Author: Ángel Hernando – Translation: Erika-Lucia Gonzalez-Carrion|
As we indicated in a previous post (https://bit.ly/30zSsNs), a scientific article has a series of characteristics, among which the following stand out:
– To be original (to communicate for the first time the result of a research, since its main purpose is to share the results obtained, through the research carried out, with the scientific community so that these can be known and contrasted), and to contribute something new to the thematic field it deals with.
– The results must be valid and reliable, as they must be written in clear and precise language (they must clearly state all the information necessary to reproduce the results that have been found).
– And they must use a methodology with scientifically valid instruments and procedures, regardless of whether it is qualitative, quantitative or mixed.
There are many types and formats of article, but for it to be considered scientific it must meet the characteristics listed above.
Similarly, in a previous entry in the Editors’ Club (https://bit.ly/3CAxB9Y) we indicated the structure that a research article should have and why it is necessary to use it. In it, we presented those most commonly used in scientific journals. The most widespread, IMRyD, consists of: Introduction, Material and Methods, Results and Discussion, and the other two models that are also used are IRDyM (Introduction, Results, Discussion, Materials and Methods) and AIMRDA (Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results and Discussion).
The scientific article reports the results of a research and must therefore follow a standardized structure of a scientific manuscript, according to a standard of scientific writing, which must be followed in all aspects, both in terms of structure and content and references of the manuscript. Thus, we present a research report that follows very explicit writing standards within the academic world. To this end, it is necessary to take into account whether our report answers the basic question of each section, i.e., whether the Introduction answers the question «What is the problem? If it can be verified that in Method the question «How was the problem studied?» is answered and that the Methodology used in the research is described, as well as the three sub-sections: Sample, Instruments and Procedure. Also check that under the heading of Results the question «What was found?» is answered, and that a clear and precise statement of the results obtained is made, showing these without opinions or interpretations. Finally, with respect to the last section, Discussion and Conclusions, it is necessary to verify that we answer the question «What is the meaning of what I found?», and to confirm that we have made an interpretation of the results obtained and their implications, while comparing these results with those reviewed in previous research on the same subject, insofar as we place the findings of our research among the current ideas on what has been investigated. It should also be noted that in the Conclusions we make a recapitulation of the most important findings found and expose the Limitations of the research and new research proposals. Finally, we would like to insist on the importance, in scientific writing, of following an agreed structure when writing our articles.
