WRITING THE

DISCUSSION PART OF A
RESEARCH PAPER

Reporter:
Borje, Jucel
Romaraog Kirsten Claire S.
DISCUSSION SECTION

 Interpret and explain your results

 Answer your research questions

 Justify your approach

 Critically evaluate your study

BEFORE STARTING THE DISCUSSION
• The discussion section
therefore needs to review
your findings in the
context of the literature
and the existing
knowledge about the
subject. • This section should be
written in the present
tense.

• You must need to

demonstrate that you
understand the limitations
of your research and the
implications of your
findings for policy and
practice
STARTING THE TASK
 Most people are likely to write this section best by
preparing an outline.
 Setting out the broad thrust of the argument.
 How your results support it.
 You may find techniques like mind mapping are
helpful in making a first outline.
 You should start by referring back your research
questions, discuss you results, then set them into
the context of the literature, and then into broader
theory.
TOP TIP

This is likely o be one of the longest

sections of your dissertation, and it’s
good idea to break it down into chunks
with sub-heading to help you reader to
navigate through the detail.
 FLESHING OUT THE DETAIL
 Once you have your  This will help you to  For each theme or
outline in front of see whether your area, you should
you, you can start to results are over- discuss how the
map out how your focused in one area, results help to
results fit into the which is why writing answer your
outline. up your research as research question,
you go along can be and whether the
a helpful process. results are consistent
with your
expectations and the
literature.
THE IMPORTANCE OF
UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENCES

 If your results are  Your explanations may

controversial and/or include issues such as
a non-representative
unexpected, you
sample for convenience
should set them fully in purposes, a response
context and explain rate skewed towards
why you think that you those with a particular
obtained them. experience, or your own
involvement as a
participant for
sociological research.
THE IMPORTANCE OF UNDERSTANDING
DIFFERENCES (CONT)

 You do not need to be apologetic about these,

because you made a choice about them, which you
should have justified in the methodology section.

 However, you do need to evaluate your own results

against others’ findings, especially if they are
different.

 A full understanding of the limitations of your

research is part of a good discussion section.
TIP 2
At this stage, you may want to
revisit your literature review, unless
you submitted it as a separate
submission earlier, and revise it to
draw out those studies which have
proven more relevant.
  Conclude by summarizing the
implications of your findings in
brief.

 Explain why they are important for

researchers and in practice, and
CONCLUSION provide some suggestions for
further work.
OF
DISCUSSION  You may also wish to make some
recommendations for practice.

 As before, this may be separate

section, or included in your
discussion.