Writing an abstract
The general purpose of an abstract is to inform the reader about the essential content
of a longer publication that follows, typically a research paper. It gives a first
impression of the paper and should help the reader to quickly ascertain its purpose,
content and usefulness. Therefore, an abstract reports on the what, why and how of a
study:
What did the author(s) (= you) do, and how? (research focus, methodology)
Why did the author(s) carry out the study or project the research paper reports
on? (motivation, research questions)
What did the author(s) find out? (results/findings)
What do the findings mean? (interpretation, conclusion)
An abstract is rather short (approx. 100-250 words), not structured into sections, and
typically appears at the beginning of the paper it informs about. It may also occur as
a stand-alone unit instead of a full paper. It is thus a self-contained piece of writing
which can be understood independently from the publication it comes with.
The author of an abstract should demonstrate the ability to extract and provide
essential information in an exhaustive and compelling way.
Your abstract should be at least 150 words long, but not exceed 250 words.
Make it clear to an outsider what the research paper is about. The reader
must be able to understand the abstract without reading (the rest of) the
paper, so make it complete enough to stand on its own. Ask yourself: Is
my abstract comprehensible for somebody who does not know the
paper?
Use keywords that are important and frequently used in the paper.
Note that your own opinion or evaluation is not part of an abstract.
Thus, avoid personal statements and comments.