除了摘要，引言在你的essay或dissertation中很可能是你最后完成的部分。然而,它并不應該是你最后思考的部分。

你應該在早期就寫好你的引言草稿。早于提交研究計劃,制定出想法的大致輪廓,研究這個領域的緣由,希望探索建立的論題。

你可以,也應該,隨著想法變化更新你的引言。記住引言可以幫助確保你的研究不偏離正確的軌道。

引言提供的是dissertation或其他研究項目的理論基礎:你想回答什么,為什么做這個研究是很重要的。

引言應該明確聲明研究的相關問題和研究目的(密切相關的問題)。

它還應該介紹并簡要回顧文學主題,介紹和解釋什么是已知的理論框架。如果在文獻中有爭議理論,那么對于研究者，引言就是一個好地方按照他或她自己的角度來契合dissertation的文獻綜述部分。

引言也應該表明你的研究將如何有助于理解主題理論。

 

根據你的研究計劃寫
 

你的essay或dissertation的引言在很大程度上取決于你的研究計劃。

如果你還沒有寫研究計劃，先寫一些關于研究計劃的想法。

引言需要為以后的工作制定一個方向和提供一個廣泛的參數和/或你之前的研究內容。它應該說明下你選擇研究這個領域的想法,過去文獻的研究,以及你希望找到什么。

但是,與你的開題報告不同,這時你已經完成了工作。這意味著你的引言需要更清晰地表達關于你選擇調查的內容和精準工作范圍。

記住,不論當你什么時候完成它,對于讀者而言,引言還只是你的開始工作。雖然可以讓人們了解到你的研究結果,但是不應該包含任何詳細的結論。

 

優秀引言的寫作竅門:

 

一個有趣的開頭語,將吸引讀者的注意力

不要試圖在引言中介紹一切,但要包含你工作和論題的寬泛大綱。

確保你不會承諾任何不能交付的工作。

保持簡單的語言。盡管你應該這樣做,這依然是引言特別重要的地方。

引言的最后,通常設置dissertation其他部分的大綱。

引言可以是這樣的。比如“第二章會論述我選擇的方法,第三章會說明結果,和第四章會討論結果和結論”

不過,如果你的dissertation主題是嚴謹的,那么一個更復雜的輪廓應該是必要的。

 

起草、修改

 

與任何其他的寫作essay一樣,重新起草和編輯將會改善你的dissertation。

對于引言這點特別重要,因為它需要抓住讀者的注意力,引導他們參與到你的研究。

確保你能達成這一點最好的方式就是給自己留足夠的時間來寫一個優秀的引言,包括幾次修改。

絕對不要把引言當成一個輕松的工作

 

The introduction to your dissertation or thesis may well be the last part that you complete, excepting perhaps the abstract. However, it should not be the last part that you think about.

You should write a draft of your introduction very early on, perhaps as early as when you submit your research proposal, to set out a broad outline of your ideas, why you want to study this area, and what you hope to explore and/or establish.

You can, and should, update your introduction several times as your ideas develop. Keeping the introduction in mind will help you to ensure that your research stays on track.

The introduction provides the rationale for your dissertation, thesis or other research project: what you are trying to answer and why it is important to do this research.

Your introduction should contain a clear statement of the research question and the aims of the research (closely related to the question).

It should also introduce and briefly review the literature on your topic to show what is already known and explain the theoretical framework.  If there are theoretical debates in the literature, then the introduction is a good place for the researcher to give his or her own perspective in conjunction with the literature review section of the dissertation.

The introduction should also indicate how your piece of research will contribute to the theoretical understanding of the topic.

 

Drawing on your Research Proposal

 

The introduction to your dissertation or thesis will probably draw heavily on your research proposal.

If you haven't already written a research proposal . Writing a Research Proposal for some ideas.

The introduction needs to set the scene for the later work and give a broad idea of the arguments and/or research that preceded yours. It should give some idea of why you chose to study this area, giving a flavour of the literature, and what you hoped to find out.

Unlike your research proposal, however, you have now completed the work. This means that your introduction can be much clearer about what exactly you chose to investigate and the precise scope of your work.

Remember, whenever you actually write it, that, for the reader, the introduction is the start of the journey through your work. Although you can give a flavour of the outcomes of your research, you should not include any detailed results or conclusions.

 

Some good ideas for making your introduction strong include:

• An interesting opening sentence that will hold the attention of your reader.

• Don’t try to say everything in the introduction, but do outline the broad thrust of your work and argument.

• Make sure that you don’t promise anything that can’t be delivered later.

• Keep the language straightforward. Although you should do this throughout, it is especially important for the introduction.

• At the end of the introduction, it is also usual to set out an outline of the rest of the dissertation.

• This can be as simple as ‘Chapter 2 discusses my chosen methodology, Chapter 3 sets out my results, and Chapter 4 discusses the results and draws conclusions’.

• However, if your thesis is ordered by themes, then a more complex outline may be necessary.

 

Drafting and Redrafting

 

As with any other piece of writing, redrafting and editing will improve your text.

This is especially important for the introduction because it needs to hold your reader’s attention and lead them into your research.

The best way to ensure that you can do this is to give yourself enough time to write a really good introduction, including several redrafts.

Do not view the introduction as a last minute job.