There is no universally recognized formula for research paper formats. If your
instructor has not provided you with specific guidelines, it is recommended to look at some research papers online from better universities.
ESH recommends the following research paper format:
The various sections of a research paper are described on the following pages.
Cover page
(Administrative pages: for ESH, please include a copyright page and an optional dedication page)
Abstract Key words
Biographical material of author(s): limit to one sentence each
Table of Contents List of Tables List of Figures Introduction
Context or statement of the problem purpose of the study
research questions, objectives or hypotheses theoretical perspectives
definition of terms
delimitations and limitations of the study Review of Literature
Methods
research design
sample, population or subjects of inquiry instrumentation and materials
variables in the study data analysis
Results
Conclusions or Discussion References
7.10.1 Abstract
This is the last part of your paper you should write. It will give a concise summary of the purpose of the study, the research problem, a brief description of the methods, the results obtained, including specific data, and a short conclusion, in a single paragraph.
7.10.2 Table of contents
The table of contents may be created using the automatic Word (Insert -‐ Index &
Tables) function for the Classic TOC and include at least three levels of headings.
7.10.3 List of Table and List of Figures
These lists should go on separate pages and contain references to all tables and figures in the body of the document but not the appendix.
7.10.4 Introduction
The introduction states one major idea per paragraph. It explains the purpose and objectives of the study, and describes the context of the research question, research problem or hypothesis (or, pl., hypotheses). It describes the
importance, defends the model, and provides a rationale. The context may be that it is an academic study undertaken to achieve a certain degree; that it was undertaken alone or in a team. It discusses what theories are applied, challenged and are likely to be impacted. All technical vocabulary necessary to the
understanding of the report is explained. Delimitations will describe the self-‐
imposed limits of the study that allow it to focus on just a certain area without looking too broadly at a subject. All studies experience some kind of limitations that are imposed on them, usually lack of time or specific deadlines, finances, or qualified colleagues.
7.10.5 Review of Literature
A review of literature is an overview of the previous research that has been conducted and published on a particular topic. You will spend the Discovery part of your Project Management course reading or reviewing what has been said and done on your subject in order to gain in-‐depth of knowledge, to become
"experts" on your topic. The purpose of your reading is not to justify a pre-‐study bias on the topic but to give you enough information to identify gaps in research or see new directions to explore.
7.10.6 Methods
This section should be the easiest to write but students sometime over-‐write it and turn it into a How To section, which it is not. The purpose is not to describe every detail of your process but to provide proof that your study is scientifically sound. You will want to describe the key methods and procedures you used to conduct your study but avoid extraneous detail. You will provide information on your research design: what procedure did you follow? What was your sampling (who participated in the study and why were they chosen)? What material, if any, did you use? What kind of surveys did you run to obtain your observations
or data? What equipment, if any, was required? What were the variables? What actions did the participants take?
Basically, you need to give enough information so that another researcher can replicate your study based on your described methods.
This section is always written in the past tense. If you mention steps and procedures in the method section, these elements should also be present in the results and discussion sections. You are encouraged to consult a range of online guidelines while writing this section; a rough draft should be hammered out with one or more teachers.
The methods section will usually have the following four sub-‐sections:
1. Participants: Who? How many? How did you select them?
For example: "The sample group for our survey consisted of 100 randomly selected tourists who answered our survey on
surveymonkey.com that was broadly distributed through our private contact channels on four continents."
2. Materials: What measures, equipment, or material such as books or images did you use to test your problem question or statement? Did you use some financial or psychological lure to get people to participate?
For example: "To insure the participation of top executives among those interviewed, we offered our participants the opportunity to receive a free copy of our research results."
3. Design: What type of design (process) did you use to run your study?
List the steps taken. What were your variables? Did you use a within-‐
groups or between-‐groups design?
For example: "The experiment used a between-‐subjects design. The independent variables were age and beliefs."
A between-‐group design, widely used in social sciences, has two or more subject groups; usually one is regarded as the treatment group (treated with a some variable) and a control group that receives no variable treatment and is used as the reference to prove any deviance in the treatment group.
A within-‐groups designuses the same subjects, such as rats, with every condition of the research, including the control. Measures may be
collected over time in a longitudinal (long) study.
4. Procedure: The next part of your method section should detail the procedures used in your experiment or study. How did you collected data? What did you have participants do? What order or steps were applied?
For example: "Each member of the team interviewed two hotel
management employees individually at their offices in one session that lasted 20 minutes on average. The interviewers asked the same five questions (list the questions) of each manager. They were each assured of anonymity and offered the option of receiving the results of the study.
All sessions were videotaped so the information could later be verified."
7.10.6 Results
The length of this section will be determined by the amount of information you have collected. The purpose is to present and illustrate your findings, if
necessary with figures and tables. First describe your results, analyze the data, and prepare the analyzed data in a graph, figure, or table as well as text.
Do not include your raw data. You just want to present the final analyzed data here. Explanations can be given during the jury session or if anyone asks for it.
Do not present opinions or discussion in this section; it is reserved for the following section.
7.10.8 Conclusions and Discussion
The objective of this section is to provide an interpretation of your results. The significance of the findings must be clearly described.
Avoid summarizing the whole paper here, but rather offer interpretations and recommendations.
Briefly, interpret your data results using the past tense. Did they meet/surpass your expectations? Why? Is your hypothesis to be retained or rejected? What future directions should other studies take based on your results? How could your results be linked to other studies?
Try to avoid being superficial; rather imagine applications for your results.
7.10.9 References
Use the Harvard in-‐text style of citation and referencing. Create a Reference rather than a Bibliography. You may single-‐space the references and use a smaller font (8) for URLs.
7.7.10 Appendix
Include only information that is necessary to understanding the research paper (e.g., questionnaires, results). Do not include research material for the Review of Literature.
SAMPLE RESEARCH PAPERS:
http://www.insead.edu/facultyresearch/research/doc.cfm?did=50311
http://www.shannoncollege.com/wp-‐content/uploads/2009/12/THRIC-‐2010-‐
Full-‐Paper-‐S.-‐Duffy.pdf
http://www.sd.polyu.edu.hk/iasdr/proceeding/papers/Emotional%20design%
20for%20hotel%20stay%20experiences_%20Research%20on%20guest%20em otions%20and%20design%20opportunities.pdf
http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2002/2002petcharakp.pdf
Figure 56 Sample Research Papers
Exercise
1. Draft an interview and a survey questionnaire according to the above guidelines.
2. Identify your targeted sample group according to criteria of gender, age, social and economic situation, culture, language, nationality, and sexual orientation. What are the subgroups you specifically need to target?
3. What is/are the law/laws governing the collection of data in your country (in this case, France)? Does your survey meet legal and ethical guidelines?
4. How and where are you going to find the requisite sample?
5. Draft a tentative schedule for conducting your research, with the end date being no later than the end of the first week in December. Allow one week for the analysis of your results.
References
Caprette, David R. (n.d.), Writing Research Papers, Rice University Web site, [Online] At http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~bioslabs/tools/report/reportform.html [Accessed November 22, 2012]
Cherry, Kendra (2012), How to Write a Methods Section, About.com Psychology, [Online] At http://psychology.about.com/od/psychologywriting/ht/method.htm [Accessed November 22, 2012|
Owl Purdue Online Writing Lab (2012) APA Style, Purdue Owl, [Online] At
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/ [Accessed November 26, 2012]
London South Bank University (2013), How to Reference Using the Harvard System, My.Lsbu, [Online] At https://my.lsbu.ac.uk/assets/documents/library/h2g-‐library-‐
30.pdf [Accessed September 1, 2013]
London South Bank University (n.m.), Referencing your work, My.lsbu, [Online]
At https://my.lsbu.ac.uk/page/referencing-‐your-‐work [Accessed September 1, 2013]
McNamara, Carter, MBA, PhD (2010), adapted from the Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation, Free Management Library [Online] At http://www.managementhelp.org/research/planning.htm,
[Accessed on September 5, 2010]
Pallas, Christopher L. (n.m.) A Style Guide for PhD Theses in the Department of Social Policy, London School of Economics, [Online] At
http://www.lse.ac.uk/socialpolicy/pdf/informationforcurrentstudents/phdstyleguide.pdf
[Accessed September 1, 2013]
Phillips, Paul, PhD (2013), Analyzing Data, Class lecture at ESH, January 2013 Roberts, Elizabeth, PhD (2004), Managerial Communication, Class lecture at
ESSEC, France, 2004
SurveyMonkey, 2013, Marketing Survey Templates, [Online] At
https://fr.surveymonkey.com/mp/marketing-‐survey-‐templates/ [Accessed September
2013]
Turner, Jane (2004), Seminar in basic coaching, Le Dojo, 2004