How to Start the Introduction of a Research

Format of the Introduction Chapter

The Introduction of the Research Paper is different from a Research Thesis. Following are the sections that shall be part of an Introduction Chapter in a Thesis.

Chapter Overview

Study Background

  • Value/Importance of your research area/topic in general.
  • Value of your topic in your field/Study Setting (Highlight why is there a need to study the concept?)
  • Existing research on your variables, what relationships have been studied. Limitations/Gaps/Future Research directions on your topic based on previous studies on the variables, MUST be LATEST past 1 year.
  • Theoretical Lens

Problem Statement

Research Objectives

Research Questions

Research Contributions

Study Significance

Operational Definitions

Proposed structure of your thesis

How to Start the Introduction Section

Shall we Start from the Dependent Variable, Independent Variable, or the Mediating/Moderating Variable?

Focus on variable around which you have concentrated the study limitations and gaps.

If you are starting with the IV, after identifying its value/importance you can start focus on how it relates to DV, further, if there are mediating variables, the scholar can focus on identifying that the influence is not entirely direct and that there are mediating variable.

Following this, the scholar can state the existing research has identified several gaps pertinent to the relationship of the variable.

Example Paper: Revisiting the relationship between corporate social responsibility and organizational performance: The mediating role of team outcomes

 If you are starting with the DV, after identifying its value/importance you can start focus on how it is affective by the IV, further, if there are mediating variables, the scholar can focus on identifying that the influence is not entirely direct and that there are mediating variable.

 Following this, the scholar can state the existing research has identified several gaps pertinent to the relationship of the variable.

 Example Paper: Servant leadership and employee innovative behaviour: exploring psychological pathways

 Starting around the Study Setting. Gaps may be concentrated around the study setting. For instance Higher Education. The scholar may start with how the topic is important for a particular study setting and further identify how the particular topic has limited research in a particular study setting.

Example Paper: Knowledge management processes, knowledge worker satisfaction, and organizational performance: Symmetric and asymmetrical analysis

How a Thesis Introduction Chapter Differs from the Introduction in a Research Paper

Video: How to Start the Research Introduction

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