Scientific reports

This resource will help you:

• Understand the purpose and structure of the discussion and conclusion sections.
• Distinguish between stating results and analysing and interpreting the findings of the research in the context of existing literature.

In the discussion section you critically analyse your results in the context of what is already known in the literature. Here you show the significance of your results by answering the questions: What does it mean? and So what? This section generally starts with a short summary of your key findings followed by the meaning and importance of those findings and any limitations that your study had. Your discussion should be engaging and help the reader understand why they should care about your findings. (Nair & Nair, 2014; Kumar, 2023; Wu, 2011).

When writing your discussion, consider the following tips (Ecorrector, 2023; Kumar, 2023; Nair & Nair, 2014; Teodosiu, 2019).

Do:  

• Begin with a brief summary of the study's key findings. 
• Ensure you relate your results back to your objectives/hypothesis.  
• Outline the significance and importance of your findings and why the reader should care.  
• State whether the results support or disprove your hypothesis. If your hypothesis is disproved, what might be the reasons? 
• Describe unexpected findings and discuss potential causes for the results you have observed. 
• After seeing the results of the experiment, is there a need to expand your thinking of the research question? Indicate the steps necessary to pursue unresolved questions.  
• Discuss limitations to your study that would affect its applicability to a broader context. 

Do not:  

• Repeat information from your background/introduction. 
• Simply rehash your results that you have stated in the results section. 
• Discuss other people’s results.
• Include new arguments or evidence that were not previously discussed.  
• Even if your research contains limitations, do not undermine your authority by including statements that cast doubts on your methods and their execution.  
• Overstate the importance of the findings or generalise. Making grand statements about the importance of your findings without evidence will lead to doubts in the research.  
• Use general wording like "the study aims were fulfilled" or “results agree with XYZ” without explaining or discussing how they were fulfilled or how they agree.

While the conclusion is the last section of your report, it is just as important as any of the other sections of your scientific report. Generally, this section is the last paragraph of the discussion or presented under a separate subheading.

When writing your conclusion, consider the following tips (Nair & Nair, 2014; Tablas-Mejia, 2021):

Do:

• Keep it short. Conclusions are typically one paragraph long.  
• Provide a brief overview of your research and whether or not it answers your research question/s.  
• Mention the limitations and key implications of your study. Be transparent about your study’s shortcomings. This is not only ethical but also helps guide future work (i.e. replication of the study or follow-on work).
• Provide a brief outline of future research based on the results of your study. 

Do not:

• Introduce new information. However, you may offer suggestions on how your research can be expanded or improved.
• Include references or mention results from other studies.
• Exceed the length of the discussion.

This video (23:50 min) from the Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU Science Writing; 2021) provides an overview of the IMRaD discussion (9:04 min to 13:44 min), components of the discussion and common mistakes.

This video (3:36 min) from the Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU Science Writing; 2021) provides an overview of the IMRaD conclusion.