Overview

Flowchart showing this is the fourth section of the report body: 1. Introduction. What is this document about? 2. Methods. What did you do? 3. Results. What did you see or determine? 4. Conclusions. What does it mean? 5. Recommendations. What should we do?
The Sections of the Body of the Recommendation Report

The Conclusions section tells your readers what your research data means. You discuss the implications of your findings and explain how your interpretation can influence how to proceed based on your research.

Where You Can Find Help

How You Do It

  1. Complete a draft of your Methods and Results sections before beginning this section. The interpretation in this section should directly connect to the information in the two previous sections of the report.
  2. Add the heading for your Conclusions section:
    1. Add the word Conclusions as the heading at the top of the page and center the line.
    2. Format the word so that it is clearly the heading for the page. You can use the built-in headings in your word processor. See the Tech Tip on p. 55 for help.
    3. Skip a blank line.
  3. Begin your Conclusions section with a short paragraph that provides an advance organizer for the rest of the section. See the example opening in the first paragraph of the Conclusions section in the Sample Recommendation Report on p. 523 of the textbook for help.
  4. For each task identified in your Methods and Results sections, add a matching subsection in your Conclusions section with details on the implications of your research. Follow these guidelines for each subsection:

    Tips for Writing Sub-Headings

    • Use the subheadings in the Conclusion Section of the sample recommendation report in Figure 18.8 of the textbook as a model.
    • Consult the advice in the “Writing Clear, Informative Headings,” section on pp. 199–202 (in Chapter 9 of the textbook).
    Task Heading
    • Copy the subsection headings from the Methods & Results Sections to your Conclusions section.
    • If desired, drop the Task and number labels from your subheading, retaining only the brief statement of the task. Ideally your subheading should be approximately 1 line or less in length.
    • Format your subheading so that it is different from the paragraphs in the body and matches other subheadings in the report. You can use the built-in headings in your word processor. See the Tech Tip on p. 55 for help.
    Task Details
    Provide relevant details under each heading, including the following information:
    • Explain the implications of your research, referring to your research to support your implications.
    • Focus this section on your conclusions only. Save your recommendations for the Recommendations section.
    • Add in-text citations for outside sources that you mention (for instance, books, websites, or videos) as you explain your findings. Make sure that any information you quote from your primary or secondary research is enclosed in quotation marks. Follow the documentation style that is used in your field. See the Documentation and Citations for Your Projects page for help.
    • Review the information in your subsection, and chunk the information into short paragraphs. The exact number of paragraphs in each of subsections will depend upon the specific details of your research process. See p. 265 for information on chunking.
    • You can also use bulleted lists if appropriate. See Guidelines: Creating Effective Lists on pp. 205–206 for additional help.
    • See the Conclusions section of the Sample Recommendation Report on p. 523–524 of the textbook for help.
  5. Compare the subheadings you have included with the tasks you have listed elsewhere in the document. Ensure that they all use the same phrasing.
  6. Review your Conclusions section to make sure that you have included everything that answers the question, “What did it [your methods and results] mean?”
  7. Move on to the next part of the report that you want to work on.