How to write abstract in English thesis?

I was saving my first article SCI At the time of the paper , It was written first Abstract, Then write the text .
that , A good Abstract How should it be ？

As the first part after the title of the English thesis ,Abstract（ Abstract ） Often overlooked , After all, strictly speaking, it is not the body of the thesis , The content is also relatively short .

About how to write the abstract , English papers published in well-known journals can be searched on the following websites ：

You can retrieve 28000+ An important academic journal （ It includes IEEE Periodical 258 Kind of 、Springer Periodical 384 Kind of 、Elsevier Periodical 336 Kind of 、Taylor Periodical 261 Kind of 、Wiley Periodical 212 Kind of ）

As the first impression shown to readers , In fact, the abstract of the paper is quite important , Today, let's talk about how to write this part ：

One 、Abstract The content of

Before explaining the writing method of the abstract , We need to know what its main content is ？
Generally speaking , There are two kinds of abstracts that you often write ：Descriptive abstracts and Informative abstracts, Their main contents are slightly different .

·Descriptive abstracts
Descriptive abstracts The literal translation is descriptive summary , It mainly describes the research content , It should be noted that it does not make judgments about research , Nor provide research results or conclusions , And may include the purpose of the study 、 Method and scope .
In essence , The descriptive summary only describes the studies being summarized , Comparison summary , It's more like an outline . Because there is not much content , The length is also relatively short , Generally in 100 Within a word . Descriptive summaries are rarely used , Generally, master's or journal papers will not involve .

·Informative abstracts
Informative abstracts Translate the information summary directly , Compared with the above, it is more detailed , It can usually be seen as a thumbnail of a paper . The information summary not only includes the information in the descriptive summary （ Purpose 、 Method 、 Range ）, It also includes the results and conclusions of the study and the author's views . This kind of summary is also the type of summary we usually need to write , The number of words is usually in 150-300 Between words , Different journals or schools have different requirements .
As can be seen from the description above , There are four key elements of an information digest ： The problem or purpose of the study （Aims）、 Research methods used （Methods）、 The results （Results） And the author's conclusions or opinions （Conclusion）.

Now let's talk about the writing methods of each part ：

Two 、Abstract The writing method of each part
· Purpose （Aims）
At the beginning of the summary , We need to clarify the purpose of the study , For example, what kind of theory does the paper answer / Research questions . Before stating the purpose , You can first briefly introduce some academic or social background of the research problem , But be careful to keep it simple , Try to finish in two sentences .
e.g. It is well-established that representations of individual victims are more effective than abstract concepts like climate change when designing fundraising campaigns. This study aims to determine how such representations can be better targeted in order to increase donations.
After explaining the problem , You also need to state your goals , Try to use investigate、test、analyze、evaluate These similar verbs accurately describe .
Also remember that here we usually use the present tense or the past tense , Because the research has been completed , Remember not to use the future .

e.g. This study will investigate the relationship between coffee consumption and productivity.（X）
This study investigates the relationship between coffee consumption and productivity.（√）

· Research methods （Methods）
After expounding the research objectives , It's time to explain the research methods , This part is not much , It usually ends in one or two sentences . Also note that , The experiment is now finished , So use the past perfect tense .
e.g. Respondents were randomly divided into two conditions (large and small social distance) and asked to respond to one of two sets of fundraising material. Responses were analyzed using a two-sample t-test.
Be careful , Here we only need to describe the method , There is no need to explain the advantages, disadvantages or limitations of the research methods , Because the main purpose is to let readers understand the method .

· The results （Results）
After saying the method , We just explain the result （Results）, Note that there may be many results here , What needs to be listed is the most important result , That is, the result of being able to answer the questions raised earlier . alike , Here we also use the simple past tense or the simple present tense .
e.g. The results showed a small effect in the opposite direction than hypothesized: large social distance was associated with higher donation intention than small social distance.

· Conclusion （Conclusion）
At the end of the summary , We have to draw our own conclusions , Note that the conclusion should also be able to directly answer the questions raised above , The tense is usually the general present tense .
e.g. These results suggest that potential donors are more likely to respond to campaigns depicting victims that they perceive as socially distant from themselves.
If the research goal involves practical problems , Then beyond the conclusion , You can also put forward suggestions that can be implemented , For further study .
e.g. On this basis, the concept of social distance should be taken into account when designing environmental fundraising campaigns.

The above is the writing method of each part of the summary , Next, I'll give you a piece of writing advice .

3、 ... and 、Abstract Writing suggestion

· Writing time
Although the abstract is located in the first part of the paper , But it is usually written after the content of the paper is completed , Because it is essentially a summary of a paper . Only after finishing the thesis , You can have a complete summary of the whole paper .
Here also recommends a more practical writing method , From each part of the paper （Introduction、Methods、Conclusion、Discussion） Choose key sentences or phrases , Then add connectives to connect them , Basically, you can get a good summary .

· Voice and tense
Try to use the active voice in the abstract , The tense is based on the past tense , The past perfect tense can be used for some actions that have been completed , The general present tense can be used to draw a conclusion .

· To avoid the Citations（ quote ）
The purpose of the abstract is to summarize your paper , Include your goals 、 Research work, etc , Mainly let readers see what you have done 、 What's the result , So try to avoid quoting others' views or experimental data .

· Keep it simple
Due to the limitation of space , We should always follow the principle of brevity in writing , Don't go into details , For example, detailed background information 、 Details of experimental or statistical methods . Even when it comes to technical terms , There is no need for additional explanation .

Okay , That's about Abstract All the content of writing , I don't know if everyone knows ？ You can leave a comment if you have any questions ！

Other thesis writing skills ：
How to find English literature in the field of computer ？
https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/533055678
On what website can you find English Literature ？
https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/536125827
How to write a management thesis ？ In recent years 30 Hot topics , Attached paper reference ！
https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/534743809