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Writing research reports for college or work is often found far more difficult than it

need so be. The following article offers some excellent

advice on how to

make the

task easier and the report more impressive and effective. Whether you write a research

report for a college professor or for a demanding boss in your profession, the author's

advice will put you well on your way to becoming a skillful report writer.

RESEARCH REPORTS FOR BUSINESS AND THECNICAL WRITING

Wayne Losano

A surprising amount of one's time as a student and professional is spent reporting

the

results

of

one's

research

projects

for

presentation

to

teachers,

managers,

and

clients. Indeed, without basic research skills and the ability to present research results

clearly and completely, an individual will encounter many obstacles in school and on

the job. The need for some research- writing ability is felt nearly equally by college

students in all fields, engineering and science as well as business and the humanities.

Graduate

study

often

makes

great

demands

on

the

student's

research-writing

skills,

and

most

professions

continue

the

demand;

education,

advertising

and

marketing,

economics

and

accounting,

science

and

engineering,

psychology,

anthropology,

the

arts, and agriculture may all require regular reporting of research data.

ELEMENTS OF THE RESEARCH PAPER

The

standard

research

report,

regardless

of

the

field

or

the

intended

reader,

contains

four

major

sections.

These

sections

may

be

broken

down

into

a

variety

of

subsections, and they may be arranged in a variety of ways, but they regularly make

up the core of the report.

Problem Section. The first required section of a research report is the statement

of the problem with which the research project is concerned. This section requires a

precise

statement

of

the

underlying

question

which

the

researcher

has

set

out

to

answer. In this same section there should be an explanation of the significance

——

social, economic, medical, psychological, educational, etc.

——

of the question; in

other

words,

why

the

investigation

was

worth

conducting.

Thus,

if

we

set

out,

for

example,

to

answer

the

question

is

the

effect

of

regular

consumption

of

fast

foods on the health of the American teenager?

thought to have significant relevance to the health of this segment of the population

and might lead to some sort of regulations on such foods.

A frequent subsection of this problem section is a review of past research on the

topic

being

investigated.

This

would

consist

of

summaries

of

the

contributions

of

previous researcher to the question under consideration with some assessment of the

value

of

these

contributions.

This

subsection

has

rhetorical

usefulness

in

that

it

enhances the credibility of the researcher by indicating that the data presented is based

on a thorough knowledge of what has been done in the field and, possibly, grows out

of some investigative tradition.

Procedures Section. The second major section of the research report details, with

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as much data as possible, exactly how the study was carried out. This section includes

description

of

any

necessary

equipment,

how

the

subjects

were

selected

if

subjects

were

used,

what

statistical

technique

was

used

to

evaluate

the

significance

of

the

findings, how many observations were made and when, etc. An investigation of the

relative

effectiveness

of

various

swim-strokes

would

have

to

detail

the

number

of

swimmers tested, the nature of the tests conducted, the experience of the swimmers,

the weather conditions at the time of the test, and any other factors that contributed to

the overall experiment.

The goal

of the procedures

section is

to

allow the reader to

duplicate the experiment if such were desired to confirm, or refute, your findings.

Results Section. The third, and perhaps most important, section of the research

report is the presentation of the results obtained from the investigation. The basic rule

in

this

section

is

to

give

all

data

relevant

to

the

research

question

initially

asked.

Although, of course, one's natural tendency might be to suppress any findings which

do not in some way support one's hypothesis, such dishonesty is antithetical to good

research reporting in any field. If the experiments undertaken fail to prove anything, if

the

data

was

inadequate

or

contrary

to

expectations,

the

report

should

be

honestly

written and as complete as possible, just as it would be if the hypothesis were totally

proven by the research.

Discussion Section. The final required section of a research report is a discussion

of the results obtained and a statement of any conclusions which may be drawn from

those

results.

Of

primary

interest

in

business

and

technical

research

reports

is

the

validity

of

the

results

as

the

bases

for

company

decisions:

Will

our

planned

construction

project

meet

federal

environmental

guidelines

and

be

approved

for

building? Will this new program attract skilled personnel to our company? Will this

new oil recovery technique be financially feasible? Thus, the discussion section of the

research

report

must

evaluate

the

research

results

fully:

were

they

validly

obtained,

are they complete or limited, are they applicable over a wide range of circumstances?

The discussion section should

also

point out

what

question remain unanswered and

perhaps suggest directions for further research.

STYLE OF RESEARCH REPORTS

Research

reports

are

considered

formal

professional

communication.

As

such,

there is little emphasis on a lively style, although, of course, there is no objection to

writing

that

is

pleasing

and

interesting.

The

primary

goals

of

professional

communication

are

accuracy,

clarity,

and

completeness.

The

rough

draft

of

any

research report should be edited to ensure that all data is correctly presented, that all

equipment

is

listed,

that

all

results

are

properly

detailed.

As

an

aid

to

the

reader,

headings indicating at least the major section of the report should be used, and all data

should

be

presented

under

the

proper

headings.

In

addition

to

their

function

of

suggesting

to

the

reader

the

contents

of

each

section,

headings

enhance

the

formal

appearance and professional quality of the report, increase to some degree the writer's

credibility by

reflecting a logical

and methodical

approach to

the reporting process,

and eliminate the need for wordy transitional devices between sections.

Research data should be presented in a way that places proper emphasis on major

aspect

of

the

project.

For

different

readers

different

aspects

will

take

on

different

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degrees of importance, and some consideration should be given to structuring research

reports

differently

for

different

audiences.

Management,

for

example,

will

be

most

concerned with the results of a research project, and thus the results section should be

emphasized,

probably

by

presenting

it

immediately

after

the

problem

section

and

before

the

procedures

section.

Other

researchers

would

be

most

interested

in

the

procedures section, and this should be highlighted in writing up research projects for

publication

in

professional

journals

or

for

presentation

at

professional

conferences.

For non-technical readers and federal agencies, the implications of the results might

be the most important consideration, and emphasis should be placed on the discussion

of the report for this readership.

For additional clarity and emphasis, major results should be presented in a visual

format

——

tables, charts, graphs, diagrams

——

as well as in a verbal one.

Beyond

checking

the

report

for

clarity

and

accuracy

in

the

presentation

of

technical data, the author of a research report should review for basic grammatical and

mechanical

accuracy.

Short

sentences

are

preferable

to

long

in

the

presentation

of

complex information. Listings should be used to break up long passages of prose and

to emphasize information. The research writer should try to use the simplest possible

language

without

sacrificing

the

professional

quality

of

the

report.

Although

specialized

terms

can

be

used,

pretentious

jargon

should

be

avoided.

A

finished

research report should be readable and useful document prepared with the reader in

mind.

CONCLUSION

Although we struggle with research reports in high school, dread them in college,

and are often burdened by them in our professional live, learning to live comfortably

with them is a relatively easy task. A positive attitude

（

i.e. one that seem the oral or

written presentation of research results as of equal importance to the data- gathering

process

）

;

an

orderly

approach

which

includes

prewriting

（

i.e.,

before

any

actual

research is done, the researcher should try to

get down on paper as much about the

subject under investigation as possible

）

and a formal research report structure as the

framework

for

the

investigation;

and

a

reasonable

approach

to

the

actual

writing

process including editing for accuracy and clarity, will help one to produce effective

research reports efficiently.

NEW WORDS

presentation

n.

the act of presenting; a talk, usu. to a group of people

提出，呈递；介绍，

报告

client

n.

a

person

who

gets

help

or

advice

from

a

professional,

e.g.

a

lawyer,

an

accountant, an architect, etc.; a person who buys goods or services

委托人，当事人，

顾客

obstacle

n.

sth. which prevents action, movement or success

marketing

n.

the branch of business concerned with advertising, publicity, etc.

营销

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economics

n.

the

science

that

deals

with

money,

goods

and

services

and

how

they

are

related to each other

经济学

accounting

n.

the

art,

practice

or

system

of

keeping,

analyzing

and

interpreting

business

accounts

会计学

anthropology

n.

the scientific study of man, including his physical characteristics, the origin

and development of races, and the cultures, customs and beliefs of mankind

人类学

data

n.

facts; information

element

n.

a basic part of which sth. is made up

intend

vt. have in mind as a goal; plan

precise

a.

clearly expressed; exact; accurate

significance

n.

importance; meaning

economic

a. connected with trade, industry and the management of money; of economics

consumption

n.

the act of consuming or an amount consumed

消费（量）

teenager

n.

a young person of between 13 and 19 year old

relevance

n.

importance or significance to the matter at hand

relevant

a.

segment

n.

a part into which a whole is or can be divided; section

regulation

n.

a law or a set of rules by which sth. is regulated

investigate

v.

examine carefully in a search for facts, knowledge, or information

investigative

a.

summary

n.

a short statement of the main points of a report, etc.

consideration

n.

careful thought

assessment

n.

the act of calculating or deciding the value or amount; the value or amount at

which sth. is calculated