論文寫作公開課系列9

BostonShanghaiNNOOTTIICCEE::

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aanndd

CCoonnffiiddeennttiiaallThe

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was

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accompanying

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the

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incomplete

as

a

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the

presentation.

This

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contains

information

and

methodology

descriptions

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the

use

of

client

personnel.

No

partof

it

may

becirculated,

quoted,

or

reproduced

for

distribution

outside

this

client

without

the

prior

written

approval

of

Accdon

LLC.Copyright

?

2013

Accdon

LLC,All

RightsReservedPerspectives

on

Research

Publicationin

English-Language

JournalsPatrick

A.

Cabe,

Ph.D.University

of

North

Carolina

at

PembrokeOverviewHow

get

a

paper

published:

Main

principlesStart

with

a

good

ideaCreate

logical

a

research

designPresent

your

work

clearlyWrite

competentlyFollowjournal

requirementsWork

with

the

publication

processWhereprofessionalediting

canhelp2Start

witha

good

idea3Start

with

a

good

ideaA

good

idea

is

important

Historical

importance

–

research

topic

seen

asimportant

over

many

years,

but

still

not

completelysettled

Theoretical

importance

–

research

tests

sometheoretical

proposition,

especially

if

the

test

canfalsify

the

theory

Practical

importance

–

research

helps

solve

somesignificant

practical

problem4Start

with

a

good

ideaA

good

idea

is

originalAdvances

theory

(maybe

falsifies

it)Fills

an

empirical

gapIntroduces

new

methodology5Start

with

a

good

ideaStart

with

a

good

ideaPlagiarism

is

NOT

originality

!!!Plagiarism

means

presenting

another

author’swork

as

your

ownABSOLUTE

RULE:NEVER,

NEVER,

EVER

PLAGIARIZE!!6A

good

idea

is

SuRpRiSiNg!!Surprising

results…Are

counter-intuitive,unexpectedGive

new

perspectives

on

old

ideasChallenge

common

wisdomFalsify

theoryDemonstrate

unexpected

constraintsStart

with

a

good

idea7Create

logicalresearch

designs8Logical

research

designLogical

research

design9Logical

design

shows

logical

hypothesis

developmentLogical

connections

to

theoryLogical

demonstration

of

a

gap

to

be

filledLogical

statement

forms:?“if…then”?“because…therefore”

Logical

connections

of

research

question

tohypothesesLogical

research

design10Logical

designs

show

logical

operationalizationsOperationalization:Defining

abstract

constructs

as

concrete,

measurablevariablesArgumentssupportLogical

operationalizations

of

IVsLogical

operationalizations

of

DVsLogical

connections

to

data

collection

proceduresLogical

research

design11Logical

designs

use

logical

methodsLogical

participant

samplingPopulation

sampledSamplingmethodsSample

sizesLogical

apparatus,

materials

choicesLogical

research

proceduresClear

presentations12Present

your

work

clearlyTo

readers,

clear

presentation

shows

clear

thinkingClear

presentations

show

clear

structure

and

logical

flowStandard

structure

(IMRAD)IntroductionMethodsResultsAndDiscussionClear

logical

flow…..

in

research

question

development…from

methods

to

research

questions…from

methods

to

results…from

results

to

discussion13Clear

presentationsClear

presentations

show

clearmethodsAdequate

detail

about…Anything

affecting

data

collection√

Participants√

Apparatus√

ProceduresAnything

special

about

data

analysis14Clear

presentationsWriting

competently15Write

competentlyTo

readers,

poor

writing

maysuggest

poor

thinkingCompetent

writing

is

correct

writingNo

grammar

errorsNo

spelling

errorsNo

punctuation

errors(more

on

this

later…)16Writing

competentlyCompetent

writing

is

clear

writingClear

writing

shows

clear

organizationClear

writing

tends

to

use…short

sentencesshort

paragraphsClear

writing

avoids

unnecessary

jargonClear

writing

is

economical

(avoids

wordiness)17Writing

competentlyCompetent

writing

is

precise

writingPrecise

writing…defines

termslimits

abbreviation

usePrecise

writingprovides

explicit

argumentsgives

explicit

explanationsavoids

ambiguouswording18Writing

competentlyFollow

journal

requirementsEditors

and

reviewers

expect

this

and

it

is

totallyunder

your

control!19Follow

journal

requirementsFollow

journal

requirements20Follow

journal

requirements

for:ContentTopicsResearch

scopeArticle

type

(empirical,

review,

etc.)LengthTitleAbstractEntire

manuscriptFollow

journal

requirements21Follow

journal

requirements

for:FormatMargins,

paragraph

indentations,

line

spacingFontsHeadingsStyleText

reference

citationsReference

listLots

of

others:

check

the

journal

websiteFollowing

journal

requirements

improvesacceptance

probabilityFollow

journal

requirements22Editors

reject

manuscripts

solely

for

defects

in…ContentInappropriate

for

the

journalScope

too

limitedLength,

format,

and

styleManuscript

too

longNotconforming

to

standard

style

manualsNot

conforming

to

specific

journal

style

requirementsLanguageUnclear

writingLanguage

errors

–

grammar,

spelling,

punctuation,

etc.Don’t

rely

on

spelling,

grammar

checkers

to

catch

errors!!Follow

journal

requirementsExample:A

statement

from

Elsevier,

a

major

journal

publisherEditors

evaluate

all

manuscripts

first.

Manuscriptsrejected

at

this

stage

are

either

insufficiently

originaor

have

scientific

flaws,

poor

grammar/English

language,

or

are

outside

the

aims

and

scope

of

thejournal.

Failure

to

follow

the

Guide

for

Authors

andthe

article

structure

will

result

in

the

manuscriptbeing

returned

to

the

author.This

is

called

a

desk

rejection

–a

rejection

without

review23Example

of

an

actual

desk

rejection:“Although

the

topic

of

your

paper

might

be

of

interest

to

readersthere

are

a

number

of

issues

that

need

to

be

addressed

in

themanuscript

before

I

can

even

send

it

out

for

review

so

I

am

unable

to

consideryour

manuscript

for

publication.“The

quality

of

writing

of

this

paper

is

well

below

the

standardsaccepted

in

<our

journal>.

At

times

I

found

it

difficult

to

understandyour

logic

which

makes

it

especially

difficult

to

evaluate

theempirical

merit

and

contribution

of

your

paper

.…

I

also

foundmisspelled

words,

oddly

worded

subheadings…,

and

otherformatting

issues

that

do

notappear

to

be

language-based

errors.”24Follow

journal

requirementsExample

of

an

actual

desk

rejection:“Although

the

topic

of

your

paper

might

be

of

interest

to

readersthere

are

a

number

of

issues

that

need

to

be

addressed

in

themanuscript

before

I

can

even

send

it

out

for

review

so

I

amunabletoconsider

your

manuscript

for

publication.“The

quality

ofwriting

of

this

paper

is

well

below

the

standardsaccepted

in

<our

journal>.

At

times

I

found

it

difficult

tounderstand

your

logic

which

makes

it

especially

difficult

toevaluate

the

empirical

merit

and

contribution

of

your

paper

…

I

alsofound

misspelled

words,

oddly

worded

subheadings…,

andother

formatting

issues

that

donot

appear

to

be

language-basederrors.”25Follow

journal

requirementsWriting

a

researchmanuscript26Gather

your

writing

toolsTarget

journal

guidelines,

recent

articlesDisciplinary

style

manual

(e.g.,

APA,

AMA,

ICMJE)Dictionaries

(standard,

specialized)Thesaurus,

synonym

finderGeneralgrammar

and

usage

guidesWriting

your

manuscript27Plan

aheadPlan

content:

Make

an

outlineLogical

development

of

the

IntroductionElements

of

the

MethodsStructure

the

Results

sectionOrganization

of

the

DiscussionPlan

supplements:

Tables

and

figuresWhat

to

put

in

themHow

to

construct

themPlan

documentation:

Gather

needed

references28Writing

your

manuscriptContents:

What

toput

in

yourpapers29Title

The

title

is

the

first

filter

readers

use

todecide

whether

to

read

a

paperAim

forClarityInformativenessBrevity

(typically,

12

–

15

words)A

generic

title:The

effect

of

variable

X

on

variable

Y,

underconditions

C1…Cn,

for

population

PTitle

examples30Weaker

title…Stronger

title…On

the

generality

of

the

laws

oflearningPreparedness:

Evolutionary

biases

onstimuli,

rewards,

and

conditions

forlearningP"Structure

of

the

Earth’s

inner

corefrom

seismic

P’

wave

reflectionsRapid

detection

of

X

gene

inPseudomoas

aeruginosa

using

YmethodRapid

identification

of

antibiotic-resistant

Pseudomonas

aeruginosastrains

by

Y-mediated

detection

of

XHaptic

distance-to-break

in

thepresence

of

frictionHaptic

perceptual

learning

effects

onprediction

of

simulated

laparoscopictissue

breakage

with

varyingresistance

and

frictionWriting

your

manuscriptContents:

What

toput

in

yourpapers31Abstract

The

abstract

is

the

second

filter

readers

us

todecide

whether

to

read

a

paperObjective:

To

amplify

titleUse

the

same

flow

as

the

paper

itselfAvoid…Excessive

detail

(example:

statistics)Undefined

abbreviationsLiterature

citations

Length:

Stay

within

journal

word

limits(typically,

about

150

–

250

words)IntroductionUse

the

funnel

plan(Flow:

broad

to

specific

elements)Emphasize

connections

to

theoryReview

relevant

literatureDefine

an

empirical

gap

to

be

filledState

a

clear

research

questionDerive

testable

hypothesesOperationalize

hypotheses

in

Methods(apparatus,

procedures)Writing

your

manuscriptBroad

problem

statement32IntroductionFocus:

Logical

development

of

research

questions“If…then”

statements

show

logical

flowClearly

state

hypothesesEmphasize

novelty,

originality,

and

surprisingness33Writing

your

manuscriptFrequent

Introduction

problemsLiterature

review

issuesReview

too

shallow,

too

narrowUncritical

inclusion

of

citations√

Unclear

relevance

of

literature

cited√

Unclear

comparisons,

contrasts

between

studiesInadequate

documentation

of

statementsNo

clear

empirical

gap

identifiedUnclear

logic

in

research

question

developmentNo

clear

statement

of

a

research

questionNo

clear

hypothesis

statement34Writing

your

manuscriptMethods

Follow

the

standard

flow:

Participants,

apparatus

andmaterials,

procedureParticipantsDefine

the

population

and

sampling

methods√

Recruitmentmethods√

Assignment

to

test

conditions√

Any

motivational

considerationsAlways

confirm

compliance

with

ethical

standardsApparatus

and

Materials:

Provide

adequate

detailProcedure:

Provide

adequate

detailThe

Methods

section

should

allow

a

reader

toreplicate

the

study35Writing

your

manuscriptFrequent

Methods

section

problemsToo

little

detail

about…Populations,

demographics,

sampling

methodsApparatus,

materialsProceduresUnsupported

claims

of

random

sampling

Too

little

supporting

information

for

measures(example:

reliability

measures

for

scales)Toomuch

detail

(example:

statistical

procedures)36Writing

your

manuscriptResultsPut

positive

results

first,

negative

results

laterTypical

flow:Descriptive

statistics

→

hypothesis

testingGlobal

tests

→

specific

hypothesis

testsDraw

conclusions

from

statistical

testsShow

how

statistics

address

hypothesesFollow

journal

style

for

statistical

reportingUse

figures,

tables

to

report

data

efficientlyUse

the

Results

section

to

tell

your

story37Writing

your

manuscriptResultsState

direction

of

differencesTypical:

Condition

A

scores

were

significantly

different

fromthose

for

Condition

B.Better:

Condition

A

scores

were

significantly

higher

than

thosefor

Condition

B.Pair

statistical

outcomes

and

interpretationsExample:

“Condition

A

was

significantly

higher

thanConditionB.

The

difference

was

consistent

with

our

hypothesis.”Examine

statistical

outcomes

criticallyGiven

the

original

data,

do

results

make

sense?“Marginally

significant”

outcomes

are

NOT

significantWatch

for

possible

Type

I

errors38Writing

your

manuscriptWriting

your

manuscript39Frequent

Results

section

problemsIgnoring

assumptions

→

inappropriate

statistical

testsLevels

of

measurementData

distributions

Not

pairing

central

tendency

and

variability

measures

–show

both

measures,

not

just

central

tendencyNot

using

standard

format

for

statistical

resultsTestusedCalculated

statistical

value,

with

degrees

of

freedomProbability

valueEffect

sizeDiscussionOften

the

most

difficult

section

to

writeUse

the

inverted

funnel

planmirror

image

of

the

Introductionmore

specific

to

broader

issuesTypical

Discussion

section

flowSummarize

the

findingsEmphasize

any

results

that

are

surprisingShow

how

results

fill

the

literature

gapConnect

results

to

theory40Writing

your

manuscriptDiscussionAnticipate

reviewer

objections

and

answer

to

themTurn

limitations

into

suggestions

for

future

researc√Limitations

on

results

→

New,

expanded

IVs

orDVs√Limitations

of

methods

→

New

test

conditions√Limitations

on

generalizability

→

New

populations√Limitationsdue

to

confounds

→

Tests

ofalternative

explanationsSuggest

possible

practical

applications41Writing

your

manuscriptFrequent

Discussion

section

problemsLack

of

connection

to

the

Results

sectionInserting

findings

not

reported

in

ResultsLack

of

connection

to

the

IntroductionExisting

literatureTheoryBroader

problem

statementClaiming

more

than

the

results

supportIgnoring

alternative

explanations42Writing

your

manuscriptReferencesDocument

statements

with

relevant

references

Better

to

begin

(not

end)

sentences

with

citationsExample:

Past

work

showed

that…(Jones,

1984).Better:

Jones

(1984)

showed

that….Match

text

andreference

list

citations

exactlyAll

text

citations

in

the

reference

listAll

reference

list

citations

in

the

textNames

and

dates

in

text

match

those

in

ref

list43Writing

your

manuscriptFrequent

References

problemsUnclear

connection

of

citations

to

text

statementsExample:

Past

studies

showed

that

learning

depends

onmotivation

and

practice

(Jones,

1987;

Smith,

2003).(Did

both

authors

show

both

effects?

Did

Jones

show

onething

and

Smith

the

other?

If

so,

which

showed

which?)Inconsistent

reference

formats,

stylesIn

text

citationsIn

the

reference

listText

citations

and

reference

lists

do

not

matchingIncomplete

references

in

the

reference

listIncorrect

use

of

“et

al.”

in

text

citations,

in

reference

lis44Writing

your

manuscriptFigures

and

tablesPrimary

goal:

Efficient

presentation

of

informationGeneral

pointsText

vs.

tables,

graphs√Don’t

repeat

datafrom

tables,

graphs

in

text√Don’t

repeat

datafrom

text

in

tables,

graphsCall

out

every

table

andevery

figure

in

the

main

textNumber

tables,

graphs

in

order

of

appearancePut

each

table

on

a

separate

manuscriptpagePut

each

figure

on

a

separate

manuscriptpage45Writing

your

manuscriptFigures

and

tablesGraphsCategorical

data

→

BargraphsOrdered,

scaled

data

→

Line

graphsLabel

graph

axesShow

error

bars

for

plotted

data

(often

SEM)TablesIdentify

tabled

content

in

the

captionLabel

every

column

and

rowFollow

journal

guidelines

(rulings,

notes,

footnotessignificance

indicators)46Writing

your

manuscriptFigures

and

tablesCaptions

for

tables

and

graphsPrinciple:

Tables,

graphs

stand

aloneInclude

enough

information

to

understandthe

table

or

graph,

without

looking

at

textDefine

all

abbreviations47Writing

your

manuscriptFrequent

Tables

and

Graphs

problemsGraphsGraphs

not

appropriate

for

data

(bar

vs.

line

graphs)Graph

axes

not

labeledMissing

error

barsTablesTable

content

not

identified

in

the

captionMissing

column

headingsCaptions

for

both

tables

and

graphsNot

enough

information

to

understand

the

table,

graphUndefined

abbreviations48Writing

your

manuscriptWorking

with

thepublication

process49The

publication

processThe

publication

process50Four

perspectivesThe

publisher’s

perspective:Journal

publishing

is

BIG

BUSINE$$!!!Publishers

MUST

HAVE

a

stream

of

good

papersEditors’

perspectiveEditors

want

good

papers

that

are

easy

to

acceptReviewers’

perspectiveReviewers

want

good

papers

that

are

easy

to

reviewAuthors’

perspectiveAuthors

want

to

write

papers

that

reviewers

canreview

easily

and

that

editors

will

want

to

acceptWhat

editors

want

in

manuscriptsContent

that

fits

the

journalReasonable

scopeFit

with

journal

style

guidelinesReadabilityImportance,

originality,

surprisingness51The

publication

processWhat

reviewers

want

in

manuscriptsClear

research

questions,

hypothesesClear

contributions

to

the

literatureLogical

research

designsMethods

appropriate

forhypothesesResults

that

address

hypothesesNovel,

surprising

resultsLogical

interpretationsClear

writingConformity

to

journal

style52The

publication

processSubmission

cover

letter

guidelinesPrinciple:

Write

a

professional,

peer-to-peer

letterPersonalize:

Use

the

editor"s

name

and

the

journal

titlInclude

all

requested

manuscript

detailsBRIEFLY,

tell

why

the

paper

is

worth

publishingSuggest

possible

reviewersAffirm

the

paper

is

not

under

consideration

elsewhereAffirm

conformity

with

ethical

requirementsAcknowledge

potential

conflicts

of

interestInclude

contact

information53The

publication

processThe

publication

process54Frequent

Submission

letter

problemsUsing

a

form

letter“Dear

editor”

(editors

have

names!)Calling

the

editor

Mr.,

Mrs.,

or

Ms.

(all

are

Dr.!)“Your

honored

journal”

(journals

have

titles!)Repeating

the

abstract

(too

much

information!)Leaving

out

details

the

editor

needs

to

knowA

submissive

tone

(respect

yourself,

your

work!)Working

with

the

review

processInitial

contactsDO

suggest

reviewers

in

your

submission

letter√

People

who

know

you

and

your

past

work√

People

whose

work

is

related

to

your

ownIt"sokay

to

contact

editors

with

questionsWaiting…the

hard

part!Givethe

reviewers

and

editor

time

to

do

their

workIf

the

time

seems

excessive,

inquire

politelyEventually,

you

get…THE

DECISION

LETTER!55The

publication

processCommon

outcomeThe

publication

process56Revising

manuscriptsPrinciple:

Reviews

tell

you

how

to

improve

your

paperPossible

kinds

of

revisionsRewritingReorganizingDoing

additional

researchAnswer

the

comments,

but

also

CHANGE

THE

PAPER57The

publication

processRe-submission

response

lettersResponse

letter

elementsThank

the

reviewers

for

their

time

and

effortAnswer

every

point

that

the

editor

and

every

reviewer

madePoint

out

how

you

have

changed

the

manuscriptResponses

to

reviewer

comments"I

agree

and

have

changed

the

ms.,

in

these

ways…“"I

do

not

agree,

for

the

following

reason(s),

and

have

notchanged

the

paper….“"I

do

not

understand

the

reviewer"s

point,

so

I

do

not

knowwhatchanges

to

make…“58The

publication

processFrequent

manuscriptproblems

to

avoid

or

correct59Manuscript

formatting

issuesMargins:

2

–

3

cm

(1

inch),

all

sidesFonts:

Typically,

Times

New

Roman,

12-point,

blackLine

spacing:

Double

space

everythingParagraph

indentation

--

1

cmText

justification

–left

justified,

ragged

rightRunning

head,

page

numbers

–

insert

theseSection

headings

–

follow

journal

guidelines

exactlyHyperlinks

(tables,

figures,

references)

–

omit

themRevised

papers:

show

only

the

text

to

be

reviewed60Frequent

manuscript

problemsParagraph

issues:

Length

--

Too

long

AND

too

short!

Example

(yes,

this

was

one

single

paragraph!):Based

on

the

Chinese

genome-SNPs

genetic

informationprovided

by

the

2009

Hapmap

database

()and

gold

standard

which

was

internationally

recognized:

r2

=

0.8,MAF

>

15%,

two

tag-SNPs

(rs2242446,

rs4783899)

in

the

SLC6A2gene

and

two

(rs6277,

rs2242592)

in

the

DRD2

genewith

highbiological

plausibility

in

the

development

and

progression

of

thesyndrome

were

selected

using

the

Haploview

software.Too

long:

Hard

to

read,

mixes

multiple

ideas

Too

short:

Single

sentence

(avoid

single

sentenceparagraphs)61Frequent

manuscript

problemsSentence

issues:

Long

sentencesDifficult

to

read,

difficult

to

understandExample

1:Original

wording

–

one

sentence:Therefore,

we

believe

that,

apart

from

paying

specialattention

to

Variable

Y1,

other

variables,

and

their

responseto

Variable

X

in

particular,

also

need

to

be

considered

inorder

to

decide

whether

an

individual

was

affected.Better

wording

–

two

sentences:Therefore,

apartfrom

paying

special

attention

toVariable

Y1,

other

dependent

variables

also

need

to

beevaluated.

(2)

In

particular,

one

must

also

consider

VariableY2

in

order

to

decide

whether

an

individual

was

affected.62Frequent

manuscript

problemsSentence

issues:

Long

sentencesExample

2:Original

wording

–

one

sentence:Sichuanhua

is

the

dialect

in

Sichuan

which

is

referred

to

asSouthwestern

Mandarin

becauseSichuan

is

in

the

southwesternpart

of

aregionspanning

all

of

Northern

China

where

dialects

ofMandarin

are

most

commonly

found.Better

wording

–

three

sentences:(1)

Sichuanhua

is

the

dialect

in

Sichuan.

(2)

Sichuanhua

isreferred

to

as

Southwestern

Mandarin,

because

Sichuan

is

in

thesouthwestern

part

of

a

region

spanning

all

of

Northern

China.

(3)In

that

region,

dialects

of

Mandarin

are

most

commonly

found.63Frequent

manuscript

problemsFrequent

manuscript

problems64Frequent

language

problemsSentence

issues:

Passive

voice

constructionPassive

voice

form:

Object

→

passive

verb

form

→

agentActive

voice

form:

Agent

→

active

verb

form

→

objectProblems

with

passive

voice

sentences:Agent

often

omitted

→

meaning

unclearPassive

voice

sentencesare

often

longerExamplesPassive

form:

“It

has

been

shown

[by

whom?]

that…”Active

form:

“Smith

(2014)

showed

that…”Passive

form:

“Participants

were

recruited

[bywhom?]

from…”Active

form:

“We

recruited

participants

from…”

Comment:

Use

of

personal

pronouns

(I,

we)

to

avoid

passivevoice

construction

is

generally

acceptableFrequent

language

problemsSentence

issues:

Comma

splicesTwo

independent

clauses

joined

by

a

commaSolutions

for

comma

splicesStart

a

new

sentence

(often

best)Replace

the

comma

with

a

semi-colonInsert

a

conjunction65Frequent

manuscript

problemsFrequent

manuscript

problems66Frequent

language

problemsComma

splice

example

1:Original

wording:We

analyzed

communication

in

aclosed

group,

whether

communication

in

an

open

group

would

show

the

same

characteristics

is

an

interestingquestion.Alternate

wording

(start

a

new

sentence):We

analyzed

communication

in

a

closed

group.

Whether

communicationin

an

open

group

would

show

the

same

characteristics….Alternate

wo