# Paper Structure > Plan and structure any type of academic paper, from IMRaD research papers to dissertations, essays, case studies, technical reports, and journal manuscripts. Use this skill whenever the user needs help organising or structuring a piece of academic writing, asks what sections to include, wants an outline, or is unsure how to structure their argument or paper. Trigger for: "how do I structure my pa… - **Type:** Skill - **Install:** `agentstack add skill-muhammad1438-academic-writer-skills-paper-structure` - **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior - **Seller:** [muhammad1438](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/muhammad1438) - **Installs:** 0 - **Category:** [Agent Skills](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/agent-skills) - **Latest version:** 0.1.0 - **License:** MIT - **Upstream author:** [muhammad1438](https://github.com/muhammad1438) - **Source:** https://github.com/muhammad1438/academic-writer-skills/tree/master/skills/paper-structure ## Install ```sh agentstack add skill-muhammad1438-academic-writer-skills-paper-structure ``` Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent. ## About # Paper Structure The architecture of an academic paper is **dictated by its genre, methodology, and disciplinary context**. Always identify the paper type before selecting a structure. Applying the wrong structure is one of the most serious structural errors in academic writing. --- ## Structure Selection Guide | Paper Type | Primary Structure | Common Disciplines | |---|---|---| | Empirical quantitative research | IMRaD | STEM, Psychology, Education | | Empirical qualitative research | IMRaD (modified) | Sociology, Education, Nursing | | Literature review | Funnel (thematic) | All disciplines | | Argumentative essay | Classical / Thesis-led | Humanities, Social Sciences | | Case study | Analysis-Synthesis | Business, Sociology, Medicine | | Dissertation / Thesis | Chapter-based | All disciplines | | Journal manuscript | Journal-specific (IMRaD base) | All | | Technical report | Problem-Method-Results | Engineering, CS | | Health policy brief | 4-section policy structure | Public Health | | SOAP note | SOAP | Medicine, Nursing | --- ## 1. IMRaD — The Universal Empirical Research Structure **Introduction → Methods → Results → Discussion** This is the undisputed standard for quantitative and qualitative empirical research across STEM and social sciences. ### Introduction Follows the **CARS model** (Swales, 1990): - **Move 1 — Establishing a Territory:** Validate the topic's significance: *"X is a fundamental property of..."* / *"X plays an important role in..."* - **Move 2 — Establishing a Niche:** Identify the gap, problem, or controversy: *"To date, little is known about..."* / *"Previous research has failed to..."* - **Move 3 — Occupying the Niche:** State your purpose and what your study does: *"This study therefore set out to..."* / *"This paper argues that..."* Ends with: a clear statement of research aim, research questions and/or hypotheses, and a brief outline of the paper's structure. ### Methods Goal: **absolute reproducibility** — another researcher should be able to exactly replicate the study. Must include: - Research design (experimental, survey, ethnographic, case study, etc.) - Participants / sample (size, demographics, sampling method, inclusion/exclusion criteria) - Materials / instruments (validated scales, equipment, software, interview guides) - Procedure (step-by-step data collection) - Analysis approach (statistical tests, thematic analysis, discourse analysis, etc.) - Ethical approval statement **Tense:** Past tense throughout ("Data were collected," "Participants were recruited") ### Results - Present findings **objectively** — no interpretation here - Organise by research question or hypothesis - Use tables, figures, and statistics appropriately - Report all relevant results — not just those that support your hypothesis - **Tense:** Past tense ("Results showed," "Participants reported") ### Discussion - Interpret results in relation to your hypotheses and the existing literature - Explain unexpected or contradictory findings - Compare your findings to prior studies (both confirming and disconfirming) - Acknowledge limitations (sample size, generalisability, measurement issues) - Suggest directions for future research - **Tense:** Mix — present tense for interpretation, past tense for your specific findings --- ## 2. The Argumentative Essay ### Classic 5-Part Structure 1. **Introduction** — Hook → Background → Thesis statement (clear arguable claim) 2. **Body Paragraph 1** — Strongest supporting argument 3. **Body Paragraph 2** — Second supporting argument 4. **Body Paragraph 3** — Address counterargument + refutation 5. **Conclusion** — Restate thesis (reworded) → Synthesise arguments → Broader significance ### PEEL Paragraph Structure (Body Paragraphs) - **P**oint — Topic sentence stating the paragraph's argument - **E**vidence — Cite supporting source(s); integrate paraphrase or brief quote - **E**xplanation — Analyse and explain how the evidence supports your point - **L**ink — Bridge sentence connecting back to thesis or forward to next point Variations: TEEL (Topic-Evidence-Explanation-Link), MEAL (Main idea-Evidence-Analysis-Link), RACES (Restate-Answer-Cite-Evidence-Summarise) ### Thesis Statement Qualities ✓ Strong: Makes a specific, arguable claim ("Digital surveillance by employers significantly undermines psychological safety in remote work environments, contributing to increased burnout rates") ✗ Weak: States a fact or topic ("This paper will discuss digital surveillance") ✗ Too broad: "Technology affects work" ✗ Too narrow to sustain an essay: "Zoom's screen-monitoring feature increased one company's burnout by 12%" --- ## 3. The Dissertation / Thesis Structure ### Monograph Format (Most Common) | Chapter | Content | |---|---| | **Front Matter** | Title page, declaration, acknowledgements, abstract, table of contents, list of figures/tables, abbreviations | | **Chapter 1: Introduction** | Background, problem statement, research aim and questions, significance, scope, overview of chapters | | **Chapter 2: Literature Review** | Theoretical framework, critical review of relevant literature, research gap | | **Chapter 3: Methodology** | Research philosophy, design, methods, analysis, ethics, limitations | | **Chapter 4: Results/Findings** | Presentation of data (quantitative: tables/figures; qualitative: themes with evidence) | | **Chapter 5: Discussion** | Interpretation, comparison to literature, theoretical implications | | **Chapter 6: Conclusion** | Summary of findings, contributions, limitations, recommendations, future research | | **References** | Full reference list in required style | | **Appendices** | Interview guides, questionnaires, ethical approval, raw data, supplementary material | ### Article-Based (Publication-Based) Thesis - Consists of a "kappa" (framing chapter) + 3–5 published or publishable journal articles - Kappa: Introduction + Synthesis of the articles + Overall conclusion - Each article stands alone and follows journal structure - Increasingly common in Scandinavia, Netherlands, Australia; growing elsewhere --- ## 4. The Case Study Standard case analysis structure: **Introduction:** Complete, objective summary of the case + thesis stating the analysis's purpose **Body:** - **Analysis** — Break down the case: identify problems, stakeholders, resources, constraints, evidence - **Synthesis** — Apply theoretical frameworks to the facts; connect concepts to the real-world situation; derive new understanding **Conclusion:** Evidence-based recommendations derived from the synthesis --- ## 5. Systematic Literature Review Structure 1. **Introduction** — Research question, significance, rationale for systematic approach 2. **Methods** — Search strategy, databases searched, date range, search terms (PICO), inclusion/exclusion criteria, screening process, data extraction method 3. **PRISMA Flow Diagram** — Visual representation of screening stages 4. **Results** — Overview of included studies (table); thematic synthesis of findings 5. **Discussion** — Synthesis of evidence, quality assessment, limitations of the review 6. **Conclusion** — Implications for practice, policy, or future research --- ## 6. Technical Report (STEM / Engineering) 1. **Title Page** — Report title, authors, institution, date 2. **Executive Summary / Abstract** — Key findings and recommendations (standalone) 3. **Table of Contents** 4. **Introduction** — Problem statement, scope, objectives 5. **Background / Literature** — Prior work, theoretical basis 6. **Methods / Approach** — What was done and how 7. **Results** — Data, findings, analysis 8. **Discussion** — Interpretation, limitations 9. **Conclusions and Recommendations** — What should be done 10. **References** 11. **Appendices** — Raw data, calculations, schematics --- ## 7. Health Policy Brief Strictly structured into four content areas: 1. **Problem Definition** — What is the health problem, who is affected, what is the scale? 2. **Policy Description** — What existing policies or interventions address this? What are their gaps? 3. **Evidence** — Quantitative data, epidemiological evidence, cost analysis 4. **Implications** — Consequences of action vs. inaction; policy recommendations Length: Single-page Policy Brief (600–800 words) OR multi-page White Paper (2,000–5,000 words) --- ## Introduction and Conclusion — Core Phrases ### Introduction Openers - "X is a fundamental property of..." - "X is fast becoming a key instrument in..." - "X plays an important role in the maintenance of..." - "Recent years have seen a significant increase in..." - "The relationship between X and Y has attracted considerable scholarly attention..." ### Transition to Research Gap - "To date, there has been little agreement on..." - "Previous studies have failed to specify..." - "What is not yet clear is the impact of X on..." - "No study has examined X in the context of..." ### Stating Purpose - "This study therefore set out to assess..." - "The central question in this dissertation asks..." - "The aim of this paper is to..." - "This study seeks to address this gap by..." ### Conclusion Contribution Phrases - "This study makes a major contribution to research on X by demonstrating..." - "The findings offer some important insights into..." - "This is the first study to undertake a longitudinal analysis of..." - "These results have significant implications for..." ### Acknowledging Limitations - "Interpret with caution due to limited data..." - "The generalisability of these results is subject to certain limitations..." - "Future research should investigate..." - "This study was limited by its cross-sectional design..." ## Source & license This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code. - **Author:** [muhammad1438](https://github.com/muhammad1438) - **Source:** [muhammad1438/academic-writer-skills](https://github.com/muhammad1438/academic-writer-skills) - **License:** MIT Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above. ## Pricing - **Free** — Free ## Security capabilities Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access: - **Network access:** no - **Filesystem access:** no - **Shell / process execution:** no - **Environment & secrets:** no - **Dynamic code execution:** no *"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.* ## Versions - **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source. ## Links - Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-muhammad1438-academic-writer-skills-paper-structure - Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/muhammad1438 - Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse --- Listed on AgentStack — the marketplace for AI agent skills and MCP servers. 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