating discrimination from society would have a drastic effect on social attitudes overall, according to Allport (417).

STRONG SUMMARY: Allport explains that discrimination occurs when an individual is refused rights because he or she belongs to a group which is the object of prejudice. In this way, discrimination reinforces prejudice, but if instances of discrimination are ruled illegal or seen as socially unacceptable, prejudice will likely decrease along with discrimination (417).

You will notice that the weak summary above uses exact words and phrases from the source (“unfavored group,” “social practices”) and also some words and phrases very close to the original (“when people are denied,” “eliminating discrimination”). It does not effectively restate the original in different language. It also does not fairly represent the complete idea of the source paragraph: it does not explain the relationship between discrimination and prejudice, an important part of what Allport says. The strong example does a better job using independent language and fairly conveying Allport’s point.

How to choose which method of incorporating evidence to use

These methods of incorporating evidence into your paper are helpful in different ways. Think carefully about what you need each piece of evidence to do for you in your paper, then choose the method that most suits your needs.

You should use a quotation if

you are relying on the reputation of the writer of the original source to give authority or credibility to your paper.
the original wording is so remarkable that paraphrasing would diminish it.

A paraphrase is a good choice if

you need to provide a supporting fact or detail but the original writer’s exact words are not important.
you need to use just one specific idea from a source and the rest of the source is not as important.

Summary is useful when

you need to give an overview of a source to orient your reader.
you want to provide background that leads up to the point of your paper.

Last but certainly not least, remember that anytime you use another person’s ideas or language, you must give credit to that person. If you do not know the name of the person whose idea or language you are using, you must still give credit by referring to a title or any such available information. You should always check with your instructor to see what method of citing and documenting sources you should use. The examples on this handout are cited using MLA style.

The sample text in these exercises is Holly Devor’s “Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes.”

1. Read the paragraph from Devor below, then identify which summary of it is weak and which is strong.

“Body postures and demeanors which communicate subordinate status and vulnerability to trespass through a message of "no threat" make people appear to be feminine. They demonstrate subordination through a minimizing of spatial use: people appear to be feminine when they keep their arms closer to their bodies, their legs closer together, and their torsos and heads less vertical than do masculine-looking individuals. People also look feminine when they point their toes inward and use their hands in small or childlike gestures.” (486)

A. Devor argues that body language suggests a great deal about gender and power in our society. People who minimize the body space they occupy and whose physical gestures are minimal and unobtrusive appear inferior and feminine (486).

B. Devor says that body postures and demeanors that imply weakness make people look feminine. Minimizing the space one takes up and using infantile gestures also makes one appear feminine (486).

2. Read the sentence from Devor below, then identify which paraphrase of it is weak and which is strong.

“They demonstrate subordination through a minimizing of spatial use: people appear to be feminine when they keep their arms closer to their bodies, their legs closer together, and their torsos and heads less vertical than do masculine-looking individuals.” (486)

A. Devor explains that people demonstrate a lesser position by using less space, keeping arms close, legs together, and head less upright (486).

B. According to Devor, taking up less space with one’s body—keeping arms and legs close and hunching to reduce height—makes one appear inferior and implies femininity (486).

3. The quotations of Devor below, taken from the paragraph in exercise 1, contain technical errors. Identify and correct them.

A. Devor argues that “[b]ody postures and demeanors which communicate subordinate status and vulnerability make people appear to be feminine” (486).

B. The actress looked particularly feminine because she “point their toes inward and use their hands in small or childlike gestures” (486).

C. Devor claims that “using their hands in small or childlike gestures” makes people look feminine (486).

Answers: 1. A. STRONG B. WEAK – This example uses too many exact words and phrases from the original.

2. A. WEAK – This example uses too many exact words and phrases from the source, and its sentence structure is also too close to the original. B. STRONG

3. A. Devor argues that “[b]ody postures and demeanors which communicate subordinate status and vulnerability . . . make people appear to be feminine.” B. The actress looked particularly feminine because she “point[s her] toes inward and use[s her] hands in small or childlike gestures.” C. Devor claims that “us[ing] their hands in small or childlike gestures” makes people look feminine.

Allport, Gordon, “Prejudice and the Individual,” in The Borozoi College Reader , 6th ed. Eds. Charles Muscatine and Marlene Griffith (New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1988): 416-22.

Devor, Holly, “Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes,” in Signs of Life in the USA: Readings on Popular Culture for Writers , 4th ed. Eds. Sonia Maasik and Jack Solomon (New York: Bedford / St Martin's, 2003): 484-89.

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10 Essential Steps To Writing A Research Paper

Research papers are a cornerstone of academic growth, serving as a critical tool for students to delve deep into subject matters, enhance their analytical skills, and contribute to academic discourse. See also What Is The Writing Process? Let’s try to demystify the process of writing a research paper by providing a clear, step-by-step approach that…

Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper

4. The Introduction
Purpose of Guide
Design Flaws to Avoid
Independent and Dependent Variables
Glossary of Research Terms
Reading Research Effectively
Narrowing a Topic Idea
Broadening a Topic Idea
Extending the Timeliness of a Topic Idea
Academic Writing Style
Applying Critical Thinking
Choosing a Title
Making an Outline
Paragraph Development
Research Process Video Series
Executive Summary
The C.A.R.S. Model
Background Information
The Research Problem/Question
Theoretical Framework
Citation Tracking
Content Alert Services
Evaluating Sources
Primary Sources
Secondary Sources
Tiertiary Sources
Scholarly vs. Popular Publications
Qualitative Methods
Quantitative Methods
Insiderness
Using Non-Textual Elements
Limitations of the Study
Common Grammar Mistakes
Writing Concisely
Avoiding Plagiarism
Footnotes or Endnotes?
Further Readings
Generative AI and Writing
USC Libraries Tutorials and Other Guides
Bibliography

The introduction leads the reader from a general subject area to a particular topic of inquiry. It establishes the scope, context, and significance of the research being conducted by summarizing current understanding and background information about the topic, stating the purpose of the work in the form of the research problem supported by a hypothesis or a set of questions, explaining briefly the methodological approach used to examine the research problem, highlighting the potential outcomes your study can reveal, and outlining the remaining structure and organization of the paper.

Key Elements of the Research Proposal. Prepared under the direction of the Superintendent and by the 2010 Curriculum Design and Writing Team. Baltimore County Public Schools.

Importance of a Good Introduction

Think of the introduction as a mental road map that must answer for the reader these four questions:

What was I studying?
Why was this topic important to investigate?
What did we know about this topic before I did this study?
How will this study advance new knowledge or new ways of understanding?

According to Reyes, there are three overarching goals of a good introduction: 1) ensure that you summarize prior studies about the topic in a manner that lays a foundation for understanding the research problem; 2) explain how your study specifically addresses gaps in the literature, insufficient consideration of the topic, or other deficiency in the literature; and, 3) note the broader theoretical, empirical, and/or policy contributions and implications of your research.

A well-written introduction is important because, quite simply, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. The opening paragraphs of your paper will provide your readers with their initial impressions about the logic of your argument, your writing style, the overall quality of your research, and, ultimately, the validity of your findings and conclusions. A vague, disorganized, or error-filled introduction will create a negative impression, whereas, a concise, engaging, and well-written introduction will lead your readers to think highly of your analytical skills, your writing style, and your research approach. All introductions should conclude with a brief paragraph that describes the organization of the rest of the paper.

Hirano, Eliana. “Research Article Introductions in English for Specific Purposes: A Comparison between Brazilian, Portuguese, and English.” English for Specific Purposes 28 (October 2009): 240-250; Samraj, B. “Introductions in Research Articles: Variations Across Disciplines.” English for Specific Purposes 21 (2002): 1–17; Introductions. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; “Writing Introductions.” In Good Essay Writing: A Social Sciences Guide. Peter Redman. 4th edition. (London: Sage, 2011), pp. 63-70; Reyes, Victoria. Demystifying the Journal Article. Inside Higher Education.

Structure and Writing Style

I. Structure and Approach

The introduction is the broad beginning of the paper that answers three important questions for the reader:

What is this?
Why should I read it?
What do you want me to think about / consider doing / react to?

Think of the structure of the introduction as an inverted triangle of information that lays a foundation for understanding the research problem. Organize the information so as to present the more general aspects of the topic early in the introduction, then narrow your analysis to more specific topical information that provides context, finally arriving at your research problem and the rationale for studying it [often written as a series of key questions to be addressed or framed as a hypothesis or set of assumptions to be tested] and, whenever possible, a description of the potential outcomes your study can reveal.

These are general phases associated with writing an introduction: 1. Establish an area to research by:

Highlighting the importance of the topic, and/or
Making general statements about the topic, and/or
Presenting an overview on current research on the subject.

2. Identify a research niche by:

Opposing an existing assumption, and/or
Revealing a gap in existing research, and/or
Formulating a research question or problem, and/or
Continuing a disciplinary tradition.

3. Place your research within the research niche by:

Stating the intent of your study,
Outlining the key characteristics of your study,
Describing important results, and
Giving a brief overview of the structure of the paper.

NOTE: It is often useful to review the introduction late in the writing process. This is appropriate because outcomes are unknown until you've completed the study. After you complete writing the body of the paper, go back and review introductory descriptions of the structure of the paper, the method of data gathering, the reporting and analysis of results, and the conclusion. Reviewing and, if necessary, rewriting the introduction ensures that it correctly matches the overall structure of your final paper.

II. Delimitations of the Study

Delimitations refer to those characteristics that limit the scope and define the conceptual boundaries of your research . This is determined by the conscious exclusionary and inclusionary decisions you make about how to investigate the research problem. In other words, not only should you tell the reader what it is you are studying and why, but you must also acknowledge why you rejected alternative approaches that could have been used to examine the topic.

Obviously, the first limiting step was the choice of research problem itself. However, implicit are other, related problems that could have been chosen but were rejected. These should be noted in the conclusion of your introduction. For example, a delimitating statement could read, "Although many factors can be understood to impact the likelihood young people will vote, this study will focus on socioeconomic factors related to the need to work full-time while in school." The point is not to document every possible delimiting factor, but to highlight why previously researched issues related to the topic were not addressed.

Examples of delimitating choices would be:

The key aims and objectives of your study,
The research questions that you address,
The variables of interest [i.e., the various factors and features of the phenomenon being studied],
The method(s) of investigation,
The time period your study covers, and
Any relevant alternative theoretical frameworks that could have been adopted.

Review each of these decisions. Not only do you clearly establish what you intend to accomplish in your research, but you should also include a declaration of what the study does not intend to cover. In the latter case, your exclusionary decisions should be based upon criteria understood as, "not interesting"; "not directly relevant"; “too problematic because..."; "not feasible," and the like. Make this reasoning explicit!

NOTE: Delimitations refer to the initial choices made about the broader, overall design of your study and should not be confused with documenting the limitations of your study discovered after the research has been completed.

ANOTHER NOTE: Do not view delimitating statements as admitting to an inherent failing or shortcoming in your research. They are an accepted element of academic writing intended to keep the reader focused on the research problem by explicitly defining the conceptual boundaries and scope of your study. It addresses any critical questions in the reader's mind of, "Why the hell didn't the author examine this?"

III. The Narrative Flow

Issues to keep in mind that will help the narrative flow in your introduction :

Your introduction should clearly identify the subject area of interest . A simple strategy to follow is to use key words from your title in the first few sentences of the introduction. This will help focus the introduction on the topic at the appropriate level and ensures that you get to the subject matter quickly without losing focus, or discussing information that is too general.
Establish context by providing a brief and balanced review of the pertinent published literature that is available on the subject. The key is to summarize for the reader what is known about the specific research problem before you did your analysis. This part of your introduction should not represent a comprehensive literature review--that comes next. It consists of a general review of the important, foundational research literature [with citations] that establishes a foundation for understanding key elements of the research problem. See the drop-down menu under this tab for " Background Information " regarding types of contexts.
Clearly state the hypothesis that you investigated . When you are first learning to write in this format it is okay, and actually preferable, to use a past statement like, "The purpose of this study was to...." or "We investigated three possible mechanisms to explain the...."
Why did you choose this kind of research study or design? Provide a clear statement of the rationale for your approach to the problem studied. This will usually follow your statement of purpose in the last paragraph of the introduction.

IV. Engaging the Reader

A research problem in the social sciences can come across as dry and uninteresting to anyone unfamiliar with the topic . Therefore, one of the goals of your introduction is to make readers want to read your paper. Here are several strategies you can use to grab the reader's attention:

Open with a compelling story . Almost all research problems in the social sciences, no matter how obscure or esoteric , are really about the lives of people. Telling a story that humanizes an issue can help illuminate the significance of the problem and help the reader empathize with those affected by the condition being studied.
Include a strong quotation or a vivid, perhaps unexpected, anecdote . During your review of the literature, make note of any quotes or anecdotes that grab your attention because they can used in your introduction to highlight the research problem in a captivating way.
Pose a provocative or thought-provoking question . Your research problem should be framed by a set of questions to be addressed or hypotheses to be tested. However, a provocative question can be presented in the beginning of your introduction that challenges an existing assumption or compels the reader to consider an alternative viewpoint that helps establish the significance of your study.
Describe a puzzling scenario or incongruity . This involves highlighting an interesting quandary concerning the research problem or describing contradictory findings from prior studies about a topic. Posing what is essentially an unresolved intellectual riddle about the problem can engage the reader's interest in the study.
Cite a stirring example or case study that illustrates why the research problem is important . Draw upon the findings of others to demonstrate the significance of the problem and to describe how your study builds upon or offers alternatives ways of investigating this prior research.

NOTE: It is important that you choose only one of the suggested strategies for engaging your readers. This avoids giving an impression that your paper is more flash than substance and does not distract from the substance of your study.

Freedman, Leora and Jerry Plotnick. Introductions and Conclusions. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Introduction. The Structure, Format, Content, and Style of a Journal-Style Scientific Paper. Department of Biology. Bates College; Introductions. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; Introductions. The Writer’s Handbook. Writing Center. University of Wisconsin, Madison; Introductions, Body Paragraphs, and Conclusions for an Argument Paper. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; “Writing Introductions.” In Good Essay Writing: A Social Sciences Guide . Peter Redman. 4th edition. (London: Sage, 2011), pp. 63-70; Resources for Writers: Introduction Strategies. Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies. Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Sharpling, Gerald. Writing an Introduction. Centre for Applied Linguistics, University of Warwick; Samraj, B. “Introductions in Research Articles: Variations Across Disciplines.” English for Specific Purposes 21 (2002): 1–17; Swales, John and Christine B. Feak. Academic Writing for Graduate Students: Essential Skills and Tasks . 2nd edition. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2004 ; Writing Your Introduction. Department of English Writing Guide. George Mason University.

Writing Tip

Avoid the "Dictionary" Introduction

Giving the dictionary definition of words related to the research problem may appear appropriate because it is important to define specific terminology that readers may be unfamiliar with. However, anyone can look a word up in the dictionary and a general dictionary is not a particularly authoritative source because it doesn't take into account the context of your topic and doesn't offer particularly detailed information. Also, placed in the context of a particular discipline, a term or concept may have a different meaning than what is found in a general dictionary. If you feel that you must seek out an authoritative definition, use a subject specific dictionary or encyclopedia [e.g., if you are a sociology student, search for dictionaries of sociology]. A good database for obtaining definitive definitions of concepts or terms is Credo Reference .

Saba, Robert. The College Research Paper. Florida International University; Introductions. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina.

Another Writing Tip

When Do I Begin?

A common question asked at the start of any paper is, "Where should I begin?" An equally important question to ask yourself is, "When do I begin?" Research problems in the social sciences rarely rest in isolation from history. Therefore, it is important to lay a foundation for understanding the historical context underpinning the research problem. However, this information should be brief and succinct and begin at a point in time that illustrates the study's overall importance. For example, a study that investigates coffee cultivation and export in West Africa as a key stimulus for local economic growth needs to describe the beginning of exporting coffee in the region and establishing why economic growth is important. You do not need to give a long historical explanation about coffee exports in Africa. If a research problem requires a substantial exploration of the historical context, do this in the literature review section. In your introduction, make note of this as part of the "roadmap" [see below] that you use to describe the organization of your paper.

Introductions. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; “Writing Introductions.” In Good Essay Writing: A Social Sciences Guide . Peter Redman. 4th edition. (London: Sage, 2011), pp. 63-70.

Yet Another Writing Tip

Always End with a Roadmap

The final paragraph or sentences of your introduction should forecast your main arguments and conclusions and provide a brief description of the rest of the paper [the "roadmap"] that let's the reader know where you are going and what to expect. A roadmap is important because it helps the reader place the research problem within the context of their own perspectives about the topic. In addition, concluding your introduction with an explicit roadmap tells the reader that you have a clear understanding of the structural purpose of your paper. In this way, the roadmap acts as a type of promise to yourself and to your readers that you will follow a consistent and coherent approach to addressing the topic of inquiry. Refer to it often to help keep your writing focused and organized.

Cassuto, Leonard. “On the Dissertation: How to Write the Introduction.” The Chronicle of Higher Education , May 28, 2018; Radich, Michael. A Student's Guide to Writing in East Asian Studies . (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Writing n. d.), pp. 35-37.

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The Levels of Evidence and their role in Evidence-Based Medicine

Patricia b. burns.

1 Research Associate, Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, The University of Michigan Health System

Rod J. Rohrich

2 Professor of Surgery, Department of Plastic Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Kevin C. Chung

3 Professor of Surgery, Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, The University of Michigan Health System

As the name suggests, evidence-based medicine (EBM), is about finding evidence and using that evidence to make clinical decisions. A cornerstone of EBM is the hierarchical system of classifying evidence. This hierarchy is known as the levels of evidence. Physicians are encouraged to find the highest level of evidence to answer clinical questions. Several papers published in Plastic Surgery journals concerning EBM topics have touched on this subject. 1 – 6 Specifically, previous papers have discussed the lack of higher level evidence in PRS and need to improve the evidence published in the journal. Before that can be accomplished, it is important to understand the history behind the levels and how they should be interpreted. This paper will focus on the origin of levels of evidence, their relevance to the EBM movement and the implications for the field of plastic surgery as well as the everyday practice of plastic surgery.

History of Levels of Evidence

The levels of evidence were originally described in a report by the Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination in 1979. 7 The report’s purpose was to develop recommendations on the periodic health exam and base those recommendations on evidence in the medical literature. The authors developed a system of rating evidence ( Table 1 ) when determining the effectiveness of a particular intervention. The evidence was taken into account when grading recommendations. For example, a Grade A recommendation was given if there was good evidence to support a recommendation that a condition be included in the periodic health exam. The levels of evidence were further described and expanded by Sackett 8 in an article on levels of evidence for antithrombotic agents in 1989 ( Table 2 ). Both systems place randomized controlled trials (RCT) at the highest level and case series or expert opinions at the lowest level. The hierarchies rank studies according to the probability of bias. RCTs are given the highest level because they are designed to be unbiased and have less risk of systematic errors. For example, by randomly allocating subjects to two or more treatment groups, these types of studies also randomize confounding factors that may bias results. A case series or expert opinion is often biased by the author’s experience or opinions and there is no control of confounding factors.

Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination’s Levels of Evidence *

Level	Type of evidence
I	At least 1 RCT with proper randomization
II.1	Well designed cohort or case-control study
II.2	Time series comparisons or dramatic results from uncontrolled studies
III	Expert opinions

Levels of Evidence from Sackett *

Level	Type of evidence
I	Large RCTs with clear cut results
II	Small RCTs with unclear results
III	Cohort and case-control studies
IV	Historical cohort or case-control studies
V	Case series, studies with no controls

Modification of levels

Since the introduction of levels of evidence, several other organizations and journals have adopted variation of the classification system. Diverse specialties are often asking different questions and it was recognized that the type and level of evidence needed to be modified accordingly. Research questions are divided into the categories: treatment, prognosis, diagnosis, and economic/decision analysis. For example, Table 3 shows the levels of evidence developed by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) for prognosis 9 and Table 4 shows the levels developed by the Centre for Evidence Based Medicine (CEBM) for treatment. 10 The two tables highlight the types of studies that are appropriate for the question (prognosis versus treatment) and how quality of data is taken into account when assigning a level. For example, RCTs are not appropriate when looking at the prognosis of a disease. The question in this instance is: “What will happen if we do nothing at all”? Because a prognosis question does not involve comparing treatments, the highest evidence would come from a cohort study or a systematic review of cohort studies. The levels of evidence also take into account the quality of the data. For example, in the chart from CEBM, poorly designed RCTs have the same level of evidence as a cohort study.

Levels of Evidence for Prognostic Studies *

Level	Type of evidence
I	High quality prospective cohort study with adequate power or systematic review of these studies
II	Lesser quality prospective cohort, retrospective cohort study, untreated controls from an RCT, or systematic review of these studies
III	Case-control study or systematic review of these studies
IV	Case series
V	Expert opinion; case report or clinical example; or evidence based on physiology, bench research or “first principles”

Levels of Evidence for Therapeutic Studies *

Level	Type of evidence
1A	Systematic review (with homogeneity) of RCTs
1B	Individual RCT (with narrow confidence intervals)
1C	All or none study
2A	Systematic review (with homogeneity) of cohort studies
2B	Individual Cohort study (including low quality RCT, e.g. <80% follow-up)
2C	“Outcomes” research; Ecological studies
3A	Systematic review (with homogeneity) of case-control studies
3B	Individual Case-control study
4	Case series (and poor quality cohort and case-control study
5	Expert opinion without explicit critical appraisal or based on physiology bench research or “first principles”

A grading system that provides strength of recommendations based on evidence has also changed over time. Table 5 shows the Grade Practice Recommendations developed by ASPS. The grading system provides an important component in evidence-based medicine and assists in clinical decision making. For example, a strong recommendation is given when there is level I evidence and consistent evidence from Level II, III and IV studies available. The grading system does not degrade lower level evidence when deciding recommendations if the results are consistent.

Grade Practice Recommendations *

Grade	Descriptor	Qualifying Evidence	Implications for Practice
A	Strong recommendation	Level I evidence or consistent findings from multiple studies of levels II, III, or IV	Clinicians should follow a strong recommendation unless a clear and compelling rationale for an alternative approach is present
B	Recommendation	Levels II, III, or IV evidence and findings are generally consistent	Generally, clinicians should follow a recommendation but should remain alert to new information and sensitive to patient preferences
C	Option	Levels II, III, or IV evidence, but findings are inconsistent	Clinicians should be flexible in their decision-making regarding appropriate practice, although they may set bounds on alternatives; patient preference should have a substantial influencing role
D	Option	Level V evidence: little or no systematic empirical evidence	Clinicians should consider all options in their decision making and be alert to new published evidence that clarifies the balance of benefit versus harm; patient preference should have a substantial influencing role

Interpretation of levels

Many journals assign a level to the papers they publish and authors often assign a level when submitting an abstract to conference proceedings. This allows the reader to know the level of evidence of the research but the designated level of evidence does always guarantee the quality of the research. It is important that readers not assume that level 1 evidence is always the best choice or appropriate for the research question. This concept will be very important for all of us to understand as we evolve into the field of EBM in Plastic Surgery. By design, our designated surgical specialty will always have important articles that may have a lower level of evidence due to the level of innovation and technique articles which are needed to move our surgical specialty forward.

Although RCTs are the often assigned the highest level of evidence, not all RCTs are conducted properly and the results should be carefully scrutinized. Sackett 8 stressed the importance of estimating types of errors and the power of studies when interpreting results from RCTs. For example, a poorly conducted RCT may report a negative result due to low power when in fact a real difference exists between treatment groups. Scales such as the Jadad scale have been developed to judge the quality of RCTs. 11 Although physicians may not have the time or inclination to use a scale to assess quality, there are some basic items that should be taken into account. Items used for assessing RCTs include: randomization, blinding, a description of the randomization and blinding process, description of the number of subjects who withdrew or drop out of the study; the confidence intervals around study estimates; and a description of the power analysis. For example, Bhandari et al. 12 published a paper assessing the quality of surgical RCTs. The authors evaluated the quality of RCTs reported in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS) from 1988–2000. Papers with a score of > 75% were deemed high quality and 60% of the papers had a score < 75%. The authors identified 72 RCTs during this time period and the mean score was 68%. The main reason for the low quality score was lack of appropriate randomization, blinding, and a description of patient exclusion criteria. Another paper found the same quality score of papers in JBJS with a level 1 rating compared to level 2. 13 Therefore, one should not assume that level 1 studies have higher quality than level 2.

A resource for surgeons when appraising levels of evidence are the users’ guides published in the Canadian Journal of Surgery 14 , 15 and the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. 16 Similar papers that are not specific to surgery have been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). 17 , 18

Plastic surgery and EBM

The field of plastic surgery has been slow to adopt evidence-based medicine. This was demonstrated in a paper examining the level of evidence of papers published in PRS. 19 The authors assigned levels of evidence to papers published in PRS over a 20 year period. The majority of studies (93% in 1983) were level 4 or 5, which denotes case series and case reports. Although the results are disappointing, there was some improvement over time. By 2003 there were more level 1studies (1.5%) and fewer level 4 and 5 studies (87%). A recent analysis looked at the number of level 1 studies in 5 different plastic surgery journals from 1978–2009. The authors defined level 1 studies as RCTs and meta-analysis and restricted their search to these studies. The number of level 1 studies increased from 1 in 1978 to 32 by 2009. 20 From these results, we see that the field of plastic surgery is improving the level of evidence but still has a way to go, especially in improving the quality of studies published. For example, approximately a third of the studies involved double blinding, but the majority did not randomize subjects, describe the randomization process, or perform a power analysis. Power analysis is another area of concern in plastic surgery. A review of the plastic surgery literature found that the majority of published studies have inadequate power to detect moderate to large differences between treatment groups. 21 No matter what the level of evidence for a study, if it is under powered, the interpretation of results is questionable.

Although the goal is to improve the overall level of evidence in plastic surgery, this does not mean that all lower level evidence should be discarded. Case series and case reports are important for hypothesis generation and can lead to more controlled studies. Additionally, in the face of overwhelming evidence to support a treatment, such as the use of antibiotics for wound infections, there is no need for an RCT.

Clinical examples using levels of evidence

In order to understand how the levels of evidence work and aid the reader in interpreting levels, we provide some examples from the plastic surgery literature. The examples also show the peril of medical decisions based on results from case reports.

An association was hypothesized between lymphoma and silicone breast implants based on case reports. 22 – 27 The level of evidence for case reports, depending on the scale used, is 4 or 5. These case reports were used to generate the hypothesis that a possible association existed. Because of these results, several large retrospective cohort studies from the United States, Canada, Denmark, Sweden and Finland were conducted. 28 – 32 The level of evidence for a retrospective cohort is 2. All of these studies had many years of follow-up for a large number of patients. Some of the studies found an elevated risk and others no risk for lymphoma. None of the studies reached statistical significance. Therefore, higher level evidence from cohort studies does not provide evidence of any risk of lymphoma. Finally, a systematic review was performed that combined the evidence from the retrospective cohorts. 27 The results found an overall standardized incidence ratio of 0.89 (95% CI 0.67–1.18). Because the confidence intervals include 1, the results indicate there is no increased incidence. The level of evidence for the systematic review is 1. Based on the best available evidence, there is no association between lymphoma and silicone implants. This example shows how low level evidence studies were used to generate a hypothesis, which then led to higher level evidence that disproved the hypothesis. This example also demonstrates that RCTs are not feasible for rare events such as cancer and the importance of observational studies for a specific study question. A case-control study is a better option and provides higher evidence for testing the prognosis of the long-term effect of silicone breast implants.

Another example is the injection of epinephrine in fingers. Based on case reports prior to 1950, physicians were advised that epinephrine injection can result in finger ischemia. 33 We see in this example in which level 4 or 5 evidence was accepted as fact and incorporated into medical textbooks and teaching. However, not all physicians accepted this evidence and are performing injections of epinephrine into the fingers with no adverse effects on the hand. Obviously, it was time for higher level evidence to resolve this issue. An in-depth review of the literature from 1880 to 2000 by Denkler, 33 identified 48 cases of digital infarction of which 21 were injected with epinephrine. Further analysis found that the addition of procaine to the epinephrine injection was the cause of the ischemia. 34 The procaine used in these injections included toxic acidic batches that were recalled in 1948. In addition, several cohort studies found no complications from the use of epinephrine in the fingers and hand. 35 , 36 , 37 The results from these cohort studies increased the level of evidence. Based on the best available evidence from these studies, the hypothesis that epinephrine injection will harm fingers was rejected. This example highlights the biases inherent in case reports. It also shows the risk when spurious evidence is handed down and integrated into medical teaching.

Obtaining the best evidence

We have established the need for RCTs to improve evidence in plastic surgery but have also acknowledged the difficulties, particularly with randomization and blinding. Although RCTs may not be appropriate for many surgical questions, well designed and conducted cohort or case-control studies could boost the level of evidence. Many of the current studies tend to be descriptive and lack a control group. The way forward seems clear. Plastic surgery researchers need to consider utilizing a cohort or case-control design whenever an RCT is not possible. If designed properly, the level of evidence for observational studies can approach or surpass those from an RCT. In some instances, observation studies and RCTs have found similar results. 38 If enough cohort or case-control studies become available, this increases the prospect of systematic reviews of these studies that will increase overall evidence levels in plastic surgery.

The levels of evidence are an important component of EBM. Understanding the levels and why they are assigned to publications and abstracts helps the reader to prioritize information. This is not to say that all level 4 evidence should be ignored and all level 1 evidence accepted as fact. The levels of evidence provide a guide and the reader needs to be cautious when interpreting these results.

Acknowledgments

Supported in part by a Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (K24 AR053120) from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (to Dr. Kevin C. Chung).

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13.1 The Research Process: Where to Look for Existing Sources

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Locate and evaluate primary and secondary research materials, including journal articles and essays, books, scholarly and professionally established and maintained databases or archives, and informal electronic networks and Internet sources.
Apply methods and technologies commonly used for research in various fields.

Once you have chosen your argumentative research topic, developed a workable research question, and devised a plan for your research as described in Argumentative Research: Enhancing the Art of Rhetoric with Evidence , you are ready to begin the task usually associated with the term research —namely, the collection of sources. One key point to remember at this stage is intentionality; that is, begin with a research plan rather than a collection of everything you find related to your topic. Without a plan, you easily may end up overwhelmed by too many unusable sources. A carefully considered research plan will save you time and energy and help make your search for sources more productive. Access to information is generally not a problem; the problem is knowing where to find the information you need and how to distinguish among types and qualities of sources. In short, finding sources is all about sorting, selecting, and evaluating.

Your specific methods for collecting sources will depend on the details of your research project. However, a good strategy to begin with is to think in terms of needs: What do you need, as the researcher and writer? What do your readers need? This kind of needs assessment is similar to the considerations you make about the rhetorical situation when writing an analysis or argument.

Review Table 13.1 as you conduct a source “needs assessment.”

	Basic Facts/Data/Information	These materials help inform you about your topic. They also may help shape the scope of your knowledge of your topic.
	Critical/Conceptual/Contextual Sources	These materials provide explanations and context for your research project. They may range from basic historical or contextual information to explanations of special theories or ideologies. These materials will help you with your analysis and will help you address the questions that your research topic may pose.
	Reason to Invest	This material engages readers both intellectually and emotionally.
	Proof That It Matters	These are convincing arguments or illustrative examples that answer the question, showing why anyone should care about the topic or your approach to it.
	Examples and Explanation	These are illustrative examples and explanations of complex, esoteric, or idiosyncratic concepts, theories, technical processes, etc.

Generating Key Words

Before you begin locating sources, consider the research terms you will use to find these sources. Most research is categorized according to key terms that are important for understanding the topic and/or methodologies. When beginning the research process, you may find that the ideas or words associated with your topic are not yielding results when you search library or Internet databases (organized collections of information).

If you are running into challenges locating information related to your topic, you may not have chosen the specific key terms needed. Because libraries and online databases generate search results based on algorithms that target keywords, the best way to find the appropriate terminology associated with your topic is to practice generating key terms. You may need a range of keywords, some for library searches and others for online searches. When considering the difference between keyword searches in academic libraries versus online sources, note that most academic libraries use Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) for subject searches of their online catalogs. Many databases use subject searches based on algorithms that may be unique to that database. Don’t become discouraged if you find that the terms for searching in your academic library may be somewhat different from the terms for searching online. As you begin to find sources related to your subject, take notes on the variety of terms that describe your research area. These notes will come in handy as both keyword and subject searches throughout your research process.

The following steps and examples will help you get started:

Begin by limiting your topic to one or two sentences or questions. ( What effects do a region’s water and temperatures have on fall foliage? )
Highlight specific words that are key to understanding or finding answers to your question. ( What effects do the amount of water a region gets and temperatures for that region have on colors of fall foliage? )
Consider words assumed but not mentioned in your question. For instance, the example question implies a search around trees and rainfall; however, trees and rainfall are not mentioned. Add these words to the words highlighted in your question.
Consider synonyms for the words you highlighted. A search for synonyms for fall yields harvest , autumn , and autumnal equinox . A search for synonyms for leaves yields foliage , fronds , and stalks . Be sure you understand the meaning of each synonym so that you can choose those that best capture the concepts you seek to research.
Try different combinations of the key terms and synonyms to help you find as many sources as you can.

You can find more information about key terms and searches by consulting Writing Process: Informing and Analyzing .

Locating Sources

Once you have identified sources to fit both your and your readers’ needs, you can begin to locate these sources. Throughout the research process, look for sources that will provide enough information for you to form your own opinions or answer your research question(s). Use source materials as support for your own words and ideas. The following are possible locations for source materials:

While much of your writing and research work happens online, libraries remain indispensable to research. Your university’s physical and/or online library is a valuable resource, providing access to databases, books and periodicals (both print and electronic), and other media that might not otherwise be accessible. In many cases, experienced people are available with discipline-specific research advice. To take full advantage of library resources, keep the following suggestions in mind:

Visit early and often. As soon as you receive a research assignment, visit the library (physically, virtually, or both) to discover resources available for your project. Even if your initial research indicates a wealth of material, you may be unable to find everything during your first search. You may find that a book has been checked out or that your library doesn’t subscribe to a certain periodical. Furthermore, going to the library can be extremely helpful because you likely will see a range of additional sources simply by looking around the areas in which you locate initial sources.
Check general sources first. Look at dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, and yearbooks for background information about your topic. An hour spent with these sources will give you a quick overview of the scope of your topic and lead you to more specific information.
Talk to librarians. At first, you might show a librarian your assignment and explain your topic and research plans. Later, you might ask for help in finding a particular source or finding out whether the library has additional sources you have not checked yet. Librarians are professional information experts; don’t hesitate to use their expertise.

General Reference Works

General reference works provide background information and basic facts about a topic. To locate these sources, you will need a variety of tools, including the online catalog and databases, as well as periodical indexes. To use these resources effectively, follow this four-step process:

Consult general reference works to gain background information and basic facts.
Consult specialized reference works to find relevant articles on all topics.
Consult the library’s online catalog to identify library books on your topic.
Consult other sources as needed.

The summaries, overviews, and definitions in general reference works can help you decide whether to pursue a topic further and where to turn next for information. Because the information in these sources is necessarily general, they will not be sufficient alone as the basis for most research projects and are not strong sources to cite in research papers.

Following are some of the most useful general reference works to provide context and background information for research projects:

Almanacs and yearbooks provide up-to-date information, including statistics on politics, agriculture, economics, and population. See especially the Facts on File World News Digest (1940–present), an index to current events reprinted in newspapers worldwide, and the World Almanac and Book of Facts (1868–present), which reviews important events of the past year as well as data on a wide variety of topics, including sports, government, science, business, and education. In addition to current publications, almanacs from recent years or from many years ago provide information about the times in which they were written.
Atlases such as the Hammond World Atlas , the National Geographic Atlas of the World , and the Times Atlas of the World can help you identify places anywhere in the world and provide information on population, climate, and industry.
Biographical dictionaries contain information about people who have made some mark on history in many different fields. Consult the following: Contemporary Authors (I962–present), containing short biographies of authors who have published during the year; Current Biography (1940–present), containing articles and photographs of people in the news; and Who’s Who in America (1899–present), the standard biographical reference for living Americans.
Dictionaries contain definitions and histories of words, along with their syllabication, and correct spelling and usage.
Encyclopedias provide basic information, explanations, and definitions of virtually every topic, concept, country, institution, historical person or movement, and cultural artifact imaginable. One-volume works such as the Random House Encyclopedia and the Columbia Encyclopedia give brief overviews. Larger works, such as the New Encyclopædia Britannica (32 volumes, also online), contain more detailed information.

Databases, usually accessed directly through your library website, are indispensable tools for finding both journal and general-audience articles. Some databases contain general-interest information, indexing articles from newspapers, magazines, and sometimes scholarly journals as well. While these databases can be useful when you begin your research, once you have focused your research topic, you likely will need to use subject databases, which index articles primarily from specialized scholarly and technical journals.

The difference between scholarly journal and other articles is important. Although at times these lines are blurred, think of articles found in popular journals or magazines as published widely and usually addressing a general audience. Such materials are useful for obtaining introductory or background information on a topic as well as a sense of the range of factors to consider. Indeed, these sources may help you narrow your topic by giving you a basic understanding of the range and scope of the “conversation” you are entering in your research process. Scholarly journal articles , on the other hand, typically are written and published by academic researchers. These publications often have more specialized information and vocabulary and are most useful after you have narrowed your topic and developed specific research questions. Within the range of scholarly articles are those that are peer reviewed or found in peer-reviewed journals. These journal articles are generally more specific and contain more reliable information because they are written by experts and reviewed by other experts in the field before the article is published. See Compiling Sources for an Annotated Bibliography for more information about peer-reviewed publications.

A good starting point for research is a general-interest database , which covers a wide range of topics from many sources. Several major general-interest databases are listed below; however, many others may be available at your library. A librarian likely can help you find those that may be specific to your university.

Academic OneFile from Gale . Based on the access capabilities of your institution, you may be able to use this database, which indexes citations, abstracts, and some full texts in such subjects as the physical sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences, the arts, theology, literature, and more. By using this database, you may be able to retrieve the full text of articles provided in PDF and HTML formats and audio versions of texts in MP3 format.
Academic Search Complete from EBSCOhost. Your library also may provide you with access to this database, which indexes citations, abstracts, and full text from journal articles, books, reports, and conference proceedings in all disciplines. An advantage of this database is that you can retrieve full-text articles provided in PDF and HTML forms. Academic Search Complete also provides searchable cited references for nearly 1,000 journals.
CQ Researcher . This general database is unique because it publishes well-researched, single-themed 12,000-word reports by respected journalists who have established ethos because of their history of in-depth, unbiased coverage of health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy. These reports can be beneficial at any research stage because they provide an overview, background, chronology, assessment of the current situation, tables and maps, pro/con statements from opposing positions, and bibliographies. Files from before 1996 are in HTML format; newer ones, beginning January 1996, are PDFs.
Factiva . Many students find Factiva a useful general tool because it provides full-text news articles and business/industry information from newswires, newspapers, business and industry magazines, television and radio transcripts, financial reports, and news service photos. Within the Factiva database, most content is HTML, though other formats are available for export. The database contains news sources from 1979 to the present and financial data from the 1960s to the present.
Google . One of the most frequently used databases for any research is Google. Students often use Google to begin their searches because they can find material from many different sources, both formal and informal, including blogs, journals, websites, and popular magazines. For academic research, you may find it useful to begin with a general Google search and then move to Google Scholar . Google Scholar provides a simple way to do a broad search for scholarly literature across a variety of disciplines and sources—articles, theses, books, et cetera. Within the Google database, you will also find more information or effective uses of Google for your research purposes. See Compiling Sources for an Annotated Bibliography for more information about Google Scholar.
Opposing Viewpoints in Context from Gale . As you familiarize yourself with your topic, you may find this database helpful for understanding the parameters of the discussion on your topic. Opposing Viewpoints offers over 20,000 pro/con viewpoint essays on controversial issues and current events, plus thousands of topic overviews, primary source documents, social activist biographies, court case overviews, related full-text periodical articles, statistical tables, and multimedia content.
Gale in Context . This database provides curated topic pages that combine academic journal articles, primary sources, reference works, essays, news sources, multimedia, and biographies about people, events, places, and time periods.
Web of Science from Clarivate Analytics . The three Web of Science databases index citations from journal articles and conference proceedings in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. You can access cited reference searches, analyze trends and patterns, and create visual representations of citation relationships. Its contents date from 1900 to the present.

Government Documents

The U.S. government publishes numerous reports, pamphlets, catalogs, and newsletters on most issues of national concern. To access documents from published in 1976 and onward, consult the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications . To find documents published prior to 1976, consult the Monthly Catalog of United States . Both resources should be available electronically and contain listings for materials in formats such as nonprint media, records, CDs, audiocassettes, videotapes, slides, photographs, and other media. Many of these publications may be located through your university’s library catalog as well. Consult a librarian to find out what government documents are available to you and in what forms.

Archives/Special Collections

Many libraries have donated records, papers, or writings that make up archives or special collections containing manuscripts, rare books, architectural drawings, historical photographs and maps, and so on. These, as well as items of local interest such as community and family histories, artifacts, and other memorabilia, are usually found in a special room or section of the library. By consulting these collections or archives, you also may find local or regional atlases, maps, and geographic information systems (GIS). Maps and atlases depict more than roads and boundaries. They include information on population density, language patterns, soil types, and much more. And, as discussed later in this chapter, these materials can figure into research projects as primary data.

University libraries’ special collections often house items donated by alumni, families, and other community groups. For example, one state university library’s special collections, housing a collection of Black Panther and American Communist Party newspapers and pamphlets, celebrated Black History Month with an exhibit featuring the Black Panther Party and the Black Power movement. Included in the exhibit were Black Panther newspapers and pamphlets published in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as earlier civil rights literature from the American Communist Party. This exhibit not only helped students become aware of information about the time and movement but also demonstrated the range and depth of the university’s archive collection.

Interlibrary Loans

Even though libraries house many materials, you may need a source unavailable at your library. If so, you usually can get the source through a networked system called interlibrary loans. Your library will borrow the source for you and provide some guidance as to the form of the materials and how long you will have access to them.

Whichever search tool you use, nothing is magic about information gathered. You will need to use critical skills to evaluate materials gathered from sources, and you will still need to ask these basic questions: Is the author identified? ls that person a professional in the field or an interested amateur? What are their biases likely to be? Does the document represent an individual’s opinion or peer-reviewed research?

Evaluating Sources

One key to judging the validity of sources is analysis. You already may be familiar with analysis, which involves looking at texts, media, or other artifacts to examine their individual parts and make interpretive claims about them. In the research process, analysis involves collecting data, deciding how you want to use that data (what are you looking for?), and applying those criteria to your data. For example, if you were looking at how the presence of social media has changed in television programs in the last five to seven years, you would determine what shows you want to view and what patterns you want to study.

As you analyze sources, you evaluate them in terms of your research needs. On the basis of your needs assessment, you will determine whether a source is acceptable or unacceptable, good or bad, trustworthy or biased. Although firm categories can be useful, you may find a more nuanced evaluation helpful as well. When you look for sources and evaluate them, begin with general questions such as these:

How do I want to use this source?
Am I able to use it in that way?
Might this source be more valuable if used in another way?

When you ask whether a source is acceptable, the answer usually depends on what you want to do with it. Even biased, false, or misleading material can be useful, depending on how a researcher puts it to use. For instance, you may be writing about a particular historical event and come across a magazine article featuring a biased account of that event. If your purpose is to write a brief but accurate description of the event, then this account is of little use. But what if your purpose is to write a critical analysis of the ways in which misleading media coverage of an event has influenced public perception of it? Suddenly, the biased account becomes useful as a specific example of the media coverage you wish to analyze.

A source’s value, therefore, is a function of your purpose for it. Labeling a source as good or bad, truthful or misleading, doesn’t really evaluate its use to you as a researcher and writer; truthful sources can be used poorly, and misleading sources can be used effectively. What matters is whether the source fits your purpose.

Finally, when evaluating a source, consider time ( when was it judged true? ) and perspective ( who said it was true, and for what reason? ).

Locate the Date

Most documents, especially those created since the advent of copyright laws at the end of the 19th century, include their date of publication. Pay attention to the date a source was created, and reflect on what might have happened since then. Information may be outdated and useless. On the other hand, it may still be highly useful—and continuing usefulness is the reason many old texts remain in circulation. Once you locate the source’s date, you can decide whether it will be relevant for your purpose. If you are studying change over time, for example, old statistical information would be useful baseline data to demonstrate what has changed. But if you are studying current culture, dated information may be misleading. In other words, when evaluating whether a dated source serves your purpose, know what that purpose is.

Identify Perspective

To identify and evaluate perspective, ask what viewpoint, or perspective, it represents. Who created the source, and for what purpose? This question can be difficult to answer immediately because an author’s viewpoint is not always identified or summarized in the source itself—and when it is, the information provided, being a creation of the author, cannot always be believed. To trust a source, you need to analyze its assumptions, evidence, biases, and reasoning, which together constitute the author’s perspective. ln essence, you need to ask these questions: What is this writer’s purpose? Is it scholarly analysis, political advocacy, entertainment, or something else? Consider the following:

Will a quick perusal of the introduction or first chapter reveal the writer’s assumptions about the subject or audience?
Can you tell which statements are facts, which are inferences drawn from facts, and which are strictly opinions?
Does a first reading of the evidence persuade you? Is the logic of the position apparent and/or credible?
Does the writer omit relevant points?
Do the answers to these questions make you more or less willing to accept the author’s conclusions?

Although trying to answer these questions about every source may seem daunting or even futile at first, have patience and give the research process the time it needs. At the beginning of a research project, when you are still trying to gain context and overview and have looked at only one source, you likely will have difficulty recognizing an author’s purpose and viewpoint. However, as you read further and begin to compare and contrast one source with another, differences will emerge, especially if you read extensively and take notes. The more differences you note, the more critically aware you become and the more you understand how and where a source might help you.

Review Critically

To review a source with a critical eye, ask both first and second questions of the text. The answers to first questions are generally factual, the result of probing the text (identifying the title, table of contents, chapter headings, index, and so on). The answers to second questions are more inferential, the result of analyzing assertions, evidence, and language in the text (identifying the perspective of the author and their sources).

Review Internally

Does information in one source support or contradict information in other sources? Do a subject search of the author across platforms to find out how other experts view the author and how your source fits in with the author’s other works.

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Title: broad versus narrow research questions in evidence synthesis: a parallel to (and plea for) estimands.

Abstract: There has been a transition from broad to more specific research questions in the practice of network meta-analysis (NMA). Such convergence is also taking place in the context of individual registrational trials, following the recent introduction of the estimand framework, which is impacting the design, data collection strategy, analysis and interpretation of clinical trials. The language of estimands has much to offer to NMA, particularly given the "narrow" perspective of treatments and target populations taken in health technology assessment.

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Gender in Sports: Challenges, Impacts and Pathways to Equity

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Gender bias in sports is a longstanding issue that affects athletes and women in leadership positions across all levels of competition. Despite significant progress in gender equity initiatives, disparities persist in media coverage, funding, sponsorship, coaching opportunities, and leadership roles. The bias not only impacts the visibility and financial support for women but also influences their psychological well-being, career longevity, and overall experience in sports. This Research Topic aims to address the critical problem of gender bias in sports. It seeks to provide a platform for analyzing the effects of gender bias on athletes, leadership positions, and sports organizations. It aims to explore the role of media and cultural perceptions in perpetuating gender disparities, as well as evaluate and highlight effective policies and initiatives that have successfully promoted gender equity. By gathering diverse perspectives and evidence-based research, this collection strives to identify practical strategies for overcoming gender bias and promoting inclusivity within sports environments. The ultimate goal is to foster dialogue, inform policy-making, and inspire actionable solutions that will contribute to reducing gender disparities and advancing equity in sports at all levels. This Research Topic invites contributions that explore various aspects of gender bias in sports, including but not limited to: • Disparities in media representation and coverage • Inequities in funding, sponsorships, and resource allocation • Gender differences in coaching opportunities and leadership roles • Psychological impacts of gender bias on athletes • Economic analysis of gender disparities in professional sports, the Olympic Games, and the Paralympic Games • Intersectional perspectives on gender bias We welcome all types of manuscripts and papers focusing on underrepresented groups, innovative solutions, and practical applications are particularly encouraged.

Keywords : Gender bias, sports equity, professional sports, amateur sports, collegiate sports, economic impact, intersectionality, media representation, psychological effects, policy initiatives, pay gap, leadership

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Using Evidence: Citing Sources Properly

Citing sources properly is essential to avoiding plagiarism in your writing. Not citing sources properly could imply that the ideas, information, and phrasing you are using are your own, when they actually originated with another author. Plagiarism doesn't just mean copy and pasting another author's words. Review Amber's blog post, "Avoiding Unintentional Plagiarism," for more information! Plagiarism can occur when authors:

Do not include enough citations for paraphrased information,
Paraphrase a source incorrectly,
Do not use quotation marks, or
Directly copy and paste phrasing from a source without quotation marks or citations.

Read more about how to avoid these types of plagiarism on the following subpages and review the Plagiarism Detection & Revision Skills video playlist on this page. For more information on avoiding plagiarism, see our Plagiarism Prevention Resource Kit .

Also make sure to consult our resources on citations to learn about the correct formatting for citations.

What to Consider

Citation issues can appear when writers use too much information from a source, rather than including their own ideas and commentary on sources' information. Here are some factors to consider when citing sources:

Remember that the cited material should illustrate rather than substitute for your point. Make sure your paper is more than a collection of ideas from your sources; it should provide an original interpretation of that material. For help with creating this commentary while also avoiding personal opinion, see our Commentary vs. Opinion resource.

The opening sentence of each paragraph should be your topic sentence , and the final sentence in the paragraph should conclude your point and lead into the next. Without these aspects, you leave your reader without a sense of the paragraph's main purpose. Additionally, the reader may not understand your reasons for including that material.

All material that you cite should contribute to your main argument (also called a thesis or purpose statement). When reading the literature, keep that argument in mind, noting ideas or research that speaks specifically to the issues in your particular study. See our synthesis demonstration for help learning how to use the literature in this way.

Most research papers should include a variety of sources from the last 3-5 years. You may find one particularly useful study, but try to balance your references to that study with research from other authors. Otherwise, your paper becomes a book report on that one source and lacks richness of theoretical perspective.

Direct quotations are best avoided whenever possible. While direct quotations can be useful for illustrating a rhetorical choice of your author, in most other cases paraphrasing the material is more appropriate. Using your own words by paraphrasing will better demonstrate your understanding and will allow you to emphasize the ways in which the ideas contribute to your paper's main argument.

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COMMENTS

Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research is
Objectives: There is considerable actual and potential waste in research. Evidence-based research ensures worthwhile and valuable research. The aim of this series, which this article introduces, is to describe the evidence-based research approach. Study design and setting: In this first article of a three-article series, we introduce the ...
Evidence
Books, journals, websites, newspapers, magazines, and documentary films are some of the most common sources of evidence for academic writing. Our handout on evaluating print sources will help you choose your print sources wisely, and the library has a tutorial on evaluating both print sources and websites. A librarian can help you find sources ...
Research and Evidence
Wipe out writing errors that can affect your grade. First hand research is research you have conducted yourself such as interviews, experiments, surveys, or personal experience and anecdotes. Second hand research is research you are getting from various texts that has been supplied and compiled by others such as books, periodicals, and Web sites.
12.1 Introducing Research and Research Evidence
Types of Research Evidence. Research evidence usually consists of data, which comes from borrowed information that you use to develop your thesis and support your organizational structure and reasoning. This evidence can take a range of forms, depending on the type of research conducted, the audience, and the genre for reporting the research.
Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research is
1. Introduction. In this, the first of three articles, we aim to define and describe evidence-based research. We introduce here, and in the subsequent articles provide more details for, the use of an evidence-based research approach before embarking on new research to justify and design the new study (article #2 in series) and, after the completion of the study, to place its results of the new ...
A Guide to Evidence Synthesis: What is Evidence Synthesis?
According to the Royal Society, 'evidence synthesis' refers to the process of bringing together information from a range of sources and disciplines to inform debates and decisions on specific issues. They generally include a methodical and comprehensive literature synthesis focused on a well-formulated research question.
Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 2
1. Introduction. This article is part of a series describing evidence-based research—the use of prior research in a systematic and transparent way to inform a new study so that it is answering questions that matter in a valid, efficient, and accessible manner [1].By prior research, we mean original studies (also called primary studies), but even when planning a new systematic review ...
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Collect Evidence
Key Takeaways. The evidence you collect will shape your research paper tremendously. To help you make this decision, consider what kind of appeal you are making to your audience—logical, emotional, or ethical. Mailing Address: 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD 20783.
Research Paper
Definition: Research Paper is a written document that presents the author's original research, analysis, and interpretation of a specific topic or issue. It is typically based on Empirical Evidence, and may involve qualitative or quantitative research methods, or a combination of both. The purpose of a research paper is to contribute new ...
How to Write a Research Paper
A research paper is a piece of academic writing that provides analysis, interpretation, and argument based on in-depth independent research. ... and evidence you want to include, divided into sections with headings so that you know roughly what the paper will look like before you start writing.
Exploring the diverse definitions of 'evidence': a scoping review
Forty-nine documents were finally included after screening, and 68 definitions were obtained. After excluding duplicates, a total of 54 different definitions of 'evidence' were identified. There were 42 intensional definitions and 12 extensional definitions. The top three definiens were 'information', 'fact' and 'research/study'.
Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research is
Introduction. In this, the first of three articles, we aim to define and describe evidence-based research. We introduce here, and in the subsequent articles provide more details for, the use of an evidence-based research approach before embarking on new research to justify and design the new study (article #2 in series) and, after the completion of the study, to place its results of the new ...
Academic Guides: Evidence-Based Research: Evidence Types
Not all evidence is the same, and appraising the quality of the evidence is part of evidence-based practice research.The hierarchy of evidence is typically represented as a pyramid shape, with the smaller, weaker and more abundant research studies near the base of the pyramid, and systematic reviews and meta-analyses at the top with higher validity but a more limited range of topics.
What is evidence?
Errors in selecting and applying evidence. Many systematic reviews only include randomised controlled trials (RCTs), the 'gold standard' of EBM, as described in a partner paper in this issue of LJPC. 3 It is a small, but logically dubious jump from seeing controlled trials as the best evidence on which to base clinical actions, to the view that no other evidence is valid.
The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Research Paper
What is a research paper? A research paper is a type of academic writing that provides an in-depth analysis, evaluation, or interpretation of a single topic, based on empirical evidence. Research papers are similar to analytical essays, except that research papers emphasize the use of statistical data and preexisting research, along with a strict code for citations.
Explaining and trusting expert evidence: What is a 'sufficiently
The combination of the 'sufficient reliability' test with a reaffirmation of the jury's role as the final arbiter of the weight of evidence reflects a tension between two fundamental principles of the criminal jury trial: that defendants should be convicted only when their guilt is proved to the criminal standard on a 'logically justifiable basis'; 2 and that it is for the jury, not ...
Levels of Evidence Pyramid
Introduction. One way to organize the different types of evidence involved in evidence-based practice research is the levels of evidence pyramid. The pyramid includes a variety of evidence types and levels. Filtered resources: pre-evaluated in some way. Unfiltered resources: typically original research and first-person accounts.
Common Knowledge & Personal Experience
Common Knowledge. Common knowledge is information or ideas that are widely known, accepted, and found in multiple places. Common knowledge is context dependent, meaning that something might be common knowledge to one audience but not another audience. If you are paraphrasing common knowledge, you do not need to cite that statement.
Choosing the Best Sources and Evidence
Before integrating research into your paper, follow these guidelines to select the best sources and evidence from those sources to support the ideas in your paper. Selecting an Appropriate Source . It is common in academic research to see sources grouped into three main categories: Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources. The ...
Evidence
Science: Evidence is the foundation of scientific inquiry. Scientists use evidence to support or refute hypotheses and theories, and to advance knowledge in their fields. The scientific method relies on evidence-based observations, experiments, and data analysis. Medicine: Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is a medical approach that emphasizes the ...
How Do I Effectively Integrate Textual Evidence?
There are three methods of incorporating the writing of others into your paper as evidence: Some words to use in signal phrases are argues, asserts, contends, emphasizes, explains, observes, suggests, writes. In what follows, you will learn some strategies for using these methods of incorporating evidence into your paper.
10 Essential Steps To Writing A Research Paper
Research papers are a cornerstone of academic growth, serving as a critical tool for students to delve deep into subject matters, enhance their analytical skills, and contribute to academic discourse. ... Critical reading and analytical note-taking are essential at this stage to ensure that you gather strong evidence to support your thesis.
Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper
The introduction leads the reader from a general subject area to a particular topic of inquiry. It establishes the scope, context, and significance of the research being conducted by summarizing current understanding and background information about the topic, stating the purpose of the work in the form of the research problem supported by a hypothesis or a set of questions, explaining briefly ...
The Levels of Evidence and their role in Evidence-Based Medicine
The field of plastic surgery has been slow to adopt evidence-based medicine. This was demonstrated in a paper examining the level of evidence of papers published in PRS. 19 The authors assigned levels of evidence to papers published in PRS over a 20 year period. The majority of studies (93% in 1983) were level 4 or 5, which denotes case series ...
13.1 The Research Process: Where to Look for Existing Sources
12.1 Introducing Research and Research Evidence; 12.2 Argumentative Research Trailblazer: Samin Nosrat; 12.3 Glance at Genre: Introducing Research as Evidence; 12.4 Annotated Student Sample: "Healthy Diets from Sustainable Sources Can Save the Earth" by Lily Tran; 12.5 Writing Process: Integrating Research; 12.6 Editing Focus: Integrating ...
[2408.12932] Broad versus narrow research questions in evidence
There has been a transition from broad to more specific research questions in the practice of network meta-analysis (NMA). Such convergence is also taking place in the context of individual registrational trials, following the recent introduction of the estimand framework, which is impacting the design, data collection strategy, analysis and interpretation of clinical trials. The language of ...
HTA Review research and analysis papers
To find out more about the evidence supporting the review, see the research and analysis plan overview. Papers by HTA experts. The HTA Review Reference Committee agreed to commission 3 expert groups in HTA to prepare research and analysis papers to support the HTA Review.
Climate policies that achieved major emission reductions: Global ...
Assembling such a global stocktake of effective climate policy interventions is so far hampered by two main obstacles: First, even though there is a plethora of data on legislative frameworks and pledged national emission reductions (8-10), systematic and cross-nationally comparable data about the specific types and mixes of implemented policy instruments are lacking.
Gender in Sports: Challenges, Impacts and Pathways to Equity
Keywords: Gender bias, sports equity, professional sports, amateur sports, collegiate sports, economic impact, intersectionality, media representation, psychological effects, policy initiatives, pay gap, leadership . Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements.
Academic Guides: Using Evidence: Citing Sources Properly
Using Evidence. Citing Sources Properly. Citing sources properly is essential to avoiding plagiarism in your writing. Not citing sources properly could imply that the ideas, information, and phrasing you are using are your own, when they actually originated with another author. Plagiarism doesn't just mean copy and pasting another author's words.

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Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research is and why is it important?

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What this handout is about

Introduction

What counts as evidence?

What matters to instructors?

What are primary and secondary sources?

Where can I find evidence?

Print and electronic sources

Observation

Experiments

Personal experience

Using evidence in an argument

How can I incorporate evidence into my paper?

Paraphrasing

Statistics, data, charts, graphs, photographs, illustrations

Do I need more evidence?

Make a reverse outline

Color code your paper

Play devil’s advocate, act like a child, or doubt everything

Common questions and additional resources

Works consulted

Using Research and Evidence

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

What type of evidence should I use?

How do I know if a source is credible?

A Guide to Evidence Synthesis: What is Evidence Synthesis?

What are Evidence Syntheses?

How Does a Traditional Literature Review Differ From an Evidence Synthesis?

Video: Reproducibility and transparent methods (Video 3:25)

Reporting Standards

Video: Guidelines and reporting standards

PRISMA Flow Diagram

Online Guide to Writing and Research

Collect Evidence

EXAMPLE OF A RESEARCH QUESTION AND ARGUMENT

Key Takeaways

Table of Contents: Online Guide to Writing

Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing

Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing

Appendix C: Developing an Improvement Plan

Appendix D: Writing Plan and Project Schedule

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Table of contents

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Paragraph structure

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Citing sources

Global concerns

Fine-grained details

Checklist: Research paper

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Evidence – Definition, Types and Example

Types of Evidence

Empirical evidence

Expert Testimony

Personal Experience

Statistical Evidence

Analogical Evidence

Documentary Evidence

Circumstantial Evidence

Examples of Evidence

Applications of Evidence

Purpose of Evidence

Characteristics of Evidence

Advantages of Evidence

Limitations of Evidence

About the author

Muhammad Hassan