Author Archives: Vekky Repi

Coherence: How Writing Clearly Facilitates Manuscript Acceptance

7-Favorite-Writing-Tips-from-7-Former-Grad-Students

Coherence is an essential quality for good academic writing. In academic writing, the flow of ideas from one sentence to the next should be smooth and logical. Without cohesion, the reader will not understand the main points that you are trying to make. It also hampers readability. Cohesion necessarily precedes coherence. There is a difference between the two terms: cohesion is achieved when sentences are connected at the sentence level, whereas as coherence is achieved when ideas are connected. In addition, cohesion focuses on the grammar and style of your paper.

What is Coherence?

Coherence also means “clarity of expression” and it is created when correct vocabulary and grammar are used. After all, the goal of writing is to benefit the readers. Without both coherence and cohesion, the readers may detect choppiness in the text and feel as if there are gaps in the ideas presented. Needless to say, texts without coherence are difficult to read and understand. It defeats the whole purpose of writing, which is to relay ideas in a clear and efficient manner. There are strategies that you can use to ensure coherence and cohesion in academic writing.

Examples of Cohesive and Non-Cohesive Paragraphs

Paragraph coherence and cohesion results in paragraph unity. To ensure that your paragraphs have unity, there are two things to keep in mind: it must have a single topic (found in the topic sentence) and sentences provide more detail than the topic sentence, while maintaining the focus on the idea presented. The paragraph below shows a lack of unity:

Non-cohesive sample: Dogs are canines that people domesticated a long time ago. Wolves are predecessors of dogs and they help people in a variety of ways. There are various reasons for owning a dog, and the most important is companionship.

Cohesive sample: Dogs are canines that people domesticated a long time ago, primarily for practical reasons. Even though dogs descended from wolves, they are tame and can be kept in households. Since they are tame, people have various reasons for owning a dog, such as companionship.

Notice that the ideas in the non-cohesive sample are not arranged logically. The sentences are not connected by transitions and give the readers new ideas that are not found in the topic sentence. Thus, the paragraph is hard to read, leaving readers confused about the topic. On the other hand, the cohesive sample has ideas arranged logically. All ideas in this sample flow from the topic sentence. In addition, they give more details about the topic while maintaining their focus on the topic sentence.

Establishing Coherence

It is important to focus on coherence when writing at the sentence level. However, cohesion smoothens the flow of writing and should be established. There are various ways to ensure coherent writing:

  • Write sentences that flow by varying the lengths and structures, the use of correct punctuation, and broadening your word choices
  • Use simple transitions, such as “in addition, additionally, furthermore, therefore, thus, on the contrary, by the same token, at the same time, in other words, etc.”
  • Repeat your keywords but be careful of excessive repetition
  • Repeat sentence structures, which is used as a rhetorical technique rather than cohesion to highlight parallelism between sentences
  • Ensure thematic consistency
  • Start every sentence or paragraph with information that hints at the content of the next sentence

Academic writing is improved by coherence and cohesion. Without coherence and cohesion, readers will become confused and eventually disinterested in the article.  Your ideas then become lost and the primary objective of writing is not achieved.

Tips and Strategies

There are six ways for creating coherence, which you will find useful while polishing your manuscript. Creating coherence is not as difficult as it seems, but you will need the right tools and strategies to achieve it.

  • Lexis creates cohesion using synonyms, hyponyms, and superordinates. The use of lexical chains creates variety in writing and avoids monotony.
  • Reference creates cohesion by using possessive pronouns (e.g. your, their, etc.), pronouns (e.g. she, me, etc.), and determiners (e.g. those, these, etc.).
  • Substitution, which is the use of a different word in place of a previously mentioned word (e.g. “I bought a designer bag today. She did the same.”)
  • Ellipsis is the removal or omission of words because their meaning is implied through context (e.g. “He goes to yoga classes in the afternoon. I hope I can too.”)
  • Cohesive nouns are also called umbrella nouns because they summarize many words in one.
  • Conjunctions include words that list ideas (e.g. first, next, then, lastly, etc.)

 

Academic writing should be concise, coherent, and cohesive. Maintaining these three qualities involves using a number of strategies to impart ideas to the reader. After all, that is the whole point of any type of writing.

How to Create and Use Gantt Charts

Gantt Charts

There are several tools available to help you plan your research project. They help you organize your thoughts and create a research plan against a timeline. One such tool is called a Gantt chart. Gantt charts were first created in the mid-1890s and revised by Henry Gantt in the early 1900s. Gantt charts are often used in businesses to plan projects and events. They allow managers to stay focused on both monetary and time constraints. Simple Gantt charts list project activities against points in time. More elaborate Gantt charts show more details, such as milestones (discussed below). Time slots/duration would include, for example, the project start date, intermediate time points of importance, and the ending date.

You Need to Plan

Many projects exceed both budgets and timelines. Lack of planning is a major reason for this. Nearly all research projects have some constraints to moving forward. These can be because of delayed funding or availability of an onsite laboratory. Internal structure and political situation might also play a role that could delay a project.

Although planning your project can be a daunting task, a Gantt chart can be of tremendous help. Furthermore, funders will be more willing to discuss your project if you are well organized and prepared. In one of his recent blogs, Jonathan O’Donnell, funding mentor, stated that every application should include a Gantt chart. Proper planning provides assurances that you are well organized. If you are approaching a funder that you have approached in the past, they will consider how organized your previous project was and will base their decision on its success.

Your Research Plan

Your research plan is your guide. It must be carefully thought out and might take several iterations before you are confident about it. Your project’s activity timeline is a very important element of your plan. The duration of each must be logical and realistic. Give yourself enough time for each task. Try never to cut short the timeframe on any important task.

The Gantt chart will help you to stay on track with these activities, which can actually affect the execution and completion of your project. It also provides information on important activities that are defined as “milestones.” For example, say that the time when a particular laboratory is available is a constraint. Any time that a specific activity cannot be performed because of a constraint on laboratory timings should be clearly marked. Every team member must be aware of this constraint.

Another example is that one activity might depend on another. A second activity can begin only when the first activity has reached a specific point. That would be another milestone and should be clearly marked.

Creating Your Gantt Chart

Once you get your thoughts organized, the steps to creating your Gantt chart are fairly simple as follows:

  • List step-by-step activities: Make this a very detailed compilation. It will keep you focused and provide information on what resources you need.
  • Estimate how long each activity will take: Estimate the duration of each task/activity. Consider possible lag and lead time in all the activities. You can use days, weeks, or hours to make Gantt charts.
  • Organize activities logically with constraints and milestones: If possible, eliminate any activity constraint. For example, if your university lab is not available at specific times, consider an alternative, such as renting space.
  • Combine activities: Rather than creating an enormous activity list, combine like activities into groups. Combine timeframes into larger chunks. For example, if your project will last 5 years, divide the timeline into quarters instead of listing days or months.

Your completed Gantt chart will now present a project “picture.” This will provide a view “at a glance” of your project to all stakeholders. It will also provide you and your team with a clear set of goals.

Apart from MS Project, you can use various online platforms to create Gantt charts.

 

Make Changes Carefully

It is easy to make revisions to your Gantt chart, but avoid making changes at random for no valid reason. For example, any delays caused by a team member that could have been prevented is not a valid reason for changing your plan. Random and frequent changes to your plan might send a message that you are not organized.

What is RefWorks?

Journal

RefWorks, founded in 2001, provides web-based research management service for corporate, academic, and government organizations. Currently, RefWorks is used by over 900 organizations globally. It supports hundreds of databases. In addition, RefWorks collaborates with providers such as ProQuest, HighWire, EBSCO, ISI, and BioOne.

This online based service allows users to create collections of citations. It is easy to add citations to RefWorks from various databases, such as library catalogues. In addition, bibliographic files from EndNote and Zotero can easily be added to RefWorks. The service has peer-sharing capabilities, allowing you to share bibliographic files with others that can be worked on by a group. Citations stored in RefWorks can be added to your documents in any citation format, such as MLA or APA.

Key Features and Uses

The Write-n-Cite plugin needs to be installed in order to create bibliographies in Google Docs and MS Word. Compared to EndNote, RefWorks has a simpler interface and is easier to learn. Unlike other citation management systems, it can be purchased by institutions and made available to the students for free. Other systems need to be purchased individually by users. In addition, bibliographies can be formatted in MS Word and Google Docs via the Write-n-Cite plugin.

RefWorks is unable to retrieve full-text versions of journal articles, unlike EndNote. It does not have the capability to create a formatted list of charts and figures and does not work on mobile devices. It can be used with iPads, but functionality is limited. Nevertheless, it can be used to store and annotate PDFs.

Getting Started with RefWorks: Importing Data

Before you start using RefWorks, you need to create an account and login here. Then, you need to follow a few steps to import data and create your database.

Importing Data Directly

  • Click the RefWorks option under the save or export functions within the online service that you are using
  • If your RefWorks account is already open, the import should begin automatically.
  • If not, you will be redirected to the RefWorks login page and the import will automatically begin after you login.
  • Under the Folders tab, select Last Imported to view your imported records.

RefWorks

Importing Data from Saved Text Files

  • Save the results you want to export from current bibliographic managers or online services in a .txt file
  • Login to your RefWorks account and click References from the drop-down menu, then click Import.
  • Click Import Filter/Data Source from the next menu and select your data source from the Database drop-down menu
  • Select the text file to import by clicking the Browse button then click on the Import into Folder button in the drop-down menu to specify the location where you want to save the file.
  • Click on Import and check the imported data from the Folders tab and the Last Imported

 

Importing from RSS Feeds

  • Locate the RSS feed
  • Right-click on the RSS Feed icon or link and select Copy Shortcut
  • In the RefWorks interface, select RSS Feed from the Search menu
  • Add the RSS Feed by pasting the shortcut into the text bar
  • Launch the RSS Feed

 

Manually Entering References

  • Click on the New Reference button
  • Select your desired bibliographic style
  • Select the type of reference you are entering
  • Enter the needed information in the boxes

RefWorks

Creating Folders and Sharing Data

To Create a Folder

  • Click on the New Folder button
  • Name your folder
  • Click Create

RefWorks

Putting References into Folders

  • Select desired references from the search results page and then click Selected
  • Select the designated folder from the Move To drop-down menu

 

Sharing your References

  • Select Share References from the Tools pull-down menu
  • Click Share Folder once you have selected the folder you wish to share.
  • Select your Shared Folder Options to put restrictions that you want to set to RefShare participants
  • Click on Email URL to email the folder to RefShare participants

 

Of course, RefWorks has other features and capabilities that you can use. The basic thing to remember is that RefWorks will be useful if you want to store citations and to collaborate with other researchers in writing your manuscript. It is a handy and convenient tool for citations.

How to Cite the DOI of a Journal Article

DOI

DOI (digital object identifier) is an identification code for a journal article or other published works. The code was developed and introduced in 2000 by the International DOI Foundation (IDF) and is assigned by the publisher. A DOI is generated by a registration agency (Crossref) that contains an alphanumeric string beginning with “10” and a prefix of four or more numbers. The prefix is followed by a slash (/) and a suffix. The suffix is assigned by the publisher.

DOIs create unique uniform resource locators (URLs) that begin with https://doi.org/. For example, the DOI https://doi.org/10.1086/679716 will take you to the article titled “Scott’s Editing: History, Polyphony, Authority” by Robert Mayer, published in the May 2015 issue of Modern Philology. DOIs are used as electronic links to an article’s location and helps identify an article’s subject matter. They should always be used in your printed or electronic articles or in any other published materials. DOIs are usually placed on the first page of a journal article.

Crossref recently changed the DOI format to make it more web-friendly and secure. There is only a slight difference between the old and new formats, but be sure to check the new format and incorporate it into your references.

Citations and References

Citation and reference are two different things. A citation is a note within the text in parentheses and a reference is the full expansion of that note (all the information necessary to find the referenced material). You can cite passages or quotations and provide a citation for that within the text.

An example of in-text citation would be (Johnson 2017) in parentheses, or it could be just a numeral in brackets or superscript. A reference list would then list all the citations in alphabetical or numeric order, depending on the author guidelines.

Note that some style guides prefer to use the word “bibliography” instead of “references.” Be aware that these two words actually mean the same thing.

The following is a list of some style guides and how they prefer to list DOIs in their references.

American Psychological Association

The American Psychological Association (APA) style guide is used mainly in the social sciences. APA uses the “author-date” style for in-text citations (e.g., Johnson, 2017). Note the comma after the name and before the date.

When referencing the citations in the reference list, APA style is to include the DOI for all electronic media. The typical reference in APA style would use the following format:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number, page range. doi:0000000/000000000000 or http://dx.doi.org/10.0000/0000.

An example of a reference in APA style is as follows: (boldface type added for emphasis but not included in the reference):

Morey, C. C., Cong, Y., Zheng, Y., Price, M., & Morey, R. D. (2015). The color-sharing bonus: Roles of perceptual organization and attentive processes in visual working memory. Archives of Scientific Psychology, 3, 18–29. https://doi.org/10.1037/arc0000014.

Note the DOI is placed at the end of the reference.

American Medical Association

The American Medical Association (AMA) style is a guide used by medical researchers and those who are part of the medical and scientific publishing industry. The DOI included at the end of a reference in AMA style is similar to that in APA style, except that AMA does not require the preceding “https://” notation. An example of AMA reference style is as follows:

Coppinger T, Jeanes YM, Hardwick J, Reeves S. Body mass, frequency of eating and breakfast consumption in 9-13- year-olds. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2012; 25(1): 43-49. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-277X.2011.01184.x

Modern Language Association

The Modern Language Association (MLA) style is most commonly used in the liberal arts and humanities fields of study. MLA style is a bit different from APA or AMA in that its in-text citations include a page number (e.g., Johnson 15) instead of a date after the author name. If the author name is used within the text itself, only the page number is noted in the citation.

Although MLA does not require that a DOI or URL be used in a reference, it is a good idea to do so, especially when the journal or your professor prefers it. An example reference in MLA style is as follows:

Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. “Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates.” Environmental Toxicology, vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94. Wiley Online Library, doi: 10.1002/tox.20155.

Note that in MLA style, the full names of the authors are listed, not just the last name and initials. The names are arranged by the first author’s last name first and subsequent authors’ first then last names. The title of the work is in quotation marks.

No DOI?

Many older published papers might not have a DOI. If your article has no DOI, you can use the words “retrieved from” in your reference with a link to the journal’s homepage on the Internet. Do not use the web page that hosted the specific article. An example of an APA reference in which there is no DOI is as follows:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number. Retrieved from http://www.journalhomepage.com/full/url/.

As always, be sure to check author guidelines of your target journal for specific rules on citations and references.

How to Write a Successful Scientific Manuscript

Scientific Manuscript

Writing a scientific manuscript is an endeavor that challenges the best minds, yet it is very rewarding once the body of work comes to fruition. Researchers carefully draft manuscripts allowing them to share their original ideas and new discoveries with the scientific community as well as to the general population. A significant amount of time and effort is spent during the investigative stages conducting the required research before it is released into the public domain. Therefore, the manuscript drafted to present this research must be thorough, logically presented, and factual. Scientific manuscripts must adhere to a specific language and format to communicate the results to the scientific community whilst adhering to ethical guidelines. When completed the final written product will allow colleagues to debate and reflect on the newly minted work embedded in the manuscript.

Organization

Scientific manuscripts are organized in a logical format, which fits specific criteria as determined by the scientific community. This methodology has been standardized in journals which communicate information to those in the field being discussed. Since the researcher has a storyline he or she is trying to transmit, it must be clear and upfront on the exact question and or problem that his research answers. Readers of the manuscript will be energized to review this work when its content is spelled out early in the paper. A well-written manuscript has the following components included: a clear title, abstract, introductory paragraph, methods and materials section, discussion of results, conclusion and a list of references. Each component of a journal article should follow a logical sequence, which members of the science community have become accustomed.

Structural Contents

Title or Heading

Titles are extremely important. A crisp detailed title is the first element an audience notices when encountering your manuscript. The significance of a title cannot be overstated in that it introduces your reader to the subject matter you intend to discuss in the next thousand or more words. A poorly formatted title could dissuade a potential reader from delving into your manuscript further. In addition, your paper is indexed in a certain manner, which search engine algorithms will track. To rise to the top of the search index, keywords should be emphasized. Thinking of the right title could determine the size of your audience and the eventual success of your work.

Abstract

Abstracts are abbreviated versions of your manuscript. Contained within the abstract’s structure should be the major premise of your research and the questions you seek to answer. Also included in the context of the abstract is a brief summary of the methods taken to achieve your goals along with a short version of the results. The abstract may be the only part of the paper read, therefore, it should be considered a concise version of your complete manuscript.

Introduction

The Introduction amplifies certain aspects of the abstract. Within the body of the introduction, the rationale for the research is revealed. Background material is supplied indicating why the research performed is important along with the direction the research took. A brief summary (in a few sentences) discussing the technical aspects of the experimental approach utilized to reach the article’s stated conclusions is included here. Written well the introduction will influence readers to delve further into the body of the paper.

Methodology and Materials

In this section, the technical aspects of the research are described extensively. Clarity in this part of the manuscript is mandatory. Fellow researchers will glean from this section the methods and materials you utilized either to validate your work, reproduce it, and/or develop the concepts further. Detailed protocols are presented here, similar to a road map, explaining the experiments performed, agents or technologies used, and any biology involved. Statistical analysis and tests should be presented here. Do not approximate anything in this part of the manuscript. Suspicion may be cast in your direction questioning the validity of the research if too many approximations are detected.

Discussion of Results

This part of the manuscript may be considered its core. Elaboration on data generated, utilizing tables and graphs, communicating the essence of the research and the outcomes they generate. Once the results are given a lengthy discussion, it should follow by including the interpretation of data, implications of these findings, and potential future research to follow. Ambiguous findings and current controversies in this type of research should be analyzed and examined in this section.

Conclusions

This is the endpoint in the manuscript. Conclusions are written in a concise manner utilizing words not numbers. Information conveyed in this section should only be taken from the research performed. Do not place your references here. Full and complete interpretation of your findings in this part of the manuscript is imperative. Clarity of thought is also essential because misinterpretation of the results is always a possibility. Comparisons to similar work in your field may be discussed here. Absolutely avoid interpretation of your results that cannot be justified by the work performed.

References

Every journal has submission requirements. Journal guidelines should be followed for proper authentication of references. There exist several formats for reference creation. Familiarize yourself with them. In addition, the sequence of references listed should be in the order in which they appear in the research paper. A number, usually in parenthesis, follows the sentence where they are noted.

Production of a scientific manuscript is a necessity to introduce your research to a wide audience. The complexity of the research and the results generated must be written in a manner that is clear and concise, follows the current journal formats, and is verifiable. The guidelines embedded in this paper will help the researcher place his work in the best light possible. Never write anything that cannot be justified by the research performed. With these simple rules in mind, your scientific manuscript will be a success.


<< Previous Post 4 Important Tips on Writing a Research Paper Title
You Might Also Like

Leave a Reply

Be the First to Comment!

Notify of
vekky_repi@civitas.unas.ac.id

Finished Submitting a Journal Manuscript: What’s Next?

Journal's response

Every paper submitted to a good scientific journal goes through peer review. Manuscript submission is just the very beginning of what could be a lengthy process, at the end of which the manuscript may get rejected or accepted.

Usually, the journal editor is the first to see your paper. The editor decides if the paper fits the journal’s scope. If it does, he/she will send it for peer review. Generally, there are four possible decisions on your work. It can be rejected, accepted, accepted with minor revisions, or accepted with major revisions. But the main question remains, how long should you wait for the response of the journal?

How Long Before the Journal Makes a Decision?

Daniel Himmelstein is a graduate student. He analyzed all the papers in PubMed that listed submission and acceptance dates. Himmelstein found that the general review time has been about 100 days for the past 30 years. According to Himmelstein, there has been no substantial increase in this time duration. However, this dataset excludes journals that don’t include their submission and acceptance dates. Some journals use the resubmission date and not the initial date of submission.

Time to publication has increased in popular journals. For Nature, the review time was 85 days a decade ago. Now it is 150 days. While for PLoS ONE, it has increased from 37 to 125 days over the past 10 years. If you have had no response from the journal within three months, you can request an update from the same on your paper’s status. If you have chosen a more popular journal your wait time may be longer. Interestingly, papers with the lowest and highest impact factors have the longest review times.

The longer time taken may be due to lengthy peer reviews. Reviewers also request for more data, revisions, and new experiments. Neuroscientist Leslie Vosshall says reviewers demand more and more unreasonable things from authors. Editors say that science has simply become data-rich. As the number of papers written continues to increase, it can take even longer to find willing peer reviewers.

Cycles of Rejection

Are authors contributing to the problem of delayed publication time? There are some who believe that authors do so. Authors often carry out an activity called journal shopping. This means that an author first submits a paper to the possibly most prestigious journal. If that journal rejects the paper (which is very likely) then the paper is submitted to the next most prestigious journal. This process may get repeated again and again, as long as the manuscript gets acceptance. This, in turn, adds to the time that it takes for a paper to be published.

Journal impact factor and reputation are often used as a proxy for paper quality. This matters when applying for tenure, grants, or promotion. Scientists journal shop to get maximum exposure for their work and to boost their careers.

Stephen Royle is a biologist. He looked at publication wait times for the 28 papers that his group published over 12 years. He found that the average time from submission to publication was nine months. However, he also found that about half of his papers had gone through journal shopping. This added anywhere from days to the acceptance time to more than eight months.

Payment for Faster Reviews

The time duration taken by the journal to respond may also depend on the peer review. The Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics is trying to lower wait times. They will release reviewer rankings based on how quickly they return reviews. Critics say this will only upset peer reviewers who are usually not paid. Others say that a quality review is better than a speedy one. A study found that offering payment for returning reviews on time led to reviewers submitting reviews about 10 days early.

Manuscript submission is the beginning of the peer review process at a scientific journal

What Does the Future Hold for Peer Review?

Peer Review Process

Peer review is a vital part of academic publishing of original research. The process of peer review seems simple. Invited experts evaluate your manuscript for its validity and suitability for publishing, in either a journal, book, or conference. This vetting procedure should also prevent fraudulent research in academic publishing. However, in practice, the peer review process is not consistent, lacks rules and criteria, and is slow. The digital revolution in scholarly communication means that there will be constant innovations in peer review.

Goodbye, Traditional Peer Review

Traditional peer review filters out bad research and is also very selective, given the limited resources of paper printing. With the Internet, print space is technically not a problem and publishing is fast. In addition, the Open Access (OA) movement aims for less secrecy and bias, to ensure more rigor and honesty in scientific publishing.

Comprehensive Study of Peer Review

A new paper by Jonathan Tennant et al., thoroughly examines the peer review of journal articles and its future. The study’s 33 authors first describe the historical evolution of peer review in a socio-technological context. Then, the authors consider traits of peer review, several emerging models, and suggest a hybrid approach.

There are three eras of peer review. The first, called “primordial time”, corresponds to the period before 1950 back to the 17th century, when national academies and their journals were first established (Philosophical Transactions and Journal des Scavans). Here, peer review wasn’t called as such and it was an “in-house” process. In this, only editors evaluated the manuscripts.

After WWII, knowledge production boomed, both in kind and in quantity. This meant journals needed outside help. In 1950, Nature introduced formal peer review that was editor-led. During this era, the outsourcing of peer review to experts began. Importantly, journal-based publications became a form of professional currency and prestige in academics. Commercial publishers jumped on this, using voluntary (unpaid) peer review to promote their journals.

The third era is called “the revolution”. Here, the splitting off peer review from publishing was the aim. Its seeds came in 1990 when ArXiv launched (1991). On this web platform, physicists could openly publish their research first, but moderators would still filter out these “preprints”. The key development here was the publishing of research without going through traditional peer review.

This revolution gained momentum, especially in the last 5–10 years. This is characterized by the growth in digital-only journals (PloS One); by allowing commenting on articles (before and after formal publication, PeerJ); by making peer reviews fully available (ScienceOpen) and by cross-annotation by other web platforms (e.g., Pubpeer).

Peer Review Traits

A key conclusion by Tennant et al. is that the manner in which the process of peer review is perceived does not match its actual performance. Many studies show the number of mistakes rising, and that the process is losing its rigor. In short, sloppy scholarship has a better chance of getting published nowadays. Although traditional peer review is able to identify reliable research, it is clearly “on the ropes”. However, this is still used as a gatekeeper to gauge potential “impact” in the field and journal suitability. One innovation is telling reviewing experts to forget about novelty or potential impact (e.g., PloS One). This reduces the risk of peer review bias.

There exists single-blind, double-blind, or open peer review (OPR). In the first, mostly used by journals, reviewers are anonymous but not the authors. In the second, both are unknown. In OPR, both are known. Double-blind review does not always improve the quality of peer review and is difficult to do since manuscripts can contain clues about author identities.

OPR has a complex development (systematically reviewed by Ross-Hellauer).  A big issue is the lack of an accepted OPR definition. Tennant et al. view OPR as doing one of the following: (1) disclosing names of expert reviewers to authors and readers, (2) making public the peer review reports, and (3) not limiting peer review to the invited experts.

Peer Review Evolution

Traditionally, it was enough to acknowledge the experts or thank them privately. However, now there is demand for more systematic recognition of these efforts, including feedback. One innovation is to credit such work (e.g., Publons). For this incentive to hold long term, peer reviewing must gain more weight in academic promotions and funding evaluations.

Another idea is publishing the expert reports. This could increase the quality of peer reviews, making them more constructive. Such transparency will encourage greater civility from experts and editors alike.

Another key development is decoupling peer review from academic publishing. This may even represent a paradigm shift. In the decoupled models, of which there are many variations, peer review can happen before a submission or after publication. The latter, called “post-publication peer review”, though appealing is not widely adopted by researchers.

Future Models and Hybrids

Tennant et al. identify and discuss seven distinct ways peer review could change using existing social Web platforms.

  • A Reddit-based model
  • An Amazon-style rate and review model
  • A Stack Exchange/Overflow-style model
  • A GitHub-style model
  • A Wikipedia-style model
  • A Hypothesis-style annotation model
  • A blockchain-based model

The authors do an excellent job of summarizing each model’s traits, both the positive and negative. Suffice to say, each model has something of value to add to peer review. An interesting highlight is the use of AI-assisted peer review. Here, machine learning and neural network tools come into play. Although this automation approach cannot make decisions for editors, it could provide recommendations less error-prone than human interactions.

A viable process of peer review must provide quality control, certification, and incentives. Moderators, via community self-organization and governance (Wiki and Reddit), could do openly what editors did traditionally. Experts can get certified based on their participation and get community-level assessments (Amazon, Reddit or StackExchange). On top of altruistic motives, ORCID-within-Publons could be extended to incorporate aspects from the models above.

Both academic publishing and the process of peer review are clearly in flux. The changes are disrupting traditional peer review, which itself is still poorly understood at a large scale. Despite inertia in academic publishing models and researcher cultures, web-based OA-themed innovations in peer review are likely here to stay. Taking the best traits from various models and combining it with the spirit of traditional peer review can protect against fraudulent research and strengthen the scholarly communication system. Such a hybrid approach is perhaps the only viable way to preserve peer review.

4 Important Tips on Writing a Research Paper Title

Research Title

When you are searching for a research study on a particular topic, you probably notice that articles with interesting, descriptive research titles draw you in. By contrast, research paper titles that are not descriptive are usually passed over, even though they may be good research papers with interesting contents. This shows the importance of coming up with a good research paper title when you are drafting your own manuscript.

Why do Research Titles Matter?

Before we look at the characteristics of a good research title, let’s look at an example that illustrates why a good research paper should have a strong title.

Imagine that you are researching meditation and nursing, and you want to find out if any studies have shown that meditation makes nurses better communicators.  You conduct a keyword search using the keywords “nursing”, “communication”, and “meditation.” You come up with results that have the following titles:

  1. Benefits of Meditation for the Nursing Profession: A Quantitative Investigation
  2. Why Mindful Nurses Make the Best Communicators
  3. Meditation Gurus
  4. Nurses on the Move: A Quantitative Report on How Meditation Can Improve Nurse Performance

Related: Ready with your title and looking forward to manuscript submission? Check these journal selection guidelines now! (Infographic)

All four of these titles may describe very similar studies—they could even be titles for the same study! As you can see, they give very different impressions.

  • Title 1 describes the topic and the method of the study but is not particularly catchy.
  • Title 2 partly describes the topic, but does not give any information about the method of the study—it could simply be a theoretical or opinion piece.
  • Title 3 is somewhat catchier but gives almost no information at all about the article.
  • Title 4 begins with a catchy main title and is followed by a subtitle that gives information about the content and method of the study.

 

As we will see, Title 4 has all the characteristics of a good research title.

Characteristics of a Good Research Title

According to rhetoric scholars Hairston and Keene, making a good title involves ensuring that the research title accomplishes four goals. First, a good title predicts the content of the research paper. Second, a good title should be interesting to the reader. Third, it should reflect the tone of the writing. Fourth and finally, it should contain important keywords that will make it easier to be located during a keyword search.

Let’s return to the examples in the previous section to see if they meet these four criteria.

Title Predicts content? Interesting? Reflects tone? Important keywords?
Benefits of Meditation for the Nursing Profession: A Quantitative Investigation Yes No No Yes
Why Mindful Nurses Make the Best Communicators No Yes Yes No
Meditation Gurus No Yes No No
Nurses on the Move: A Quantitative Report on How Meditation Can Improve Nurse Performance Yes Yes Yes Yes

As you can see in the table above, only one of the four example titles fulfills all of the criteria of a suitable research paper title.

Tips for Writing an Effective Research Paper Title

When writing a title in research, you can use the four criteria listed above as a guide. Here are a few other tips you can use to make sure your title will be part of the recipe for an effective research paper:

  1. Make sure your research title describes (a) the topic, (b) the method, (c) the sample, and (d) the results of your study. You can use the following formula:

[Result]: A [method] study of [topic] among [sample]

Example: Meditation makes nurses perform better: a qualitative study of mindfulness meditation among German nursing students

  1. Avoid unnecessary words and jargons. You want a title that will be comprehensible even to people who are not experts in your field. For a detailed list of things to avoid when writing an effective research title, check the article here.
  2. Make sure your title is between 5 and 15 words in length.
  3. If you are writing a title for a university assignment or for a particular academic journal, verify that your title conforms to the standards and requirements for that outlet. For example, many journals require that titles fall under a character limit, including spaces. Many universities require that titles take a very specific form, limiting your creativity.

Resources for Further Reading

In addition to the tips above, there are many resources online that you can use to help write your research title. Here is a list of links that you may find useful as you work on creating an excellent research title:

  1. The University of Southern California has a guide specific to social science research papers: http://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/title
  2. The Journal of European Psychology Students has a blog article focusing on APA-compliant research paper titles: http://blog.efpsa.org/2012/09/01/how-to-write-a-good-title-for-journal-articles/
  3. This article by Kristen Hamlin contains a step-by-step approach to writing titles: http://classroom.synonym.com/choose-title-research-paper-4332.html

Are there any tips or tricks you find useful in crafting research titles? Which tip did you find most useful in this article? Leave a comment to let us know!

 

References

  1. Hairston, M., & Keene, M. 2003. Successful writing. 5th ed. New York: Norton.
  2. University of Southern California. 2017. Organizing your social sciences research paper: choosing a title. [Online] Available at: http://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/title

What is Background in a Research Paper?

PubMed

So you have carefully written your article and probably ran it through your colleagues ten to fifteen times. While there are many elements to a good research article, one of the most important elements for your readers is the background of your study. The background of your study will provide context to the information discussed throughout the research paper. Background information may include both important and relevant studies. This is particularly important if a study either supports or refutes your thesis.

In addition, the background of the study will discuss your problem statement, rationale, and research questions. It links introduction to your research topic and ensures a logical flow of ideas.  Thus, it helps readers understand your reasons for conducting the study.

Providing Background Information

The reader should be able to understand your topic and its importance. The length and detail of your background also depend on the degree to which you need to demonstrate your understanding of the topic. Paying close attention to the following questions will help you in writing background information:

  • Are there any theories, concepts, terms, and ideas that may be unfamiliar to the target audience and will require you to provide any additional explanation?
  • Any historical data that need to be shared in order to provide context on why the current issue emerged?
  • Are there any concepts that may have been borrowed from other disciplines that may be unfamiliar to the reader and need an explanation?

Related: Ready with the background and searching for more information on journal ranking? Check this infographic on the SCImago Journal Rank today!

Is the research study unique for which additional explanation is needed? For instance, you may have used a completely new method

What Makes the Introduction Different from the Background?

Your introduction is different from your background in a number of ways. First, the introduction contains preliminary data about your topic that the reader will most likely read. Secondly, the background of your study discusses in depth about the topic, whereas the introduction only gives an overview. Lastly, your introduction should end with your research questions, aims, and objectives, whereas your background should not (except in some cases where your background is integrated into your introduction). For instance, the C.A.R.S. (Creating a Research Space) model, created by John Swales is based on his analysis of journal articles. This model attempts to explain and describe the organizational pattern of writing the introduction in social sciences.

Points to Note

Your background should begin with defining a topic and audience. It is important that you identify which topic you need to review and what your audience already knows about the topic. You should proceed by searching and researching the relevant literature. In this case, it is advisable to keep track of the search terms you used and the articles that you downloaded. It is helpful to use one of the research paper management systems such as Papers, Mendeley, Evernote, or Sente. Next, it is helpful to take notes while reading. Be careful when copying quotes verbatim and make sure to put them in quotation marks and cite the sources. In addition, you should keep your background focused but balanced enough so that it is relevant to a broader audience. Aside from these, your background should be critical, consistent, and logically structured.

Writing the background of your study should not be an overly daunting task. Many guides that can help you organize your thoughts as you write the background. The background of the study is the key to introduce your audience to your research topic and should be done with string knowledge and thoughtful writing.

CiteSeerX: The Next Generation of Open Access Library Archiving

CiteSeerX

A digital library serves as an online archive of information and can be one of the most useful tools for the researchers. One such tool was CiteSeer that was launched long back but has been relaunched with some added features, as CiteSeerX. Let us have a quick look at these.

CiteSeerX Reinvents the Digital Library, Again

In 1998, the academic search engine CiteSeer went public, changing the landscape for online research. It offered autonomous citation indexing for the first time, to the researchers in the fields of computer science and information science. When a scholar searched for an author name, keyword, or journal, CiteSeer would return relevant results for the search term. These results were not only drawn from full-text publications but they also reflected every known instance when that term appeared in bibliographic citations. From the outset, CiteSeer was able to crawl both Adobe and HTML files. It was a revolutionary technology and set the groundwork for future online access tools such as Google Scholar.

CiteSeer had its drawbacks, however. For one thing, it could only index papers that were already available online to the public: either papers that authors had submitted directly to CiteSeer, or papers that authors had published on their own websites. Another challenge was its popularity and growing scale. CiteSeer’s infrastructure was not equipped to handle 1.5 million searches every day or to index three-quarters of a million documents. To address concerns like these, CiteSeerX was launched in 2008.

A Visitor’s Guide to CiteSeer

 Here are some of the things CiteSeerX can do for you:

  • Compile citation statistics: Every result for a search tells you how many times a paper has been cited in other authors’ bibliographies. You can also explore those other authors’ linked papers in detail. You can look at abstracts and keywords, view a cached PDF of full-text articles, or follow download links for the papers you’re interested in.
  • Powerful search: With CiteSeerX, you can search an author by his full name, partial names, or initials. You can perform a basic search, or you can limit your search terms by date ranges, publishers, or author affiliations. CiteSeerX disambiguates author names, is not case sensitive, and allows you to perform Proximity or Boolean searches. It even lets you search text within embedded tables.
  • MyCiteSeerX: CiteSeerX is now open access and free to all. If you opt to create an online CiteSeer account, you can make use of a variety of personalized features. Through this account, you can:

Create a personal collection of articles and citations.

Receive automatic notifications of new citations relating to a paper you’ve saved in your user profile, as well as notifications of new papers that are relevant to your past searches and accessed articles.

Personalize searches and save favorite search settings.

Automatically share articles via social media, and of course you can submit your own articles to the CiteSeerX digital library.

The Definitive Search Engine for Computer Science Scholarship

By 2015, CiteSeerX was making more than five million articles on computer science and information science available. These articles were available to the approximately one million unique online patrons of its virtual AI library, processing millions of searches of every day. By 2017, its holdings had shot up to more than seven million documents, adding two hundred thousand new scholarly papers every month.

Its inability to crawl publisher metadata when processing searches remains a concern (it is still limited to uploaded submissions and open data sources such as author websites), and CiteSeerX has provided direct links to try your query at other citation indexes, such as the DBLP Computer Science Bibliography and AllenAI Semantic Scholar.

Nevertheless, in 2010 it was voted the #1 online information repository worldwide. Inarguably, the CiteSeerX citation index plays a significant role in the scientific community. Already a cornerstone of information for computational and information sciences, it has begun expanding its reach to include articles and citations related to areas such as economics and physics as well.

Is CiteSeerX Right for You?

Try a CiteSeerX search and please let us know about your experience in comments! Have you had better or worse luck with alternative access tools such as Web of Science or SciELO? Would you consider submitting your scholarly writing and research for CiteSeerX bibliographic indexing, and why or why not?