Draft an outline that sets out the sections of your research paper, including the introduction, literature review, research methods, findings and conclusion. While writing the outline, think about which examples from your field research data will best illustrate the points you want to make. The outline will help you organize your work.
Write an introduction that provides an overview of your topic and articulates the key research question or questions that your study will answer.
Describe past research on your topic by writing a literature review. This section should summarize prior studies, as well as describe how your field research is new or different from previous work on this topic. Describe how your field research will add to the existing knowledge on the topic of your paper.
Write a methodology section that explains to your readers how you collected the data for your study. This includes participant observation, interviews, surveys and collection of written documents. Northern Illinois University advises describing any procedures you followed to code the material for analysis, such as assigning numerical values to interview responses for analysis with a spreadsheet or statistical program.
Report the findings of your field research, remembering to tie the information to your research questions. The findings section will be the main body of your paper, in which you report the results of your field research. Describe the patterns you observed as you analyzed the data for your study, using specific examples from your field research to support your findings. Keep your field notes nearby as you write this section so you can refer back to them as needed.
Summarize your field research with a conclusion section that restates your research questions and summarizes the findings.
Read the first draft of your field research paper, then revise as necessary. Add additional details to the main body if you need stronger support for your findings.
Complete a references or bibliography section that includes all of the works you cited. This includes books, journal articles and other reference materials, including online sources. Be sure to follow the correct style guide for citing references, such as MLA or APA.