Writing for different formats by Eva Selenko Empirical journal article Books Review articles The general public Writing is hard. But it is also just a set of concrete behaviours. These behaviours can be trained. Its rather about regularity – not inspiration Slightly different to writing your thesis

Practical Tips Write an Outline – WHAT is it that you want to convey? What is your story? – How long? full-length journal articles (ca pages; words) Short research notes (ca 5-17 pages; words) – How much attention to past research? – Who is your audience? – Write well!! You want to convey your idea! Clear thinking = clear writing Get your thoughts in order Short = good A conference presentation can help here!

Writing well Try to write simple, not smart, and practice a lot!! You want to get your ideas over! Read what others wrote about writing: e.g. Bem, D.J. (2002). Writing the empirical journal article. Silvia, P. (2012). How to write a lot. Choose good words & write simple, active, short, strong sentences – …and omit needless words – …beware of too many acronyms  ! Stay consistent & orderly Write first - revise later – (perfectionism can be paralysing)

Writing Empirical Journal Articles Title & Abstract – Will it stay relevant? Write it last Introduction – Start out with an overview Stage the scene, introduce key concepts, what is the issue and why is it important? What is the novelty of your research? – Review prior theory in connection to your research Use subheaders as sign posts, explain what prior theory and research has done about the topic Keep focus on the problem you introduced in the overview – “Present research” paragraph What is your research specifically going to do? What is it going to add?

Writing Empirical Journal Articles Method – Should allow others to replicate your study – Connect to previous research – new measures: describe in detail, provide references – “Analysis Strategy” section can help Results – First - integrity tests – Structure logically (e.g., along hypotheses; subheaders!) – Summarise & decide Discussion – Start with a brief summary of your study’s aims – Be specific in limitations References – Be rigorous – be careful of bad APA cueing – Self-citing?

Writing Review Articles Quite challenging – asks for a lot of planning, a very good outline Writing Reviews – writing stories – What is the original point you are making? Make that clear upfront – Its not about just describing previous research – there must be a good reason for doing so Write well – not (necessarily) chronologically Good reviews give an overview over past research (problem solving) and point towards areas of new research (problem finding) Have a good schedule ready & stick to it Bem, D.J. (1995). Writing a review article for Psychological Bulletin. Psychological Bulletin, 118,

Writing a Book Why write a book? – To wrap up a research area Why write a book chapter? – Great way to get your theoretical idea copyrighted – publishing process can be quicker than for a peer-reviewed article Some (…) steps to writing a book – Find a co-author – Write a plan & a proposal – Find a publisher – Write it Set a schedule & stick to it Its all about regularity rather than binge-writing Allocate! - not ‘find’ - time for it! Books are more likely read

Writing for [the general public] Use non technical language – but don’t underestimate readers either Keep references in mind! Link to further research Give a balanced & short picture (without being trivial)