How to Write a Conclusion for a Research Paper

The conclusion of a research paper is one of the most critical factors determining the quality of the work. The author must have sufficient skills to summarize the research results and draw the correct conclusions from them. A research paper’s conclusion characterizes the author’s experience and the ability to work with his own arguments. In the final part, it is important to write about the novelty that this work brings to the solution of the chosen issue. The author must show the connection between the objectives posed in the introduction and the results obtained. The conclusion, in a short and concise form, presents the results of all the work and leaves a final impression.

If you write the conclusion correctly, then anyone, without reading the introduction and the main part, will be able to understand what the article was about, what work the author did, and what result he came to. Therefore, simply copying phrases or paragraphs from the introductory part is the wrong approach, as is writing, “Thus, we have examined something, thank you for your attention.”

In many cases, when assessing the quality of work, inspectors pay attention specifically to the introduction and conclusion. In this regard, it is necessary to end the article, just like starting it, on a strong note. Experienced researchers, when studying publications in journals, often start reading from the end, trying to assess the scale of the contribution to the development of science.

What to consider when writing a conclusion 

The main points for writing the summary of a research paper are as follows:

• First, you need to write all the chapters of the scientific research, only then start summing up the results. The ending is an independent part of the research activity, with its own structure and writing rules.
• The conclusions from the work echo the objectives in the introduction: each question should receive an answer indicating possible technical or practical difficulties. Be sure to indicate which tasks were solved and which were not. In most cases, the total consists of 10-15 points. First come the general conclusions, then those that follow from the general ones.
• The results of the research work in the chapters should be logically connected and consistently described. Carefully describe the results of theoretical research and practical study of the problem.
• Links and digital displays that prove the effectiveness of the research work and its practical feasibility are welcome.
• The wording in the final part is short and specific forms of words: “proven”, “obtained”, “tested”.
• In order to ultimately get the necessary final chord, the author needs to write down small preliminary conclusions for each paragraph of the work. But you can’t just copy them, it must be new material.
• You can add some recommendations if the topic suggests it. You can also indicate further prospects for the research.
• Finally, you need to write the main conclusion for the entire study. This should be the applicant’s own reflection. This part of the conclusion is of particular interest to the science council precisely because it is the author’s analysis and generalization, specific results, and conclusions. In conclusion, the author’s position on the problem and its contribution to the solution are indicated.

If the author thinks that there is too much necessary information, then he should not cut it. It is better for the ending to be expanded than trimmed.

First of all, the conclusion, like any part of the research work, must meet the requirements of absolute literacy, high uniqueness, and correct formatting. Conclusions on practical developments and the theoretical part are carefully written. Since the basis for general conclusions are intermediate conclusions for each paragraph and chapter.

Balance of content is important. The conclusion should not be a dry presentation of the theory, but it is also unacceptable to turn this part of the research work into an essay on a free topic. The final chapter is designed to show how the applicant navigates the topic and how deeply he has immersed himself in the question.

Basic mistakes when writing a conclusion to a research paper

Particular attention is paid to the final part of the research work during verification. This structural element will always be read. It can embellish the research or, on the contrary, smear a good impression. To prevent this, it is important to avoid the following mistakes:

Violation of plagiarism check standards

This error covers the non-uniqueness of both one’s own and other people’s texts, as well as the violation of copyright and plagiarism requirements. The following is implied. The conclusion must be original and original. You cannot rewrite someone else’s text in your own words. This will be considered a rewrite, even if it is done well.

The peculiarity of any research work and its final part, first of all, is a reflection of the author’s concept and vision, one’s own scientific position. Applicants must demonstrate their “academic maturity,” that is, the desire and ability to create new things in science and not remake what someone has already created.

Incoherence with other sections, illogicality

The conclusion of a research paper is not a separate scientific work but a fragment of a large-scale study. This is important to remember. A common mistake is incoherence with other structural elements. The results and conclusions must be supported by the content of the research work and follow from it.

In conclusion, the findings for each chapter are argued, a generalization is made, the implementation of each point in the introduction is justified, and the implementation of the tasks is described. It is unacceptable to write a conclusion contrary to the main material. Likewise, you should not leave out important parts of chapters and end up ignoring them.

Another important aspect that leads to error is devoting the conclusion to individual chapters or fragments of the research work. Such subjectivity must be avoided. There are stronger and more significant nuances, and there are less important nuances. But in general, the conclusion should be a reflection of the entire study.

Lack of author’s position

The key aspect of the conclusion of a research work is the author’s analysis of the results, conclusions, recommendations, and practical developments. A dry presentation of facts is not enough. As well as simply retelling the content of the study. The applicant’s conclusions should be provided for each key aspect.

At the same time, the use of general theoretical phrases, formalities, and complex, incomprehensible, and meaningless constructions is prohibited. Authors often do this to give imaginary significance to the work and fill gaps in volume. It is better to deviate from the recommended standards but reflect the information only on the merits.

Tips on how to write a conclusion correctly

The writing of the conclusion begins after the final editing of the main text of the research work. This will eliminate inaccuracies and contradictions.

At the preliminary stage, a good way to effectively build work on the conclusion is to write out intermediate results for each chapter and record key results from the research conducted. Then, it will take less time to summarize the work. It is important to remember that simply copying the text of conclusions is excluded; you need to demonstrate the ability to formulate significant results of the work briefly.

For the text of the conclusion, it will be very successful to formulate the prospects for further research, even if the author himself does not intend to continue it. For the scientific community, the presence of prospects for research into additional criteria by which the work is evaluated.

The last paragraph of the conclusion text should contain the author’s thoughts and position on the topic under study. Expressing your own attitude to the topic shows that the topic is not indifferent to the author and has been studied at a deep level.

Remember that the author’s recommendations should follow from the content. They show how knowledgeable the applicant is, immersed in the problem, and how deeply the topic has been worked out. Therefore, if the conclusion is taken out of the general context and is based on unfounded reasoning, even the impeccability of other chapters will not save the defense.