Abstract

=Abstract (Research) (GWU EMSE 216-8000)=

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"An **abstract** is a brief summary of a research article, [|thesis], review, [|conference] [|proceeding] or any in-depth analysis of a particular subject or discipline, and is often used to help the reader quickly ascertain the paper's purpose. When used, an abstract always appears at the beginning of a manuscript, acting as the point-of-entry for any given scientific paper or [|patent application]. Abstracting and indexing [|services for various academic disciplines] are aimed at compiling a body of literature for that particular subject." - [|Wikipedia] (See Wikipedia [|Structure]and [|Example].)

"An abstract is a summary of the contest of the manuscript. It provides enough information for the reader to learn the purpose and the results of the research being reported and it does so in a concise, forthright fashion. No extras, no frills - just the facts." (Salkind, 2009)

"A descriptive abstract is often written prior to the completion of a specific work. Therefore, it may not provide results, conclusions, or recommendations.

"In contrast, an informative abstract is written following the completion of a specific work and summarizes the entire content of the original document. It commonly consists of an overview of the following four sections: (a) problem, (b) methodology, (c) results, and (d) conclusion. This type of abstract provides a condensed version of the original work so that a reader can choose whether to review the entire piece." (Ghahramanlou-Holloway, 2007)

The abstract has least two perspectives
 * 1) Used by others
 * 2) Creating for own work
 * Abstract for (Research Proposal) (Ryan 2011)
 * 1) A third view (2015) is it is advertising to get a reviewer or someone in the potential audience to read the article, etc. The title is the advertising for the abstract, the abstract is the advertisement for the article in this context. (Ryan 2015) See ACPI publication checklist.

Note: Salkind says editors like abstracts (for articles) with less than 120 words. Guideline for an EMSE dissertation proposal is less than 350 words.

Structured Abstract (and introduction (page 336)): Writing an article for a refereed accounting journal - []

EMSE Guidance for Abstract for ( Research Proposal )

"The abstract is very formulaic. It should follow this guidance and be no longer than 350 words maximum:


 * "The first paragraph should state precisely the research question and purpose for the proposed research. This should include a statement of why it is important (in other words, who cares?).
 * "The second paragraph should state how the research is proposed to be accomplished (e.g., the research method and plan).
 * " The third paragraph should state what findings are expected to be discovered and how unusual findings will be handled.

"This format makes it easy to convert into an abstract for your dissertation, which should be equally formulaic but in describing what has been done rather than what is planned to be accomplished." - EMSE Course Syllabus


 * Sources**
 * Abstract (summary). (2011, March 14). In //Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia//. Retrieved 15:13, March 27, 2011, from []
 * EMSE 8000, Spring 2011
 * Ryan, Julie Dr. and Barbera, Joseph Dr. EMSE 8000 (216) "Research Methods for the Engineering Manager, Spring 2011" (Course Syllabus, EMSE George Washington University, 2011)
 * Salkind, Neil J. 2009. //Exploring Research (7th Edition),// Pearson Prentice Hall,
 * Ryan, Julie Dr. 2011. EMSE 216, "Research Methods for the Engineering Manager, (lecture, EMSE George Washington University, Spring 2011
 * Ghahramanlou-Holloway, Marjan. "Abstracts." In //Encyclopedia of Measurement and Statistics //, edited by Neil J. Salkind, 6-7. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2007. doi: http://dx.doi.org.proxygw.wrlc.org/10.4135/9781412952644.n2.


 * Publication Checklist **: [|Abstracts - ACPI guides to Academic Conferences and Publishing International]

Contributors: Sisson