9 min Reading

Do's and Dont's for Writing A Thesis Statement for Research Paper

author avatar

0 Followers
Do's and Dont's for Writing A Thesis Statement for Research Paper

Key-Takeaways

These are the main rules for writing a strong statement for your research paper:

The tone has to be confidentPlace the thesis statement wellThe focus of your statement has to be narrowOnly convert the main pointsIt has to be arguableAvoid vague languageUse third-person languageKeep it conciseAvoid adding unnecessary details

These principles are discussed in detail below; read them thoroughly for a better understanding.

Academic research papers: concluding the introduction includes an overview of the paper's major points. Your statement is the ground of your argument, hence, a strong statement leads to a winning research paper. If you want a perfect academic paper, your thesis statement must set the basis of your argument to strengthen each point. When you write a thesis statement, you need to have specific tips and questions in mind; you can read related literature for that.

In this article, we will discuss the basic principles of writing an argument statement for research paper. As you start crafting the perfect thesis statement, you should have the core principles in mind that can help you frame a solid statement.

When you write a thesis statement, it sets the basis of the argument. This means, strong statements produce a powerful idea, which results in a well-structured research paper. So, if you are not good enough at writing research papers or strong statements,  you should contact a professional research paper writing service and hand over your worries to an expert.

Finally, here are some rules to help you write a statement for your academic paper.

What Is a Thesis Statement?

As per the general understanding, a thesis statement is a sentence that states a fact or claim for a paper. It can be structured as a particular subject + a specific feature or feeling.

Here are a few tips to construct your thesis statement.

How Do You Write a Thesis Statement for Research Paper?

As we know, crafting a statement is the most complex task, therefore you should think critically and try to be concise while writing it. Furthermore, a thesis statement has certain dos and don'ts to cater to while writing. After reading this section, you will be able to understand the basic principles that will help you craft a perfect thesis statement.

Dos

1. Keep the Tone Confident

Reading through the literature related to the topic and taking as many notes as possible can help you form a powerful thesis statement, keeping the tone confident of the text. You must use persuasive language to convince the reader of your argument and take the right stance on the topic. When you take the right stand, your writing tone and style change automatically.

Another thing you need to remember is that you are writing a thesis statement, not a thesis question, so try to avoid unanswered rhetorical questions. Don’t use personal pronouns here to address the reader. Show your authority and grip on the topic by keeping the tone strict and formal.

2. Know Where to Put Your Thesis Statement

The main idea generally occurs near the end of the introductory paragraph or might be the last sentence. This part of the paragraph attracts more attention from readers, who expect an answer to their rhetorical questions about the purpose of the research, factors to look for, and outcomes.

Putting the thesis statement for research paper at the end of the paragraph will set the expectations and tone of the research paper. This way, you will succeed in provoking the reader's interest and encourage them to continue reading your research paper. While writing a thesis statement, your preceding sentences will introduce the statement, and the next sentences will explain and support the claim made in the statement.

3. Do Choose a Specific and Narrow Focus

Keep your thesis statement focused and narrow; it must state the idea, your position on the argument, and the focus of your research paper. Making your thesis statement too general/broad or too inflexible/narrow will make it difficult for you to cover the topic entirely. You need to discover the equilibrium regarding the range of your thesis statement.

If you choose a topic that is too broad, you might stumble to cover all the important information that needs to be covered in your research paper. While if you choose a narrow topic, you might not find enough information to write a comprehensive academic paper. An ideal argument for a research paper has to be balanced, providing you with enough information and not too much information you can not cover.

Also, with a broader topic, you can strangle it by gender, age, ethnic group, history, and occupation. If you are confused about how you can narrow down the focus, getting research paper writing help from a reputed platform is advised to avoid any risk involved in attempting the research paper with weak knowledge of writing. 

4. Do Convey the Main Points of Your Paper

The argument statement needs to identify the ideas and major points being discussed in the research paper. It can be an overview of the points you have decided to cover in your paper.  A perfect thesis statement can be distinctly identified from the introduction because that would be specific, opinionated, and intended. As it expresses the main points of the text, it will highlight the target audience for which this paper is written.

5. Make Your Thesis Statement Arguable

Your thesis statement for research paper has to be an arguable declaration that you have to defend and sustain throughout your research paper. Statements that are too broad and are impossible to defend by proof have to be avoided.  To compose a debatable statement, pick a controversial but relevant topic.

To confirm if your claim is debatable, you can follow this checklist:

Clarity of the claimIs the claim factual?Is the statement interesting and knowledgeable?Will your reader agree or disagree with your claim?Have you regarded the readers as knowledgeable and reasonable grown-ups?Have you discussed opposing arguments?Does your thesis statement incorporate words like "need, must, and should"?Is your thesis statement the last line of the introduction?

If your thesis completes this checklist, your thesis statement for research paper is good to go.

Don’ts

1. Don’t Use Vague or General Language

A powerful thesis statement has to be explicit and clearly transmit your argument. Using vague or general language can make you fail to deliver exact directions and dilute the impact of your research paper. By using vague language, we try to communicate something without saying it.

Some students, in order to keep the reader engaged and interested in the paper, use vague statements because they believe giving the argument away will make their readers less interested in reading the entire research paper. Meanwhile, they forget that the main purpose of the thesis statement is to give away the argument so the reader can clearly understand what the reading has got for him.

2. Don’t Use First-Person Language

Using the first-person language is advised to avoid in academic writing, particularly in your thesis statement for research paper. Generally, the first-person language includes pronouns like I and we. Instead, the use of third-person language is encouraged to communicate more effectively. The main reason for using third-person language is objectivity.

Usually, academic writing is subject to be objective rather than subjective, and using the first-person brings and causes potential bias in the research. The characteristic of a powerful thesis statement is avoiding first-person language, i.e., I, my, me, we; you can only use it if the paper is about you or your personal experiences.

3. Don’t Make Your Thesis Statement Too Long

To concentrate on your argument better and make a strong point, you need to keep your thesis and statement concise and clear. By keeping the statement concise, we mean to keep it under one or two sentences at most. Make sure to keep it short and less wordy to make it easy for readers to apprehend the main points more effectively. By keeping your thesis statement concise and focusing on only one idea, you could discuss your argument comprehensively throughout the assigned word count.

How do you know if your thesis statement for research paper is concise?

Here are some factors to take care of while writing:

Clearness: Keep your thesis statement clear, brief, and free of unwarranted words or phrases.Emphasis: Try to address the thesis' primary topic without rambling into irrelevant deviations.Complexness: Focus on representing the depth and capacity of your topic.Relevancy: You should express argument and research questions effectively in your statement.

4. Don’t Include Unnecessary Details

It would be best to avoid unneeded details, words, or phrases that don’t add meaning to the statement. The winning statements concentrate on a single point and do not contain deviations. Therefore, you should stick to the points of your argument and keep the details for the body paragraphs.

Steps to Outline Thesis Statement

Outlines help you manage ideas regarding a subject in a logical hierarchy. Outlining your thesis statement for a research paper is important to maintain the structure of the declaration.

These are the steps to outline your dissertation statement:

State the main topic and focus of your research paper firstConstruct an argument or claim in one sentenceRedraft the claim by using specific termsFurther, revamp the sentence to make sure you cover the scope of your research paper and craft a powerful statement.

What 3 Things Should a Thesis Statement Have?

The main argument generally contains three parts: The subject, the argument or claim, and the main points. The argument is your idea or perspective that you have to support with evidence and examples. That evidence is usually the major point of the paper.

What Is an Example of a Thesis Statement?

This section provides examples of a weak and strong thesis statement for research paper to make you understand what makes a statement weak or strong. This example is provided by the University of Manitoba.

Conclusion

To wrap things up, writing an argument statement is a crucial part of a research paper; students have to get it right to make their arguments clear and write a winning research paper. In this article, we have covered the main principles of writing a thesis statement for your research paper. We have also answered some common questions for your better understanding. An example is provided at the end for your reference and understanding. If you are short of time, outsourcing your research paper to a dependable research paper writer is a wise option because this is an important assignment, and you cannot try adventures on this.

Top
Comments (0)
Login to post.