How to write an introduction?¶
The framing of your research begins in the introduction with the context, motivation and description of the research problem. A good introduction hooks the reader in by answering the questions “why is this research important?” and “so what?” To help PhD students get started with an introduction I have provided the following guidelines below. Expect the introduction to be rewritten multiple times as the research paper progresses and the emphasis of the research evolves.
How is an introduction structured?¶
Fig. 3 A outline for an introduction to get started¶
An introduction contains paragraphs that outline the i) context, ii) research problem, iii) motivation, iv) relevant work, v) your method and approach, vi) core findings and vii) conclusion (see Fig. 3). The introduction motivates the reason for the research and provides a supporting argument with evidence. Introductions often end with a paragraph that outlines the following sections, in my opinion this is optional for short research papers. A framing, the stance you take for communicating your research, is established in the introduction. This stance guides how you motivate the research, the concluding remarks and how you write the discussion sections of the paper.
How to write the introduction?¶
Construct an argument with evidence and logical arguments¶
An argument takes the form of a series of logical premises that result in a conclusion. Each premise contributes to the conclusion or builds upon the previous argument. Think of each logical premise as one of the following i) a logical statement, ii) evidence (i.e. statistics or citations to your claim), or iii) a call to authority (i.e. a quotation from an expert). Use a combination of arguments to make your point and keep the terminology to a minimum. Provide a definition for terms that are either specific to the sub-field of your research or that have multiple definitions. Reviewers are busy people, spending 15-20 minutes to review a full length paper! Use short enumerated lists to deliver your point concisely to the reader as I’ve used in this article. Aim to convince the reviewer that your research is important and that you have interesting findings in the introduction.
Define the research area by setting the context¶
In the first paragraph of the introduction, make your research area obvious and define the context for your problem. Get to the point concisely and introduce tension or a problem that requires resolution. Citing gaps in the literature and arguing that an overlooked area is worthy of investigation is one approach. A strong technique is to highlight contradictions either in the literature or between the literature and practice. Evidence for contradictions in practice can come from opensource projects, practitioner forums and question and answer sites like StackOverflow. Include multiple citations in the context to build credibility that your research area is important to the field and current. A note on citations here: make sure most of your citations are within the past 3 years. Older citations can be used in your paper although not to build arguments.
Explain the importance of your research with a motivation¶
After setting the context, introduce your research problem. The problem statement should outline who has the problem, what the current pain points are, and what the benefits of resolving the problem are. Think “If I solve this problem, who cares?” As an example consider the problem of how to count the blades of grass on my front lawn. The pain is real. However, a solution is utterly pointless! Build upon your problem statement by citing what others have done in the field and how their approaches are not suited to the specific problem. This will require critiquing the research papers and summarising what they can do and what they cannot do. Aim to group multiple research papers together and summarise their approaches.
Describe how you address the research problem¶
Once the problem has been motivated, explain what your solution is. State how you will tackle the problem by outlining your methodology, how you evaluated the results, and your key findings. For tool papers, the findings are often the approach used to solve the problem. Describe the benefits of your research and how others can build upon your research. This helps show the reader that your research is important. Remember the reader is unlikely to read the rest of the paper in detail so provide them with all they need in the introduction. An effective approach is to list the contributions of your paper using emphasis through bold sections, list items, or dot points.
Leave the reader with one core takeaway in the concluding remarks¶
Finish the introduction by listing a few areas of future work and summarise the implications/recommendations of your research. Including one or two major limitations of your research will show the reader that you are aware of the shortcomings of your study although frame these in a positive light either as future work or evidence of why these limitations are appropriate. Finally conclude the introduction with a lasting remark that captures the essence of your findings.
Wrap up¶
Writing strong introductions takes practice and lots of feedback. Ensure to work closely with your supervisors to see how they structure an introduction. Discussing good research papers with your peers is also a good way to identify different techniques and approaches. When writing a research paper the introduction is often the most updated section so start early and seek feedback often.