A research report is essentially a set of recorded data directly from the field or from
secondary sources whose aim is to analyse a specific situation or topic. The information
gathered in this case may be in the form of surveys or qualitative/quantitative methods. The
information to be analysed is in raw format, hence the need to develop a report synthesizing
the topic with the intention of achieving specific results. It is notable that research-based
reports are vast and cut across different areas and subjects. The bottom line is that there are
common elements that manifest in research-based reports, hence the need to understand how
to write one. This guide takes you through a step-by-step procedure on how a good report can
be done:
The Executive Summary
This section comes as the first in a research report. An executive summary gives an overview
of the report. In other words, the executive summary covers the elements of the research
reports to prepare the readers on what they should expect as they read along. It is important to
ensure that you make the executive summary as interesting as possible in order to hook the
readers. Most importantly, the executive summary should be a sneak-peak of the entire
report, hence should not be lengthy. One or two short paragraphs should be enough for the
summary section.
Research Introduction
One of the notable things is that a researcher in gathering data has some goals that he/she
intends to achieve. It is in the introduction that the author should focus on answers related to
the goals set. In this regard, it is important to develop a special focus on the question ‘what is
the current status of the goal’ and what is intended to make positive achievements of the same
goals. It is also important to cover the question on if the research conducted was able to
unearth the necessary information and if the intended goals were effectively achieved or not.
Such relevant information is what you should focus on when writing research introduction.
Research Methodology
Research methodology is essentially the most important element of a research paper. In this
case, you should aim at clearly spelling out the methods or approaches that you applied in
achieving your results. In essence, you should have adequately defined parameters that were
in place as far as searching for raw data is concerned. The idea here is to be detail-oriented
such that the reader will have a clear understanding of all data gathering and analysis
approaches applied. Information in this section should be expressed in a chronological order
based on priorities and importance. It might be necessary to include the necessary references
especially where secondary or other non-original techniques are applied in gathering
information.
Results
This section provides results based on the research methodology applied. Therefore, data
presentation should follow the one of more techniques used in gathering the necessary
information.
Discussion
At this juncture, you will be required to analyse and discuss the results of your research, with
the focus on the research topic and objectives. A comparative analysis is deemed necessary in
developing the research discussion. The idea in this case is to connect the dots based on the
various sections of the results. Further, there is the focus on how the research will be applied
in real world. Context must be maintained fully when engaging in the discussion section.
Conclusion and References
Finalize the research paper with a conclusion that summarizes your findings. You need to
focus on the research objectives and the applied thesis statement. After the conclusion, a list
of reference is needed as an acknowledgement of any secondary information