Science Research Writing - Results
Science Research Writing for Non-Native Speakers of English by (Glasman-Deal, 2009) takes all the credit for images and examples.
Structure
Information Flow
A Model for Results
A useful writing model can be transferred, but don’t expect a perfect model.
All models are wrong, but some are useful. The famous quote about statistical models by George E.P. Box also applies to writing models.
Title
The title of this section varies in different disciplines and/or journals. Here are some options:
| Option 1 | Option 2 | Option 3 | Option 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Results or Data Analysis | Results or Data Analysis | Results and Discussion | Results or Data Analysis |
| Discussion | Discussion | \(\varnothing\) | Discussion and Conclusion(s) |
| Conclusion(s) | \(\varnothing\) | Conclusion(s) | \(\varnothing\) |
In all cases, this section reports your comments on what you found or observed. If the subtitle contains the word Discussion, it includes part/all of the Discussion.
*Look at the Guide for Authors of your target journals for choosing an appropriate subtitle.
Four Basic Components
| Model Components |
|---|
| Part I |
| Revisiting the research aim and existing research |
| Revisiting/Expanding methodology |
| General overview of results |
| Part II |
| Invitation to view results |
| Specific/Key results in detail (with or without explanations) |
| Comparisons with results in other research |
| Comparisons with model predictions |
| Part III |
| Problem with results |
| Part IV |
| Possible implications of results |
Train of Thoughts
A good writing model for the Results section should answer the following questions:
- How do writers normally start the Results?
- What type of information should it contain, and in what order?
- How do writers normally end the Results?
Almost everyone writes a Results section, so it is clear that some things can be achieved only by using words. Here are some reasons why simply using graphs, tables, equations, and images is not enough:
- You need to communicate your understanding/interpretation of the results, which your readers might not accept.
- You need to relate your results to the aim(s) of the research.
- Some of your results may be more interesting or significant than others, which is best communicated with words.
- You may need to provide extra background information to explain your results.
- You may need to compare your results with others.
Grammar and Writing Skills
Sequence
Describe the order and time sequence of what you did and found in a very precise way, such that other researchers are able to repeat your work accurately and compare their results with yours. Time sequence means how long each step took and where it occurred in the sequence. You cannot use only then or next because they only tell your readers the order but don’t provide any information about how long each event took, how soon the next event occurred, or where it occurred in the sequence.
Time sequence means how long each step took and where it occurred in the sequence.
The words and phrases that communicate sequence can be divided into eight groups:
- Words/Phrases refer to events that occurred before you began.
- Words/Phrases refer to events that mark the beginning.
- Words/Phrases communicate the order but do not give information about the time sequence.
- Words/Phrases communicate a short period of time between two events.
- Words/Phrases communicate a longer period of time between two events, or near the end of the sequence.
- Words/Phrases communicate that events occurred (almost) at the same time, or during the same time.
- Sometimes they are also used to communicate a possible causal relationship between events.
- Words/Phrases refer to events that mark the end.
- Words/Phrases refer to events that occurred after you finished.
*The vocabulary for sequence can be found here.
Frequency
Your readers may not be able to evaluate your results appropriately if they do not know how often a particular result happened. However, frequency language is often used in a subjective or relative way. For example, if previous research indicated that a particular result was unlikely to occur at all but in your study you find it on as many as 18% of occasions, you may consider that to be a frequent occurrence. On the other hand, if previous research indicated that something is very likely to occur but in your study you find it on only 57% of occasions, you may consider that to be relatively rare.
*The vocabulary for frequency can be found here.
Quantity
The results do not speak for themselves.
If you only describe your results in numbers or percentages, which are already visible to your reader in the graph or table, your readers won’t understand the meaning of your results. For example, an event that occurred in 23% of all cases can be either communicated as a strong result (in as many as 23% of cases) or a weak result (in only 23% of cases). Failing to communicate what your results mean will hurt the logic from which the conclusions are drawn.
Here are several ways to communicate your interpretation of the results:
- Use the language in Frequency.
The effect was seen frequently (if you believe that 23% of cases is a strong result).
The effect was seen occasionally (if you believe that 23% of cases is a weak result).
Use the quantity language and there are five groups:
- Make the quantity look big;
A considerable amount of residue remained in the pipe.
- Make the quantity look small;
Almost all/Almost half of the residue remained in the pipe.
- Emphasize how adj. the quantity is;
The amount that remained was even higher/even lower than predicted.
- Communicate the quantity is similar to another;
Almost all/Almost half of the residue remained in the pipe.
- Communicate the quantity, but avoid committing yourself to an interpretation.
Some of the residue remained in the pipe.
- Make the quantity look big;
*The vocabulary for quantity can be found here.
Causality
This part represents your understanding of the relationship between the events you observed. Causal statements, such as x caused y, are risky because they may be disproved at a later stage. In science research writing, there are several ways of reducing the responsibility of the writer when making such statements:
- Weaken the causal verb.
- Add a frequency/quantity qualifier.
- Use a modal verb, such as could/may/might.
They can used together, but be careful; if you use too many, the sentence may not mean very much at all.
The evidence points to the possibility that in many cases, x can contribute to certain types of y.
Vocabulary
Sequence
| 1. Before the beginning | 2. At the beginning | 3. Steps/Order | 4. After a Short Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| beforehand | at first | after/afterwards | before long |
| earlier | at the beginning | earlier | shortly after |
| formerly | at the start | next | soon |
| in advance | firstly | once | 5. After a Longer Period |
| originally | in the beginning | previously | eventually |
| previously | initially | prior to | in time |
| prior to | to begin with | secondly (etc.) | later/later on |
| to start with | subsequently | subsequently | |
| then | towards the end | ||
| 6. At the same time | 7. At the end | 8. After the end | |
| as/as soon as | meanwhile | at the end | afterwards |
| at that point | simultaneously | eventually | eventually |
| at the same time | straight away | finally | in the end |
| immediately | upon | lastly | later |
| in the meantime | when | later on | |
| just then | while |
Frequency
| Category I - 100% | Category IV | Category IX |
|---|---|---|
| each/every time | frequently | rarely |
| without exception | often | seldom |
| on each/every occasion | commonly | infrequently |
| always | Category V | Category X |
| invariably | more often than not | hardly ever |
| Category II | Category VI - 50% | barely ever |
| habitually | as often as not | almost never |
| as a rule | Category VII | scarcely ever |
| generally | sometimes | Category XI - 0% |
| normally | on some occasions | on no occasion |
| usually | at times | not once |
| Category III | Category VIII | at no time |
| regularly | occasionally | never |
| repeatedly | now and then | |
| from time to time |
Quantity
Make the Quantity Look Big
| Col 1 | Col 2 | Col 3 | Col 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| a great deal (of) | considerable | numerous | significant |
| a number (of) | greater (than) | over | upwards of |
| as many as | marked | plenty | |
| appreciable | more (than) | much | |
| at least | most | substantial |
Make the Quantity Look Small
| Col 1 | Col 2 | Col 3 | Col 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| a few | few | less | under |
| a little | fewer | marginal | |
| as few as | hardly | only | |
| barely | infinitesimal | slight | |
| below | little | small |
Emphasize the Quantity
| Col 1 | Col 2 |
|---|---|
| appreciably | extremely (high/low) |
| by far | far (above/below) |
| considerably | particularly |
| easily (over/under) | so (high/low) |
| even (higher/lower) | substantially |
| exceptionally (high/low) | well (under/over) |
Communicate Similarity
| Col 1 | Col 2 |
|---|---|
| approximately | little (i.e. close to none) |
| close (to) | nearly |
| few | practically |
| few (i.e. close to none) | slightly |
| just (over/under) | virtually |
Communicate a Reluctance to Commit Oneself
| Col 1 | Col 2 |
|---|---|
| fairly | reasonably |
| in some cases | relatively |
| moderate | some |
| quite | somewhat |
| rather | to some extent |
Causality
Weaken the causal verb
| Col 1 | Col 2 |
|---|---|
| (be) a/the cause of | create/(be) created |
| (be) a/the consequence of | derive/(be) derived |
| (be) a factor in | effect/(be) effected |
| (be) a/the result of | elicit/(be) elicited |
| (be) due to | give rise to |
| accompany/(be) accompanied | generate/(be) generated |
| account for/(be) accounted for | influence/(be) influenced |
| affect/(be) affected | initiate/(be) initiated |
| arise from | link/(be) linked |
| ascribe to/(be) ascribed to | originate in |
| associate/(be) associated | produce/(be) produced |
| attribute to/(be) attributed to | relate/(be) related |
| bring about/(be) brought about | result from |
| cause/(be) caused | result in |
| come from | stem from |
| connect to/(be) connected to | trigger/(be) triggered |
| contribute to | yield |
| Softening a Causal Statement |
|---|
| It appears that… |
| It can/may/… (therefore) be inferred/assumed that … |
| It is (very/highly/extremely) probable/likely that … |
| It is (widely/generally) accepted that … |
| It is (widely/generally) accepted that … |
| It is/may be reasonable to suppose/assume that … |
| It is/may be thought/recognized/believed/felt that … |
| It is/may/can be assumed that … |
| It seems (very/highly) probable/likely that … |
| It seems (likely) that … |
| It would seem/appear that … |
| The evidence points to the likelihood/probability that … |
| The evidence suggests that … |
| There is a clear/good/definite/strong possibility that … |
| There is evidence to indicate that … |
| This implies/seems to imply/may imply that … |
| Apparently, (therefore), … |
| There seems to be/is a tendency to |
| It is thought/said/recognized that … |
Reference
- Glasman-Deal, H. (2009). Science research writing for non-native speakers of English. World Scientific.