There are millions of results when we search the internet for our study project or research paper. We just check the paper’s title to see whether it corresponds to our query or not. If it matches, we click on it and read more about it; if it doesn’t, we don’t.
The search engine algorithms, search the string from the titles only. This clearly shows the importance of the research paper title.
When we submit an article to a journal, the editors look at the title first before deciding whether or not to review it. Because they are aware of what should be published and what should be rejected. This shows the significance of a title in an academic career. If scholars come upon your work, they will cite it, increasing your impact factor. You will not have a successful research career if your work is not referenced. Therefore, in this insight, we’ll look at some of the most crucial tips to remember while writing the title of a research paper.
Three to four items must be stated in the title. What type of domain (primary subject of research) will this study focus on, for example? Learners are my field when I’m trying to engage them in the classroom. Second, we take into account the problem. Because my study focuses on student participation in school, I am concerned about learner engagement. After that, what strategy will I utilise to engage the learners? For example, if I am utilising social media, social media is my methodology. Finally, what’s the outcome? If feasible, include it in the title as well.
Therefore, for a strong and attractive title, your article’s title should answer the following questions;
What is the study’s primary focus?
What is the issue that is being looked into?
What are the study’s key aims or outcomes?
To achieve the aims or outcomes, what approach is being used?
If the title of the article does not adequately answer these questions, you have not chosen a suitable title.
The title length matters
The optimal length of the title should be between 10 and 15 words. The overly long title is not read by readers when scrolling through the too many options available. The long title does not give a good impression to the reader. Similarly, the short title is accepted and appreciated however, if it is too short, it is possible that the right keywords (e.g., the field of study, problem, objectives and methodology) are not included and will not be ranked by search engines in future.
The title should be 10 to 15 words long and should include the study’s field, problem, methods, and results (possibly).
More citations result from appealing titles
The title should be easy to understand and appealing. When the research page is flooded with millions of results, the title should entice the reader to click. The first click is entirely dependent on appealing titles and has a significant impact on future career prospects.
Attractive titles are the first step toward the article being cited in the future.
Abbreviate titles are not appreciated
Abbreviations are not appreciated at all and every author should possibly avoid them. In case, the abbreviation is too common that every field researcher knows about it then it can be used. For example, NASA is very popularly used and everyone uses it.
Extremely popular and well-known abbreviations may be used in the title.
Symbols in the title are discouraged
You don’t have to use the question mark, exclamation point or any other symbol as this will detract the readers. It not only looks bad in the title, but it is also the usage of the newspaper’s title.
The symbols are mainly used in the names of magazine pieces, not in the titles of academic research papers. So, I avoided them.
These are some important considerations to keep in mind while writing research titles, as they are extremely important in a scholarly career. The reader is unaware of the investigation conducted in the article. They have questions like, “What is the issue?” What is the methodology, and what have been the results? The research title should answer these questions. Therefore, the above-mentioned points should be used to create appealing titles.
