RTU Doctoral Student English Language Writing Workshops
Merija Jirgensons, PhD
Workshop Activity: Abstract Writing
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Each one of you will be asked to write an abstract about an article you are planning to publish. I
will ask you to write the abstract at our seminar. Then I will ask you to exchange abstracts and
edit them according to the criteria given below. Next, the abstracts will be returned to the
original writers who will look them over and evaluate the editing: are there improvements? Why
or why not? How should the abstract be changed to more effectively communicate your
message? We will discuss what your learned—or how the lesson could have been improved at
the end of the seminar.
Have a working title that is clear, precise and meaningfully expresses the paper content;
Write Key Words if you want to—remember these should be between three to five words.
The follow the instructions are for the Abstract Writing Activity:
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Write ONE abstract 150 to 250 words in length that in most cases is the length for journal
articles, but the length can vary for each journal and conference—so check first. The editors may
leave it up to you—so it becomes your choice. Here you have a choice of writing an abstract in
three formats. Note, Abstract formats may vary with publications; here you are given three
basic formats. Examples of each format is attached. They are intended as models to give you
ideas for structuring your own original abstract.
o The Structured abstract where each section is labeled. The structure may vary with the
journal. Here you have the basic IMRAD format that you may adjust with the publisher’s
requirements.
o The semi-structured abstract written in essay format where section headings are
highlighted. The advantage of this format is that the headings may be removed on
request (from publishers, etc.).
o The essay format where key information is presented as a short, comprehensive essay
that clearly presents the key IMRAD points of the article.
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Write a short summary of an article you are working on or plan to write that reflects your article
in miniature; each word should be weighed; remember, you are selling this to the publisher and
the public;
Write in simple, clear, and direct English;
Explain why your article is useful to other researchers (readers);
The abstract will appear—you hope in: indexes, web browsers, key word searchers;
List three or six key words—they will the indexing terms that will give access to your article
(optional);
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Elements to be included in the abstract:
o Purpose--What is the problem and how you intend to solve it?
o Hypothesis
o Methodology
o Results
o Conclusions that includes your Contribution (what paper adds to the body of scholarly
knowledge)