Dos and Don’ts for Writing an Effective Results and Discussion Section

Do:

• State the message of each paragraph upfront.
• Interpret your results.
• Critically analyze the data.
• Discuss any unexpected results, if applicable.
• Discuss the wider implications of your findings; summarize how the data impacts your field of study.
• Compare your results with those from other studies already published, being sure to include studies with results that are contradictory to yours.  Offer an explanation for the differences.

Don’t:

• Include all of your data; include only the information that is most relevant in answering the questions posed in your manuscript.
• Use text to describe everything; make use of tables and figures.
• Discuss results or data not presented previously in the paper.
• Provide unwarranted speculation.
• Discuss tangential issues.
• Present conclusions not supported by your data.