results section of thesis

How to Write an Impressive Thesis Results Section

After collecting and analyzing your research data, it’s time to write the results section. This article explains how to write and organize the thesis results section, the differences in reporting qualitative and quantitative data, the differences in the thesis results section across different fields, and the best practices for tables and figures.

What is the thesis results section?

The thesis results section factually and concisely describes what was observed and measured during the study but does not interpret the findings. It presents the findings in a logical order.

What should the thesis results section include?

• Include all relevant results as text, tables, or figures
• Report the results of subject recruitment and data collection
• For qualitative research, present the data from all statistical analyses, whether or not the results are significant
• For quantitative research, present the data by coding or categorizing themes and topics
• Present all secondary findings (e.g., subgroup analyses)
• Include all results, even if they do not fit in with your assumptions or support your hypothesis

What should the thesis results section not include?

• If the study involves the thematic analysis of an interview, don’t include complete transcripts of all interviews. Instead, add these as appendices
• Don’t present raw data. These may be included in appendices
• Don’t include background information (this should be in the introduction section )
• Don’t speculate on the meaning of results that do not support your hypothesis. This will be addressed later in the discussion and conclusion sections.
• Don’t repeat results that have been presented in tables and figures. Only highlight the pertinent points or elaborate on specific aspects

How should the thesis results section be organized?

The opening paragraph of the thesis results section should briefly restate the thesis question. Then, present the results objectively as text, figures, or tables.

Quantitative research presents the results from experiments and  statistical tests , usually in the form of tables and figures (graphs, diagrams, and images), with any pertinent findings emphasized in the text. The results are structured around the thesis question. Demographic data are usually presented first in this section.

For each statistical test used, the following information must be mentioned:

• The type of analysis used (e.g., Mann–Whitney U test or multiple regression analysis)
• A concise summary of each result, including  descriptive statistics   (e.g., means, medians, and modes) and  inferential statistics   (e.g., correlation, regression, and  p  values) and whether the results are significant
• Any trends or differences identified through comparisons
• How the findings relate to your research and if they support or contradict your hypothesis

Qualitative research   presents results around key themes or topics identified from your data analysis and explains how these themes evolved. The data are usually presented as text because it is hard to present the findings as figures.

For each theme presented, describe:

• General trends or patterns observed
• Significant or representative responses
• Relevant quotations from your study subjects

Relevant characteristics about your study subjects

Differences among the results section in different fields of research

Nevertheless, results should be presented logically across all disciplines and reflect the thesis question and any hypotheses that were tested.

The presentation of results varies considerably across disciplines. For example, a thesis documenting how a particular population interprets a specific event and a thesis investigating customer service may both have collected data using interviews and analyzed it using similar methods. Still, the presentation of the results will vastly differ because they are answering different thesis questions. A science thesis may have used experiments to generate data, and these would be presented differently again, probably involving statistics. Nevertheless, results should be presented logically across all disciplines and reflect the thesis question and any  hypotheses that were tested.

Differences between reporting thesis results in the Sciences and the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) domains

In the Sciences domain (qualitative and experimental research), the results and discussion sections are considered separate entities, and the results from experiments and statistical tests are presented. In the HSS domain (qualitative research), the results and discussion sections may be combined.

There are two approaches to presenting results in the HSS field:

• If you want to highlight important findings, first present a synopsis of the results and then explain the key findings.
• If you have multiple results of equal significance, present one result and explain it. Then present another result and explain that, and so on. Conclude with an overall synopsis.

Best practices for using tables and figures

The use of figures and tables is highly encouraged because they provide a standalone overview of the research findings that are much easier to understand than wading through dry text mentioning one result after another. The text in the results section should not repeat the information presented in figures and tables. Instead, it should focus on the pertinent findings or elaborate on specific points.

Some popular software programs that can be used for the analysis and presentation of statistical data include  Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS ) ,  R software ,  MATLAB , Microsoft Excel,  Statistical Analysis Software (SAS) ,  GraphPad Prism , and  Minitab .

The easiest way to construct tables is to use the  Table function in Microsoft Word . Microsoft Excel can also be used; however, Word is the easier option.

General guidelines for figures and tables

• Figures and tables must be interpretable independent from the text
• Number tables and figures consecutively (in separate lists) in the order in which they are mentioned in the text
• All tables and figures must be cited in the text
• Provide clear, descriptive titles for all figures and tables
• Include a legend to concisely describe what is presented in the figure or table

Figure guidelines

• Label figures so that the reader can easily understand what is being shown
• Use a consistent font type and font size for all labels in figure panels
• All abbreviations used in the figure artwork should be defined in the figure legend

Table guidelines

• All table columns should have a heading abbreviation used in tables should be defined in the table footnotes
• All numbers and text presented in tables must correlate with the data presented in the manuscript body

Quantitative results example : Figure 3 presents the characteristics of unemployed subjects and their rate of criminal convictions. A statistically significant association was observed between unemployed people <20 years old, the male sex, and no household income.

Qualitative results example: Table 5 shows the themes identified during the face-to-face interviews about the application that we developed to anonymously report corruption in the workplace. There was positive feedback on the app layout and ease of use. Concerns that emerged from the interviews included breaches of confidentiality and the inability to report incidents because of unstable cellphone network coverage.

Table 5. Themes and selected quotes from the evaluation of our app designed to anonymously report workplace corruption.

Tips for writing the thesis results section

• Do not state that a difference was present between the two groups unless this can be supported by a significant  p-value .
• Present the findings only . Do not comment or speculate on their interpretation.
• Every result included  must have a corresponding method in the methods section. Conversely, all methods  must have associated results presented in the results section.
• Do not explain commonly used methods. Instead, cite a reference.
• Be consistent with the units of measurement used in your thesis study. If you start with kg, then use the same unit all throughout your thesis. Also, be consistent with the capitalization of units of measurement. For example, use either “ml” or “mL” for milliliters, but not both.
• Never manipulate measurement outcomes, even if the result is unexpected. Remain objective.

Results vs. discussion vs. conclusion

Results are presented in three sections of your thesis: the results, discussion, and conclusion.

• In the results section, the data are presented simply and objectively. No speculation or interpretation is given.
• In the discussion section, the meaning of the results is interpreted and put into context (e.g., compared with other findings in the literature ), and its importance is assigned.
• In the conclusion section, the results and the main conclusions are summarized.

A thesis is the most crucial document that you will write during your academic studies. For professional thesis editing and thesis proofreading services , visit Enago Thesis Editing for more information.

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Review Checklist

Have you  completed all data collection procedures and analyzed all results ?

Have you  included all results relevant to your thesis question, even if they do not support your hypothesis?

Have you reported the results  objectively , with no interpretation or speculation?

For quantitative research, have you included both  descriptive and  inferential statistical results and stated whether they support or contradict your hypothesis?

Have you used  tables and figures to present all results?

In your thesis body, have you presented only the pertinent results and elaborated on specific aspects that were presented in the tables and figures?

Are all tables and figures  correctly labeled and cited in numerical order in the text?

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• Knowledge Base
• Dissertation
• How to Write a Results Section | Tips & Examples

How to Write a Results Section | Tips & Examples

Published on 27 October 2016 by Bas Swaen . Revised on 25 October 2022 by Tegan George.

A results section is where you report the main findings of the data collection and analysis you conducted for your thesis or dissertation . You should report all relevant results concisely and objectively, in a logical order. Don’t include subjective interpretations of why you found these results or what they mean – any evaluation should be saved for the discussion section .

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Table of contents

How to write a results section, reporting quantitative research results, reporting qualitative research results, results vs discussion vs conclusion, checklist: research results, frequently asked questions about results sections.

When conducting research, it’s important to report the results of your study prior to discussing your interpretations of it. This gives your reader a clear idea of exactly what you found and keeps the data itself separate from your subjective analysis.

Here are a few best practices:

• Your results should always be written in the past tense.
• While the length of this section depends on how much data you collected and analysed, it should be written as concisely as possible.
• Only include results that are directly relevant to answering your research questions . Avoid speculative or interpretative words like ‘appears’ or ‘implies’.
• If you have other results you’d like to include, consider adding them to an appendix or footnotes.
• Always start out with your broadest results first, and then flow into your more granular (but still relevant) ones. Think of it like a shoe shop: first discuss the shoes as a whole, then the trainers, boots, sandals, etc.

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If you conducted quantitative research , you’ll likely be working with the results of some sort of statistical analysis .

Your results section should report the results of any statistical tests you used to compare groups or assess relationships between variables . It should also state whether or not each hypothesis was supported.

The most logical way to structure quantitative results is to frame them around your research questions or hypotheses. For each question or hypothesis, share:

• A reminder of the type of analysis you used (e.g., a two-sample t test or simple linear regression ). A more detailed description of your analysis should go in your methodology section.
• A concise summary of each relevant result, both positive and negative. This can include any relevant descriptive statistics (e.g., means and standard deviations ) as well as inferential statistics (e.g., t scores, degrees of freedom , and p values ). Remember, these numbers are often placed in parentheses.
• A brief statement of how each result relates to the question, or whether the hypothesis was supported. You can briefly mention any results that didn’t fit with your expectations and assumptions, but save any speculation on their meaning or consequences for your discussion  and conclusion.

A note on tables and figures

In quantitative research, it’s often helpful to include visual elements such as graphs, charts, and tables , but only if they are directly relevant to your results. Give these elements clear, descriptive titles and labels so that your reader can easily understand what is being shown. If you want to include any other visual elements that are more tangential in nature, consider adding a figure and table list .

As a rule of thumb:

• Tables are used to communicate exact values, giving a concise overview of various results
• Graphs and charts are used to visualise trends and relationships, giving an at-a-glance illustration of key findings

Don’t forget to also mention any tables and figures you used within the text of your results section. Summarise or elaborate on specific aspects you think your reader should know about rather than merely restating the same numbers already shown.

Figure 1: Intention to donate to environmental organisations based on social distance from impact of environmental damage.

In qualitative research , your results might not all be directly related to specific hypotheses. In this case, you can structure your results section around key themes or topics that emerged from your analysis of the data.

For each theme, start with general observations about what the data showed. You can mention:

• Recurring points of agreement or disagreement
• Patterns and trends
• Particularly significant snippets from individual responses

Next, clarify and support these points with direct quotations. Be sure to report any relevant demographic information about participants. Further information (such as full transcripts , if appropriate) can be included in an appendix .

‘I think that in role-playing games, there’s more attention to character design, to world design, because the whole story is important and more attention is paid to certain game elements […] so that perhaps you do need bigger teams of creative experts than in an average shooter or something.’

Responses suggest that video game consumers consider some types of games to have more artistic potential than others.

Your results section should objectively report your findings, presenting only brief observations in relation to each question, hypothesis, or theme.

It should not  speculate about the meaning of the results or attempt to answer your main research question . Detailed interpretation of your results is more suitable for your discussion section , while synthesis of your results into an overall answer to your main research question is best left for your conclusion .

I have completed my data collection and analyzed the results.

I have included all results that are relevant to my research questions.

I have concisely and objectively reported each result, including relevant descriptive statistics and inferential statistics .

I have stated whether each hypothesis was supported or refuted.

I have used tables and figures to illustrate my results where appropriate.

All tables and figures are correctly labelled and referred to in the text.

There is no subjective interpretation or speculation on the meaning of the results.

You've finished writing up your results! Use the other checklists to further improve your thesis.

The results chapter of a thesis or dissertation presents your research results concisely and objectively.

In quantitative research , for each question or hypothesis , state:

• The type of analysis used
• Relevant results in the form of descriptive and inferential statistics
• Whether or not the alternative hypothesis was supported

In qualitative research , for each question or theme, describe:

• Recurring patterns
• Significant or representative individual responses
• Relevant quotations from the data

Don’t interpret or speculate in the results chapter.

Results are usually written in the past tense , because they are describing the outcome of completed actions.

The results chapter or section simply and objectively reports what you found, without speculating on why you found these results. The discussion interprets the meaning of the results, puts them in context, and explains why they matter.

In qualitative research , results and discussion are sometimes combined. But in quantitative research , it’s considered important to separate the objective results from your interpretation of them.

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• How it works

How to Write the Dissertation Findings or Results – Steps & Tips

Published by Grace Graffin at August 11th, 2021 , Revised On June 11, 2024

Each  part of the dissertation is unique, and some general and specific rules must be followed. The dissertation’s findings section presents the key results of your research without interpreting their meaning .

Theoretically, this is an exciting section of a dissertation because it involves writing what you have observed and found. However, it can be a little tricky if there is too much information to confuse the readers.

The goal is to include only the essential and relevant findings in this section. The results must be presented in an orderly sequence to provide clarity to the readers.

This section of the dissertation should be easy for the readers to follow, so you should avoid going into a lengthy debate over the interpretation of the results.

It is vitally important to focus only on clear and precise observations. The findings chapter of the  dissertation  is theoretically the easiest to write.

It includes  statistical analysis and a brief write-up about whether or not the results emerging from the analysis are significant. This segment should be written in the past sentence as you describe what you have done in the past.

This article will provide detailed information about  how to   write the findings of a dissertation .

When to Write Dissertation Findings Chapter

As soon as you have gathered and analysed your data, you can start to write up the findings chapter of your dissertation paper. Remember that it is your chance to report the most notable findings of your research work and relate them to the research hypothesis  or  research questions set out in  the introduction chapter of the dissertation .

You will be required to separately report your study’s findings before moving on to the discussion chapter  if your dissertation is based on the  collection of primary data  or experimental work.

However, you may not be required to have an independent findings chapter if your dissertation is purely descriptive and focuses on the analysis of case studies or interpretation of texts.

• Always report the findings of your research in the past tense.
• The dissertation findings chapter varies from one project to another, depending on the data collected and analyzed.
• Avoid reporting results that are not relevant to your research questions or research hypothesis.

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1. Reporting Quantitative Findings

The best way to present your quantitative findings is to structure them around the research  hypothesis or  questions you intend to address as part of your dissertation project.

Report the relevant findings for each research question or hypothesis, focusing on how you analyzed them.

Analysis of your findings will help you determine how they relate to the different research questions and whether they support the hypothesis you formulated.

While you must highlight meaningful relationships, variances, and tendencies, it is important not to guess their interpretations and implications because this is something to save for the discussion  and  conclusion  chapters.

Any findings not directly relevant to your research questions or explanations concerning the data collection process  should be added to the dissertation paper’s appendix section.

Use of Figures and Tables in Dissertation Findings

Suppose your dissertation is based on quantitative research. In that case, it is important to include charts, graphs, tables, and other visual elements to help your readers understand the emerging trends and relationships in your findings.

Repeating information will give the impression that you are short on ideas. Refer to all charts, illustrations, and tables in your writing but avoid recurrence.

The text should be used only to elaborate and summarize certain parts of your results. On the other hand, illustrations and tables are used to present multifaceted data.

It is recommended to give descriptive labels and captions to all illustrations used so the readers can figure out what each refers to.

How to Report Quantitative Findings

Here is an example of how to report quantitative results in your dissertation findings chapter;

Two hundred seventeen participants completed both the pretest and post-test and a Pairwise T-test was used for the analysis. The quantitative data analysis reveals a statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the pretest and posttest scales from the Teachers Discovering Computers course. The pretest mean was 29.00 with a standard deviation of 7.65, while the posttest mean was 26.50 with a standard deviation of 9.74 (Table 1). These results yield a significance level of .000, indicating a strong treatment effect (see Table 3). With the correlation between the scores being .448, the little relationship is seen between the pretest and posttest scores (Table 2). This leads the researcher to conclude that the impact of the course on the educators’ perception and integration of technology into the curriculum is dramatic.

Paired Samples

Paired Samples Correlation

Paired Samples Test

Also Read: How to Write the Abstract for the Dissertation.

2. Reporting Qualitative Findings

A notable issue with reporting qualitative findings is that not all results directly relate to your research questions or hypothesis.

The best way to present the results of qualitative research is to frame your findings around the most critical areas or themes you obtained after you examined the data.

In-depth data analysis will help you observe what the data shows for each theme. Any developments, relationships, patterns, and independent responses directly relevant to your research question or hypothesis should be mentioned to the readers.

Additional information not directly relevant to your research can be included in the appendix .

How to Report Qualitative Findings

Here is an example of how to report qualitative results in your dissertation findings chapter;

The last question of the interview focused on the need for improvement in Thai ready-to-eat products and the industry at large, emphasizing the need for enhancement in the current products being offered in the market. When asked if there was any particular need for Thai ready-to-eat meals to be improved and how to improve them in case of ‘yes,’ the males replied mainly by saying that the current products need improvement in terms of the use of healthier raw materials and preservatives or additives. There was an agreement amongst all males concerning the need to improve the industry for ready-to-eat meals and the use of more healthy items to prepare such meals. The females were also of the opinion that the fast-food items needed to be improved in the sense that more healthy raw materials such as vegetable oil and unsaturated fats, including whole-wheat products, to overcome risks associated with trans fat leading to obesity and hypertension should be used for the production of RTE products. The frozen RTE meals and packaged snacks included many preservatives and chemical-based flavouring enhancers that harmed human health and needed to be reduced. The industry is said to be aware of this fact and should try to produce RTE products that benefit the community in terms of healthy consumption.

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What to Avoid in Dissertation Findings Chapter

• Avoid using interpretive and subjective phrases and terms such as “confirms,” “reveals,” “suggests,” or “validates.” These terms are more suitable for the discussion chapter , where you will be expected to interpret the results in detail.
• Only briefly explain findings in relation to the key themes, hypothesis, and research questions. You don’t want to write a detailed subjective explanation for any research questions at this stage.

The Do’s of Writing the Findings or Results Section

• Ensure you are not presenting results from other research studies in your findings.
• Observe whether or not your hypothesis is tested or research questions answered.
• Illustrations and tables present data and are labelled to help your readers understand what they relate to.
• Use software such as Excel, STATA, and SPSS to analyse results and important trends.

Essential Guidelines on How to Write Dissertation Findings

The dissertation findings chapter should provide the context for understanding the results. The research problem should be repeated, and the research goals should be stated briefly.

This approach helps to gain the reader’s attention toward the research problem. The first step towards writing the findings is identifying which results will be presented in this section.

The results relevant to the questions must be presented, considering whether the results support the hypothesis. You do not need to include every result in the findings section. The next step is ensuring the data can be appropriately organized and accurate.

You will need to have a basic idea about writing the findings of a dissertation because this will provide you with the knowledge to arrange the data chronologically.

Start each paragraph by writing about the most important results and concluding the section with the most negligible actual results.

A short paragraph can conclude the findings section, summarising the findings so readers will remember as they transition to the next chapter. This is essential if findings are unexpected or unfamiliar or impact the study.

Our writers can help you with all parts of your dissertation, including statistical analysis of your results . To obtain free non-binding quotes, please complete our online quote form here .

Be Impartial in your Writing

When crafting your findings, knowing how you will organize the work is important. The findings are the story that needs to be told in response to the research questions that have been answered.

Therefore, the story needs to be organized to make sense to you and the reader. The findings must be compelling and responsive to be linked to the research questions being answered.

Always ensure that the size and direction of any changes, including percentage change, can be mentioned in the section. The details of p values or confidence intervals and limits should be included.

The findings sections only have the relevant parts of the primary evidence mentioned. Still, it is a good practice to include all the primary evidence in an appendix that can be referred to later.

The results should always be written neutrally without speculation or implication. The statement of the results mustn’t have any form of evaluation or interpretation.

Negative results should be added in the findings section because they validate the results and provide high neutrality levels.

The length of the dissertation findings chapter is an important question that must be addressed. It should be noted that the length of the section is directly related to the total word count of your dissertation paper.

The writer should use their discretion in deciding the length of the findings section or refer to the dissertation handbook or structure guidelines.

It should neither belong nor be short nor concise and comprehensive to highlight the reader’s main findings.

Ethically, you should be confident in the findings and provide counter-evidence. Anything that does not have sufficient evidence should be discarded. The findings should respond to the problem presented and provide a solution to those questions.

Structure of the Findings Chapter

The chapter should use appropriate words and phrases to present the results to the readers. Logical sentences should be used, while paragraphs should be linked to produce cohesive work.

You must ensure all the significant results have been added in the section. Recheck after completing the section to ensure no mistakes have been made.

The structure of the findings section is something you may have to be sure of primarily because it will provide the basis for your research work and ensure that the discussions section can be written clearly and proficiently.

One way to arrange the results is to provide a brief synopsis and then explain the essential findings. However, there should be no speculation or explanation of the results, as this will be done in the discussion section.

Another way to arrange the section is to present and explain a result. This can be done for all the results while the section is concluded with an overall synopsis.

This is the preferred method when you are writing more extended dissertations. It can be helpful when multiple results are equally significant. A brief conclusion should be written to link all the results and transition to the discussion section.

Numerous data analysis dissertation examples are available on the Internet, which will help you improve your understanding of writing the dissertation’s findings.

Problems to Avoid When Writing Dissertation Findings

One of the problems to avoid while writing the dissertation findings is reporting background information or explaining the findings. This should be done in the introduction section .

You can always revise the introduction chapter based on the data you have collected if that seems an appropriate thing to do.

Raw data or intermediate calculations should not be added in the findings section. Always ask your professor if raw data needs to be included.

If the data is to be included, then use an appendix or a set of appendices referred to in the text of the findings chapter.

Do not use vague or non-specific phrases in the findings section. It is important to be factual and concise for the reader’s benefit.

The findings section presents the crucial data collected during the research process. It should be presented concisely and clearly to the reader. There should be no interpretation, speculation, or analysis of the data.

The significant results should be categorized systematically with the text used with charts, figures, and tables. Furthermore, avoiding using vague and non-specific words in this section is essential.

It is essential to label the tables and visual material properly. You should also check and proofread the section to avoid mistakes.

The dissertation findings chapter is a critical part of your overall dissertation paper. If you struggle with presenting your results and statistical analysis, our expert dissertation writers can help you get things right. Whether you need help with the entire dissertation paper or individual chapters, our dissertation experts can provide customized dissertation support .

FAQs About Findings of a Dissertation

How do i report quantitative findings.

The best way to present your quantitative findings is to structure them around the research hypothesis or research questions you intended to address as part of your dissertation project. Report the relevant findings for each of the research questions or hypotheses, focusing on how you analyzed them.

How do I report qualitative findings?

The best way to present the qualitative research results is to frame your findings around the most important areas or themes that you obtained after examining the data.

An in-depth analysis of the data will help you observe what the data is showing for each theme. Any developments, relationships, patterns, and independent responses that are directly relevant to your research question or hypothesis should be clearly mentioned for the readers.

Can I use interpretive phrases like ‘it confirms’ in the finding chapter?

No, It is highly advisable to avoid using interpretive and subjective phrases in the finding chapter. These terms are more suitable for the discussion chapter , where you will be expected to provide your interpretation of the results in detail.

Can I report the results from other research papers in my findings chapter?

NO, you must not be presenting results from other research studies in your findings.

You May Also Like

Your dissertation introduction chapter provides detailed information on the research problem, significance of research, and research aim & objectives.

Appendices or Appendixes are used to provide additional date related to your dissertation research project. Here we explain what is appendix in dissertation

The list of figures and tables in dissertation help the readers find tables and figures of their interest without looking through the whole dissertation.

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Frequently asked questions

What goes in the results chapter of a dissertation.

The results chapter of a thesis or dissertation presents your research results concisely and objectively.

In quantitative research , for each question or hypothesis , state:

• The type of analysis used
• Relevant results in the form of descriptive and inferential statistics
• Whether or not the alternative hypothesis was supported

In qualitative research , for each question or theme, describe:

• Recurring patterns
• Significant or representative individual responses
• Relevant quotations from the data

Don’t interpret or speculate in the results chapter.

Frequently asked questions: Dissertation

Dissertation word counts vary widely across different fields, institutions, and levels of education:

• An undergraduate dissertation is typically 8,000–15,000 words
• A master’s dissertation is typically 12,000–50,000 words
• A PhD thesis is typically book-length: 70,000–100,000 words

However, none of these are strict guidelines – your word count may be lower or higher than the numbers stated here. Always check the guidelines provided by your university to determine how long your own dissertation should be.

A dissertation prospectus or proposal describes what or who you plan to research for your dissertation. It delves into why, when, where, and how you will do your research, as well as helps you choose a type of research to pursue. You should also determine whether you plan to pursue qualitative or quantitative methods and what your research design will look like.

It should outline all of the decisions you have taken about your project, from your dissertation topic to your hypotheses and research objectives , ready to be approved by your supervisor or committee.

Note that some departments require a defense component, where you present your prospectus to your committee orally.

A thesis is typically written by students finishing up a bachelor’s or Master’s degree. Some educational institutions, particularly in the liberal arts, have mandatory theses, but they are often not mandatory to graduate from bachelor’s degrees. It is more common for a thesis to be a graduation requirement from a Master’s degree.

Even if not mandatory, you may want to consider writing a thesis if you:

• Plan to attend graduate school soon
• Have a particular topic you’d like to study more in-depth
• Are considering a career in research
• Would like a capstone experience to tie up your academic experience

The conclusion of your thesis or dissertation should include the following:

• A restatement of your research question
• A summary of your key arguments and/or results
• A short discussion of the implications of your research

The conclusion of your thesis or dissertation shouldn’t take up more than 5–7% of your overall word count.

For a stronger dissertation conclusion , avoid including:

• Important evidence or analysis that wasn’t mentioned in the discussion section and results section
• Generic concluding phrases (e.g. “In conclusion …”)
• Weak statements that undermine your argument (e.g., “There are good points on both sides of this issue.”)

Your conclusion should leave the reader with a strong, decisive impression of your work.

While it may be tempting to present new arguments or evidence in your thesis or disseration conclusion , especially if you have a particularly striking argument you’d like to finish your analysis with, you shouldn’t. Theses and dissertations follow a more formal structure than this.

All your findings and arguments should be presented in the body of the text (more specifically in the discussion section and results section .) The conclusion is meant to summarize and reflect on the evidence and arguments you have already presented, not introduce new ones.

A theoretical framework can sometimes be integrated into a  literature review chapter , but it can also be included as its own chapter or section in your dissertation . As a rule of thumb, if your research involves dealing with a lot of complex theories, it’s a good idea to include a separate theoretical framework chapter.

A literature review and a theoretical framework are not the same thing and cannot be used interchangeably. While a theoretical framework describes the theoretical underpinnings of your work, a literature review critically evaluates existing research relating to your topic. You’ll likely need both in your dissertation .

While a theoretical framework describes the theoretical underpinnings of your work based on existing research, a conceptual framework allows you to draw your own conclusions, mapping out the variables you may use in your study and the interplay between them.

A thesis or dissertation outline is one of the most critical first steps in your writing process. It helps you to lay out and organize your ideas and can provide you with a roadmap for deciding what kind of research you’d like to undertake.

Generally, an outline contains information on the different sections included in your thesis or dissertation , such as:

• Your anticipated title
• Your abstract
• Your chapters (sometimes subdivided into further topics like literature review , research methods , avenues for future research, etc.)

When you mention different chapters within your text, it’s considered best to use Roman numerals for most citation styles. However, the most important thing here is to remain consistent whenever using numbers in your dissertation .

In most styles, the title page is used purely to provide information and doesn’t include any images. Ask your supervisor if you are allowed to include an image on the title page before doing so. If you do decide to include one, make sure to check whether you need permission from the creator of the image.

Include a note directly beneath the image acknowledging where it comes from, beginning with the word “ Note .” (italicized and followed by a period). Include a citation and copyright attribution . Don’t title, number, or label the image as a figure , since it doesn’t appear in your main text.

Definitional terms often fall into the category of common knowledge , meaning that they don’t necessarily have to be cited. This guidance can apply to your thesis or dissertation glossary as well.

However, if you’d prefer to cite your sources , you can follow guidance for citing dictionary entries in MLA or APA style for your glossary.

A glossary is a collection of words pertaining to a specific topic. In your thesis or dissertation, it’s a list of all terms you used that may not immediately be obvious to your reader. In contrast, an index is a list of the contents of your work organized by page number.

The title page of your thesis or dissertation goes first, before all other content or lists that you may choose to include.

The title page of your thesis or dissertation should include your name, department, institution, degree program, and submission date.

Glossaries are not mandatory, but if you use a lot of technical or field-specific terms, it may improve readability to add one to your thesis or dissertation. Your educational institution may also require them, so be sure to check their specific guidelines.

A glossary or “glossary of terms” is a collection of words pertaining to a specific topic. In your thesis or dissertation, it’s a list of all terms you used that may not immediately be obvious to your reader. Your glossary only needs to include terms that your reader may not be familiar with, and is intended to enhance their understanding of your work.

A glossary is a collection of words pertaining to a specific topic. In your thesis or dissertation, it’s a list of all terms you used that may not immediately be obvious to your reader. In contrast, dictionaries are more general collections of words.

An abbreviation is a shortened version of an existing word, such as Dr. for Doctor. In contrast, an acronym uses the first letter of each word to create a wholly new word, such as UNESCO (an acronym for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).

As a rule of thumb, write the explanation in full the first time you use an acronym or abbreviation. You can then proceed with the shortened version. However, if the abbreviation is very common (like PC, USA, or DNA), then you can use the abbreviated version from the get-go.

Be sure to add each abbreviation in your list of abbreviations !

If you only used a few abbreviations in your thesis or dissertation , you don’t necessarily need to include a list of abbreviations .

If your abbreviations are numerous, or if you think they won’t be known to your audience, it’s never a bad idea to add one. They can also improve readability, minimizing confusion about abbreviations unfamiliar to your reader.

A list of abbreviations is a list of all the abbreviations that you used in your thesis or dissertation. It should appear at the beginning of your document, with items in alphabetical order, just after your table of contents .

Your list of tables and figures should go directly after your table of contents in your thesis or dissertation.

Lists of figures and tables are often not required, and aren’t particularly common. They specifically aren’t required for APA-Style, though you should be careful to follow their other guidelines for figures and tables .

If you have many figures and tables in your thesis or dissertation, include one may help you stay organized. Your educational institution may require them, so be sure to check their guidelines.

A list of figures and tables compiles all of the figures and tables that you used in your thesis or dissertation and displays them with the page number where they can be found.

The table of contents in a thesis or dissertation always goes between your abstract and your introduction .

You may acknowledge God in your dissertation acknowledgements , but be sure to follow academic convention by also thanking the members of academia, as well as family, colleagues, and friends who helped you.

A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in dissertations , theses, and research papers . Literature reviews give an overview of knowledge on a subject, helping you identify relevant theories and methods, as well as gaps in existing research. Literature reviews are set up similarly to other  academic texts , with an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion .

An  annotated bibliography is a list of  source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources. It is often assigned as part of the research process for a  paper .  

In a thesis or dissertation, the discussion is an in-depth exploration of the results, going into detail about the meaning of your findings and citing relevant sources to put them in context.

The conclusion is more shorter and more general: it concisely answers your main research question and makes recommendations based on your overall findings.

In the discussion , you explore the meaning and relevance of your research results , explaining how they fit with existing research and theory. Discuss:

• Your  interpretations : what do the results tell us?
• The  implications : why do the results matter?
• The  limitation s : what can’t the results tell us?

The results chapter or section simply and objectively reports what you found, without speculating on why you found these results. The discussion interprets the meaning of the results, puts them in context, and explains why they matter.

In qualitative research , results and discussion are sometimes combined. But in quantitative research , it’s considered important to separate the objective results from your interpretation of them.

Results are usually written in the past tense , because they are describing the outcome of completed actions.

To automatically insert a table of contents in Microsoft Word, follow these steps:

• Apply heading styles throughout the document.
• In the references section in the ribbon, locate the Table of Contents group.
• Click the arrow next to the Table of Contents icon and select Custom Table of Contents.
• Select which levels of headings you would like to include in the table of contents.

Make sure to update your table of contents if you move text or change headings. To update, simply right click and select Update Field.

All level 1 and 2 headings should be included in your table of contents . That means the titles of your chapters and the main sections within them.

The contents should also include all appendices and the lists of tables and figures, if applicable, as well as your reference list .

Do not include the acknowledgements or abstract in the table of contents.

The abstract appears on its own page in the thesis or dissertation , after the title page and acknowledgements but before the table of contents .

An abstract for a thesis or dissertation is usually around 200–300 words. There’s often a strict word limit, so make sure to check your university’s requirements.

In a thesis or dissertation, the acknowledgements should usually be no longer than one page. There is no minimum length.

The acknowledgements are generally included at the very beginning of your thesis , directly after the title page and before the abstract .

Yes, it’s important to thank your supervisor(s) in the acknowledgements section of your thesis or dissertation .

Even if you feel your supervisor did not contribute greatly to the final product, you must acknowledge them, if only for a very brief thank you. If you do not include your supervisor, it may be seen as a snub.

In the acknowledgements of your thesis or dissertation, you should first thank those who helped you academically or professionally, such as your supervisor, funders, and other academics.

Then you can include personal thanks to friends, family members, or anyone else who supported you during the process.

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Research Tips and Infromation

How to Write the Results Section of your Dissertation or Thesis?

Introduction

Organizing your results, providing context, presenting the data in results section, describing statistical analysis, reporting the findings in results section, supporting the findings, visual representation in results section.

As you progress on your journey towards completing your PhD or Post Graduate dissertation, one of the most critical sections that holds immense significance is the results section.

Results section serves as the pinnacle of your research, where you unveil the outcomes of your exhaustive efforts and shed light on the answers to your research questions. In this blog post, we will delve into the intricacies of the results section and explore how to effectively present and interpret your findings to leave a lasting impact.

Whether you’re conducting research in the field of biology, psychology, computer science, or any other discipline, the results section is where your data takes center stage. It is a space where you showcase your meticulous analysis, statistical methods, and the discoveries you’ve made along the way. By understanding the key components and best practices for constructing a compelling results section, you can present your findings in a manner that resonates with both your academic peers and the wider research community.

In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through the fundamental elements of the results section, from organizing your data to choosing the appropriate visual representations. We will explore the importance of clear and concise reporting, emphasizing the significance of providing contextual information and highlighting any unexpected or groundbreaking discoveries.

Furthermore, we will discuss strategies for effectively interpreting your results, discussing their implications, and connecting them back to your research objectives. By mastering these skills, you will be able to demonstrate the significance of your work, contribute to the existing body of knowledge, and potentially pave the way for further research in your field.

Throughout the blog post, I will provide concrete examples from various disciplines to illustrate the implementation of these techniques. Additionally, I will offer valuable tips on avoiding common pitfalls, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of your results, and seeking feedback from your advisors or peers to enhance the quality of your analysis.

If you are in paucity of time, not confident of your writing skills and in a hurry to complete the writing task then you can think of hiring a research consultant that solves all your problems. Please visit my article on Hiring a Research consultant for your PhD tasks for further details.

Organizing the results of your study in a logical and coherent manner is crucial for effectively communicating your findings. By presenting your results in an organized structure, you enhance the clarity and readability of your dissertation. Here are some key considerations for organizing your results:

• Research studies often involve complex algorithms, software implementations, experimental data, and performance metrics. It is essential to organize these diverse elements in a cohesive manner to make it easier for readers to follow your research. A well-structured results section enables readers to understand the progression of your experiments and the relationship between different findings.
• Begin by reminding readers of the research questions or hypotheses that guided your study. This alignment helps establish a clear connection between the objectives of your research and the subsequent presentation of results. For example, if your research question focuses on evaluating the efficiency of a new sorting algorithm, you would present the experimental data, performance metrics, and comparative analyses specific to that algorithm in relation to the research question.
• Subsubsection 1.1: Experimental Setup
• Subsubsection 1.2: Experimental Results and Analysis
• Subsubsection 2.1: Performance Metrics
• Subsubsection 2.2: Comparative Results and Discussion

Remember to tailor the organization of your results section to the specific requirements of your research. The key is to provide a logical flow and structure that enables readers to easily comprehend and interpret your findings.

Providing context for the results of your study is essential to help readers understand the significance and implications of your findings. By offering background information and study design details, you establish a foundation upon which the results can be properly interpreted. Here are some key considerations for providing context:

• Before delving into the results, it is important to provide readers with relevant background information about the topic or problem being addressed. This may include a literature review of existing research, theories, or methodologies in the field. By doing so, you situate your work within the broader landscape of and demonstrate its relevance. Additionally, explain the design of your study, such as the specific algorithms, software frameworks, datasets, or hardware setups used. This ensures that readers understand the context in which your results were obtained.
• Provide a brief overview of the current state-of-the-art in image recognition algorithms and their limitations.
• Explain the specific challenges or gaps in the existing methods that motivated your research.
• Describe the design of your study, including the choice of machine learning techniques, datasets used for training and evaluation, preprocessing steps, and any hardware or software configurations.

By providing context, you allow readers to understand the background, motivation, and methodology behind your research. This sets the stage for better comprehension and interpretation of your results. Contextualizing your findings, as it helps establish the relevance, novelty, and potential impact of your research within the larger field.

Presenting data in a clear and organized manner is crucial for effectively communicating your results. The way you present your data can greatly impact the reader’s understanding and interpretation of your findings. Here are some key considerations for presenting data:

• Presenting performance metrics of different algorithms using a table to allow for easy comparison.
• Using a line graph to depict the improvement in accuracy over training iterations in a machine learning model.
• Employing a bar chart to compare the execution times of different algorithms on a specific dataset.
• Clear labelling and formatting of your data ensure that readers can easily understand and interpret the information presented. Label each table, figure, chart, or graph with a concise and descriptive title. Ensure that axes, legends, and labels are clearly labelled and units of measurement are specified. Use appropriate fonts, colours, and styles to enhance readability. Consider providing captions or footnotes to provide additional context or explanations where necessary.
• In the text, refer to a specific table presenting the accuracy results of different algorithms and explain how these results support your research hypothesis or contribute to the field.
• Discuss a figure showing the relationship between the number of training examples and the performance of a machine learning model, emphasizing its implications for scalability and generalization.

By presenting data in a visually appealing and well-organized manner, you enhance the clarity and accessibility of your results. Proper labelling, formatting, and referring to each table or figure in the text help readers navigate the information and grasp its significance. Remember to choose the most appropriate format for your data and use visuals to support and reinforce your findings.

The inclusion of statistical analyses in the results section is crucial for providing objective and quantitative evidence to support your findings. Statistical analyses help you draw meaningful conclusions from your data and determine the significance of observed results. Here are some key considerations for describing statistical analyses:

• Statistical analyses play a vital role in determining the reliability and significance of your findings. They provide a systematic and objective framework for interpreting the data and testing hypotheses. Discuss the importance of including statistical analyses in the results section to demonstrate the rigour and validity of your research.
• Describe using a t-test to compare the means of two groups in a user study, as it is appropriate for assessing the statistical significance of differences.
• Explain employing logistic regression to model the relationship between independent variables and a binary outcome in a predictive analytics study.
• Report the p-value as 0.032, indicating a statistically significant difference between the two groups at the 0.05 significance level.
• Interpret an effect size of 0.40 as a medium-sized effect, highlighting its practical importance in the context of the research.

By describing the statistical analyses conducted, explaining the rationale behind the chosen tests, and accurately presenting the statistical values and interpretations, you strengthen the validity and reliability of your findings. Statistical analyses provide an objective framework for drawing conclusions from your data and lend credibility to your research in the computer science domain.

Reporting the findings of your research in an objective, concise, and clear manner is essential for effectively communicating your results. Here are some key considerations for reporting the findings:

• Summarize the key findings of a machine learning study by stating that “the proposed algorithm achieved an average accuracy of 85% on the test dataset, outperforming existing state-of-the-art methods by 10%.”
• For a research question about the impact of different programming languages on software performance, present specific metrics such as execution time or memory usage for each language, along with a comparison and interpretation of the results.
• Instead of using overly technical language, communicate the results in a more accessible way: “The experimental results showed a significant correlation between the number of training samples and the accuracy of the model, indicating that a larger training dataset leads to improved prediction performance.”

By guiding readers on summarizing the results objectively and concisely, addressing each research question or hypothesis, and using clear and concise language, you ensure that your findings are communicated effectively. This approach allows readers to understand the core contributions of your research and how they align with the research questions or hypotheses you set out to investigate.

Providing strong evidence from the data to support your findings, addressing unexpected or contradictory results, and discussing limitations and potential explanations are essential components of reporting research findings. Here are some key considerations for supporting the findings:

• Present empirical evidence from a user study, such as participant feedback or performance metrics, to support the usability and effectiveness of a proposed user interface design.
• If a software system performed unexpectedly poorly in certain scenarios, discuss potential factors such as data bias, implementation issues, or limitations of the evaluation methodology that could have influenced the results.
• Acknowledge limitations such as a small sample size, limited dataset availability, or computational constraints that might affect the generalizability or robustness of the results.
• Discuss potential explanations for unexpected results, such as issues with data quality, algorithmic complexity, or model assumptions.

By providing evidence from the data to support the findings, addressing unexpected or contradictory results, and discussing limitations and potential explanations, you demonstrate a rigorous and reflective approach to your research in the computer science domain. This allows readers to assess the strength and reliability of your findings and gain a deeper understanding of the nuances and implications of your work.

Using visual representations, such as tables, graphs, and figures, alongside the text can greatly enhance the understanding and impact of your findings. Here are some key considerations for visual representation:

Visual representations offer several benefits in presenting research findings. They provide a concise and intuitive way to convey complex information, trends, and patterns. Visuals can help readers grasp key insights at a glance, enhance the overall readability of the document, and make the findings more memorable. Visual representations also facilitate effective comparisons, highlight important relationships, and aid in storytelling. Example:

When creating visual representations, consider the following tips to ensure clarity and effectiveness: a. Choose the appropriate visual format: Select the most suitable format, such as tables, line graphs, scatter plots, or heatmaps, based on the nature of the data and the message you want to convey.

b. Simplify and declutter: Avoid overwhelming the visuals with excessive data points, labels, or unnecessary decorations. Keep the design clean and focused on conveying the essential information.

c. Label and title clearly: Provide descriptive and informative titles for tables, graphs, and figures. Label the axes, data points, or components clearly to facilitate understanding.

d. Use colors and visual cues purposefully: Utilize colors and visual cues to highlight important information or differentiate between categories. Ensure that the chosen colors are distinguishable and accessible. e. Provide legends and captions: Include legends to explain symbols, colors, or abbreviations used in the visuals. Provide informative captions or annotations to guide readers in interpreting the visuals accurately. Example:

By incorporating clear and effective visual representations alongside the text, you enhance the presentation and understanding of your research findings in the computer science domain. Well-designed tables, graphs, and figures can simplify complex information, facilitate comparisons, and enhance the visual appeal of your dissertation. Remember to choose appropriate formats, keep the visuals uncluttered, label clearly, and use colors and visual cues purposefully to maximize their impact.

Writing the results section of a dissertation or thesis is a critical task that requires careful attention to detail, organization, and effective communication. Throughout this blog post, we have explored key elements to consider when crafting this section.

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Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper

• 7. The Results
• Purpose of Guide
• Design Flaws to Avoid
• Independent and Dependent Variables
• Glossary of Research Terms
• Reading Research Effectively
• Narrowing a Topic Idea
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• Primary Sources
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• Qualitative Methods
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The results section is where you report the findings of your study based upon the methodology [or methodologies] you applied to gather information. The results section should state the findings of the research arranged in a logical sequence without bias or interpretation. A section describing results should be particularly detailed if your paper includes data generated from your own research.

Annesley, Thomas M. "Show Your Cards: The Results Section and the Poker Game." Clinical Chemistry 56 (July 2010): 1066-1070.

Importance of a Good Results Section

When formulating the results section, it's important to remember that the results of a study do not prove anything . Findings can only confirm or reject the hypothesis underpinning your study. However, the act of articulating the results helps you to understand the problem from within, to break it into pieces, and to view the research problem from various perspectives.

The page length of this section is set by the amount and types of data to be reported . Be concise. Use non-textual elements appropriately, such as figures and tables, to present findings more effectively. In deciding what data to describe in your results section, you must clearly distinguish information that would normally be included in a research paper from any raw data or other content that could be included as an appendix. In general, raw data that has not been summarized should not be included in the main text of your paper unless requested to do so by your professor.

Avoid providing data that is not critical to answering the research question . The background information you described in the introduction section should provide the reader with any additional context or explanation needed to understand the results. A good strategy is to always re-read the background section of your paper after you have written up your results to ensure that the reader has enough context to understand the results [and, later, how you interpreted the results in the discussion section of your paper that follows].

Bavdekar, Sandeep B. and Sneha Chandak. "Results: Unraveling the Findings." Journal of the Association of Physicians of India 63 (September 2015): 44-46; Brett, Paul. "A Genre Analysis of the Results Section of Sociology Articles." English for Specific Speakers 13 (1994): 47-59; Go to English for Specific Purposes on ScienceDirect;Burton, Neil et al. Doing Your Education Research Project . Los Angeles, CA: SAGE, 2008; Results. The Structure, Format, Content, and Style of a Journal-Style Scientific Paper. Department of Biology. Bates College; Kretchmer, Paul. Twelve Steps to Writing an Effective Results Section. San Francisco Edit; "Reporting Findings." In Making Sense of Social Research Malcolm Williams, editor. (London;: SAGE Publications, 2003) pp. 188-207.

Structure and Writing Style

I.  Organization and Approach

For most research papers in the social and behavioral sciences, there are two possible ways of organizing the results . Both approaches are appropriate in how you report your findings, but use only one approach.

• Present a synopsis of the results followed by an explanation of key findings . This approach can be used to highlight important findings. For example, you may have noticed an unusual correlation between two variables during the analysis of your findings. It is appropriate to highlight this finding in the results section. However, speculating as to why this correlation exists and offering a hypothesis about what may be happening belongs in the discussion section of your paper.
• Present a result and then explain it, before presenting the next result then explaining it, and so on, then end with an overall synopsis . This is the preferred approach if you have multiple results of equal significance. It is more common in longer papers because it helps the reader to better understand each finding. In this model, it is helpful to provide a brief conclusion that ties each of the findings together and provides a narrative bridge to the discussion section of the your paper.

NOTE:   Just as the literature review should be arranged under conceptual categories rather than systematically describing each source, you should also organize your findings under key themes related to addressing the research problem. This can be done under either format noted above [i.e., a thorough explanation of the key results or a sequential, thematic description and explanation of each finding].

II.  Content

In general, the content of your results section should include the following:

• Introductory context for understanding the results by restating the research problem underpinning your study . This is useful in re-orientating the reader's focus back to the research problem after having read a review of the literature and your explanation of the methods used for gathering and analyzing information.
• Inclusion of non-textual elements, such as, figures, charts, photos, maps, tables, etc. to further illustrate key findings, if appropriate . Rather than relying entirely on descriptive text, consider how your findings can be presented visually. This is a helpful way of condensing a lot of data into one place that can then be referred to in the text. Consider referring to appendices if there is a lot of non-textual elements.
• A systematic description of your results, highlighting for the reader observations that are most relevant to the topic under investigation . Not all results that emerge from the methodology used to gather information may be related to answering the " So What? " question. Do not confuse observations with interpretations; observations in this context refers to highlighting important findings you discovered through a process of reviewing prior literature and gathering data.
• The page length of your results section is guided by the amount and types of data to be reported . However, focus on findings that are important and related to addressing the research problem. It is not uncommon to have unanticipated results that are not relevant to answering the research question. This is not to say that you don't acknowledge tangential findings and, in fact, can be referred to as areas for further research in the conclusion of your paper. However, spending time in the results section describing tangential findings clutters your overall results section and distracts the reader.
• A short paragraph that concludes the results section by synthesizing the key findings of the study . Highlight the most important findings you want readers to remember as they transition into the discussion section. This is particularly important if, for example, there are many results to report, the findings are complicated or unanticipated, or they are impactful or actionable in some way [i.e., able to be pursued in a feasible way applied to practice].

NOTE:   Always use the past tense when referring to your study's findings. Reference to findings should always be described as having already happened because the method used to gather the information has been completed.

III.  Problems to Avoid

When writing the results section, avoid doing the following :

• Discussing or interpreting your results . Save this for the discussion section of your paper, although where appropriate, you should compare or contrast specific results to those found in other studies [e.g., "Similar to the work of Smith [1990], one of the findings of this study is the strong correlation between motivation and academic achievement...."].
• Reporting background information or attempting to explain your findings. This should have been done in your introduction section, but don't panic! Often the results of a study point to the need for additional background information or to explain the topic further, so don't think you did something wrong. Writing up research is rarely a linear process. Always revise your introduction as needed.
• Ignoring negative results . A negative result generally refers to a finding that does not support the underlying assumptions of your study. Do not ignore them. Document these findings and then state in your discussion section why you believe a negative result emerged from your study. Note that negative results, and how you handle them, can give you an opportunity to write a more engaging discussion section, therefore, don't be hesitant to highlight them.
• Including raw data or intermediate calculations . Ask your professor if you need to include any raw data generated by your study, such as transcripts from interviews or data files. If raw data is to be included, place it in an appendix or set of appendices that are referred to in the text.
• Be as factual and concise as possible in reporting your findings . Do not use phrases that are vague or non-specific, such as, "appeared to be greater than other variables..." or "demonstrates promising trends that...." Subjective modifiers should be explained in the discussion section of the paper [i.e., why did one variable appear greater? Or, how does the finding demonstrate a promising trend?].
• Presenting the same data or repeating the same information more than once . If you want to highlight a particular finding, it is appropriate to do so in the results section. However, you should emphasize its significance in relation to addressing the research problem in the discussion section. Do not repeat it in your results section because you can do that in the conclusion of your paper.
• Confusing figures with tables . Be sure to properly label any non-textual elements in your paper. Don't call a chart an illustration or a figure a table. If you are not sure, go here .

Annesley, Thomas M. "Show Your Cards: The Results Section and the Poker Game." Clinical Chemistry 56 (July 2010): 1066-1070; Bavdekar, Sandeep B. and Sneha Chandak. "Results: Unraveling the Findings." Journal of the Association of Physicians of India 63 (September 2015): 44-46; Burton, Neil et al. Doing Your Education Research Project . Los Angeles, CA: SAGE, 2008;  Caprette, David R. Writing Research Papers. Experimental Biosciences Resources. Rice University; Hancock, Dawson R. and Bob Algozzine. Doing Case Study Research: A Practical Guide for Beginning Researchers . 2nd ed. New York: Teachers College Press, 2011; Introduction to Nursing Research: Reporting Research Findings. Nursing Research: Open Access Nursing Research and Review Articles. (January 4, 2012); Kretchmer, Paul. Twelve Steps to Writing an Effective Results Section. San Francisco Edit ; Ng, K. H. and W. C. Peh. "Writing the Results." Singapore Medical Journal 49 (2008): 967-968; Reporting Research Findings. Wilder Research, in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Human Services. (February 2009); Results. The Structure, Format, Content, and Style of a Journal-Style Scientific Paper. Department of Biology. Bates College; Schafer, Mickey S. Writing the Results. Thesis Writing in the Sciences. Course Syllabus. University of Florida.

Writing Tip

Why Don't I Just Combine the Results Section with the Discussion Section?

It's not unusual to find articles in scholarly social science journals where the author(s) have combined a description of the findings with a discussion about their significance and implications. You could do this. However, if you are inexperienced writing research papers, consider creating two distinct sections for each section in your paper as a way to better organize your thoughts and, by extension, your paper. Think of the results section as the place where you report what your study found; think of the discussion section as the place where you interpret the information and answer the "So What?" question. As you become more skilled writing research papers, you can consider melding the results of your study with a discussion of its implications.

Driscoll, Dana Lynn and Aleksandra Kasztalska. Writing the Experimental Report: Methods, Results, and Discussion. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University.

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Writing your Dissertation:  Results and Discussion

When writing a dissertation or thesis, the results and discussion sections can be both the most interesting as well as the most challenging sections to write.

You may choose to write these sections separately, or combine them into a single chapter, depending on your university’s guidelines and your own preferences.

There are advantages to both approaches.

Writing the results and discussion as separate sections allows you to focus first on what results you obtained and set out clearly what happened in your experiments and/or investigations without worrying about their implications.This can focus your mind on what the results actually show and help you to sort them in your head.

However, many people find it easier to combine the results with their implications as the two are closely connected.

Check your university’s requirements carefully before combining the results and discussions sections as some specify that they must be kept separate.

Results Section

The Results section should set out your key experimental results, including any statistical analysis and whether or not the results of these are significant.

You should cover any literature supporting your interpretation of significance. It does not have to include everything you did, particularly for a doctorate dissertation. However, for an undergraduate or master's thesis, you will probably find that you need to include most of your work.

You should write your results section in the past tense: you are describing what you have done in the past.

Every result included MUST have a method set out in the methods section. Check back to make sure that you have included all the relevant methods.

Conversely, every method should also have some results given so, if you choose to exclude certain experiments from the results, make sure that you remove mention of the method as well.

If you are unsure whether to include certain results, go back to your research questions and decide whether the results are relevant to them. It doesn’t matter whether they are supportive or not, it’s about relevance. If they are relevant, you should include them.

Having decided what to include, next decide what order to use. You could choose chronological, which should follow the methods, or in order from most to least important in the answering of your research questions, or by research question and/or hypothesis.

You also need to consider how best to present your results: tables, figures, graphs, or text. Try to use a variety of different methods of presentation, and consider your reader: 20 pages of dense tables are hard to understand, as are five pages of graphs, but a single table and well-chosen graph that illustrate your overall findings will make things much clearer.

Make sure that each table and figure has a number and a title. Number tables and figures in separate lists, but consecutively by the order in which you mention them in the text. If you have more than about two or three, it’s often helpful to provide lists of tables and figures alongside the table of contents at the start of your dissertation.

Summarise your results in the text, drawing on the figures and tables to illustrate your points.

The text and figures should be complementary, not repeat the same information. You should refer to every table or figure in the text. Any that you don’t feel the need to refer to can safely be moved to an appendix, or even removed.

Make sure that you including information about the size and direction of any changes, including percentage change if appropriate. Statistical tests should include details of p values or confidence intervals and limits.

While you don’t need to include all your primary evidence in this section, you should as a matter of good practice make it available in an appendix, to which you should refer at the relevant point.

For example:

Details of all the interview participants can be found in Appendix A, with transcripts of each interview in Appendix B.

You will, almost inevitably, find that you need to include some slight discussion of your results during this section. This discussion should evaluate the quality of the results and their reliability, but not stray too far into discussion of how far your results support your hypothesis and/or answer your research questions, as that is for the discussion section.

See our pages: Analysing Qualitative Data and Simple Statistical Analysis for more information on analysing your results.

Discussion Section

This section has four purposes, it should:

• Interpret and explain your results
• Answer your research question
• Justify your approach
• Critically evaluate your study

The discussion section therefore needs to review your findings in the context of the literature and the existing knowledge about the subject.

You also need to demonstrate that you understand the limitations of your research and the implications of your findings for policy and practice. This section should be written in the present tense.

The Discussion section needs to follow from your results and relate back to your literature review . Make sure that everything you discuss is covered in the results section.

Some universities require a separate section on recommendations for policy and practice and/or for future research, while others allow you to include this in your discussion, so check the guidelines carefully.

Starting the Task

Most people are likely to write this section best by preparing an outline, setting out the broad thrust of the argument, and how your results support it.

You may find techniques like mind mapping are helpful in making a first outline; check out our page: Creative Thinking for some ideas about how to think through your ideas. You should start by referring back to your research questions, discuss your results, then set them into the context of the literature, and then into broader theory.

This is likely to be one of the longest sections of your dissertation, and it’s a good idea to break it down into chunks with sub-headings to help your reader to navigate through the detail.

Fleshing Out the Detail

Once you have your outline in front of you, you can start to map out how your results fit into the outline.

This will help you to see whether your results are over-focused in one area, which is why writing up your research as you go along can be a helpful process. For each theme or area, you should discuss how the results help to answer your research question, and whether the results are consistent with your expectations and the literature.

The Importance of Understanding Differences

If your results are controversial and/or unexpected, you should set them fully in context and explain why you think that you obtained them.

Your explanations may include issues such as a non-representative sample for convenience purposes, a response rate skewed towards those with a particular experience, or your own involvement as a participant for sociological research.

You do not need to be apologetic about these, because you made a choice about them, which you should have justified in the methodology section. However, you do need to evaluate your own results against others’ findings, especially if they are different. A full understanding of the limitations of your research is part of a good discussion section.

At this stage, you may want to revisit your literature review, unless you submitted it as a separate submission earlier, and revise it to draw out those studies which have proven more relevant.

Conclude by summarising the implications of your findings in brief, and explain why they are important for researchers and in practice, and provide some suggestions for further work.

You may also wish to make some recommendations for practice. As before, this may be a separate section, or included in your discussion.

The results and discussion, including conclusion and recommendations, are probably the most substantial sections of your dissertation. Once completed, you can begin to relax slightly: you are on to the last stages of writing!

Continue to: Dissertation: Conclusion and Extras Writing your Methodology

See also: Writing a Literature Review Writing a Research Proposal Academic Referencing What Is the Importance of Using a Plagiarism Checker to Check Your Thesis?

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The main purpose of a dissertation is to contribute knowledge to your field of study. So it goes without saying that a dissertation is rather pointless if you don’t document the results of your research clearly! This is where you document the findings of your research, where you make sense of what you have discovered throughout the research process and explain its relevance to the research question or problem. Let’s explore how to write the results section of your dissertation.

What goes in the results section

Conventionally, the results section is the fourth chapter of your dissertation, written after you present your method of study . How exactly you present your findings differs from study to study, depending on the topic and discipline your research is situated in, the methods you used, and what kind of data you are presenting. 

Here’s what you’ll cover in the results chapter: 

• A brief reminder of the research question and the purpose of your research  
• The results of your experiment or study and what they mean 
• The data that you’ve collected in sentence form, accompanied by visual elements such as tables, graphs, charts, etc. 
• A critical analysis of how they relate to your research question 

Pro-tip: Always check your university’s guidelines for specific details on what you are required to write about in this section.

Results vs discussion

It’s important to note that the results chapter is usually not the same as the discussion . The purpose of the results section is to present findings in a logical, objective, and impartial manner. At this stage, you do not include your interpretation as a researcher or discuss the implications of the research. Observations that you make, as a researcher, are better suited for the next few chapters. In other words, you simply present the data in the results chapter, and you interpret it in the discussion chapter. 

Although, in some cases (for instance, if your university tells you to), you may be asked to combine the two sections. In this case, you’ll have to weave your interpretation and analysis into the segments where you’re presenting data. 

How to write and structure the results section

Regardless of whether your dissertation is qualitative or quantitative in nature, there are certain aspects common to this chapter. It has an introduction that reiterates the aims and purpose of the research, a body that deconstructs the results obtained during the research process, and a conclusion that summarizes the study’s findings and sets the stage for a discussion about its implications for your research area. 

This chapter is written in the simple past tense, as you are reporting a study that has been conducted in the past. 

Reporting qualitative research 

The purpose of qualitative research is to explore the depth and nuances of a particular topic. So you’ll be engaged with uncovering it through words and detailed descriptions, rather than hard numbers. A qualitative study sees data being presented primarily in the form of words , often supplemented with quantitative data that supports relevant claims. You’re likely to resort to this kind of analysis if you’re working in humanities and social sciences. 

The first decision you’ll need to make at this moment is whether you’ll be structuring your data chronologically (in order of how you conducted the research) or thematically (in terms of patterns and trends that you see in your data). 

Ensure that each finding you highlight is directly relevant to your research question. You may have made many discoveries over the course of your research, but your chapter has to be concise and report findings that either support or contradict your hypothesis. There is a lot of raw data that you will need to sift through to decide what’s important. 

Include excerpts and quotations from appropriate sources such as interviews, discussion transcripts, supporting literature, and so on, to back each of your findings. 

Although your chapter is mostly just a barrage of words, it’s useful to have graphs, tables, charts, and other visual elements that illustrate what you’re saying in text. Having such quantitative parameters within the chapter is not mandatory (and may not even apply to certain types of research, like a literary analysis), but is often helpful with establishing a story for your research. 

Commonly used qualitative research methods: in-depth interviews, case studies, focus group discussions, theoretical research , literary analysis, and so forth. 

Reporting quantitative research

Quantitative research, as the name suggests, focuses on studying data through statistical and mathematical techniques. If you’re doing this type of research for your dissertation, your results chapter will be dominated by statistics and numbers (represented through graphs, tables, charts, etc.), explained succinctly through text. 

Here’s what you have to include in the chapter: 

• Statistical analysis, their relevance and relationship with the research question 
• Observations about whether data supports or rejects the hypothesis 
• Trends, patterns, and relationships that can be understood from the data 

Since numerical data can be dense and difficult to understand at the first glance, it’s always advised that you articulate them visually, through graphs, tables, charts, and perhaps even relevant figures. Not only does this allow you to deconstruct data in a more appealing way, but it also allows you to spell out a narrative for your data, which you will support with text that explains your findings. 

Commonly used quantitative research methods: Surveys, polls, simulations and modeling of data 

Tips to write a good results section

• Include tables, figures, and other visual elements to present complex data in a more accessible way. These elements should supplement the words rather than be repetitive. 
• Use a variety of visual elements to illustrate data that might be difficult to interpret solely with words. 
• Be honest in your reporting. This may seem obvious, but it’s easy to forget that results always don’t need to corroborate your hypothesis. In fact, it’s perfectly acceptable for the opposite to happen; this is useful in telling the research community that something doesn’t work! What matters in this section is relevance.
• Be concise and precise in your reporting. You don’t need to delve into every little detail about your data. Simply present data and information that is relevant to your research question. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Are the results and discussion sections the same, do i have to combine the results and discussions sections, where can i document raw data i haven’t been able to include in the chapter, how long should the results section of a dissertation be, what can i include in an appendix.

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Writing a scientific paper.

• Writing a lab report
• INTRODUCTION

Writing a "good" results section

Figures and Captions in Lab Reports

"Results Checklist" from: How to Write a Good Scientific Paper. Chris A. Mack. SPIE. 2018.

Additional tips for results sections.

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This is the core of the paper. Don't start the results sections with methods you left out of the Materials and Methods section. You need to give an overall description of the experiments and present the data you found.

• Factual statements supported by evidence. Short and sweet without excess words
• Present representative data rather than endlessly repetitive data
• Discuss variables only if they had an effect (positive or negative)
• Use meaningful statistics
• Avoid redundancy. If it is in the tables or captions you may not need to repeat it

A short article by Dr. Brett Couch and Dr. Deena Wassenberg, Biology Program, University of Minnesota

• Present the results of the paper, in logical order, using tables and graphs as necessary.
• Explain the results and show how they help to answer the research questions posed in the Introduction. Evidence does not explain itself; the results must be presented and then explained. 
• Avoid: presenting results that are never discussed;  presenting results in chronological order rather than logical order; ignoring results that do not support the conclusions; 
• Number tables and figures separately beginning with 1 (i.e. Table 1, Table 2, Figure 1, etc.).
• Do not attempt to evaluate the results in this section. Report only what you found; hold all discussion of the significance of the results for the Discussion section.
• It is not necessary to describe every step of your statistical analyses. Scientists understand all about null hypotheses, rejection rules, and so forth and do not need to be reminded of them. Just say something like, "Honeybees did not use the flowers in proportion to their availability (X2 = 7.9, p<0.05, d.f.= 4, chi-square test)." Likewise, cite tables and figures without describing in detail how the data were manipulated. Explanations of this sort should appear in a legend or caption written on the same page as the figure or table.
• You must refer in the text to each figure or table you include in your paper.
• Tables generally should report summary-level data, such as means ± standard deviations, rather than all your raw data.  A long list of all your individual observations will mean much less than a few concise, easy-to-read tables or figures that bring out the main findings of your study.  
• Only use a figure (graph) when the data lend themselves to a good visual representation.  Avoid using figures that show too many variables or trends at once, because they can be hard to understand.

From:  https://writingcenter.gmu.edu/guides/imrad-results-discussion

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How to Write a Results Section for a Dissertation or Research Paper: Guide & Examples

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A results section is a crucial part of a research paper or dissertation, where you analyze your major findings. This section goes beyond simply presenting study outcomes. You should also include a comprehensive statistical analysis and interpret the collected data in detail.

Without dissertation research results, it is impossible to imagine a scientific work. Your task here is to present your study findings. What are qualitative or quantitative indicators? How to use tables and diagrams? How to describe data? Our article answers all these questions and many more. So, read further to discover how to analyze and describe your research indexes or contact or professionals for dissertation help from StudyCrumb.

What Is a Results Section of Dissertation?

The results section of a dissertation is a data statement from your research. Here you should present the main findings of your study to your readers. This section aims to show information objectively, systematically, concisely. It is allowed using text supplemented with illustrations.  In general, this section's length is not limited but should include all necessary data. Interpretations or conclusions should not be included in this section. Therefore, in theory, this is one of your shortest sections. But it can also be one of the most challenging sections.  The introduction presents a research topic and answers the question "why?". The Methods section explains the data collection process and answers "how?". Meanwhile, the result section shows actual data gained from experiments and tells "what?" Thus, this part plays a critical role in highlighting study's relevance. This chapter gives reader study relevance with novelty. So, you should figure out how to write it correctly. Here are main tasks that you should keep in mind while writing:

• Results answer the question "What was found in your research?"
• Results contain only your study's outcome. They do not include comments or interpretations.
• Results must always be presented accurately & objectively.
• Tables & figures are used to draw readers' attention. But the same data should never be presented in the form of a table and a figure. Don't repeat anything from a table also in text.

Dissertation: Results vs Discussion vs Conclusion

Results and discussion sections of a dissertation are often confused among researchers. Sometimes both these parts are mixed up with a conclusion for thesis . Figured out what is covered in each of these important chapters. Your readers should see that you notice how different they are. A clear understanding of differences will help you write your dissertation more effectively. 5 differences between Results VS Discussion VS Conclusion:

Wanna figure out the actual difference between discussion vs conclusion? Check out our helpful articles about Dissertation Discussion or Dissertation Conclusion.

Present Your Findings When Writing Results Section of Dissertation

Now it's time to understand how to arrange the results section of the dissertation. First, present most general findings, then narrow it down to a more specific one. Describe both qualitative & quantitative results. For example, imagine you are comparing the behavior of hamsters and mice. First, say a few words about the behavioral type of mammals that you studied. Then, mention rodents in general. At end, describe specific species of animals you carried out an experiment on.

Qualitative Results Section in Dissertation

In your dissertation results section, qualitative data may not be directly related to specific sub-questions or hypotheses. You can structure this chapter around main issues that arise when analyzing data. For each question, make a general observation of what data show. For example, you may recall recurring agreements or differences, patterns, trends. Personal answers are the basis of your research. Clarify and support these views with direct quotes. Add more information to the thesis appendix if it's needed.

Quantitative Results Section in a Dissertation

The easiest way to write a quantitative dissertation results section is to build it around a sub-question or hypothesis of your research. For each subquery, provide relevant results and include statistical analysis . Then briefly evaluate importance & reliability. Notice how each result relates to the problem or whether it supports the hypothesis. Focus on key trends, differences, and relationships between data. But don't speculate about their meaning or consequences. This should be put in the discussion vs conclusion section. Suppose your results are not directly related to answering your questions. Maybe there is additional information that helps readers understand how you collect data. In that case, you can include them in the appendix. It is often helpful to include visual elements such as graphs, charts, and tables. But only if they accurately support your results and add value.

Tables and Figures in Results Section in Dissertation

We recommend you use tables or figures in the dissertation results section correctly. Such interpretation can effectively present complex data concisely and visually. It allows readers to quickly gain a statistical overview. On the contrary, poorly designed graphs can confuse readers. That will reduce the effectiveness of your article.  Here are our recommendations that help you understand how to use tables and figures:

• Make sure tables and figures are self-explanatory. Sometimes, your readers may look at tables and figures before reading the entire text. So they should make sense as separate elements.
• Do not repeat the content of tables and figures in text. Text can be used to highlight key points from tables and figures. But do not repeat every element.
• Make sure that values ​​or information in tables and text are consistent. Make sure that abbreviations, group names, interpretations are the same as in text.
• Use clear, informative titles for tables and figures. Do not leave any table or figure without a title or legend. Otherwise, readers will not be able to understand data's meaning. Also, make sure column names, labels, figures are understandable.
• Check accuracy of data presented in tables and figures. Always double-check tables and figures to make sure numbers converge.
• Tables should not contain redundant information. Make sure tables in the article are not too crowded. If you need to provide extensive data, use Appendixes.
• Make sure images are clear. Make sure images and all parts of drawings are precise. Lettering should be in a standard font and legible against the background of the picture.
• Ask for permission to use illustrations. If you use illustrations, be sure to ask copyright holders and indicate them.

Tips on How to Write a Results Section

We have prepared several tips on how to write the results section of the dissertation!  Present data collected during study objectively, logically, and concisely. Highlight most important results and organize them into specific sections. It is an excellent way to show that you have covered all the descriptive information you need. Correct usage of visual elements effectively helps your readers with understanding. So, follow main 3 rules for writing this part:

• State only actual results. Leave explanations and comments for Discussion.
• Use text, tables, and pictures to orderly highlight key results.
• Make sure that contents of tables and figures are not repeated in text.

In case you have questions about a  conceptual framework in research , you will find a blog dedicated to this issue in our database.

What to Avoid When Writing the Results Section of a Dissertation

Here we will discuss how NOT to write the results section of a dissertation. Or simply, what points to avoid:

• Do not make your research too complicated. Your paper, tables, and graphs should be clearly marked and follow order. So that they can exist independently without further explanation.
• Do not include raw data. Remember, you are summarizing relevant results, not reporting them in detail. This chapter should briefly summarize your findings. Avoid complete introduction to each number and calculation.
• Do not contradict errors or false results. Explain these errors and contradictions in conclusions. This often happens when different research methods have been used.
• Do not write a conclusion or discussion. Instead, this part should contain summaries of findings.
• Do not tend to include explanations and inferences from results. Such an approach can make this chapter subjective, unclear, and confusing to the reader.
• Do not forget about novelty. Its lack is one of the main reasons for the paper's rejection.

Dissertation Results Section Example

Let's take a look at some good results section of dissertation examples. Remember that this part shows fundamental research you've done in detail. So, it has to be clear and concise, as you can see in the sample.

Final Thoughts on Writing Results Section of Dissertation

When writing a results section of a dissertation, highlight your achievements by data. The main chapter's task is to convince the reader of conclusions' validity of your research. You should not overload text with too detailed information. Never use words whose meanings you do not understand. Also, oversimplification may seem unconvincing for readers. But on the other hand, writing this part can even be fun. You can directly see your study results, which you'll interpret later. So keep going, and we wish you courage!

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Guide on How to Write the Results Section of a Dissertation

The dissertation results chapter can be written once data has been collected and analyzed. In this section, the main findings of the research are reported and their relation to hypotheses or research questions are observed briefly. This chapter is among the most crucial parts of a study. It is here that statistical analysis is accurately performed, findings reported and explained, and assumptions examined. After this analysis, results are presented in a manner that shows non-support or support of the stated hypothesis.

Writing a thesis results section requires statistical expertise to present and defend the findings effectively. What’s more, the core findings should be presented logically without interpretation or bias from the writer. This section should set up the read for evaluation or interpretation of the findings in the discussion chapter .

When writing the thesis results chapter, the author should break down the findings into simple sentences. Essentially, this section should tell readers what the author found in the research.

What to Include in the Dissertation Results Chapter

The results chapter of a dissertation should include the core findings of a study. Essentially, only the findings of a specific study should be included in this section. These include:

• Data presented in graphs, tables, charts, and figures
• Data collection recruitment, collection, and/or participants
• Secondary findings like subgroup analyses and secondary outcomes
• Contextual data analysis and explanation of the meaning
• Information that corresponds to research questions

It’s crucial to consider the scope of your research when writing up dissertation results. That’s because a study with many variables or a broader scope can yield different results. In that case, only the most relevant results should be stated. Any data that doesn’t present direct outcomes or findings of a study should not be included in this section.

What are the Five Chapters of a Dissertation?

Traditionally, a dissertation has five major chapters. The results section is one of the most important chapters because it summarizes and presents the collected and analyzed data. The major chapters of this paper are:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Methodology

The methodology section can vary depending on whether the author conducted qualitative research or quantitative research or a mixed study. However, the methodology section is also very important because the used methods can influence how the gathered results will be presented. For instance, you can use a questionnaire to gather information. If you don’t know how to analyze questionnaire results dissertation paper might not impress your readers. Therefore, choose your research methods wisely to make writing the findings or results section easier.

How to Write a Dissertation Results Chapter

Every research project is unique. As such, learners should not take a one-size-fits-all approach when writing results for a dissertation. The layout and content of this chapter should be determined by your research area, study design, and the chosen methodologies. Also, consider the target journal guidelines and editors.

But, when writing the results section dissertation authors can follow certain steps, especially for scientific studies. Those steps are as follows.

• Check the Target Journal’s Instructions or GuidelinesDifferent journals outline the requirements, instructions, or guidelines that authors should follow when writing the findings or results section. A journal can also provide a dissertation results section example to guide authors. It’s crucial that you note the content length limitations, scope, and aims that the journal requires dissertation authors to consider.
• Consider How Your Results Relate to the Catalogue and Requirements of the JournalConsider your findings or experimental results that are relevant to the research objectives or questions. Include even the findings that don’t support your hypothesis or are unexpected. Also, catalog the findings of your research using subheadings to clarify and streamline your report. That way, you can avoid peripheral and excessive details and make your findings easy to understand.It’s important to decide on the results structure. For instance, you can match the hypothesis or research questions to the results. You can also arrange them the way they are ordered in your Methods section. Alternatively, use the importance hierarchy or chronological order. Most importantly, consider your evidence, audience, and objectives of the study when deciding on the dissertation structure for the results section.
• Design Tables and Figures for Illustrating Your DataNumber your figures and tables in the order that you use to mention them in main the paper text. Make sure that your figures have self-explanatory information. Also, include the necessary information, such as definitions in the design to make the findings data easy to understand. Essentially, readers should understand your tables and figures without reading the text.Additionally, make your figures and tables the focal point of this section. Ensure that they tell an informative and clear story about the study without repetition. However, always remember that figures should enhance and clarify your text, not replace it.

Checklist for the Results Chapter

Once you have written this section, go through it carefully to ensure the following:

• All findings that are relevant to the research questions have been included.
• Each result has been reported objectively and concisely, including relevant inferential statistics and descriptive statistics.
• You have stated whether the study findings refuted or supported every hypothesis.
• You have used figures and tables to illustrate your results appropriately.
• All figures and tables are referred to and labeled correctly in the text.
• The presented results do not include speculations or subjective interpretation

You may come across many tips on how to write the results section of a dissertation. However, the most important tip is to ensure that the results that you present in this section are relevant to your study questions or hypotheses. If this sounds too complicated, you can ask us “ do my thesis for me “, and we’ll take care of it. Anyways, you have to remember that relevance is the most important thing regardless of whether the results support or do not support the hypotheses. Also, decide on the order to use when presenting the results of your study. This is very important because it makes it easier for your readers to understand them. Including figures, tables, and graphs makes the information in this section easier to understand.

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Home » Research Results Section – Writing Guide and Examples

Research Results Section – Writing Guide and Examples

Table of Contents

Research Results

Research results refer to the findings and conclusions derived from a systematic investigation or study conducted to answer a specific question or hypothesis. These results are typically presented in a written report or paper and can include various forms of data such as numerical data, qualitative data, statistics, charts, graphs, and visual aids.

Results Section in Research

The results section of the research paper presents the findings of the study. It is the part of the paper where the researcher reports the data collected during the study and analyzes it to draw conclusions.

In the results section, the researcher should describe the data that was collected, the statistical analysis performed, and the findings of the study. It is important to be objective and not interpret the data in this section. Instead, the researcher should report the data as accurately and objectively as possible.

Structure of Research Results Section

The structure of the research results section can vary depending on the type of research conducted, but in general, it should contain the following components:

• Introduction: The introduction should provide an overview of the study, its aims, and its research questions. It should also briefly explain the methodology used to conduct the study.
• Data presentation : This section presents the data collected during the study. It may include tables, graphs, or other visual aids to help readers better understand the data. The data presented should be organized in a logical and coherent way, with headings and subheadings used to help guide the reader.
• Data analysis: In this section, the data presented in the previous section are analyzed and interpreted. The statistical tests used to analyze the data should be clearly explained, and the results of the tests should be presented in a way that is easy to understand.
• Discussion of results : This section should provide an interpretation of the results of the study, including a discussion of any unexpected findings. The discussion should also address the study’s research questions and explain how the results contribute to the field of study.
• Limitations: This section should acknowledge any limitations of the study, such as sample size, data collection methods, or other factors that may have influenced the results.
• Conclusions: The conclusions should summarize the main findings of the study and provide a final interpretation of the results. The conclusions should also address the study’s research questions and explain how the results contribute to the field of study.
• Recommendations : This section may provide recommendations for future research based on the study’s findings. It may also suggest practical applications for the study’s results in real-world settings.

Outline of Research Results Section

The following is an outline of the key components typically included in the Results section:

I. Introduction

• A brief overview of the research objectives and hypotheses
• A statement of the research question

II. Descriptive statistics

• Summary statistics (e.g., mean, standard deviation) for each variable analyzed
• Frequencies and percentages for categorical variables

III. Inferential statistics

• Results of statistical analyses, including tests of hypotheses
• Tables or figures to display statistical results

IV. Effect sizes and confidence intervals

• Effect sizes (e.g., Cohen’s d, odds ratio) to quantify the strength of the relationship between variables
• Confidence intervals to estimate the range of plausible values for the effect size

V. Subgroup analyses

• Results of analyses that examined differences between subgroups (e.g., by gender, age, treatment group)

VI. Limitations and assumptions

• Discussion of any limitations of the study and potential sources of bias
• Assumptions made in the statistical analyses

VII. Conclusions

• A summary of the key findings and their implications
• A statement of whether the hypotheses were supported or not
• Suggestions for future research

Example of Research Results Section

An Example of a Research Results Section could be:

• This study sought to examine the relationship between sleep quality and academic performance in college students.
• Hypothesis : College students who report better sleep quality will have higher GPAs than those who report poor sleep quality.
• Methodology : Participants completed a survey about their sleep habits and academic performance.

II. Participants

• Participants were college students (N=200) from a mid-sized public university in the United States.
• The sample was evenly split by gender (50% female, 50% male) and predominantly white (85%).
• Participants were recruited through flyers and online advertisements.

III. Results

• Participants who reported better sleep quality had significantly higher GPAs (M=3.5, SD=0.5) than those who reported poor sleep quality (M=2.9, SD=0.6).
• See Table 1 for a summary of the results.
• Participants who reported consistent sleep schedules had higher GPAs than those with irregular sleep schedules.

IV. Discussion

• The results support the hypothesis that better sleep quality is associated with higher academic performance in college students.
• These findings have implications for college students, as prioritizing sleep could lead to better academic outcomes.
• Limitations of the study include self-reported data and the lack of control for other variables that could impact academic performance.

V. Conclusion

• College students who prioritize sleep may see a positive impact on their academic performance.
• These findings highlight the importance of sleep in academic success.
• Future research could explore interventions to improve sleep quality in college students.

Example of Research Results in Research Paper :

Our study aimed to compare the performance of three different machine learning algorithms (Random Forest, Support Vector Machine, and Neural Network) in predicting customer churn in a telecommunications company. We collected a dataset of 10,000 customer records, with 20 predictor variables and a binary churn outcome variable.

Our analysis revealed that all three algorithms performed well in predicting customer churn, with an overall accuracy of 85%. However, the Random Forest algorithm showed the highest accuracy (88%), followed by the Support Vector Machine (86%) and the Neural Network (84%).

Furthermore, we found that the most important predictor variables for customer churn were monthly charges, contract type, and tenure. Random Forest identified monthly charges as the most important variable, while Support Vector Machine and Neural Network identified contract type as the most important.

Overall, our results suggest that machine learning algorithms can be effective in predicting customer churn in a telecommunications company, and that Random Forest is the most accurate algorithm for this task.

Example 3 :

Title : The Impact of Social Media on Body Image and Self-Esteem

Abstract : This study aimed to investigate the relationship between social media use, body image, and self-esteem among young adults. A total of 200 participants were recruited from a university and completed self-report measures of social media use, body image satisfaction, and self-esteem.

Results: The results showed that social media use was significantly associated with body image dissatisfaction and lower self-esteem. Specifically, participants who reported spending more time on social media platforms had lower levels of body image satisfaction and self-esteem compared to those who reported less social media use. Moreover, the study found that comparing oneself to others on social media was a significant predictor of body image dissatisfaction and lower self-esteem.

Conclusion : These results suggest that social media use can have negative effects on body image satisfaction and self-esteem among young adults. It is important for individuals to be mindful of their social media use and to recognize the potential negative impact it can have on their mental health. Furthermore, interventions aimed at promoting positive body image and self-esteem should take into account the role of social media in shaping these attitudes and behaviors.

Importance of Research Results

Research results are important for several reasons, including:

• Advancing knowledge: Research results can contribute to the advancement of knowledge in a particular field, whether it be in science, technology, medicine, social sciences, or humanities.
• Developing theories: Research results can help to develop or modify existing theories and create new ones.
• Improving practices: Research results can inform and improve practices in various fields, such as education, healthcare, business, and public policy.
• Identifying problems and solutions: Research results can identify problems and provide solutions to complex issues in society, including issues related to health, environment, social justice, and economics.
• Validating claims : Research results can validate or refute claims made by individuals or groups in society, such as politicians, corporations, or activists.
• Providing evidence: Research results can provide evidence to support decision-making, policy-making, and resource allocation in various fields.

How to Write Results in A Research Paper

Here are some general guidelines on how to write results in a research paper:

• Organize the results section: Start by organizing the results section in a logical and coherent manner. Divide the section into subsections if necessary, based on the research questions or hypotheses.
• Present the findings: Present the findings in a clear and concise manner. Use tables, graphs, and figures to illustrate the data and make the presentation more engaging.
• Describe the data: Describe the data in detail, including the sample size, response rate, and any missing data. Provide relevant descriptive statistics such as means, standard deviations, and ranges.
• Interpret the findings: Interpret the findings in light of the research questions or hypotheses. Discuss the implications of the findings and the extent to which they support or contradict existing theories or previous research.
• Discuss the limitations : Discuss the limitations of the study, including any potential sources of bias or confounding factors that may have affected the results.
• Compare the results : Compare the results with those of previous studies or theoretical predictions. Discuss any similarities, differences, or inconsistencies.
• Avoid redundancy: Avoid repeating information that has already been presented in the introduction or methods sections. Instead, focus on presenting new and relevant information.
• Be objective: Be objective in presenting the results, avoiding any personal biases or interpretations.

When to Write Research Results

Here are situations When to Write Research Results”

• After conducting research on the chosen topic and obtaining relevant data, organize the findings in a structured format that accurately represents the information gathered.
• Once the data has been analyzed and interpreted, and conclusions have been drawn, begin the writing process.
• Before starting to write, ensure that the research results adhere to the guidelines and requirements of the intended audience, such as a scientific journal or academic conference.
• Begin by writing an abstract that briefly summarizes the research question, methodology, findings, and conclusions.
• Follow the abstract with an introduction that provides context for the research, explains its significance, and outlines the research question and objectives.
• The next section should be a literature review that provides an overview of existing research on the topic and highlights the gaps in knowledge that the current research seeks to address.
• The methodology section should provide a detailed explanation of the research design, including the sample size, data collection methods, and analytical techniques used.
• Present the research results in a clear and concise manner, using graphs, tables, and figures to illustrate the findings.
• Discuss the implications of the research results, including how they contribute to the existing body of knowledge on the topic and what further research is needed.
• Conclude the paper by summarizing the main findings, reiterating the significance of the research, and offering suggestions for future research.

Purpose of Research Results

The purposes of Research Results are as follows:

• Informing policy and practice: Research results can provide evidence-based information to inform policy decisions, such as in the fields of healthcare, education, and environmental regulation. They can also inform best practices in fields such as business, engineering, and social work.
• Addressing societal problems : Research results can be used to help address societal problems, such as reducing poverty, improving public health, and promoting social justice.
• Generating economic benefits : Research results can lead to the development of new products, services, and technologies that can create economic value and improve quality of life.
• Supporting academic and professional development : Research results can be used to support academic and professional development by providing opportunities for students, researchers, and practitioners to learn about new findings and methodologies in their field.
• Enhancing public understanding: Research results can help to educate the public about important issues and promote scientific literacy, leading to more informed decision-making and better public policy.
• Evaluating interventions: Research results can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, such as treatments, educational programs, and social policies. This can help to identify areas where improvements are needed and guide future interventions.
• Contributing to scientific progress: Research results can contribute to the advancement of science by providing new insights and discoveries that can lead to new theories, methods, and techniques.
• Informing decision-making : Research results can provide decision-makers with the information they need to make informed decisions. This can include decision-making at the individual, organizational, or governmental levels.
• Fostering collaboration : Research results can facilitate collaboration between researchers and practitioners, leading to new partnerships, interdisciplinary approaches, and innovative solutions to complex problems.

Advantages of Research Results

Some Advantages of Research Results are as follows:

• Improved decision-making: Research results can help inform decision-making in various fields, including medicine, business, and government. For example, research on the effectiveness of different treatments for a particular disease can help doctors make informed decisions about the best course of treatment for their patients.
• Innovation : Research results can lead to the development of new technologies, products, and services. For example, research on renewable energy sources can lead to the development of new and more efficient ways to harness renewable energy.
• Economic benefits: Research results can stimulate economic growth by providing new opportunities for businesses and entrepreneurs. For example, research on new materials or manufacturing techniques can lead to the development of new products and processes that can create new jobs and boost economic activity.
• Improved quality of life: Research results can contribute to improving the quality of life for individuals and society as a whole. For example, research on the causes of a particular disease can lead to the development of new treatments and cures, improving the health and well-being of millions of people.

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Writing up the results section of your dissertation

(Last updated: 12 May 2021)

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When asked why doing a dissertation can be such a headache, the typical student usually replies with one of two answers. Either, they simply don't like writing enormous volumes of text, or – and you may relate here – they categorically do not enjoy analysing data. "It's so long and boring!", the typical student wails.

Well, students wail, and we answer. We have put together this very comprehensive, very useful guide on how to write up the results section of your dissertation. To help you further, we've broken the information down into both quantitative and qualitative results, so you can focus on what applies to you most.

Writing up your quantitative results

Understanding the basics of your research.

First, you need to recall what you have assessed – or what your main variables are.

All quantitative research has at least one independent and one dependent variable, and, at this point, you should define them explicitly. An independent variable is one that you control to test its effects on the dependent variable. A dependent variable is thus your outcome variable.

Second, you need to determine if your variables were categorical or continuous.

A categorical variable is one with a fixed number of possible values, and a continuous variable is one where final scores have a wide range. Finally, you need to recall if you have used a so-called covariate or confounder variable. This is a variable that could have influenced the relationship between your independent and dependent variable, and that you controlled in order to accurately estimate the relationship between your main variables.

Let’s explain all this with an example. Suppose that your research was to assess whether height is associated with self-esteem. Here, participants’ height is an independent variable and self-esteem is a dependent variable. Because both height and scores on a measure of self-esteem can have a wide range, you have two continuous variables. You might have also wanted to see if the relationship between height and self-esteem exists after controlling for participants’ weight. In this case, weight is a confounding variable that you need to control for.

Here is another example. You might have assessed whether more females than males want to read a specific romantic novel. Here, your independent variable is gender and your dependent variable is the determination to read the book. Since gender has categories (male and female), this is a categorical variable. If you have assessed the determination to read the book on a scale from 1 to 10 (e.g. 1 = no determination at all to read the book, all the way to 10 = extremely strong determination to read it), then this is a continuous variable; however, if you have asked your participants to say whether they do or do not want to read the book, then this is a categorical variable (since there are two categories: “yes” and “no”).

Lastly, you might have wanted to see if the link between gender and the determination to read the book exists after controlling for participants’ current relationship status. Here, relationship status is your confounding variable.

We will return to these examples throughout this blog post. At this point, it is important to remember that outlining your research in this way helps you to write up your results section in the easiest way possible.

Let’s move on to the next step.

Outlining descriptive and frequencies statistics

In order to report descriptive and/or frequencies statistics, you need to outline all variables that you have used in your research and note whether those variables are continuous or categorical.

For continuous variables, you are using descriptive statistics and reporting the measures of central tendency (mean) and measures of variability or spread (standard deviation). For categorical variables, you are using frequencies statistics and reporting the number (or frequency) of participants per category and associated percentages. Both these statistics require you to make a table, and in both cases you also need to comment upon the statistics.

How does all of this look in practice? Recall the two examples that were outlined above. If you have assessed the association between participants’ height and self-esteem, while controlling for participants’ weight, then your research consists of three continuous variables. You need to make a table, as in TABLE 1 below, which identifies means and standard deviations for all these variables. When commenting upon the results, you can say:

Participants were on average 173.50 cm tall (SD = 5.81) and their mean weight was 65.31 kg (SD = 4.44). On average, participants had moderate levels of self-esteem (M = 5.55, SD = 2.67).

Note that, in this example, you are concluding that participants had moderate self-esteem levels if their self-esteem was assessed on a 1 to 10 scale. Since the value of 5 falls within the middle of this range, you are concluding that the mean value of self-esteem is moderate. If the mean value was higher (e.g., M = 8.33), you would conclude that participants’ self-esteem was, on average, high; and if the mean value was lower (e.g., M = 2.44), you would conclude that average self-esteem scores were low.

Let’s now return to our second research example and say that you want to report the degree to which males and females want to read a romantic novel, where this determination was assessed on a 1-10 (continuous) scale. This would look as shown in TABLE 2.

We can see how to report frequencies statistics for different groups by referring to our second example about gender, determination to read a romantic novel, and participants’ relationship status.

Here, you have three categorical variables (if determination to read the novel was assessed by having participants reply with “yes” or “no”). Thus, you are not reporting means and standard deviations, but frequencies and percentages.

To put this another way, you are noting how many males versus females wanted to read the book and how many of them were in a relationship, as shown in TABLE 3. You can report these statistics in this way:

Twenty (40%) male participants wanted to read the book and 35 (70%) female participants wanted to read the book. Moreover, 22 (44%) males and 26 (52%) females indicated that they are currently in a relationship.

Reporting the results of a correlation analysis

The first of these is correlation, which you use when you want to establish if one or more (continuous, independent) variables relate to another (continuous, dependent) variable. For instance, you may want to see if participants’ height correlates with their self-esteem levels.

The first step here is to report whether your variables are normally distributed. You do this by looking at a histogram that describes your data. If the histogram has a bell-shaped curve (see purple graph below), your data is normally distributed and you need to rely on a Pearson correlation analysis. Here, you need to report the obtained r value (correlation coefficient) and p value (which needs to be lower than .05 in order to establish significance). If you find a correlation, you need to say something like:

One final thing to note, which is important for all analyses, is that when your p value is indicated to be .000, you never report it by saying “ p = .000”, but by noting “ p p = .011”.

If your data is skewed rather than normally distributed (see red graphs), then you need to rely on a Spearman correlation analysis. Here, you report the results by saying:

Spearman correlation analysis revealed a positive relationship between people’s height and their self-esteem (r s = .44, p There has been a significant positive correlation between height and self-esteem after controlling for participants’ weight ( r = .39, p = .034).

You also need to make a table that will summarise your main results. If you didn’t use a covariate, you will have a fairly simple table, such as that shown in TABLE 4. If you have used a covariate, your table is slightly more complex, such as that shown in TABLE 5. Note that both tables use “-” to indicate correlations that have already been noted within the table. Also note how “*”, “**”, and “***” are used to annotate correlations that are significant at different levels.

Reporting the results of a regression

These are the specific points that you need to address in order to make sure that all assumptions have been met:

(1) for the assumption of no multicollinearity (i.e., a lack of high correlation between your independent variables), you need to establish that none of your Tolerance statistics are below .01 and none of the VIF statistics are above 10;

(2) for the assumption of no autocorrelation of residuals (i.e., a lack of correlation between the residuals of two observations), you need to look at this table and see whether your Durbin-Watson statistic falls within a desirable range, depending on your number of participants and the number of predictors (independent variables); and,

(3) for the assumptions of linearity (i.e., a linear relationship between independent and dependent variables) and homoscedasticity (i.e., a variance of error terms that should be similar across the independent variables), you need to look at the scatterplot of standardised residual on standardised predicted value and conclude that your graph doesn’t funnel out or curve.

All of this may sound quite complex. But in reality it is not: you just need to look at your results output to note the Tolerance and VIF values, Durbin-Watson value, and the scatterplot. Once you conclude that your assumptions have been met, you write something like:

Since none of the VIF values were below 0.1 and none of the Tolerance values were above 10, the assumption of no multicollinearity has been met. Durbin-Watson statistics fell within an expected range, thus indicating that the assumption of no autocorrelation of residuals has been met as well. Finally, the scatterplot of standardised residual on standardised predicted value did not funnel out or curve, and thus the assumptions of linearity and homoscedasticity have been met as well.

If your assumptions have not been met, you need to dig a bit deeper and understand what this means. A good idea would be to read the chapter on regression (and especially the part about assumptions) written by Andy Field. You can access his book here . This will help you understand all you need to know about the assumptions of a regression analysis, how to test them, and what to do if they have not been met.

Now let’s focus on reporting the results of the actual regression analysis. Let’s say that you wanted to see if participants’ height predicts their self-esteem, after controlling for participants’ weight. You have entered height and weight as predictors in the model and self-esteem as a dependent variable.

First, you need to report whether the model reached significance in predicting self-esteem scores. Look at the results of an ANOVA analysis in your output and note the F value, degrees of freedom for the model and for residuals, and significance level. These values are shown in PICTURE 2.

Significance value tells you if your predictor reached significance – such as whether participants’ height predicted self-esteem scores. You also need to comment upon the β value. This value represents the change in the outcome associated with a unit change in the predictor . Thus, if your β value is .351 for participants’ height (predictor/independent variable), then this means that for every increase in height by 1 cm, self-esteem increases by .35. You need to report the same thing for your other predictor – that is, participants’ weight.

Finally, since your model included both height and weight as predictors, and height acted as a significant predictor, you can conclude that participants’ height influences their self-esteem after controlling for weight.

Reporting the results of a chi-square analysis

For instance, you would do a chi-square analysis when you want to see whether gender (categorical independent variable with two levels: males/females) affects the determination to read a book, when this variable is measured with yes/no answers (categorical dependent variable with two levels: yes/no).

When reporting your results, you should first make a table as shown in TABLE 3 above. Then you need to report the results of a chi-square test, by noting the Pearson chi-square value, degrees of freedom, and significance value. You can see all these in your output.

Finally, you need to report the strength of the association, for which you need to look at the Phi and Cramer’s V values. When each of your variables has only two categories, as in the present example, Phi and Cramer’s V values are identical and it doesn’t matter which one you will report. However, when one of your variables has more than two categories, it is better to report the Cramer’s V value. You report these values by indicating the actual value and the associated significance level.

Note that Cramer’s V value can range from 0 to 1. The closer the value is to 1, the higher the strength of the association. You can report the results of the chi-square analysis in the following way:

Reporting the results of a t-test analysis

Recall that you have previously outlined descriptive statistics for these variables, where you have noted means and standard deviations for males’ and females’ scores on the determination to read the novel (see TABLE 2 above). Now you need to report the obtained t value, degrees of freedom, and significance level – all of which you can see in your results output.

You can say something like:

Reporting the results of one-way ANOVA

In the t-test example, you had two conditions of a categorical independent variable, which corresponded to whether a participant was male or female. You would have three conditions of an independent variable when assessing whether relationship status (independent variable with three levels: single, in a relationship, and divorced) affects the determination to read a romantic novel (as assessed on a 1-10 scale).

Here, you would report the results in a similar manner to that of a t -test. You first report the means and standard deviations on the determination to read the book for all three groups of participants, by saying who had the highest and lowest mean. Then you report the results of the ANOVA test by reporting the F value, degrees of freedom (for within-subjects and between-subjects comparisons), and the significance value.

There are two things to note here. First, before reporting your results, you need to look at your output to see whether the so-called Levene’s test is significant. This test assesses the homogeneity of variance – the assumption being that all comparison groups should have the same variance. If the test is non-significant, the assumption has been met and you are reporting the standard F value.

However, if the test is significant, the assumption has been violated and you need to report instead the Welch statistic, associated degrees of freedom, and significance value (which you will see in your output; for example, see PICTURE 3 above).

The second thing to note is that ANOVA tells you only whether there were significant differences between groups – but if there are differences, it doesn’t tell you where these differences lie. For this, you need to conduct a post-hoc comparison (Tukey’s HSD test). The output will tell you which comparisons are significant.

You can report your results in the following manner:

Reporting the results of ANCOVA

For instance, you will use ANCOVA when you want to test whether relationship status (categorical independent variable with three levels: single, in a relationship, divorced) affects the determination to read a romantic novel (continuous dependent variable, assessed on a 1-10 scale) after controlling for participants’ general interest in books (continuous covariate, assessed on a 1-10 scale).

To report the results, you need to look at the “test of between-subjects effects” table in your output. You need to report the F values, degrees of freedom (for each variable and error), and significance values for both the covariate and the main independent variable. As with ANOVA, a significant ANCOVA doesn’t tell you where the differences lie. For this, you need to conduct planned contrasts and report the associated significance values for different comparisons.

You can report the results in the following manner:

Reporting the results of MANOVA

For instance, you would use MANOVA when testing whether male versus female participants (independent variable) show a different determination to read a romantic novel (dependent variable) and a determination to read a crime novel (dependent variable).

When reporting the results, you first need to notice whether the so-called Box’s test and Levene’s test are significant. These tests assess two assumptions: that there is an equality of covariance matrices (Box’s test) and that there is an equality of variances for each dependent variable (Levene’s test).

Both tests need to be non-significant in order to assess whether your assumptions are met. If the tests are significant, you need to dig deeper and understand what this means. Once again, you may find it helpful to read the chapter by Andy Field on MANOVA, which can be accessed here .

Following this, you need to report your descriptive statistics, as outlined previously. Here, you are reporting the means and standard deviations for each dependent variable, separately for each group of participants. Then you need to look at the results of “multivariate analyses”.

You will notice that you are presented with four statistic values and associated F and significance values. These are labelled as Pillai’s Trace, Wilks’ Lambda, Hotelling’s Trace, and Roy’s Largest Root. These statistics test whether your independent variable has an effect on the dependent variables. The most common practice is to report only the Pillai’s Trace. You report the results in the same manner as reporting ANOVA, by noting the F value, degrees of freedom (for hypothesis and error), and significance value.

However, you also need to report the statistic value of one of the four statistics mentioned above. You can label the Pillai’s Trace statistic with V, the Wilks’ Lambda statistic with A, the Hotelling’s Trace statistic with T, and Roy’s Largest Root statistic with Θ (but you need report only one of them).

Finally, you need to look at the results of the Tests of Between-Subjects Effects (which you will see in your output). These tests tell you how your independent variable affected each dependent variable separately. You report these results in exactly the same way as in ANOVA.

Here’s how you can report all results from MANOVA:

Writing up your qualitative results

Before reporting the results of your qualitative research, you need to recall what type of research you have conducted. The most common types of qualitative research are interviews, observations, and focus groups – and your research is likely to fall into one of these types.

All three types of research are reported in a similar manner. Still, it may be useful if we focus on each of them separately.

Reporting the results of interviews

For example, let’s say that your qualitative research focused on young people’s reasons for smoking. You have asked your participants questions that explored why they started smoking, why they continue to smoke, and why they wish to quit smoking. Since your research was organised in this manner, you already have three major themes: (1) reasons for starting to smoke, (2) reasons for continuing to smoke, and (3) reasons for quitting smoking. You then explore particular reasons why your participants started to smoke, why they continue to smoke, and why they want to quit. Each reason that you identify will act as a subtheme.

When reporting the results, you should organise your text in subsections. Each section should refer to one theme. Then, within each section, you need to discuss the subthemes that you discovered in your data.

Let’s say that you found that young people started smoking because: (1) they thought smoking was cool, (2) they experienced peer pressure, (3) their parents modelled smoking behaviour, (4) they thought smoking reduces stress, and (5) they wanted to try something new. Now you have five subthemes within your “reasons for starting to smoke” theme. What you need to do now is to present the findings for each subtheme, while also reporting quotes that best describe your subtheme. You do that for each theme and subtheme.

It is also good practice to make a table that lists all your themes, subthemes, and associated quotes.

Here’s an example of how to report a quote within a text:

Reporting the results of observations

For instance, you might have noticed that the therapist finds it important to discuss: (1) the origin of the problem, (2) the lack of a patient’s medical difficulties, (3) the experience of stress, (4) the link of stress to the problem, and (5) the new understanding of the problem. You can consider these as themes in your observations.

Accordingly, you will want to report each theme separately. You do this by outlining your observation first (this can be a conversation or a behaviour that you observed), and then commenting upon it.

Here’s an example:

Therapist: Was there something that stressed you out during the last few months?

Patient: Yes, of course. I thought I would lose my job, but that passed. After that, I was breaking up with my girlfriend. But between those things, I was fine.

Therapist: And was there any difference in your symptoms while you were and while you were not stressed?

Patient: Hmmm. Actually yes. Now that I think of it, they were mostly present when I went through those periods.

Therapist: Could it be that stress intensifies your symptoms?

Patient: I never thought of it. I guess it seems logical. Is it?

Reporting the results of focus groups

As an example, let’s say that your focus group dealt with identifying reasons why some people prefer Coca-Cola over Schweppes, and vice versa. You have transcribed your focus group sessions and have extracted themes from the data. You have discovered a wide variety of reasons why people prefer one of the two drinks.

When reporting your results, you should have two sections: one listing reasons for favouring Coca-Cola, and the other listing reasons for favouring Schweppes. Within each section, you need to identify specific reasons for these preferences. You should connect these specific reasons to particular quotes.

Here’s an example of how this may look:

In conclusion…

As we have seen, writing up qualitative results is easier than writing quantitative results. Yet, even reporting statistics is not that hard, especially if you have a good guide to help you.

Hopefully, this guide has reduced your worries and increased your confidence that you can write up the results section of your dissertation without too many difficulties.

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Academic Phrases for Writing Results & Discussion Sections of a Research Paper

Overview |   Abstract   | Introduction | Literature Review | Materials & Methods | Results & Discussion | Conclusion & Future Work | Acknowledgements & Appendix

The results and discussion sections are one of the challenging sections to write. It is important to plan this section carefully as it may contain a large amount of scientific data that needs to be presented in a clear and concise fashion. The purpose of a Results section is to present the key results of your research. Results and discussions can either be combined into one section or organized as separate sections depending on the requirements of the journal to which you are submitting your research paper. Use subsections and subheadings to improve readability and clarity. Number all tables and figures with descriptive titles. Present your results as figures and tables and point the reader to relevant items while discussing the results. This section should highlight significant or interesting findings along with P values for statistical tests. Be sure to include negative results and highlight potential limitations of the paper. You will be criticised by the reviewers if you don’t discuss the shortcomings of your research. This often makes up for a great discussion section, so do not be afraid to highlight them.

The results and discussion section of your research paper should include the following:

• Comparison with prior studies
• Limitations of your work
• Casual arguments
• Speculations
• Deductive arguments

1. Findings

From the short review above, key findings emerge: __ We describe the results of __, which show __ This suggests that __ We showed that __ Our findings on __ at least hint that __ This is an important finding in the understanding of the __ The present study confirmed the findings about __ Another promising finding was that __ Our results demonstrated that __ This result highlights that little is known about the __ A further novel finding is that __ Together, the present findings confirm __ The implications of these findings are discussed in __ The results demonstrate two things.  First, __. Second,  __ The results of the experiment found clear support for the __ This analysis found evidence for __ Planned comparisons revealed that __ Our results casts a new light on __ This section summarises the findings and contributions made. It performs well, giving good results. This gives clearly better results than __ The results confirm that this a good choice for __ From the results, it is clear that __ In this section, we will illustrate some experimental results. This delivers significantly better results due to __ The result now provides evidence to __ It leads to good results, even if the improvement is negligible. This yields increasingly good results on data. The result of this analysis is then compared with the  __ The applicability of these new results are then tested on __ This is important to correctly interpret the results. The results are substantially better than __ The results lead to similar conclusion where __ Superior results are seen for __ From these results it is clear that __ Extensive results carried out show that this method improves __ We obtain good results with this simple method. However, even better results are achieved when using our algorithm. It is worth discussing these interesting facts revealed by the results of  __ Overall, our method was the one that obtained the most robust results. Slightly superior results are achieved with our algorithm. The result is equal to or better than a result that is currently accepted.

2. Comparison with prior studies

The results demonstrated in this chapter match state of the art methods. Here we compare the results of the proposed method with those of the traditional methods. These results go beyond previous reports, showing that __ In line with previous studies __ This result ties well with previous studies wherein __ Contrary to the findings of __ we did not find __ They have demonstrated that __ Others have shown that __ improves __ By comparing the results from __, we hope to determine __ However, in line with the ideas of __, it can be concluded that __ When comparing our results to those of older studies, it must be pointed out that __ We have verified that using __ produces similar results Overall these findings are in accordance with findings reported by __ Even though we did not replicate the previously reported __, our results suggest that __ A similar conclusion was reached by __ However, when comparing our results to those of older studies, it must be pointed out __ This is consistent with what has been found in previous __ A similar pattern of results was obtained in __ The findings are directly in line with previous findings These basic findings are consistent with research showing that __ Other results were broadly in line with __

3. Limitations of your work

Because of the lack of __ we decided to not investigate __ One concern about the findings of __ was that __ Because of this potential limitation, we treat __ The limitations of the present studies naturally include __ Regarding the limitations of __, it could be argued that __ Another limitation of this __ This limitation is apparent in many __ Another limitation in __ involves the issue of __ The main limitation is the lack of __ One limitation is found in this case. One limitation of these methods however is that they __ It presents some limitations such as __ Although widely accepted, it suffers from some limitations due to __ An apparent limitation of the method is __ There are several limitations to this approach. One limitation of our implementation is that it is __ A major source of limitation is due to  __ The approach utilised suffers from the limitation that __ The limitations are becoming clear __ It suffers from the same limitations associated with a __

4. Casual arguments

A popular explanation of __ is that __ It is by now generally accepted that __ A popular explanation is that __ As it is not generally agreed that __ These are very small and difficult to observe. It is important to highlight the fact that __ It is notable that __ An important question associated with __ is __ This did not impair the __ This is important because there is __ This implies that __ is associated with __ This is indicative for lack of __ This will not be biased by __ There were also some important differences in __ It is interesting to note that, __ It is unlikely that __ This may alter or improve aspects of __ In contrast, this makes it possible to __ This is particularly important when investigating __ This has been used to successfully account for __ This introduces a possible confound in __ This was included to verify that __

5. Speculations

However, we acknowledge that there are considerable discussions among researchers as to __ We speculate that this might be due to __ There are reasons to doubt this explanation of __ It remains unclear to which degree __ are attributed to __ However, __ does seem to improve __ This does seem to depend on __ It is important to note, that the present evidence relies on __ The results show that __ does not seem to impact the __ However, the extent to which it is possible to __ is unknown Alternatively, it could simply mean that __ It is difficult to explain such results within the context of __ It is unclear whether this is a suitable for __ This appears to be a case of __ From this standpoint, __ can be considered as __ To date, __remain unknown Under certain assumptions, this can be construed as __ Because of this potential limitation, we treat __ In addition, several questions remain unanswered. At this stage of understanding, we believe__ Therefore, it remains unclear whether __ This may explain why __

6. Deductive arguments

A difference between these __ can only be attributable to __ Nonetheless, we believe that it is well justified to __ This may raise concerns about __ which can be addressed by __ As discussed, this is due to the fact that __ Results demonstrate that this is not necessarily true. These findings support the notion that __ is not influenced by __ This may be the reason why we did not find __ In order to test whether this is equivalent across __, we __ Therefore, __ can be considered to be equivalent for __

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Results Section Of A Research Paper: How To Write It Properly

The results section of a research paper refers to the part that represents the study’s core findings from the methods that the researcher used to collect and analyze data. This section presents the results logically without interpretation or bias from the author.

Thus, this part of a research paper sets up the read for evaluation and analysis of the findings in the discussion section. Essentially, this section breaks down the information into several sentences, showing its importance to the research question. Writing results section in a research paper entails summarizing the gathered data and the performed statistical analysis. That way, the author presents or reports the results without subjective interpretation.

What Is The Results Section Of A Research Paper?

In its simplest definition, a research paper results section is where the researcher reports the findings of a study based on the applied methodology for gathering information. It’s the part where the author states the research findings in a logical sequence without interpreting them. If the research paper has data from actual research, this section should feature a detailed description of the results.

When writing a dissertation, a thesis, or any other academic paper, the result section should come third in sections’ sequence. It should follow the Methods and Materials presentation and the Discussion section comes after it. But most scientific papers present the Results and Discussion sections together. However, the results section answers the question, “What did your research uncover?”

Ideally, this section allows you to report findings in research paper, creating the basis for sufficiently justified conclusions. After writing the study findings in the results section, you interpret them in the subsequent discussion part. Therefore, your results section should report information that will justify your claims. That way, you can look back on the results section when writing the discussion part to ensure that your report supports your conclusions.

What Goes in the Results Section of a Research Paper?

This section should present results in research paper. The findings part of a research paper can differ in structure depending on the study, discipline, and journal. Nevertheless, the results section presents a description of the experiment while presenting the research results. When writing this part of your research paper, you can use graphs and tables if necessary.

However, state the findings without interpreting them. For instance, you can find a correlation between variables when analyzing data. In that case, your results section can explain this correlation without speculating about the causes of this correlation.

Here’s what to include in the results section of research paper:

A brief introductory of the context, repeating the research questions to help the readers understand the results A report about information collection, participants, and recruitment: for instance, you can include a demographic summary with the participants’ characteristics A systematic findings’ description, with a logical presentation highlighting relevant and crucial results A contextual data analysis explaining the meaning in sentences Information corresponding to the primary research questions Secondary findings like subgroup analysis and secondary outcomes Visual elements like charts, figures, tables, and maps, illustrating and summarizing the findings

Ensure that your results section cites and numbers visual elements in an orderly manner. Every table or figure should stand alone without text. That means visual elements should have adequate non-textual content to enable the audiences to understand their meanings.

If your study has a broad scope, several variables, or used methodologies that yielded different results, state the most relevant results only based on the research question you presented in your Introduction section.

The general rule is to leave out any data that doesn’t present your study’s direct outcome or findings. Unless the professor, advisor, university faulty, or your target journal requests you to combine the Results and Discussion sections, omit the interpretations and explanations of the results in this section.

How Long Should A Results Section Be?

The findings section of a research paper ranges between two and three pages, with tables, text, and figures. In most cases, universities and journals insist that this section shouldn’t exceed 1,000 words over four to nine paragraphs, usually with no references.

But a good findings section occupies 5% of the entire paper. For instance, this section should have 500 words if a dissertation has 10,000 words. If the educator didn’t specify the number of words to include in this chapter, use the data you collect to determine its length. Nevertheless, be as concise as possible by featuring only relevant results that answer your research question.

How To Write Results Section Of Research Paper

Perhaps, you have completed researching and writing the preceding sections, and you’re now wondering how to write results. By the time you’re composing this section, you already have findings or answers to your research questions. However, you don’t even know how to start a results section. And your search for guidelines landed you on this page.

Well, every research project is different and unique. That’s why researchers use different strategies when writing this section of their research papers. The scientific or academic discipline, specialization field, target journal, and the author are factors influencing how you write this section. Nevertheless, there’s a general way of writing this section, although it might differ slightly between disciplines. Here’s how to write results section in a research paper.

Check the instructions or guidelines. Check their instructions or guidelines first, whether you’re writing the research paper as part of your coursework or for an academic journal. These guidelines outline the requirements for presenting results in research papers. Also, check the published articles to know how to approach this section. When reviewing the procedures, check content restrictions and length. Essentially, learn everything you can about this section from the instructions or guidelines before you start writing. Reflect on your research findings. With instructions and guidelines in mind, reflect on your research findings to determine how to present them in your research paper. Decide on the best way to show the results so that they can answer the research question. Also, strive to clarify and streamline your report, especially with a complex and lengthy results section. You can use subheadings to avoid peripheral and excessive details. Additionally, consider breaking down the content to make it easy for the readers to understand or remember. Your hypothesis, research question, or methodologies might influence the structure of the findings sections. Nevertheless, a hierarchy of importance, chronological order, or meaningful grouping of categories or themes can be an effective way of presenting your findings. Design your visual presentations. Visual presentations improve the textual report of the research findings. Therefore, decide on the figures and styles to use in your tables, graphs, photos, and maps. However, check the instructions and guidelines of your faculty or journal to determine the visual aids you can use. Also, check what the guidelines say about their formats and design elements. Ideally, number the figures and tables according to their mention in the text. Additionally, your figures and tables should be self-explanatory. Write your findings section. Writing the results section of a research paper entails communicating the information you gathered from your study. Ideally, be as objective and factual as possible. If you gathered complex information, try to simplify and present it accurately, precisely, and clearly. Therefore, use well-structured sentences instead of complex expressions and phrases. Also, use an active voice and past tense since you’ve already done the research. Additionally, use correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Take your time to present the findings in the best way possible to focus your readers on your study objectives while preparing them for the coming speculations, interpretations, and recommendations. Edit Your Findings Section. Once you’ve written the results part of your paper, please go through it to ensure that you’ve presented your study findings in the best way possible. Make sure that the content of this section is factual, accurate, and without errors. You’ve taken a considerable amount of time to compose the results scientific paper audiences will find interesting to read. Therefore, take a moment to go through the draft and eliminate all errors.

Practical Tips on How to Write a Results Section of a Research Paper

The results part of a research paper aims to present the key findings objectively in a logical and orderly sequence using text and illustrative materials. A common mistake that many authors make is confusing the information in the discussion and the results sections. To avoid this, focus on presenting your research findings without interpreting them or speculating about them.

The following tips on how to write a results section should make this task easier for you:

Summarize your study results: Instead of reporting the findings in full detail, summarize them. That way, you can develop an overview of the results. Present relevant findings only: Don’t report everything you found during your research. Instead, present pertinent information only. That means taking time to analyze your results to know what your audiences want to know. Report statistical findings: When writing this section, assume that the audiences understand statistical concepts. Therefore, don’t try to explain the nitty-gritty in this section. Remember that your work is to report your study’s findings in this section. Be objective and concise: You can interpret the findings in the discussion sections. Therefore, focus on presenting the results objectively and concisely in this section. Use the suitable format: Use the correct style to present the findings depending on your study field.

Get Professional Help with the Research Section

Maybe you’re pursuing your graduate or undergraduate studies but cannot write the results part of your paper. Perhaps, you’re done researching and analyzing information, but this section proves too tricky for you to write. Well, you’re not alone because many students across the world struggle to present their research findings.

Luckily, our highly educated, talented, and experienced writers are always ready to assist such learners. If you are stuck with the results part of your paper, our professionals can help you . We offer high-quality, custom writing help online. We’re a reliable team of experts with a sterling reputation for providing comprehensive assistance to college, high school, and university learners. We deliver highly informative academic papers after conducting extensive and in-depth research. Contact us saying something like, “please do my thesis” to get quality help with your paper!

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What’s Included: Results Chapter Template

This template covers all the core components required in the results chapter of a typical dissertation, thesis or research project:

• The opening /overview section
• The body section for qualitative studies
• The body section for quantitative studies
• Concluding summary

The purpose of each section is explained in plain language, followed by an overview of the key elements that you need to cover. The template also includes practical examples to help you understand exactly what’s required, along with links to additional free resources (articles, videos, etc.) to help you along your research journey.

The cleanly formatted Google Doc can be downloaded as a fully editable MS Word Document (DOCX format), so you can use it as-is or convert it to LaTeX.

PS – if you’d like a high-level template for the entire thesis, you can we’ve got that too .

FAQ - Thesis Results Chapter

What types of dissertations/theses can this be used for.

The chapter template follows the standard format for academic research projects, which means it will be suitable for the majority of dissertations, theses and research projects (especially those within the sciences). Recommended structures are provided for both qualitative and quantitative studies.

Keep in mind that the exact requirements for the results chapter/section will vary between universities and degree programs. For example, your university may require that the results chapter and discussion chapter are merged into one (this is more common for qualitative studies). So, be sure to double-check your university’s requirements before you finalize your structure.

Is this template for an undergrad, Master or PhD-level thesis?

This template can be used for a dissertation, thesis or research project at any level of study. Doctoral-level projects typically require a lengthier write-up, but the structure will typically remain the same. Again, be sure to check your university’s requirements and norms in terms of document structure.

How long should the results chapter be?

This can vary a fair deal, depending on the level of study (undergrad, Master or Doctoral), the field of research, as well as your university’s specific requirements. Therefore, it’s best to check with your university or review past dissertations from your program to get an accurate estimate.

Can I share this template with my friends/colleagues?

Yes, you’re welcome to share this template in its original format (no editing allowed). If you want to post about it on your blog or social media, please reference this page as your source.

What format is the template (DOC, PDF, PPT, etc.)?

The thesis results chapter template is provided as a Google Doc. You can download it in MS Word format or make a copy to your Google Drive. You’re also welcome to convert it to whatever format works best for you, such as LaTeX or PDF.

Do you have templates for the other chapters?

Yes, we do. We are constantly developing our collection of free resources to help students complete their dissertations and theses. You can view all of our template resources here .

Can Grad Coach help me with my results and/or analysis?

Yes, we can provide coaching-based assistance with your qualitative, quantitative or mixed-method analysis. Get in touch to discuss our private coaching services .

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Police escort from Cleveland to New York for body of Officer Jamieson Ritter

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The body of fallen Cleveland Police Officer Jamieson Ritter was brought back to Rochester from Cleveland this week to be laid to rest during a moving and solemn police escort and procession.

Ritter, 27, was killed in the line of duty on the Fourth of July, having been gunned down serving a warrant.

What You Need To Know

A police escort was held for the body of officer jamieson ritter from cleveland to webster webster native jamieson ritter was killed in the line of duty on the fourth of july while working as a cleveland police officer the calling hours will held at the falvo funeral home in webster on friday from 4 to 8 p.m. a funeral service is planned for saturday at 10 a.m. at browncroft community church in penfield.

Ritter’s police partner said during the funeral service held in Cleveland Monday that Ritter often talked about his family back home in New York and about how he wanted to eventually return to his hometown of Webster.

But this is the last way he would have wanted to come home.

Deputy Chief of Brighton’s Fire Department Ted Aroesty was among the many EMS personnel on hand for the arrival of Officer Ritter’s remains.

“Police, EMS and fire is all just one collective organization when it comes to situations like this," Aroesty said. "And this is an opportunity for us to show our love and comradery for the family that’ll be coming through.”

Ritter grew up in Webster. He graduated from McQuaid Jesuit High School in Brighton in 2015 and is a 2019 Syracuse University graduate. He was a member of SU’s Army ROTC program and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army National Guard. 

“Officer Ritter dedicated much of his young life in service to others," Syracuse said in a statement.

People from the community came out to be there for Ritter as his remains were escorted home, particularly those from the EMS community.

“We have every bridge overpass that the procession will be going through covered from the thruway all the way through to Webster," Aroesty said. "And we want the family to know that we’re here to give them an emotional hug as they come along."

Ritter’s parents and three siblings attended a service for Ritter held in Cleveland on Monday – a church packed with law enforcement.

Ritter’s father, Jon Ritter, is a retired Greece police officer.

Officer Ritter’s partner spoke during the service.

“He was my best friend, my brother, and the absolute epitome of a police officer," Cleveland Patrol Officer Brittany Vajusi said. "And for all he gave to everyone that he knew and didn’t know the least we can ever do to give back to him is to remember and to share his legacy forever."

The procession came to an end at the funeral home in his hometown where calling hours will take place.

Even there, more people gathered to pay respects to the man the Cleveland Division of Police states served our city with distinction and pride.

The EMS community making sure to their fallen brother’s family knows they have support.

“Whenever they look around and see someone from the emergency services they know that we’re here with them,” said Aroesty.

The calling hours will held at the Falvo Funeral Home in Webster on Friday from 4 to 8 p.m.

A funeral service is planned for Saturday at 10 a.m. at Browncroft Community Church in Penfield.

European Championship

Euro 2024 final: Spain vs England – your ultimate tactical guide

After 28 days of drama and more than 80 hours of football, 24 teams have been filtered down to two. There is only one more game to play.

Spain and England prepare for battle at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on Sunday evening , meeting for the first time since 2018 to fight for the European Championship title — and there are some thrilling narratives to sift through.

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How do you stop Spain’s relentless wingers Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams ? Have England become predictably unpredictable? Can you cut off Spain’s supply at source? England substitutions…. discuss.

The Athletic profiles the finalists’ strengths and weaknesses, the key battles, and the many sub-plots in your definitive tactical guide to the Euro 2024 final.

No one can begrudge Spain making it to the final.

After their 2-1 semi-final victory over France , Luis de la Fuente’s side became the first nation to win six matches in a single edition of the European Championships. They needed extra time against Germany but have otherwise dispatched each opponent in 90 minutes with the authority of ‘un viejo’ (an old man) swatting a fly away from his tapas.

With nine different goalscorers, Spain’s attacking threat has come from all over the pitch but it is clear where they possess the most danger.

Williams and Yamal have lit up this tournament on either flank, with their purposeful running and relentless dribbling dragging their side forward with their counter-attacking threat. The dynamic duo are responsible for 46 per cent of Spain’s total attempted take-ons this tournament.

The prodigious Yamal became the youngest scorer in European Championship history (16 years, 362 days) after his incredible semi-final goal against France.

It was a strike that could easily win goal of the tournament and you cannot say that France were not warned. Y amal’s tendency to cut inside onto his stronger left foot and curl a shot to the far post has become Arjen Robben-esque — you know what he is about to do but stopping it is another task altogether.

LAMINE YAMAL 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 An absolute screamer from the 16-year-old! #BBCEuros #Euro2024 #ESPFRA pic.twitter.com/z4AaZwwWJp — BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 9, 2024

This was UNREAL from 16-year-old Lamine Yamal 😱😱 Spain fans are going to remember this one forever ⬇️🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/BN52vdSrhL — FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 9, 2024

And here he is doing that a few times for Spain as an even younger child…

2023: Lamine Yamal finishes top scorer at #U17EURO with four goals. 2024: Lamine Yamal scores a worldie in the #EURO2024 semi-final. What a talent 👏🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/IRJignOqCA — UEFA U17 EURO (@UEFAUnder21) July 9, 2024

Beyond his shooting, Yamal’s creative threat has stood out the most. No Spanish player has logged more than his 11 open-play chances created and it is his wicked delivery to the back post that has consistently posed a threat.

Perfection, by Lamine Yamal

Against France, Fabian Ruiz should have done better from Yamal’s inviting cross but those whipped balls have become a trademark of the teenager — if that is even possible at his tender age — having assisted two goals using the same technique. He consistently cuts onto his stronger foot in the left channel or half-space and delivers a perfectly weighted ball to the oncoming team-mate crashing the box.

Opponents should not be surprised, given the near-identical deliveries he has provided for his club Barcelona across the past 12 months.

While Yamal received the plaudits for his performance on the right wing on Tuesday, it is down the left flank that Spain have most commonly channelled their attack this summer.

Against France, 59 per cent of their attacking touches came in the left third of the pitch — the second-highest share of any Euro 2024 game — with Spain seeing a notable tilt in their approach across the tournament. While 30 per cent of their overall attacking touches have come from Yamal’s right flank, 45 per cent have come down the left.

Why? Well, largely due to the attacking attributes on each side of the pitch. Where Yamal thrives off facing his opponent up in a one-v-one situation, Williams has been excellent at combining with left-back Marc Cucurella to overload their opponents on that side.

This is shown neatly in Spain’s passing network from their semi-final clash with France.

The rotations between Williams and Cucurella have been crucial to Spain’s attack. Sometimes, it will be the 21-year-old isolating his opposite number in the left channel (white) as Cucurella occupies the left half-space (red)…

…while other times, the pair will switch, as Cucurella hugs the touchline and Williams offers a penetrative run in behind between the opposition full-back and centre-back.

How can England stop Spain’s danger in wide areas?

In short, with great difficulty. England’s flexibility to shift to a back five in their quarter-final and semi-final clashes will be crucial as they look to condense the space across the width of the field.

In particular, Bukayo Saka ’s energy will be required to protect England’s right side against Spain’s left-sided rotations. Saka came in for praise from his manager for his defensive discipline against the Netherlands on Wednesday evening, shifting his role out of possession according to the tactical tweaks made by the Dutch.

“The players made so many good decisions on the field,” Southgate said after the game.

“People like Bukayo Saka; the defensive responsibility he had. He started defending as a wing-back, then he had to go into midfield to defend, then he had to defend as a winger. There was so many things like that going on all night but I was really pleased with the quality of our play.”

Communication with Kyle Walker was crucial to such defensive discipline against the Netherlands. As shown below, Saka drops into a back five before Walker directs him to jump out to close Dutch midfielder Joey Veerman — allowing Walker to shuffle across to Cody Gakpo and retain England’s back four.

It is a simple yet vital action to ensure that the opposition does not progress further. You can easily substitute this situation out for Cucurella and Williams.

By the same token, England should be empowered to attack Spain’s left flank and target Cucurella’s defensive frailties — especially with the attacking prowess that Saka has shown in this tournament.

Cucurella has had a decent summer in a Spain shirt but has not been convincing at club level since making the move to Chelsea from Brighton in 2022. Of the chances that Spain have conceded, 42 per cent have come down their left flank compared with 24 per cent down their right — and the 25-year-old has often been the weak link, whether it is defending back-post crosses, including Spain’s concessions against Germany and France…

…or failing to block crosses himself from his own flank.

With nearly every England player having faced Cucurella in the Premier League , they will be familiar with his shortcomings out of possession. Preying upon them would be a decision that could prove lucrative.

Spain’s wingers have grabbed the headlines but their midfield engine has allowed them to hit top gear.

The partnership of Rodri and Ruiz has been near-perfect, giving freedom to Pedri and — more recently — Dani Olmo to pick up pockets of space between the lines.

Rodri is a man operating at the peak of his powers in the past 18 months, with a consistency that is so impressive that we are in danger of taking it for granted. Spain’s No 16 has made 403 passes in this tournament with a completion rate of 94 per cent. Let that sink in.

Coupled with the box-crashing, technical quality of Ruiz, Rodri has the capacity to catalyse the attack or act as the release valve under pressure — scaling up or down however he sees fit.

Breaking down Spain’s open-play shot-ending sequences, you can be confident that this formidable pair will have their fingerprints on their nation’s attack at some stage.

Therefore, stopping that midfield pairing will go a long way to stopping Spain’s fluid approach at source.

How might England do that? Well, Germany provided a decent blueprint in the first half of their quarter-final clash, with midfielders Ilkay Gundogan and Emre Can going man-for-man on Rodri and Fabian Ruiz during Spain’s build-up — preventing the pair from dictating the play.

There were countless examples where Germany pressed aggressively to ensure that neither received the ball in their own third. This forced the Spain goalkeeper Unai Simon to frequently launch the ball long, often conceding possession in the process.

If England can maintain similar discipline across the full game — potentially dropping Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden on the Spanish midfielders — it could prevent Spain’s engine from purring.

The issue is that De la Fuente’s side have a double threat in their approach. Step off them and they can look after possession for long periods. Try to get tight to them and they can punish you with their directness in wide areas.

Spain might be the standout favourites but England will arrive in Berlin as the more experienced nation in recent major tournaments.

The Spanish have not reached the final of the Euros since they won it in 2012 while Southgate has made it back-to-back finals and England are looking to overcome the disappointment of their loss to Italy in 2021.

A diplomatic appraisal would be that England have been confusing this summer. There have been flashes of cohesion in possession — particularly in the first half against the Dutch — but the overriding conclusion has been that Southgate’s side have shown strengths in individual moments rather than their general performance.

The speed of England’s forward play has been a huge source of frustration among fans and the numbers support their grievances.

Here, we can look at each nation’s “direct speed”, which outlines how fast they typically advance the ball towards goal (in metres per second). A higher number indicates a team more willing to get the ball forward quickly. Additionally, we can explore how much a team likes to keep hold of the ball when they have it, measured by “passes per sequence”. More passes per sequence suggests a more considered build-up: knocking the ball around more during a given possession rather than a quick hoof upfield.

Comparing England’s style to the remaining 23 teams, their approach in possession has been careful, risk-averse and lacking in bite for much of the tournament.

A high-possession style does not have to be a bad thing but England have not matched their on-ball dominance with attacking threat. Among all last-16 nations, only Romania and Georgia (0.7 per 90) averaged a lower non-penalty expected goals than England’s 0.72 per 90.

The highest nation on the list? That would be Spain, generating chances worthy of 1.8 goals per 90 across their six games.

Southgate’s tactical acumen has been questioned at times but his tweak to England’s system has provided a greater foundation in the past two games — particularly given the mixed efficacy of their pressing high up the field.

A move to a 3-4-2-1 has suited Saka, Foden and Bellingham in particular, with greater balance in attacks and greater protection in defence.

England's change of shape against Switzerland worked - to a point - thanks to Bukayo Saka

Where things have still not quite clicked is with Harry Kane . England’s captain scored the crucial equaliser against the Netherlands, notching his sixth goal in the knockout stages of this tournament — more than any other player in European Championship history.

Notwithstanding his world-class quality in front of goal, Kane’s fitness and form has come under greater scrutiny considering the impact of Ollie Watkins on Wednesday evening.

At the risk of cherry-picking examples, it is Kane’s lack of inclination to run in behind that allows the opposition to squeeze the pitch at times. In the example below, Kane shimmies towards Bellingham on the ball (white arrow) despite a gap opening up between Virgil van Dijk and Nathan Ake (black arrow/area).

The situation is different but Watkins’ desire to run beyond the last line is not only crucial to his goal but it gives Cole Palmer the option to make that pass — running into space to stretch the opposition defence. Kane does not make those kinds of runs.

Kane is certainly not going to be dropped for the final but England might need both options to be true against Spain — a player who can drop in and overload central areas, but also a player who can stretch the defence.

Southgate’s substitutions have drawn scrutiny this summer — in both selection and timing.

Ultimately, his decisions have been validated in recent games. Ivan Toney ’s late arrival proved crucial for England’s equaliser against Slovakia while the introduction of Palmer and Watkins was an inspired choice as the two combined for England’s winner against Netherlands.

That being said, the numbers don’t lie. Southgate has not given ample opportunity for his substitutions to settle into the game, with an average substitution time of 80 minutes being the second-latest of the sides to make it beyond the group stage.

This is particularly telling when considering that a lot of this time has been when England have been in a losing or drawing game state. Southgate’s side have spent just 22 per cent of the time in a winning game-state, compared with Spain’s 58 per cent — the highest of any nation. If things are not going to plan in Berlin, Southgate’s form suggests he is more likely to stick than twist.

Gareth Southgate has plenty of options on the bench - why is he so slow to use them?

Sure, England have not been free-flowing or convincing for a full game across the whole tournament, but maybe that is OK. In a contest where the margins are tight and individual quality counts for a lot, pragmatism can actually go a long way.

At club level, you only need to look as far as Champions League winners Real Madrid to know that having a rigid structure in and out of possession can be overrated in knockout football.

A closing thought on Sunday’s final would be to credit both managers’ commitment to their respective national set-up from the youth team to the national side.

De la Fuente coached Spain to the European Championship title at under-19 level (2016) and under-21 level (2019), and has the opportunity to complete a hat-trick with his senior squad. Meanwhile, Southgate’s commitment to the English FA dates back to 2013, leading England under-21s in the 2015 European Championship before his promotion to the senior set-up in 2016.

Both managers have been crucial to the promotion of youth within their national set-up and should be celebrated for the talent on show in Sunday’s final.

May the best team win.

(Photos: Getty Images/Design: Eamonn Dalton)

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Mark Carey is a Data Analyst for The Athletic. With his background in research and analytics, he will look to provide data-driven insight across the football world. Follow Mark on Twitter @ MarkCarey93