What should a scientific abstract contain

Frequently, abstracts have poorly defined objectives, excessive numerical data and statistical results, and conclusions not based on results presented. Is written in plain English and is understandable to a wider audience and discipline-specific audience;.

In publications such as journals, it is found at the beginning of the text, but in academic assignments, it is placed on a separate preliminary page. A good abstract usually ensures a good article, but a bad abstract often points towards an undesirable article. Scientific abstracts are a challenge to write and for the success of our publications, careful and planned writing of the abstract is absolutely essential. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U.

J Indian Prosthodont Soc. Published online Jun Suhasini Nagda. Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Suhasini Nagda, Email: moc. Corresponding author. Informative Abstracts From these abstracts, you must get the essence of what your report is about, usually in about words. Structured Abstracts A structured abstract has a paragraph for each section: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Conclusion it may even include paragraphs for the objectives or other sections.

Semi-structured Abstract A semi-structured abstract is written in only one paragraph, where each sentence corresponds to a section. Non-structured Abstract When the abstract does not present divisions between each section , and it may not even present any of them, it is a non-structured abstract. Journal Editing Journal editing and proofreading services. Scientific Editing Scientific editing services for publication success. Grant Editing Grant editing and proofreading services.

Journal Article Editing Services. Our academic and scientific journal editors and proofreaders can help you to avoid any problems with your language, adjusting your formatting and references to conform consistently to journal requirements and correcting any errors.

Scientific Editing Services. The professional scientific editors at PRS can help you to meet the rigorous demands of scientific writing and reduce the risk of rejection or failure by checking and correcting your grammar, spelling, punctuation, formatting and many other aspects of your documents. That was one of my problems when I first began writing technical papers.

Like many novices, I treated the abstract as an afterthought. I left the abstract until the last minute and then dashed off a mediocre summary composed of sentences copied from the narrative.

Only much later did I understand that the abstract is one of the most important components of a scientific paper. Why is the abstract so important? Well, because it is often the only section of a paper that is read and usually determines whether a reader downloads and reads the rest of the paper. Or, in the case of a conference paper, the abstract will determine whether it is accepted or not for presentation to colleagues. Conference organizers and journal editors and reviewers pay close attention to the abstract because it is a good predictor of the quality of the paper or talk.

Writing a decent abstract is not difficult—if you know what information needs to be included and how to structure it. Essentially, an abstract should reflect all the parts of your paper, but in shortened form. In other words, a person reading only your abstract should be able to understand why you conducted the study, how you conducted it, what you found, and why your work is important.

Although inclusion of data is acceptable, report only those numbers that represent the most important information. Some authors include citations or URLs in their abstracts, but many journals discourage or prohibit such additions. Your background section should answer questions like: What did I study?

Why is my research question important? What did my field of study know about my research question before I did this study? How will this study advance knowledge in our field? National Institutes of Health Go to source Try to use an active voice and reduce passive language throughout your abstract. For example, write: "I interviewed Cassandra" instead of "Cassandra was interviewed by me. For instance, do not write: "this paper will examine" but "this paper examines" or "the results showed.

Share your research methods. The second-longest section of the abstract, your methods section should explain in sentences how you conducted your study and what exactly you did. Your methods section should answer the following questions: What was the research design? How long did the study last? What was the sample size? How did you recruit participants? What was the research setting? Demonstrate your results. Major findings include key quantitative or qualitative results or identified trends.

This is the time to elaborate and give details. Conclude with the main point and impact of your research. State whether your research has filled a knowledge gap.

The conclusion should be data-based and very factual. Do not present unsubstantiated personal opinions. Choose a title for your abstract. Your title should summarize the abstract and convince reviewers or potential readers that the topic is important, relevant, and innovative.

The abstract title can be the title of your paper. Be sure to include your name, institutional affiliation if applicable , and contact information under the title.

Part 3. Read your abstract aloud and check content accuracy and flow. Your abstract should be short and concise but also flow smoothly. Make sure you have adequate transitions from sentence to sentence and consider adding transition words like "additionally" or "furthermore. Read the abstract as if you were another researcher deciding whether to read your paper. Do you find the abstract has the right information to help you decide whether to read it? If not, ask yourself what is missing.

Proofread for correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Consider printing out your abstract and editing it with a pencil or pen.