Research Proposal Outline

Writing Tips for the Outline and Papers

Posted on: Monday, January 30, 2023 8:00:00 AM CST

Hi Class,

Here are a few writing tips. Please review and these tips and refer to your APA manual for any questions regarding writing formal research papers.

1. Follow APA 7th Edition formatting. Review correct format for when to spell out numbers and when to use the actual number.

2. Do not use contractions. Contractions are not appropriate for professional academic papers.

3. Do not use first and second-person pronouns. Academic papers are written in the third person.

4. Avoid pronouns in general. It is best to use the noun for which you are discussing.

5. Avoid personification in your writing - that is, instances in which inanimate objects are granted conditions normally reserved for an aminate (living) object. Example:

·

· Incorrect - Research indicates that writing is a necessary skill. - Research cannot indicate; that it's not alive.

· Correct - One can conclude from the research that writing is a necessary skill.

6. Avoid referring to "the article" or "the author" and refer to the author or authors by last name and cite them....Example:  Smith (2019) found evidence that.....

7. Avoid the word  done to refer to research that was or will be conducted.

8. Avoid the word prove or proven -- that means absolute, and there is no absolute in research; use words like demonstrated, indicated, supported, attested, or validated.

9. Avoid casual language or slang terms.

10. Do not copy your references into your reference list. Type each one out to ensure the correct format. Do not copy from an online reference generator, as they are often incorrect.

11. Make sure you review the correct APA format for narrative and parenthetic in-text citations. Here is a good reference link  https://guides.library.unr.edu/apacitation/in-textcite .

12. Using a quote, you must have a page number or paragraph number listed in the citation. Also, the quotes cannot be more than 39 words, or you should use a block quote format.