Module 5
PREPARATION OF THE RESEARCH REPORT
Meaning
A research report is a presentation of the research findings, in the form of a report and it is necessary part of the
research process. Reporting is the end product of the research work.
Definition
According to William G. Zikmund “A research report is an oral presentation or a written statement that has the
purpose of communicating research findings, recommendations for courses of action, other findings to
management or other specific audiences”.
Functions of research report
• It serves as means to place the problem, data analysis, findings and conclusions in an organized and
permanent form. A systematic record of research will serve as an essential reference for future research.
• The research report helps to know the quality of the work done by the researcher. The report is the
manifestation of the researcher’s skill and presentation.
• The report help the policy makers to take appropriate action and policy. It can be done only if the report is
presented in an organized and systematic manner.
Types of report
To be prepared based on the background of the potential audience, their total research situation and their
technical background and knowledge.
1. Oral Report
• It is the presentation of information through spoken words.
• It can create interactive environment where there is a give and take information.
2. Written report
• Most common kind of report.
• On the basis of function it can be classified into:
Informational report
Examination report
Analytical report
• Informational report: it is a mere factual report without any analysis or conclusion.
• Examination report: report that analyses the fact.
• Analysis report: it goes one more step. It analyses the report and also gives recommendations and
conclusions
On the basis of relationship between reader and the writer it can be classified into:
• Administrative report: written by the member of the same organization to which it is submitted.
• Professional report: written by person from outside the organization.
• Independent report: which is prepared to be published for the benefit of general public.
Major classification of written report
• Popular report: these are reports that are presented in simple manner where the target audience is not
interested in the technical aspects or methodology of the study. They encourage in rapid reading, quick
understanding of the findings and proper grasp of the implication of the study.
• Technical report: these are presented for specialist who are interested in understanding the technical
aspects of research methodology and research findings. They are interested in hypothesis of the study,
logical and statistical details that led to conclusions.
Format or layout of research report.
It consist of three parts. They are:
A. The preliminaries
I. The title page: the title should reflect the content. It should be as short as possible and include essential
key words. It should show
a. The title of the research report
b. Name of the researcher
c. Name of the person to whom the report was prepared.
II. Letter of transmittal: it may include the purpose of conducting the study by the researcher, scope and
general nature of research and acknowledgement.
III. Acknowledgement: it recognizes the persons to whom the writer is in-debt for guidance and assistance
during the study and credit institutions for providing funds to implement the study or the use of
personnel, facilitates and other resources.
IV. Letter of authorization: this is the letter given to the researcher authorizing him to do the investigation
on a particular business problem.
V. Table of contents: it is prepared to show an analytical view of the material included in the study. It
includes the major divisions of the thesis such as introduction, chapters with their sub sections,
bibliography and appendix.
VI. List of tables: it should be centered on a separate page. Different numbers are to be assigned to each
table.
VII. List of figures: the list of figures appears in the same form as the list of tables.
B. The text: it is the most important part of the thesis. This explains everything related to the study. It
consist of the following.
I. Abstract: it should describe the topic, the scope, the principal findings, and the conclusions. It should be
written last to reflect accurately the content of the report. The primary objective of an abstract is to
Communicate the reader the essence of the paper.
II. Introduction: the nature of the problem and why it is of interest should be conveyed in the opening
paragraphs. A clear relationship between the current project and the scope and limitations of earlier
work should be made.
III. Research procedure: the methodology describes what was actually done. It includes the basic design,
experimental manipulations, method of data collection, asked questions, experience of interviewer etc…
IV. Results: in this section, relevant data, observations and findings are summarized. Tabulation of data,
equations, charts and figures can be used effectively to present results clearly and concisely.
V. Discussions: it include the analysis and interpretation of the results.
VI. Conclusion and summary: it outlines the main conclusion of the project. Directions for future work are
also suitably expressed.
C. The reference materials: it should be written at the end of the report. All references should be checked
against the original [Link] include: Bibliography, Appendix/ Appendices, Index (if any).
Planning report writings
a. Organization or structure: the first phase in a research is ordering the parts and planning in witting. It is
done after collecting the data and analysis. It is the base of preparing the research report. The researcher is
required to plan how to arrange his ideas in a logical and sequential order.
b. Write up: writing of report is precisely requires a careful choice of the words which will serve to convey
exact meaning. The report should be clear. The clarity of the report is depend upon the language command
of the writer, his knowledge about facts and techniques and the data and documentation.
c. Documentation: final step in planning the report writing. Here the researcher gives more focus on the
contents to be added in the report. He decides how to structure the report and also the layout of the report.
Contents of research report
1. Introduction: it is the statement of the problem or project. It explains why you are studying it. The
introduction leads to the subject matter by giving necessary background of the report.
In the introductory part the researcher deals with the following:
• The nature of the problem
• The scope of the study
• The reason for the study and its place within the theoretical context.
Introduction must be written with due care to fulfil the dual objectives:
To introduce the problem with suitable context
To arouse the readers interest.
The introductory part should contain the following.
General purpose of the study
Justification of the study
Preview of the organization
Concise statement on the sources of the data.
2. Statement of the problem.
• The research report starts with the statement of the problem on which study is focused.
• The researcher should give enough evidence to the reader, why he has selected such problem for the study.
• It should mention the hypothesis of the study if any and the definitions of major concepts.
• It should explain the scope of the study and point out the limits or limitations in study in clear terms.
3. Research methodology
• It simply means the technical aspects of the study in detail.
• It explains how the study was carried out.
• It should mention: the basic design of the study, the nature of samples selected, the data collection
technique and the statistical tools for analysis.
4. Facts presentation
• It simply means the data and its analysis.
• The data collected by the researcher should be classified in to tables, charts, diagrams and so on.
• It will help to provide better analysis and interpretation regarding the data so collected by the researcher.
5. The findings
• The findings are the important part of the research report.
• It may be positive or negative.
• It should be simple and understandable.
• It should be in a sequence order.
• It should be clear and precise
6. The inference
• It explains the implication of the study.
• It includes:
• A statement which shows the inferences drawn from the findings that can be applied for similar
circumstances.
• Features of samples and its differences with its population.
• Should include the new problems arise out from the study.
7. The conclusion
• It is the final assessment about the data collected and findings.
• Conclusions are drawn from the evidence, analysis, interpretation and evaluation presented in the report.
8. Recommendations
• These are the suggestions put forward by the researcher on the basis of the study. It may be acceptable
or not. Sometimes it may not be correct.
9. Summary or abstract
• It is the outline of the problem, the procedures, the major findings and the major conclusions drawn
from the study.
Report writing stages
1. Understanding the report brief.
The researcher must be confident that he understands the purpose of the report as describe in the report brief
or instructions.
2. Gathering material and data
Once the researcher has a clear picture about the purpose of the report, he needs to begin to gather
relevant information. All material required to write the report should be collected. How much
information the researcher will need is depend on how much detail is needed in the report.
3. Make overall report format
The researcher should make an overall format of the research report before starting to write the first
draft of the report. He should consider the following at the time of making an overall format of the
report:
Heading
Introduction to the problem
Methodology used for study
Way the report is to be presented
Conclusions
4. Make a detailed outline: The materials should be organized into suitable sections and headings. The
outline organizes and prioritizes information in preparation for writing. The three pars are introduction,
body and conclusion. The following structure can be adopted for the same:
Introduce the main ideas of the study
Explain and expand the idea
Present relevant evidence to support our points.
Comment on each piece of evidence showing how it relates to our points.
Conclude the chapter
5. Drafting the report
Various defects may occur while writing the research report. To make the research scientific and
attractive, the report has to be written in three times. The three steps involved in the actual write up of
the report are first, second and final draft.
The first draft is written for the following purpose
To avoid blank paper fright
To attain overall balance of the report
To knit the material together for clearing the connections between facts.
The second draft should start by revising the first draft. Here the researcher should concentrate more on
the form and language in the report. The following tips must be kept in mind while making second draft of the
report.
Make the research design simple
Give emphasis on points in method, facts and finding
Use simple words
Eliminate repetition of ideas
Make the report clear as possible
Read and re-read the draft.
The third draft is the final report. It is easier to rewrite and re arrange sections or paragraphs in this
stage. It mainly concentrate on the final touch
6. Editing the final draft
After preparing the final draft, it is to be printed or typed. Before typing, it should be edited thoroughly.
It is the responsibility of the writer to see that the final draft is free from spelling mistakes and
grammatical error. There should be proper punctuations, capitalization, hyphenation and abbreviations.
7. Documentation
It is done for the following purpose’
To support the facts presented by the researcher
Enable the researcher to acknowledge to others who have helped them for investigation.
To indicate the differences in views, facts and findings.
It helps the reader to get additional information.
8. Final word processing and publishing
Here the researcher uses word processing and publishing programs for making the report writing process
complete. It will help the researcher to make changes easily. It is also easy to share and store word
processing files electronically. It can be retrieve whenever is neded.