If you are facing a problem in writing a perfect and effective conclusion for the research paper, then this article will be very useful for you. After reading the whole article you will not only have a better understanding of the conclusion, and its importance in a research paper but you will also be able to write a perfect conclusion at your own.
Writing a Perfect Conclusion for a Research Paper
❓ What Is a Research Paper Conclusion?
The research paper should end with a conclusion as its final section. It often consists of one or two paragraphs. However, the number of paragraphs changes with total length of the research paper. The conclusion provides the audience with a comprehensive idea about the topic of the research paper.
It is true that a conclusion is the most important part of a research paper, and if I were to mention this, you would not disagree with me. The majority of the time, famous journals and teachers only read the conclusion of the research paper to judge the quality of it. This is because the conclusion contains the main theme and idea of the research paper, including the method of study, the importance, the results, and the recommendations.
As its name suggests, the conclusion should both windup and summarise the entire research report. For example, if you have conducted research on a certain social problem, the conclusion of your research paper should provide a brief overview of the prior study that has been conducted on the subject. In addition to that, it will feature a couple of words that elaborate on the significance of this discovery. In addition to that, it will include a condensed form of information that is relevant to the study approach. For example, if you carried out the research using the survey method, you should state the percentage of participants who gave a good response, the findings of your research on the subject, and any recommendations for further study that you have for other researchers.
💡 Importance of a Good Conclusion
Any piece of writing needs to have a strong conclusion since it acts as the concluding statement, summarises the most important aspects, and leaves the reader with a lasting impression. It is important to include a conclusion in every essay, research paper, or presentation because it allows the reader to get a sense of resolution while also reinforcing the author’s thesis. The purpose of the conclusion is to bring together all of the different ideas that have been presented throughout the text in order to give a single, conclusive point to the reader.
A good conclusion also shows the credibility of the study and the author’s expertise on the subject. It gives the reader a sense of completion and leaves them with a clear knowledge of the views of the writer. It also tells about the problems that the author has faced during the study. In addition, a conclusion can be used to inspire the reader to take more action, such as searching out additional information on the topic or analysing the use of the writer’s argument.
It is critical to keep in mind that a conclusion should be easy to understand and get straight to the point. It should not present any new information but rather build upon the material that was presented in the body of the research paper. In addition, the conclusion should have the same tone and style as the rest of the work, which will keep the flow of the research paper. A conclusion should provide a concluding statement that is both powerful and compelling, highlighting the most important points and leaving the reader with an impression that will stick with them.
Why Is a Conclusion Necessary in a Research Paper?
The conclusion is an important part of a research paper. It should give a summary of the most important parts and the results of the investigation. It is the researcher’s last chance to leave a lasting impression on the reader and explain why the results are important. A well-written conclusion can not only help the reader understand the information presented, but can also show the researcher’s credibility and knowledge of the topic.
Presentation of Results and Recommendation
One of the most important things the conclusion does in a research paper is to give a summary of the most important findings and results. In the conclusion, the research is summarised and the most important parts are brought to the reader’s attention. This helps the reader understand both the topic at hand and the effects of the findings. In the conclusion, you can also talk about what the research means for the area and suggest directions for further research.
Summarize the Research to give a Better Understanding
A conclusion is required in a research paper for a number of reasons, one of which is to provide the reader with a sense of completion. A good conclusion can help the reader in making connections between the many headings of the research and gaining an understanding of how those headings are related with the main topic.
Enhance the Credibility of Research
In a similar manner, it shows the readers how successfully this investigation was carried out. For example, most of the time researchers will also discuss the research’s strengths, weaknesses, and any problems that arose along the course of the study. Therefore, next researchers will be able to get an understanding through the conclusion of the types of challenges that are likely to arise for them when they are carrying out their research.
It’s Simply the Backbone of the Research Paper
Because it is one of the most critical parts of the research paper, the conclusion is an important component that must be present for the work to be considered complete. so, it is accurate to say that the conclusion of a research paper plays the role of the backbone. This is because, no matter how much effort you have put into the study, the paper will not look complete if it does not contain a conclusion.
✍️ How to Write a Conclusion for a Research Paper?
For any research paper or document, it is important and necessary to write a great conclusion. In general, it should give the reader a sense of what the main points are. But it should be so well put together that it gives the reader a broad and general overview of the whole research. In other words, the reader should be able to figure out the paper’s main idea and theme just by reading the conclusion. One important thing to remember, though, is that it shouldn’t have a lot of information. Instead, the data and main point of the paper should be summarised. You shouldn’t add any new information to the conclusion, but you can make suggestions for further research on the subject.
Here, we’ll show you how to write a perfect conclusion for your research paper by giving you some tips and techniques.
1. Generic Overview
By giving a summary of the research paper, you don’t have to repeat all of the information that was already given in the abstract, the introduction, or other parts of the paper.
Your conclusion should also show how the different parts of the paper fit together and how they relate to each other. So, if a reader reads the conclusion before the rest of the paper, he or she must have a general idea of what the paper is about.
2. Idea about the Introduction
A perfect conclusion also reflects some idea about the introduction to the reader. For example, if your research paper is about the economic condition of a specific country then the conclusion will have two to three sentences about some of the key determinants of the economic conditions of that country.
3. Rechecking Conclusion
When you’re done with the conclusion of your research paper, it’s important to look it over again to make sure it’s complete and full. Asking two or three trustworthy friends to read it is the best way to check it again. After they’ve read the conclusion, you can just talk about the suggestions they brought up and write them down so you can make the necessary changes. This way, you’ll get suggestions and recommendations from people who aren’t connected to you. These will help you improve the conclusion of the research paper and make it perfect and free of mistakes.
4. Writing Limitations of the Research Paper
You should also write about the research paper’s limitations and give an overview of the problems you ran into while doing the research. Many people think that pointing out the paper’s flaws makes it less credible. However, most journals and teachers prefer and appreciate researchers who are honest and point out the paper’s flaws at the end of the paper.
5. Ideas for Future Research
Most of the time people read the research paper to get an idea for their own research so presenting the ideas for future research can also leave a better impact on the readers, as they can get ideas to conduct their own study relate to the field.
6. Avoid Long Discussions
As already discussed that the conclusion only reflects the main idea of the paper, therefore it should not contain long and lengthy discussions that can hamper the understanding of the readers.
7. Avoid Unnecessary Information
Your conclusion should be concise and easy to understand and the introduction of new data and information should be avoided in the conclusion. It should also not contain the information that has been elaborated in the introduction and abstract of the paper.
📋 Types of Conclusion For Research papers
Conclusions can take various forms depending on the type of research you have conducted. It also depends on the discipline of the study. For example, papers in the natural sciences will have a different form of conclusion than those in the social sciences. As a result, it’s critical to understand the different types of research paper conclusions.
Here we will discuss some of the most important and widely used types of conclusions for research papers.
1. Embedded Conclusion
Most of the time, these kinds of conclusions don’t have their own headings. Instead, they are usually part of the main body of the essay. In most narrative essays, the writer’s main goal is to tell the story in the order of what happened. These types of conclusions are used in those kinds of essays.
For example, if you’ve written an essay about a real-life event, the conclusion will summarise the essay and include some feelings. It doesn’t restate the document’s thesis statement. Instead, it gives the reader a short summary of what the document is about. It also expresses the writer’s current situation and feelings about the episode or story. For example, what impact does the writer expect this story to have on his life in the future, and what are the chances that the same thing will happen to him again?
2. Retrospective Conclusion
When your essay or paper is about something that happened in the past, but you come to a new and different conclusion about it, the conclusion is retrospective. The purpose of these conclusions is to tell the reader something new about the topic.
For instance, if you did a study on World War I, the conclusion can tell you if the effects of World War I had anything to do with the start of World War II or not.
3. Reflective Conclusion
In these kinds of conclusions, most of the time, the writer tries to convince the reader that the argument made in the essay was right and true. They also share their own thoughts and ideas about the topic being discussed. In turn, this kind of conclusion should make the points made in the essay stronger. In the last paragraph, the effects of the article are talked about. So, the goal of a reflective conclusion in an argumentative essay is to both educate and convince the audience to accept the information given.
4. Projective Conclusion
A conclusion projection could be helpful for a scientific paper or an informative essay. For example, a projective passage in an essay might try to guess what the situation might lead to in the future. In this situation, projective endings can be used to talk about bad or good outcomes. Also, examples of this type of paragraph ending can help you figure out what to do. If your research paper or essay is about global risk, you could end it by giving some ways to reduce that risk. A summary like this could also stress how important it is to do follow-up studies. So, a projected conclusion gives possible suggestions for how to solve a problem.
We hope that the above information about the different types of research paper conclusions will help you choose the right type for your own research paper.
👍👎 Good vs Bad Conclusion
Because we’ve already discussed the significance of a perfect conclusion in research papers, essays, and other forms of writing, it’s time to go over what a good and bad conclusion looks like.
First, we’ll use an example to show what makes a good conclusion different from a bad one.
If you wrote a research paper about the history of World War I, a good conclusion would say,
👍 “World War I is also known as the “Great War” because many scholars at the time thought it was the last and biggest war in human history. But the start of the second world war showed that people still have to deal with the long-term effects of European countries being at odds with each other”.
Now, let’s look at a bad conclusion about the same subject.
👎 “The beginning of World War I was an exciting and sad time in history. Millions of people have died, both civilians and people in the military. No one ever thought that this war would turn into something even worse and more tragic in just 20 years.”
Now, we’ll look at two examples that show the main parts of a good conclusion. Then, we’ll talk about what a bad conclusion looks like.
🔑 Key Components of a Good Conclusion
Concise: A good conclusion will be short and to the point, with only the main idea and the most important information.
Review the main point: A good conclusion proves the thesis statement and brings out the main idea and other important parts of the paper.
Sums up all the important parts of the research paper: You may already know that each research paper has a few main sections, so a good conclusion will have a summary of all the main sections, such as the research methodology, discussion, results, etc.
Now that you know what a good conclusion needs, let’s look at what a good conclusion looks like.
Example No. 1: Why Does Gender Equality Still Persist in Our Society?
👍 Even though many scholars and researchers have said that gender equality has been reached in developing societies, the majority of societies still have problems with gender inequality. Data and studies have shown that most cases of gender discrimination are not reported, and that the situation on the ground is different from what the official records say. This study asked 50 working women in the United States of America questions through interviews. The study shows that men’s behaviour hasn’t changed much so far. In a nutshell, it will take some more time for the world to fully reach gender equality.
Example No. 2: Is a mobile phone good for students?
👍 Students’ overuse of cell phones has become a major social problem in the modern world. Researchers have paid a lot of attention to studying how students’ use of cell phones affects their mental and emotional health. For this study, we used the questionnaire to find out how 20 university students use their cell phones. Most of these students use their cell phones to talk to friends and have fun, but they rarely use them to do research or study, according to the data. After looking into the relationship between how much students use their cell phones and their mental health, it can be said that students who use their phones too much often have trouble concentrating on their studies. So, the study has come to the conclusion that mobile phones hurt the mental health of students.
Bad Conclusion
Now that you know what a good conclusion looks like, let’s talk about what a bad ending looks like.
Too Much Information
A bad conclusion will have too much information, which makes it hard for the reader to understand the research and decide what they think about it.
Explain Instead of Summarize
A bad conclusion won’t give a summary of the research paper; it will focus on the details instead.
Badly Put Together
A bad conclusion won’t be put together right. In one example, it will talk about the main points of the paper, and in another, it will talk about how the topic came to be.
Let’s take a look at what a bad ending looks like:
Example No. 1: Impact of Misinformation on the Effectiveness of Technical Communication
👎 Technical communication is a formal way to share information within an organisation or between organisations and their audiences. The new era of false information spread in many different ways has made it very hard for technocrats to deal with these problems. Most of the time, this kind of information spread through the media, including social media, has led to wrong assumptions and bad actions. Also, because these platforms can be used in many different ways, different users use different information platforms. This makes it hard for the technical communicator to correct the wrong information. In conclusion, misinformation has a big effect on technical communication. It causes confusion and misunderstandings, which in turn hurts the ability to make decisions and solve problems. Before spreading information, people and groups need to make sure it’s true and give priority to using reliable sources. Also, technical communicators are responsible for getting information across clearly and correctly, so that false or misleading information doesn’t get out. By being careful about the information we use and share, we can make sure that technical communication is clear and effective and that the knowledge we create and use is accurate and reliable.
Example No. 2: Unilever and Internationalization Strategies
👎 In 1929, two brothers started the successful company Unilever. As time went on, the company grew in a very good way. It didn’t take long before it started doing business in other industries besides food and consumer goods. The company makes a lot of money from both the market for health products and the market for beauty products. Recent research shows that the company owns more than 400 brands and is still buying up other brands. This is the main reason why the company is so successful in the market. The best sign that Unilever is important around the world is that its products are used every day by 2.5 billion people. There is no better way to measure. They directly or indirectly provide jobs for 161,000 people around the world in the countries where they do business. More than 190 countries get products and services from Unilever. This report gives a short analysis of how the company does business from the point of view of how it is expanding internationally.
Both of these conclusions have too much information and explanation instead of a summary of the main and most important points.
❌ Common Mistakes you Should Avoid
We have already discussed in detail the components and formation of a perfect and error-free conclusion to a research paper that leaves an outstanding impression on the reader. It should be easy to understand and serve as a navigation tool for the whole research paper.
Here are some of the main things that you should avoid while writing the conclusion of a research paper:
Avoid Providing Extensive Information
As the conclusion is the ending of the research paper, it should be concise and free of detailed information.
Try Not to Repeat the Introduction
Most of the time, a new writer gets confused between the introduction and conclusion and treats both headings similarly. But keep in mind that a conclusion has a different purpose from the introduction. So avoid repeating the content of the introduction in the conclusion again.
Avoid Introducing New Information
It’s another common mistake that new researchers make when they try to elaborate on new information in the conclusion, but you should avoid this practise in your conclusion.
📝 Research Paper Conclusion Examples
Here, we’ll show you the best two examples of how to end a research paper so you can understand it better.
In our first example, the research was about a company called “HumanForest,” and it looked at how it did business. Then, this would be the most effective way to end the paper:
“Human Forest is a private business that rents out bicycles to customers. The company’s idea for doing business is to work with other businesses that already have a good name in the market. By putting money into Human Forest’s use of electric bicycles to protect the environment, the companies get their names out there. There are only 22 people working for the company at the moment. It has been suggested that the company hire more people because of how fast it is growing. This would help the business grow and make more money. The company’s goal, which is to cut down on carbon emissions and save the environment, is known and loved by millions of people all over the world. This gives it an advantage over other businesses in its field. This essay has some suggestions about the most important parts of the company that have been brought to light. In a word, the company’s overall performance is better than that of its competitors. However, as we’ve talked about in earlier parts of this document, it still needs to make some changes in this area.
Let’s look at another example of a good ending for a short essay. This time, our topic is “The Relationship between Social Media Use and Stress.” The conclusion of the essay would say something like, “This document gives details about the respondents and the method used to do the study, as well as some details about the key concepts used in this study.” The main goal of this study would be to find out if there is a link between how much people use social media and how stressed they are. The answers from the 20 people who filled out the questionnaire will be analysed quantitatively to figure out the results of the study.
🙋♀️ Final Words
Writing a great conclusion is a crucial and necessary part of any academic or technical work. Without a good ending, a piece of writing isn’t finished. It gives an overall look at what the document is about. When writing a conclusion, writers often make some common mistakes. This article goes into great detail about each of these mistakes. This article also went into detail about what makes a good conclusion and what makes a bad one. In addition, it has given you tips and tricks that will help you write the perfect ending for your research paper.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are the five steps that will help you in compiling a perfect conclusion for your research paper.
- Proofread the whole research paper before starting writing the conclusion.
- Then restate the topic of the research.
- Mention its importance in few sentences.
- Shortly restate the results.
- Give recommendations for future researches.
The following are the three important parts of any conclusion;
- Reflection of a thesis statement.
- Review of main points.
- Concluding statement with suggestions.
Most of the research papers have conclusion in one paragraph. However, it can be more than a paragraph based on the requirement of the journal or format of writing.
Usually, a conclusion starts with the restating of the thesis statement and the importance of the research, with little information about the previous studies. Then it restates the methodology and shortly discusses the results of the study. At the end of the conclusion comes the concluding statement with suggestions.
It is always recommended to start your conclusion paragraph with restating the thesis statement.
There isn’t any hard and fast rule for the lines of the conclusion. But generally, it consists of a paragraph of 10 to 15 sentences.
Generally, authors prefer to conclude a research paper in a single paragraph. But you can use 2 to 3 paragraphs to conclude your research paper.
