Creating a strong outline is crucial for successful research paper writing. An outline not only serves as a planning tool as you research your topic, but it also helps ensure your paper is coherent, well-organized, and addresses your thesis. With Google Docs, you have a powerful yet flexible tool for crafting your research paper outline.
Why Use Google Docs for Your Outline?
There are several benefits to creating your research paper outline in Google Docs:
Collaboration: If you have multiple people working on your research, they can each access and edit the outline simultaneously in real-time from any device with an internet connection. Comments and suggestions can also be left by collaborators.
Organization: Google Docs outlines support different heading styles and levels to keep your topics and subtopics logically structured. You can also insert tables, lists, images, and more for a highly organized, visual summary of your paper’s structure.
Accessibility: Your outline is saved in the cloud and can be accessed from anywhere, ensuring you always have the latest version with you. This is ideal for the iterative process of research writing.
Version history: Google Docs automatically saves revisions, so you can go back to earlier outline versions if needed. This protects your work from accidental deletions or overwrites.
Easy sharing: The outline can be shared privately with instructors or committee members for feedback during the planning stages.
Setting Up Your Initial Outline Structure in Google Docs
The first step is to open a new Google Doc and give it a descriptive title, such as “Research Paper Outline – Topic Name.” Then, add your name, course/subject, and date at the top.
From there, you’ll want to set up your initial outline structure using heading styles. In Google Docs, select the text you want to make a heading and click on the Styles drop-down menu. Choose from heading levels 1-5, with 1 being the most prominent section titles and 5 being the least.
A typical outline may have the following top-level headings:
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
You can then add second-level headings under each top-level section:
Introduction
1.1. Background Information
1.2. Thesis Statement
Body
2.1. Topic Sentence #1
2.2. Topic Sentence #2
Conclusion
3.1. Restate Thesis
3.2. Final Thoughts
Adding Placeholders and Examples
At this early stage, don’t worry about having fully fleshed-out details. Instead, add brief placeholders and examples to map out your paper structure. For example:
2.1. Topic Sentence #1
[Describe key point #1 briefly with an example in brackets]
2.2. Topic Sentence #2
[Summarize argument #2 here including a quote placeholder]
You can also insert tables, lists, or images to outline organization. For example:
1.2. Thesis Statement
[Insert thesis statement here]
1.3.Preview of Key Arguments
[Insert 3-column table listing arguments]
Now you have a preliminary structure to refer to as you conduct research and draft sections. Revisit and refine the outline as needed.
Adding Sources and Research Details
As you gather scholarly sources through your research process, add relevant details and citations directly to the outline. This keeps everything organized in one place.
For example, you could insert a source under the appropriate subheading:
2.1 Topic Sentence #1
Smith (2019) argues that certain variables influence outcomes. As Smith states, “Higher education promotes social mobility” (p. 45).
Or add source details and a paraphrase:
1.3 Preview of Key Arguments
Argument 1: Education reduces income inequality (Jones, 2020; Brown, 2021)
Argument 2: Access to education varies by demographics (Rogers, 2019)
You can also insert full references either after each source mention or all together in a References section. Google Docs makes it easy to keep track of sources as placeholders for the final manuscript.
Collaborating and Sharing for Feedback
When collaborating on the outline with others, use Comments to exchange ideas. Reviewers can leave suggestions directly in the document without editing the content itself.
To share for feedback, go to File > Share. You can grant editors, commenters or viewers access with their email addresses. Requested changes are automatically saved in the revision history.
Importantly, outlines shared early in the process are living documents that will inevitably change based on research discoveries and new perspectives from collaborators. Don’t be afraid to substantially revise and rearrange sections as needed in Google Docs.
Finalizing and Converting to a Paper
Once your outline mapping is complete, you have a solid foundation and structure planned for the paper draft itself. Take the outline headings and fill in the content details under each one. Be sure to properly format sources using your selected style.
When final, you can convert the outline to a formatted research paper document. Go to File > Download as and choose your preferred file type like DOC, DOCX, or PDF. Edit the styles as needed and you have a draft research paper ready for polishing and submission.
Creating an outline for a research paper in Google Docs provides numerous benefits for organization, collaboration, and staying on top of sources. With its flexibility and ease of use, any project from short papers to lengthy dissertations can benefit from outlining in Google Docs to optimize the writing process from start to finish.
Andrew Stroud