Writing a strong introduction for a research paper is extremely important. The introduction needs to pique the reader’s interest in your topic and lay out the overall focus and structure of your paper. A good research paper introduction accomplishes several key tasks, which some example paragraphs below demonstrate.
The first part of the introduction should provide background context on your topic to give readers a frame of reference for what they are about to read. Use broad concepts and specifics that inform the reader about the significance, scope, or history of the issue. For example, in a paper on the health impacts of global warming, you could write:
“Global climate change poses one of the greatest threats to public health worldwide. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the global average temperature has risen approximately 1 degree Celsius over the last 150 years. Continued increases in greenhouse gas emissions are projected to lead to further warming across all regions of the globe. Beyond increasing average temperatures, climate change impacts include more frequent and severe heat waves, heavier precipitation events that cause flooding, more intense hurricanes and typhoons, prolonged droughts in some regions, and sea level rise that threatens coastal communities. Each of these climate-related hazards endangers human health through various pathways such as increased risks of heat-related illness and mortality, worsening air pollution, spread of infectious diseases into new areas, food and water insecurity, and population displacement.”
The next key element is framing your specific research question or thesis statement. This establishes the purpose and scope of what will be investigated in the paper. For instance:
“While the public health consequences of climate change are wide-ranging, this paper will focus specifically on examining the projected health impacts of more frequent and severe heat waves. Increasing heat exposure represents one of the most direct threats to human well-being resulting from higher global temperatures. Using population and climate projection data, this study aims to quantify future increases in heat-related mortality under various climate change scenarios for major cities across the United States.”
You should then provide an outline or roadmap of how the rest of the paper will be organized to substantiate the research question. This helps guide the reader’s expectations and follow the logical flow of ideas. For example:
“The subsequent sections will: 1) Review the current scientific understanding of the relationship between extreme heat and human mortality; 2) Describe climate modeling projections for changes in heat wave characteristics in selected cities by mid-century; 3) Estimate potential increases in heat-related deaths using demographic forecasts, daily mortality records, and heat wave thresholds defined by local climatology; and 4) Discuss the implications of these findings for public health preparedness and adaptation strategies to reduce heat-related risks. Finally, the conclusion will summarize key results and limitations of the study as well as make recommendations for future research directions.”
The introduction should continue with a brief summary of the most relevant and timely previous research on the topic to establish context for the current study’s contribution. A focused literature review highlights important works and identifies gaps to demonstrate how your paper will add to the existing knowledge base. For instance:
“Several prior studies have estimated future heat-related health burdens under climate change for regions around the world (Hondula et al., 2015; Gasparrini et al., 2015; Gosling et al., 2009). Projections at the local or city scale within the U.S. have been limited. Local-level impacts will vary considerably based on urban heat island effects, community characteristics, and adaptation responses. This paper aims to provide more spatially granular risk assessments to better inform municipal public health preparedness planning. While prior national studies have quantified potential temperature-related deaths at broad regional levels, this research systematically analyzes a selection of major urban areas to determine their varying vulnerability under a range of warming scenarios.”
Finally, the introduction should close by restating the significance of the research questions and concisely forecasting the main findings. This helps wrap up the introduction on a memorable note that compels the reader to continue to the following sections. For instance:
“Given the substantial projected increases in heat wave frequency and severity across many U.S. cities, quantifying potential increases in related mortality has important implications for targeted public health intervention strategies. The findings of this study seek to more accurately forecast local health burdens to aid preparation and response planning in communities facing heightened climate risks. It is hypothesized that heat wave deaths will rise considerably by mid-century without adaptive measures, highlighting the urgent need for enhanced resilience efforts tailored to local conditions and vulnerabilities.”
Well-written introduction paragraphs accomplish the key tasks of providing context, framing the research questions, outlining the paper’s organization, reviewing prior literature, and forecasting main findings. The examples above aim to demonstrate how original research papers can effectively set up their scope, significance and structure through cohesive opening passages. Strong introductions engage readers and guide their comprehension of the full analysis to follow.
Andrew Stroud