Recent work on research writing has revealed that the key to writing better introductions is to understand that a good introduction does not simply introduce your paper.
A good introduction persuades your reader how you have contributed to the research in your field—how your research has solved a problem, found missing knowledge, come up with a better method, or invented a new method, algorithm, theory or idea in your field (Swales, Research Genres, 2004). This understanding of research writing introductions helps us understand how to structure the introduction more effectively. In short, you need to clearly show that your paper is worth reading because it contributes something new.
Examples of the characteristics of good introduction sections from A to L in the chart above are given in the next section. A grammar guide to these characteristics follows this section.
STEP 1. SITUATION: Explain the background and importance of the topic
Note that the background information really only serves to indirectly argue that the topic is
important. In the following example of the first sentence of the introduction, it is clear that the reason the paper was written was to meet the demand for better picture quality. We expect the background to become more specific in later sentences.
A) Give general background information on the topic (may include very
general background references)
EXAMPLE
“Currently, MPEG-2 video [1] is the most common standard for video coding, due mainly to the growth and expansion of digital TV broadcasting all over the world, and it is also popular for storage devices such as DVD. However, there has been a strong demand in recent years for better picture quality of MPEG-2.”
Source: N. Hara et al., “Flicker Reduction in MPEG-2 Video by Post-Processing,” IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, vol. 51(1), p. 210 © Feb. 2005. IEEE
2009 HYU CTL English Writing Lab and Adam Turner http://www.hanyangowl.org
Note however that in this example the introduction has not been too wide. We can see what the general topic of the paper is going to be about. An introduction that starts something like “The environment is a big problem these days” is clearly starting too broadly. In short, the reader should be able to guess what your general topic is going to be about from the first sentence of the introduction.
See GRAMMAR SKILL 1: Verb tenses in introduction sections
B) Explain the general research problem/issue in this field and its
importance
In the following first sentence of the introduction example, the reason for writing the paper, trying to overcome engine failure from high-cycle fatigue, is so important that it is a life or death issue.
“One of the principal challenges currently associated with the safety and readiness of military aircraft fleets is the susceptibility of turbine engine components to failure from high-cycle fatigue (HCF), i.e., the rapid propagation of fatigue cracks under high frequency vibratory loading [1,2]. Such failures are extremely
costly, leading to severe engine damage, loss of aircraft, and even loss of human life
See GRAMMAR SKILL 7: Using references correctly
.”
Source: Campbell and Ritchie, Engineering Fracture Mechanics, vol. 67, pp. 209-227 © 2000 Engineering Fracture Mechanics
C) OPTIONAL: Define the key terms and/or explain the key concepts
necessary to understand the paper.
Research has shown that most writers overestimate the background knowledge of their readers. There are a number of reasons to give more background information in the introduction. Readers can be other graduate students who are not necessarily experts in the field. Other readers may be doing interdisciplinary research, especially in fields such as chemical, materials science or biomedical engineering. Papers submitted to more general journals may require you to explain and define the concepts more than if you were writing for a highly specialized journal in your field. In thesis and dissertation writing, graduate students need to prove to their professors that they fully understand the history and background of their research area.
The example below clearly defines and then classifies the two components and five kinds of subunits of different enzymes referred to in a chemistry article.
EXAMPLE
1. “FOF1-ATP synthase is a multisubunit enzyme that catalyzes ATP synthesis in oxidative phosphorylation and photophosphorylation using the electrochemical potential of a proton gradient.1-4 This enzyme consists
of two components, FO and F1. The simplest F1 (F1-ATPase) comprises five kinds of subunits with a
stoichiometry of …”
Hiromasa Yagi, et al., “Conformational Change of H+-ATPase â Monomer Revealed on Segmental Isotope Labeling NMR Spectroscopy,” J. AM. CHEM. SOC., vol.126, pp. 16632-16638 © Nov. 2004. J. AM. CHEM. SOC
See GRAMMAR SKILL 2: Formal definition structure
STEP 2. PROBLEM CYCLE: Review and show problems with previous research,
methods, or theories
Note: Summarizing and critical evaluation may be mixed together in the same paragraph. It is not good research writing simply to list all previous papers in the research area without classification or critical analysis. This is the most difficult part of writing a review of the literature. It is not just a summary of previous papers.
D) OPTIONAL: Summarize, classify and compare the different methods,
techniques, issues, or theories in this research area.
In sciences and engineering classification of methods or materials is often part of a good introduction. In social sciences, different theoretical approaches should be explained. A good introduction should give the background information so that the reader can understand the problem you are investigating in your field. For
2009 HYU CTL English Writing Lab and Adam Turner http://www.hanyangowl.org
example, if you are coming up with a combined method or a new method of doing something then the reader needs to know the similarities and differences of previous methods/theories to determine why and how your method/theory is effective. This introduction paragraph indicates that there are three main approaches in this field and that there are also hybrids of these three approaches.
1. “Many post-processing error concealment methods have been proposed (see, e.g., [1], [2], [4], [5], [7]– [10], [12]–[15]). They can be divided into three main approaches: frequency, spatial, and temporal. There are also hybrids of these three main groups, and the methods can be made adaptive.”
Source: Song Cen and Pamela C. Cosman, “Decision Tress for Error Concealment in Video Decoding,” IEEE Trans. Multimedia, vol. 5(1), © 2003 IEEE
EXAMPLE
One approach to solving this problem is to define separate distance functions for color, shape, and texture and, subsequently, combine them to derive the overall result. An alternate approach, proposed in [11], [25], is to use the dominant wavelets coefficients for an image as its signature—since wavelets capture shape, texture, and location information in a single unified framework, their use eliminates the need for separate indices. Source: Natsev et al.: IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering, Vol. 16, No. 3, p. 301 © IEEE 2004
The paragraph above not only discusses the main approach and an alternative approach, but it also analyzes the characteristics of the alternative approach by indicating that it “eliminates the need for separate indices.” See GRAMMAR SKILLS 3 + 4: Using colons and examples