Writing the Discussion Section
5- 3
Examples of Poorly Written and Well-Written Discussions
On pages 5-16 to 5-22 are Discussions that contain the kinds of mistakes authors often make in the first drafts of their Discussion and well-written versions of the same poor Discussions. How the well-written examples fit the model of a well-written Discussion is indicated on each well- written example, and how the poorly written examples fail to follow the model is indicated on them.
Stating Your Conclusions
Start your Discussion with a statement of your conclusions based on your findings. These conclusions are tied to your hypothesis or purpose, so use wording similar to that in your hypothesis or purpose (as stated at the end of the Introduction). Also point out the major findings that support your conclusions (but do not simply repeat all your results).
Consider the following example:
At the end of the Introduction: “To further the understanding of the role of CFTR gene dysfunction in the development of the cystic fibrosis phenotype, we extensively analyzed CFTR genes in 74 patients with nonclassic cystic fibrosis who were referred for confirmatory genetic diagnosis.” At the beginning of the Discussion: “The identification of mutations in the CFTR gene in a large fraction of our patients confirms the involvement of this gene in nonclassic cystic fibrosis. [Conclusion] Indeed, each of the 29 patients with two identified CFTR mutations had at least one mutation that was predicted to be associated with residual CFTR function.” [Major finding that supports the conclusion] (Adapted from Groman JD et al. Variant cystic fibrosis phenotypes in the absence of CFTR mutations. N Engl J Med 347:401 – 407, 2002.) It is helpful in writing your conclusions to think of your hypothesis as a questio n (“Does X lead to Y?”), and then write the answer to the question (“Our study showed that X leads to Y.”).
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software