Layout of Research Report

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Group Members

Name Roll No

Nikita Agrawal 1

Neelam Arkade 2

Supriya Avhad 3

Aishwarya Baile 4

2


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SIGNFICANCE OF REPORT WRITINGResearch report is considered a major component of the

research study for the research task remains incomplete till the

report has been presented and/or written.

As a matter of fact even the most brilliant hypothesis, highly

well designed and conducted research study.

Writing of report is the last step in a research study and

requires a set of skills respect of stages of research


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TYPES OF REPORTSResearch reports vary greatly in length and type.

Business firms prefer reports and the letter form just

one or two pages in length banks insurance

organisations and financial institutions are generally

fond of the short balance sheet type of tabulation fortheir annual reports to their customers and

shareholders chemists reports their results in symbols

and formulae


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(A)TECHNICAL REPORTIn the technical report the main emphasis is on1. the methods employed ,

2.assumptions made in the course of the study ,

3.the detailed presentation of the findings including their limitations

and supporting data .A general outline of a technical report can be as follows:

1.summary of resu l ts:- A brief review of the main findings

just in two or three pages.

2.Nature of the study :-Description of the general objectives

of study formulation of the problem in operational terms the working

hypothesis the types of analysis and data required, etc


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3. Method s employed: - Specific methods used in thestudy and their limitations for instance in sampling study weshould give details viz, sample selection ,etc

4. Data:- Discussion of data collected , their sources

characteristics and limitations In case of a survey the

manner in which data collected should be fully described.

5. Analysis of data and presentat ion o f f indings :-The

analysis of data and presentations of the findings of the

study with supporting data in the form of tables and chartsbe fully narrated in fact happens to be the main body of the

report usually.


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6. Conclus ions:- A detailed summary of the findings and the

policy implications drawn from the results be explained.

7.Bibl iography:-Bibliography of various consulted be prepared

and attached.

8. Techn ical appendices:-A appendicesbe given for all

technical matters relating to questionnaire mathematicalderivations elaboration on particular technique of analysis and the

like ones.

9.Index :-Index must be prepared and be given invariably in thereport at the end.


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(B) Popu lar Repo rt

The popular report is one which gives emphasis on

simplicity and attractiveness.

The simplification should be clear writing minimization of

technical particularly mathematical, details and liberal use ofcharts and diagrams. Attractive layout along withlarge print.

Subheadings, occasional cartoon now and then is another

Characteristic feature of the popular report.


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4.Methods employed.

5.Results.

6.Techincal appendices.

*We give below a general ou tl ine of a popu lar repo rt

1. The findings and their implications.

2. Recommendations for action.

3. Objective of the study.


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DIFFERENT STEPS IN WRITING REPORT1. Logical Analysis Of The Subject Matter :

Two ways to

develop a subject,(a) logically and (b)

chronologically.

2. Preparation Of The Final Outline :

It is the framework

upon which long written works are constructed.

3. Preparation Of The Rough Draft :

This follows above

two steps.


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4. Rewriting And Polishing Of The Rough Draft :This step

requires more time than the writing of the rough

draft.

5. Preparation Of The Final Bibliography :

It is a list of books.

bibliography should be arranged alphabetically& divided into two parts.

6. Writing the final draft :

This is last step. Should bewritten in a concise &objective style & in simple

language.


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Layout of research reportComprises of:

A. Preliminary pagesB. Main text

C. End matter


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Preliminary Pages

Should carry a title and date.

Acknowledgements in the form of preface or foreword.

There should be a table of contents.

Followed by list of tables and illustrations so that the

decision-maker or anybody interested in reading the

report can easily locate the required information in the

report.


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(B) Main Text

Introduction

Statement of findings and recommendations: theresearch report must contain a statement of findings andrecommendations in non-technical language so that itcan be easily understood by all concerned.

The results: the main body of the report,extending over

several chapters. The result section of the report shouldcontain statistical summaries and reductions of the datarather than the raw data.

The implications drawn from the results:

The summary: conclude the research report with a very

brief summary, resting in brief the research problem, themethodology, the major findings and the majorconclusions drawn from the research results.


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End Matter

At the end of the report, appendices should be enlisted in

respect of all technical data: such as questionnaires,

sample information, mathematical derivations and the like

ones.

Bibliography of sources consulted should also be given.

Index (an alphabetical listing of names, places and topics

along with the numbers of the pages in a book of report

on which they are mentioned or discussed) should

invariably be given at the end of the report.

The value of index lies in the fact that it works as a guide

to the reader for the contents in the report.


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The following points deserve mention so far as themechanics of writing a report are concerned


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1. Size and physical design :The manuscript should be

written on unruled paper 8.5 X 11 in size. If it is to be

written by hand, than black or blue-black ink should be

used.A margin of at least one and one- half inches should be

allowed at the left hand and of at least half an inch at the

right hand of the paper.

There should also be one-inch margins, top andbottom. The paper should be neat and legible.

If the manuscript is to be typed, then all typing should

be double-spaced on one side of the page only except for

the insertion of the long quotations.


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2.Procedure Various steps in writing the report should bestrictly adhered

3. Layout Keeping in view the objective and nature of theproblem, the layout of the report should be thought of anddecided and accordingly adopted

4.Treatment of quotations Quotations should be placed inquotation marks and double spaced, forming animmediate part of the text. But if a quotation is of aconsiderable length (more than four or five type writtenlines) then it should be single-spaced and indented atleast half an inch to the right of the normal text margin.


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5 The footnotes-

footnotes are meant for cross references, citation ofauthorities and sources, acknowledgement and elucidationor explanation of a point of view. The modern tendency is tomake the minimum use of footnotes for scholarship doesnot need to be displayed

. b) Footnotes are placed at the bottom of the page onwhich the reference or quotation which they identify orsupplement ends. Footnotes are customarily separated

from the textual material by a space of half an inch and aline about one and a half inches long

Footnotes should be numbered consecutively, usuallybeginning with 1 in each chapter separately ,except in thecase of statistical tables and other numerical material,where symbols such as the asterisk (*) or the like one maybe used to prevent confusion.

Footnotes are always typed in single space though they aredivided from one another by double space


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6. Documentation style The common order may bedescribed as under

A. Regarding the single-volume reference

B. Regarding multivolume reference

C. Regarding works arranged alphabetically

D. Regarding periodicals reference

E. Regarding anthologies and collections reference

F. Regarding second-hand quotations reference

G. Case of multiple authorship


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7. Punctuation and abbreviations in footnotes CertainLatin and English abbreviations are quite often used in

bibliographies and footnotes to eliminate tediousrepetition.

anon., anonymous

ante., before

art., article

aug., augmented

bk., book

bull., bulletin

cf., compare

ch., chapter

col., column


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8 Use of statistics, charts and graphs :

it contributes a great deal towards the clarification and

simplification of the material and research results. Onemay well remember that a good picture is often worth

more than a thousand words. Statistics are usually

presented in the form of tables, charts, bars and line-

graphs and pictograms. Such presentation should be self

explanatory and complete in itself. It should be suitableand appropriate looking to the problem at hand. Finally,

statistical presentation should be neat and attractive.


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9 The final draft-

Revising and rewriting the rough draft of the report

should be done with great care before writing the finaldraft. For the purpose, the researcher should put to

himself questions like Are the sentences written

in the report clear? Are they grammatically correct? Do

they say what is meant? Do the various points

incorporated in the report fit together logically?

Having at least one colleague read the report just before

the final revision is extremely helpful


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10 Bibliography Bibliography should be prepared and

appended to the research report as discussed earlier

11 Preparation of the indexAt the end of the report, an

index should invariably be given, the value of which lies

in the fact that it acts as a good guide to the reader. Index

may be prepared both as subject index and as author

index. The former gives the names of the subject-topicsor concepts along with the number of pages on which

they have appeared or discussed in the report, whereas

the latter gives the similar information regarding the

names of authors. The index should always be arrangedalphabetically.


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PRECAUTIONS FOR WRITING RESEARCH REPORTS

1.Research reports vary greatly in length.

2. It should be such as to sustain readers interest.

3.Abstract terminology & technical jargon shouldbe avoided in a research report.

4.Acquire quick knowledge of main findings & reports

must provide a ready availability of findings.

5. The layout of the report should be well thought out&must be appropriate.


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6. The layout of the report should be well thought out and

must be appropriate and in accordance with the objectiveof the research problem.

7. The reports should be :

free from grammatical mistakes

must be prepared strictly in accordance with thetechniques of composition of report-writing :- such as the

use of quotations and use of abbreviations in footnotes

and the like.

8. Bibliography of sources consulted is a must for a goodreport and must necessarily be given.


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9. Index is also considered an essential part of a goodreport and as such must be prepared and appended at

the end.

10. Objective of the study, the nature of the problem, themethods employed and the analysis techniques adopted

must all be clearly stated in the beginning of the report in

the form of introduction.

Layout of Research Report

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