Post #1
Abstracts contain a summary on the literature review that describes the purpose, methods, and conclusion in 150-200 words.
When writing an abstract, a guideline I usually follow is to take a few sentences from my paper and try to break it down into smaller sentences that flow well with one another.
I try not to give too much information because I like to save that for my actual paper, but I also give enough information for the reader to get a quick introduction. Another guideline that I wasn't aware of is that it should be within 150-200 words. I always though abstracts had a maximum of 300 words, but I was wrong.
My approach will be similar to what I mentioned above. I will talk about why I care about the issue and the results of it. I will mention the problem or problems and how I will go about solving it. I will then mention the results and my conclusion.
References:
VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.) Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Post #2
When writing an abstract my goal is to ensure I briefly cover the basics of why my topic is important, what I'm attempting to solve, how I plan to solve, what did I find and a conclusion. Using this as a guide has been helpful for myself to ensure nothing is left out.
As stated in the APA Manual (2010), " Readers frequently decide on the basis of the abstract whether to read the entire article" (p.26). This is very important and will set the tone for the entire review, if the writer cannot grasp the attention of the readers from the start then all the research and work they put in will be a loss.
According to the APA Manual (2010), "Be brief, and make each sentence maximally informative, especially the lead sentence" (p.26) The literature review is where the writer will go into great detail on the purpose and questions, the abstract should be direct, concise and a simple summary on what the reader will find as they continue to read.
References
American Psychlogical Association.(2010). Publication Manual.
Post #3
An abstract is not only a product that will comprehensively summarize my literature review, but it is also nonevaluative and readable (American Psychological Association, 2010, p. 26).
An uneducated method to describe an abstract is that is essentially like a move trailer, but for your paper. "...it allows readers to survey the contents of an article quickly and, like a title, it enables persons interested in the document to retrieve it from abstracting and indexing databases" (American Psychological Association, 2010).
Writing an abstract has never truly challenged me. When writing an abstract, I always prepare it after my paper is complete. I select a few sentences from the introduction, the main body, and the conclusion and keep them organized in the same manner. I have learned that an abstract can be the determining factor for a reader to read your paper. You essentially have to make a good first impression due to the abstract setting the tone for the paper.
As stated in Cerejo (2013) article "A 10-step guide to make your research paper abstract more effective" you want to ensure that the abstract "does not contain new information that is not present in the paper, undefined abbreviations or group names, a discussion of previous literature or reference citations, and that there are no unnecessary details about the methods used" (para. 4).
References
American Psychological Association. (2010). APA Manual (Publication manual of the American Psychological Association) (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Cerejo, C. (2013, October 16). A 10-step guide to make your research paper abstract more effective.