Abstract writing by Ameer Hamza

ABSTRACT WRITING

ABSTRACT:

“An abstract is a self contained, short and powerful

statement that describes the scope, purpose, results and

contents of work.”

PROPERTIES OF

ABSTRACT

• It does not contain vague statements which force the

reader to refer to the main text.

• The abstract should be the best part of the paper!

• It is the most frequently read part of an article after the

title.

WHO WRITE IT?

• Usually the author of the paper, because they have a first

hand knowledge their piece of research;

• Sometimes professional writers, who abstract books and

articles for a wide audience.

PURPOSE?

• To persuade the reader to see the full text.

• To help readers decide if the articles is relevant for their

purpose.

• To answerer a call of paper in a conference.

• To make it possible for your piece of research to appear

in on line publication database(indexing).

WHAT TO INCLUDE?

• Reason for writing:

What is the importance of the research? Why would a

reader be interested in the larger work?

• Problem:

What problem does this work attempt to solve? What is

the scope of the project? What is the main

argument/thesis/claim?

WHAT TO INCLUDE?• Methodology:

An abstract of a scientific work may include specific

models or approaches used in the larger study. Other

abstracts may describe the types of evidence used in the

research (e.g. qualitative interviews, book reviews, etc.)

• Results:

Again, an abstract of a scientific work may include

specific data that indicates the results of the project. Other

abstracts may discuss the findings in a more general way.

WHAT TO INCLUDE?

• Implications:

What changes should be implemented as a result of the

findings of the work? How does this work add to the

body of knowledge on the topic?

WHAT NOT TO INCLUDE?

• Information not contained in the original work;

• References to other work;

• Quotations from the original work or from other works;

• Lengthy explanations of words and concepts;

• Unexplained acronyms or abbreviations;

• Tables and maps.

TYPES OF ABSTRACT:

Abstract are usually divided into four types:

• Informative Abstract

• Descriptive Abstract

• Structured abstract

• Presentation and poster abstract

DESCRIPTIVE

ABSTRACT:

• “If you are writing an abstract for a less-structured

document like an essay, editorial, or book, you will write

an indicative abstract.”

PARTS OF DESCRIPTIVE

ABSTRACT

An descriptive abstract is generally made up of three parts:

• Scope

• Arguments Used

• Conclusions

• SCOPE:

“The range of the material dealt with in the original

document as well as the starting premise of the

document.”

• ARGUMENT USED:

“The main arguments and counterarguments employed in

the original document. These arguments should be stated

in the same progression in which they appear in the

document.”

• CONCLUSION:

“ It state the document’s main closing argument and its

implications as suggested by the original author. This

conclusion section might also state plot resolution when

the original document is a work of fiction.”

DESCRIPTIVE

ABSTRACT:Example:

• This report describes a brief, 15-session couples group

therapy format developed by a university-affiliated

human sexuality clinic for the simultaneous treatment of

marital and sexual dysfunctions. The major marital and

sexual themes addressed in this group treatment design,

an overview and description of the structure of the

cognitive-behavioral approach, and a case illustration are

presented.

SAMPLE:

INFORMATIVE

ABSTRACT:

• “If you are writing an abstract for a strictly-structured

document like an experiment, investigation, or survey,

you will write an informative abstract.”

PARTS Of INFORMATIVE

ABSTRACT

An informative abstract is made up of four parts:

• Purpose

• Methodology

• Results

• Conclusions

• PURPOSE:

“The purpose section of an informative abstract should

state either the reason for or the primary objectives of the

experiment or investigation.”

• METHDOLOGY:

“ It describe the techniques used in conducting the

experiment.”

• RESULT:

“It relates the observations and/or data collected during the

experiment.”

• CONCLUSION:

“state the evaluation or analysis of the experiment results.”

• EXAMPLE:

Subjects’ car clocks were set ten minutes fast in order to determine if deliberately setting a clock ahead will reduce lateness. One group of subjects knew their clocks had been set ahead, while a second group of subjects was not informed of the change. Over a four-week period, the subjects who were aware of the clock change regularly arrived on time or late for their scheduled appointments. Over the same period of time, the subjects who were unaware of the clock change tended to arrive early or on time for their appointments. Data suggest that intentionally setting a clock to run fast does not reduce lateness because one accounts for that extra time in his or her schedule.

COMMON ERROR:

• Inconsistency between text and abstract (~50%)

• Reporting data not present in the paper (~30%)

• Both (15%)

HOW TO FIX ERROR:

• Double check every single piece of data in the abstract

against the data in the body of the article!

STRUCTURED

ABSTRACT:• Also called “more informative” abstracts

• Purposes:

• Help readers quickly judge the findings of a study

• Guide authors into better summaries

• Aid reviewers

• Facilitate electronic searches (e.g, MEDLINE)

• Include headings

• May use incomplete sentences

• Follow journal requirements

Background—Dual-chamber (atrioventricular) and single-chamber

(ventricular) pacing are alternative treatment approaches for sinus-

node dysfunction that causes clinically significant bradycardia.

However, it is unknown which type of pacing results in the better

outcome.

Methods—We randomly assigned a total of 2010 patients with sinus-

node dysfunction to dual-chamber pacing (1014 patients) or

ventricular pacing (996 patients) and followed them for a median of

33.1 months. The primary end point was death from any cause or

nonfatal stroke. Secondary end points included the composite of

death, stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure; atrial fibrillation;

heart-failure score; the pacemaker syndrome; and the quality of life.

Results—The incidence of the primary end point did not differ significantly between the dual-chamber group (21.5 percent) and the ventricular-paced group (23.0 percent, P=0.48). In patients assigned to dual-chamber pacing, the risk of atrial fibrillation was lower (hazard ratio, 0.79; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.66 to 0.94; P=0.008), and heart-failure scores were better (P<0.001). The differences in the rates of hospitalization for heart failure were not significant in unadjusted analyses but became marginally significant in adjusted analyses. Dual-chamber pacing resulted in a small but measurable increase in the quality of life, as compared with ventricular pacing.

Conclusions—In sinus-node dysfunction, dual-chamber pacing does not improve stroke-free survival, as compared with ventricular pacing. However, dual-chamber pacing reduces the risk of atrial fibrillation, reduces signs and symptoms of heart failure, and slightly improves the quality of life. Overall, dual-chamber pacing offers significant improvement as compared with ventricular pacing.

PRESENTATION

ABSTRACT:

• Must be comprehensive

• Must strictly follow format and content rules (the old

“blue box”) and must be neat

• Often contain more details of methods

• More likely to include implications

• May be published in conference proceedings

• Provides opportunity for feedback from others in the field

POSTER ABSTRACT:

• Include lots of illustrations, tables, and graphs

• Keep words to a minimum

• Consider as a billboard, not a summary

FEATURES OF ABSTRACT

WRITING

• Accuracy

• Brevity

• Clarity

• Uniqueness

• Authority

• Language

• formatting

Accuracy:

“A good abstract includes

only information

included in the original

document”

Clarity:

Quality of being coherent

and intelligent

Uniqueness:

“The people who study

your abstract must see

that your study is

interesting and offers

something new”

Authority:

“The abstract should

indicate that quality of the

paper is very good and

everything which is

explained is authentic”

Language:

“The author must be used

mostly English language

but for some countries he

must be used native

language like Japan ,

china”

FORMAT:

• For title

• At the top of the page

• Upper and lowercase letters

• Layout:

It is usually one single paragraph; font size is different

from the main text.

• Length:

One or maximum two pages used only

Documents Maximum length of abstract

Papers and articles 250 words

Notes and short communications 100 words

Letters to the editor 30 words

Long documents like monographs

and theses

300 words

RREMEMBER:

• Make the abstract the best part of the article

• Make sure it stands alone

• Double check every piece of data