Research Paper Thesis

A research paper thesis is a sentence or group of sentences that asserts the main point or argument of a research paper. Research paper theses should be easily identifiable and should be presented within the first ¼ of the text so that the reader is fully aware of the primary objective of the paper early in the reading process.

Developing a research paper thesis is different from developing an essay thesis only because a research paper thesis cannot usually be developed until after the student has already done significant research. This is because a student must be aware of the general thoughts presented in the body of literature available on his topic before he can truly develop an idea about the focus of his paper. The thesis articulates this focus, so the thesis cannot be composed until after the student is aware of some of the research. The student should therefore select a topic for the research paper first, and then perform preliminary research on that topic in order to develop a thesis.

A research paper is an academic document; therefore, the reader will expect the paper to follow the conventions of academic writing. One of these conventions is that the thesis should outline the primary point of the paper in addition to providing one or more reasons supporting that point. A research paper thesis is, in essence, an indication of what will be discussed in the paper and in what order. The thesis should not leave room for the reader to be surprised later in the text; rather, it should assert in precise language what the paper will explore and how it will explore it. For instance, if a student were writing a research paper on the influences of J.S. Bach on the music of Ludwig van Beethoven, the research paper thesis would first present some assessment or interpretation regarding that influence (such as "J.S. Bach's innovative harmonic structures had a huge impact on Beethoven's own harmonic exploration, particularly in regard to Beethoven's keyboard works.") and then discuss how that point is going to be supported in the text (such as "This influence can be seen through a comparative harmonic analysis of some of Bach's organ and keyboard works and Beethoven's early piano sonatas."). In this way, the reader is absolutely clear on what the paper will be about (the influence of Bach on Beethoven's keyboard works) and how the paper will explore that idea (through an analysis of both composers' keyboard works).

Research papers that engage or focus on particular bodies of research should mention those bodies of research in their research paper theses. For instance, if a research paper were going to focus on the research of a particular institution or group of thinkers, the thesis should indicate as such by saying "Recent research out of _____ University has suggested that it may be possible for pigs to fly by 2020; however, close investigation into pig anatomy and general aerodynamics reveals that such an event would be physically impossible." Research paper theses that are cast in this way indicate to the reader that the research paper will be focused on exploring a specific body of scholarly literature.

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