6 Explain the Structure of the Research Report. What are the guidelines for effective report writing? (Explanation of the Structure of the Research Report Guidelines for effective report writing)
Answer:- Structure of the Research Report
The reporting requires a structured format and by and large, the process is standardized. As stated above, the major difference amongst the types of reports is that all the elements that make a research report would be present only in a detailed technical report. Usage of theoretical and technical jargon would be higher in the technical report and visual presentation of data would be higher in the management report.
The process of report formulation and presentation is present. As can be observed, the preliminary section includes the title page, followed by the letter of authorization, acknowledgements, executive summary and the table of contents. Then come the background section, which includes the problem statement, introduction, study background, scope and objectives of the study and the review of literature (depends on the purpose). This is followed by the methodology section, which, as stated earlier, is again specific to the technical report. This is followed by the findings section and then come the conclusions. The technical report would have a detailed bibliography at the end.
In the management report, the sequencing of the report might be reversed to suit the needs of the decision-maker, as here the reader needs to review and absorb the findings. Thus, the last section on interpretation of findings would be presented immediately after the study objectives and a short reporting on methodology could be presented in the appendix.
Report Guidelines for effective report writing
Clear report mandate: While writing the research problem statement and study background, the writer needs to be absolutely clear in terms of why and how the problem was formulated. Clearly designed methodology: Any research study has its unique orientation and scope and thus has a specific and customized research design, sampling and data collection plan. In researches, that are not completely transparent on the set of procedures, one cannot be absolutely confident of the findings and resulting conclusions.
Clear representation of findings: Complete honesty and transparency in stating the treatment of data and editing of missing or contrary data is extremely critical.
Representativeness of study finding: A good research report is also explicit in terms of extent and scope of the results obtained, and in terms of the applicability of findings.
Thus, some guidelines should be kept in mind while writing the report.
Command over the medium: A correct and effective language of communication is critical in putting ideas and objectives in the vernacular of the reader/decision-maker.
Phrasing protocol: There is a debate about whether or not one makes use of personal pronoun while reporting. The use of personal pronoun such as ‘I think…..’ or ‘in my opinion…..’ lends a subjectivity and personalization of judgement. Thus, the tone of the reporting should be neutral.
For example: ‘Given the nature of the forecasted growth and the opinion of the respondents, it is likely that the……’ Whenever the writer is reproducing the verbatim information from another document or comment of an expert or published source, it must be in inverted commas or italics and the author or source should be duly acknowledged.
For example: Sarah Churchman, Head of Diversity, Price water house Coopers, states ‘At PricewaterhouseCoopers we firmly believe that promoting work–life balance is a ‘business-critical’ issue and not simply the ‘right thing to do’.The writer should avoid long sentences and break up the information in clear chunks, so that the reader can process it with ease.
Simplicity of approach: Along with grammatically and structurally correct language, care must be taken to avoid technical jargon as far as possible. In case it is important to use certain terminology, then, definition of these terms can be provided in the glossary of terms at the end of the report.
Report formatting and presentation: In terms of paper quality, page margins and font style and size, a professional standard should be maintained. The font style must be uniform throughout the report. The topics, subtopics, headings and subheadings must be construed in the same manner throughout the report. The researcher can provide data relief and variation by adequately supplementing the text with graphs and figures.
