Research Paper Writing: Finding Helpful Information

Research papers express the writer's complied thoughts after analyzing their research, generally after evaluating their collected resources and references.

Although they're designed to help teach others and the writer, they're not merely reports. Research papers are typically written as argumentative research papers (argues thesis statement) and analytical research papers (questions thesis statement).

One of the most important parts of preparing a research paper involves researching several sources, a process that is relatively straightforward. Most instructors usually want students to research several resources at at time, usually three, to provide more than one source of information about their paper's subject.

Finding helpful information

Research papers use several sources of information to compile a complete paper: books, periodicals, the web and other research papers. Many of these references can be found in several places, most commonly libraries, organizations related to the research paper's subject and websites.

Finding helpful information is a matter of getting information that's credible. Credible, good references are often gained from a reputable resource, aren't biased or out of date, properly cite the information presented and remain free of errors. They're also easy for others to access on their own.

Library research

Many research papers derive information from references collected in a library, either through books, periodicals and library-restricted online resources. Libraries usually have access to certain resources otherwise unaccessible at home, such as web resources, that patrons can only access through the library with their personal library card number.

Web research

Information can also be found on the web, provided patrons know how to search the web. Specialized keywords, generally those related to the research paper's subject, and search engine tools are best for narrowing down pages of information to the essentials in many search engines.

Research can also be conducted using a subject portal, a web portal that leads to a 'small' amount of information on the web. They usually serve as educational portals that compile links from many academic resources on the web.

Alternative research

Alternatively, students can find helpful information by interviewing people who may provide relevant information for their research paper. Conducting a hands-on interview can potentially get a student information they wouldn't be able to find on the web or in printed materials. It also allows them to have an authoritative and live reference for their research paper.

As expressed here, students planning to start work on their research papers have several starting points to find helpful information.

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