GeeklyHub Reviews 5 Ways to Distinguish an Introduction from an Abstract

GeeklyHub Reviews 5 Ways to Distinguish an Introduction from an Abstract

Do you ever find yourself wondering which section of your scholarly article or research paper should be the introduction and which should be abstract? Do you ever wonder what you should write in each section? Have you ever found yourself on Reddit reviews ranting about this confusion? Well, you are not alone in this. Reading through GeeklyHub reviews and you’ll find many like you who have had to seek help concerning the same issue. The abstract and introduction are two very similar parts of academic writing and it’s pretty easy to confuse one for the other. It doesn’t help that they both sometimes share similar features and are usually located in the same area of the document. That’s perhaps why a lot of people find and more will continue to find the two sections confusing when writing a scholarly text. Hopefully, they’ll get to find this article and it’ll help them solve the conundrum once and for all, just as it’s about to help you.

In this article, you’ll learn five important differences between an abstract and an introduction in academic writing. With this knowledge, you’ll not only be able to distinguish between both sections, but you will also be able to write each section masterfully and share your success on GeeklyHub reviews or Reddit reviews. Before we dive fully into it, let’s see the brief descriptions of each section.

Abstract

In academic writing, the abstract is a short preview found at the beginning of a thesis/paper. The primary purpose of an abstract is to give the reader an objective and thorough idea of what the paper is about and also to shed light briefly on the main conclusions reached by the author(s). The abstract, however, does not give an in-depth explanation of how the conclusions were reached. Abstracts are typically divided into two based on the information they contain:

Descriptive Abstracts: Known also as limited abstracts, they only describe the content of the paper/article. Descriptive abstracts touch only on scope, purpose, and method.

Informative Abstracts: This type of abstract contains a description of the contents of the paper/article, but goes further than that. It also touches on the recommendations, conclusions, and results of the paper. Informative abstracts are very useful for researchers because they can preview an article and ensure it’s what they need before paying to access the full article.

Introduction

The introduction, on the other hand, although also found at the beginning of an academic paper, serves a different purpose. The introduction is expected to spark the reader’s interest with a preview of the subject matter contained in the paper and make them want to read further. It may contain information on the thesis premise, the background, the outline of important issues, and the aims of the article.

Now that we understand what both sections are about and their importance in academic writing, let’s look at the seven most important differences you should always take note of when working on your project proposals, scholarly articles, research papers, etc.

1. Function: As similar as both sections may look, like GeeklyHub reviews and Reddit reviews, they don’t have the same function. An abstract is essentially a summary of the whole document, while the introduction, as the word implies, introduces the text to the reader. By reading the abstract, a researcher is given a sneak peek into what the document entails, its scope, methods, and purpose. The introduction on the other hand serves to get the reader interested in reading the document.
2. Location: Both introduction and abstract are usually found at the beginning of a scholarly article or academic paper. The difference here is that the abstract section typically comes first. After the abstract, the introduction can then follow. This is especially important for articles on paid or subscription-based journals. After reading through the abstract, which is essentially a summary, the researcher can decide whether to ditch or pay for access.
3. Dependence/Independence: An abstract, being a summary of the contents of the text, does not need the rest of the text to make sense. An introduction, on the other hand, needs the rest of the text to make sense to a reader.
4. Document Type: Abstracts and introductions do not always appear on all scholarly pieces. For example, abstracts can be found on dissertations, theses, and research papers, while the introduction is found in a wider variety of scholarly texts if not all.
5. Structure: If you’re working on a scholarly piece for an academic journal, you would most likely be asked to restrict the length of your abstract to 250 words. This is to make sure you only give the most important information in the section. Typically, the abstract section will contain a summary of the background, aims, and objectives, materials and methods, results, conclusions, and findings. For doctoral theses, most colleges allow up to 500 words for fuller expression. For the introduction, the section is usually expected to be four paragraphs. The structure of the introduction is the context/background, the research gap, why the study is needed, and a broad overview of the aims, objectives, and hypothesis of the study.

By now you should have a fuller understanding of the differences between abstract and introduction. But before you go on GeeklyHub reviews to share your win, you still need to understand this even better. You should consider reading other research articles, then you can start writing.