Determine the readership of your study. Knowing whether the target audience is a class instructor, a group of scholars and scientists, the board of directors at a company or a legislative committee, for example, provides a useful guide in how best to structure your study and report the results of statistical analyses. A professor in a class or a group of scholars reviewing your study at a conference or for publication in a journal will expect more technical details about the data you collected and the statistical analysis techniques chosen. Company directors and legislative committee members, in contrast, will be less interested in those details than in the specific business or policy recommendations you offer and the empirical support you lend them.
Report the most important findings of your study in areas that will grab a reader's attention. Depending on your audience, this means showing the findings at the beginnings of paragraphs, in headings or highlighted in bullet point lists. Make sure you support your findings with evidence from your statistical analysis.
Insert data tables, charts and graphics to display the results of your statistical analysis. Data tables displaying descriptive statistics, correlation and regression results, for example, are best in academic studies prepared for a class, conference or journal. Charts and graphics are appropriate in studies prepared for business and public policy decision-makers. Visual displays should be as self-explanatory as possible and supporting text in the report should highlight the importance of the chart or graphic.
Report detailed information on your data and analytical techniques in the appendix of your study. The body of your report should emphasize findings and results based on the analysis. Flesh out the details about your data and analytical methods in the appendix, where readers who are interested in this information can explore it if they wish to do so.