FIELD REPORT

R Jay F. Torres

DEFINITION:

Field reports are most often assigned in the applied social sciences [e.g., social work, anthropology,
gerontology, criminal justice, education, law, the health care professions] where it is important to build a
bridge of relevancy between the theoretical concepts learned in the classroom and the practice of actually
doing the work you are being taught to do. Field reports are also common in certain science and
technology disciplines [e.g., geology] but these reports are organized differently and for different
purposes than what is described below.

Professors will assign a field report with the intention of improving your understanding of key theoretical
concepts through a method of careful and structured observation of and reflection about real life practice.
Field reports facilitate the development of data collection techniques and observation skills and allow you
to understand how theory applies to real world situations. Field reports are also an opportunity to obtain
evidence through methods of observing professional practice that challenge or refine existing theories.

We are all observers of people, their interactions, places, and events; however, your responsibility when
writing a field report is to create a research study based on data generated by the act of observation, a
synthesis of key findings, and an interpretation of their meaning.

1. Formulate your research problem

Your research problem is formulated as a sentence, usually in the form of a question, such as: “What is
the function which the ritual X performs in the community Y?” Of course, the sentence could be much
longer, or have several separated parts (i.e. consist of several questions interconnected with each other).
In all cases, without a well-defined research problem you cannot do a good field report. Your observations
should be focused on a given problem, otherwise, you will write a narrative rather than a field report.

2. Elaborate theoretical framework

You need to read a lot about your research problem - what other specialists maintain, how they carry out
their research, what pieces of advice you can take from them. After having read the required literature,
you should formulate the following points:

Thesis - the point which you will maintain and will try to prove through observations.
Arguments - you can refer to data or statistics, or another kind of information in order to prove your
thesis. Remember: by doing your own research, you will add new arguments, so take this into
consideration!

Validity of your thesis - you should show under what circumstances your thesis could not be applied (i.e.,
there can be a specific factor which will lead to different results than the ones you expect).

3. Specify your methodology and scope of work

You should elaborate a plan with particular steps for performing. In short, it should comprise the place of
your field study (observation), the time period (from-to), methods used (different types of activities for
observation, according to you academic field).

4. Do your field research

Your field research can be done at once, but it could also have several stages; for example, you can visit
the given place and observe the particular community (or a group) several times. Of course, the latter
option is the better one, but sometimes college students do not have so much time to do it.

You should adhere to your initial plan and methodology. Carry out your observations, interviews, video
records, and so forth, according to your plan and your research problem. Do not do anything which is not
directly related to your task! Take notes and write down your feelings and impressions.

5. Write your field report

The purpose of a field report in the social sciences is to describe the observation of people, places,
and/or events and to analyze that observation data in order to identify and categorize common
themes in relation to the research problem underpinning the study.

Your report should include all points given above - theoretical framework, plan for doing
research, and observations. Be consistent and logical in your writing: connect each paragraph
with each other, but divide the text into sections (introduction, thesis, methodology, etc.).
LABORATORY REPORT
DEFINITION:

Lab reports are written to describe and analyse a laboratory experiment that explores a scientific concept.
They are typically assigned to enable you to: Conduct scientific research. Formulate a
hypothesis/hypotheses about a particular stimulus, event, and/or behavior.

The Parts of a Laboratory Report

Introduction: What is the context in which the experiment takes place?

The primary job of any scientific Introduction is to establish the purpose for doing

the experiment that is to be reported. When scientists do research, the main

purpose that guides their work is to contribute to the knowledge of their field.

That's why the scientific context they establish in their introductions usually

consists of summarizing previous research reports published in the field. A

scientific contribution to the knowledge of the field can be understood only within

the context of what other scientists have done.

The main purpose of writing a lab report, of course, is not to contribute to the

knowledge of the field; but to provide you the opportunity for learning. That's why

it's important to begin the lab by establishing that learning context. The learning

context provides a way for you to situate the lab report within the overall purpose

for doing the lab in the first place: to learn something about the science of the

course you are taking.

An effective introduction to a lab report typically performs the following tasks,

generally in the order presented:

1. it establishes the learning context for the lab by:

a. saying what the lab is about, that is, what scientific concept (theory, principle,

procedure, etc.) the researcher is supposed to be learning about by doing the

lab; and
b. giving the necessary background for the learning context by providing

pertinent information about the scientific concept (this information can come

from the lab manual, the textbook, lecture notes, and other sources

recommended by the lab manual or teacher; in more advanced labs you may

also be expected to cite the findings of previous scientific studies related to the

lab).

2. it provides the primary goals of the lab by:

a. presenting the objective(s) for the experimental procedure (what is being

done in the experiment, such as to measure something, to test something, to

determine something, etc.); and

b defining the purpose of the lab (the way the experimental procedure is linked

to the learning context).

3. it offers a hypothesis for the experimental procedure by:

a. stating the hypothesis, or the best estimation of the outcome of the lab

procedure; and

b. explaining the scientific reasoning that leads the researcher to that hypothesis.

Materials and Methods: What did you do and how did you do it?

There are various other headings one may find for this section of the report, such as

"Experimental Procedure," "Experimental," or "Methodology." Sometimes

Materials and Methods may be separated in different sections. But however it is

titled, the main tasks of the Materials and Methods are to describe (1) the lab

apparatus and the laboratory procedure used to gather the data and (2) the process

used to analyze the data.

Materials and Methods takes the reader step by step through the laboratory

procedure that the experimenters followed. The rule of thumb in constructing this

section is to provide enough detail so that a competent scientist in the field can

repeat, or replicate, the procedure. The challenge, however, is to do so as efficiently

as you can. This means, for example, not including details that the same competent

scientist already knows, such as descriptions of standard procedures that most

everyone in the field would already be familiar with.

Results: What did you find?

This is the heart of the scientific paper, in which the researcher reports the outcomes

of the experiment. Report is a key word here because Results should not contain

any explanations of the experimental findings or in any other way interpret or draw

conclusions about the data. Results should stick to the facts as they have been

observed.

Generally speaking, the Results begins with a succinct statement (a sentence or two)

summarizing the overall findings of the experiment. After that the Results

integrates both visual (graphs, tables, drawings) and verbal (words) representations

of the data. The verbal descriptions consist of series of findings (general statements

that summarize or give the important point of a visual) and support for the

findings (further details about the data that give pertinent information about the

findings).

Discussion: What does it mean?

The purpose of the Discussion is to interpret your results, that is, to explain, analyze,

and compare them. This is the point at which the researcher stands back from the

results and talks about them within the broader context set forth in the

Introduction. It is perhaps the most important part of the report because it is where

you demonstrate that you understand the experiment beyond the level of simply

doing it. Do not discuss any outcomes not presented in the Results.

The Discussion section often begins by making a statement as to whether the

findings in the Results support or do not support the expected findings stated in the

hypothesis. It's important to make such a comparison because returning to the

hypothesis is crucial to basic scientific thinking. The statement of support or nonsupport then leads to the
next logical issue, an explanation of why the hypothesis

was or was not supported by the data. The explanation might focus on the scientific

reasoning that supported the original hypothesis (based on the scientific concept on

which the lab is founded) and on changes to or errors in the experimental procedure
and how they could have affected the outcomes. The Discussion also provides the

opportunity to compare the results to the research of others.

Conclusion: What have I learned?

The Conclusion returns to the larger purpose of the lab, which is presented as the

learning context in the Introduction: to learn something about the scientific concept

that provides the reason for doing the lab. This is where you demonstrate that you

have indeed learned something by stating what it is you have learned. This is

important because it helps you to understand the value of the lab and convinces the

reader that the lab has been a success. It's important, then, to be specific, providing

details of what you have learned about the theory or principle or procedure at the

center of the lab.

Abstract: What is the essence of the report?

The Abstract is a miniature version of the lab report, one concise paragraph of 80-200

words. Its purpose is to present the nature and scope of the report. In the scientific

literature, abstracts must be stand-alone documents, whole and self-contained,

because they are often published by themselves in research guides.

To create a miniature version of the report, abstracts usually consist of one-sentence

summaries of each of the parts of the report (sometimes two sentences are necessary

for especially complex parts). And those sentences are arranged on the order that

the parts come in the report: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results,

Discussion/Conclusion.

Title: What is the report about?

The main job of the title is to describe the content of the report. In science, a title

usually tells the reader what the subject of the experiment and the key research

variables are, and it often gives an indication of what research methodology was

used. Titles are especially important to scientists because articles are typically

indexed according to key words that come from the title. So when scientists are

searching for research articles, it is those key words that lead them the articles they

need. It's necessary, then, that titles be fully informative about the content of the
report.

References: What sources were used?

This is a list of the references that were cited in the lab report, including the lab

manual, any handouts accompanying the lab, the textbook, and sources from the

scientific literature. The format for references differs in different fields and even

within the same field. It's important that you check with you teacher or lab manual

to find out what is expected of you.

Appendices: What additional material is included?

Appendices are places where you put information that does not deserve to be

included in the report itself but may be helpful to some readers who want to know

more about the details. The kinds of information you might find in an appendix

are:

• detailed drawings of apparatus, sources of hard-to-find materials, or other

information related to the methodology of the experiment;

• calculations that elaborate on those that are in the Methods;

• raw data in tables, drawings, or photographs that may be useful to understanding

certain findings.

IMPORTANCE

LAB REPORTS HELP STUDENTS UNDERSTAND

First of all, lab reports record what happened. Every step of the experiment from the reason the
experiment is being done to the supplies used to the procedure to what happened should be accurately
written down in a lab report.

The process of writing down all the steps of the experiment helps students understand the experiment,
not just see a result. If an experiment is being done right out of a book, the student might just follow it
like a cookbook recipe without any thought to what they are doing. Lab reports help a student slow down
and think about the why and the how.

This understanding is where real learning is. This is where real science is. Science isn’t just doing something
to get a result. It is understanding that result and how it relates to the subject area being studied.
SURVEY REPORT
DEFINITION:

A survey report describes a survey, its results, and any patterns or trends found in the survey. Most survey
reports follow a standard organization, broken up under certain headings. Each section has a specific
purpose.

1.Break the report up into separate sections with headings. Survey reports usually use headings for each
section. While there may be slight differences between reports, the headings are typically the same. The
standard headings for a report are:[1]

Title Page

-Table of Contents

-Executive Summary

-Background and Objectives

-Methodology

-Results

-Conclusion and Recommendations

-Appendices

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2.Write a 1-2 page executive summary paraphrasing the report. This comes at the very beginning of the
report, after the table of contents. An executive summary condenses the main points of the report into a
few pages. It should include:[2]

Methodology of the survey.

Key results of the survey.

Conclusions drawn from the results of the survey.

Recommendations based on the results of the survey.

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3.State the objectives of the survey in the background section. Start the section by saying why the survey
was conducted. Explain the hypothesis and goals of the survey. You usually don't need to write more than
a page. Make sure to identify the:[3]

Study or target population: Who is being studied? Do they belong to a certain age group, cultural group,
religion, political belief, or other common practice?

Variables of the study: What is the survey trying to study? Is the study looking for the association or
relationship between two things?

Purpose of the study: How will this information be used? What new information can this survey help us
realize?

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4.Provide background information by explaining similar research and studies. This research can help you
determine if your survey results support current beliefs on the topic or disagree with them. Write 2 or
more pages explaining the issue and how other researchers have approached it.[4]

Look for surveys done by researchers in peer-viewed academic journals. In addition to these, consult
reports produced by similar companies, organizations, newspapers, or think tanks.

Compare their results to yours. Do your results support or conflict with their claims? What new
information does your report provide on the matter?

Provide a description of the issue backed with peer-reviewed evidence. Define what it is you're trying to
learn and explain why other studies haven't found this information.

Part 2 Explaining the Method and Results

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1.Explain how the study was conducted in the methodology section. This section helps readers understand
how the survey was conducted. It comes after the background and objectives section. Depending on the
complexity of your study, this section may be several pages long. Some things you should cover in this
section include:[5]

Who did you ask? How can you define the gender, age, and other characteristics of these groups?

Did you do the survey over email, telephone, website, or 1-on-1 interviews?

Were participants randomly chosen or selected for a certain reason?

How large was the sample size? In other words, how many people answered the results of the survey?

Were participants offered anything in exchange for filling out the survey?
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2.Describe what type of questions were asked in the methodology section. Some common types of
questions include multiple choice, interviews, and rating scales (called Likert scales). Describe the general
theme of the questions here, providing a few examples of questions.[6]

For example, you might sum up the general theme of your questions by saying, "Participants were asked
to answer questions about their daily routine and dietary practices."

Don't put all of the questions in this section. Instead, include your questionnaire in the first appendix
(Appendix A).

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3.Report the results of the survey in a separate section. Once you have detailed the methodology of the
survey in full, start a new section that shows the results of the survey. This section is usually several pages
long. If needed, break up some of your results into bullets to make them easier to read.[7]

If your survey interviewed people, choose a few relevant responses and type them up in this section. Refer
the reader to the full questionnaire, which will be in the appendix.

If your survey was broken up into multiple sections, report the results of each section separately, with a
subheading for each section.

Avoid making any claims about the results in this section. Just report the data, using statistics, sample
answers, and quantitative data.

Include graphs, charts, and other visual representations of your data in this section.

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4.Point out any interesting trends in the results section. You probably have a large amount of data. To
help your readers understand the significance of your survey, highlight the interesting patterns, trends,
or observations.[8]

For example, do people from a similar age group response to a certain question in a similar way?

Look at questions that received the highest number of similar responses. This means that most people
answer the question in similar ways. What do you think that means?

Part 3 Analyzing Your Results

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1State the implications of your survey at the beginning of the conclusion. At the beginning of this section,
write a paragraph that summarizes the key takeaway points of your survey. Ask yourself what should
readers learn from this survey? [9]

Here you may break away from the objective tone of the rest of the paper. You might state if readers
should be alarmed, concerned, or intrigued by something.
For example, you might highlight how current policy is failing or state how the survey demonstrates that
current practices are succeeding.

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2.Make recommendations about what needs to be done about this issue. Once you have reported the
results of the survey, state what the reader should take away from the survey. What does the data imply?
What action should people take based on the results? This part might be anywhere from a few paragraphs
to a few pages long. Some common recommendations include:[10]

More research needs to be done on this topic.

Current guidelines or policy need to be changed.

The company or institution needs to take action.

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3.Include graphs, charts, surveys, and testimonies in the appendices. The first appendix (Appendix A)
should always be the survey questionnaire itself. Copy and paste the entire survey into this section. If you
want, add appendices showing your statistical data, interview results, graphs of the data, and a glossary
of technical terms.[11]

Appendices are typically labeled with letters, such as Appendix A, Appendix B, Appendix C, and so on.

You may refer to appendices throughout your paper. For example, you can say, “Refer to Appendix A for
the questionnaire” or “Participants were asked 20 questions (Appendix A)”.

Part 4 Polishing Your Report

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1.Add a title page and table of contents to the first 2 pages. These should come at the front of the report.
The first page should state the title of the report, your name, and your institution. The second page should
be a table of contents.[12]

The table of contents should list the page numbers for each section (or heading) of the report.

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2.Cite your research according to the style required for the survey report. In some classes and professional
fields, you may be asked to format the report according to a specific style guideline. Common ones used
for survey reports include American Psychological Association (APA) and Chicago styles.[13]

Typically, you will cite information using in-text parenthetical citations. Put the name of the author and
other information, such as the page number or year of publication, in parentheses at the end of a
sentence.

Some professional organizations may have their own separate guidelines. Consult these for more
information.
If you don’t need a specific style, make sure that the formatting for the paper is consistent throughout.
Use the same spacing, font, font size, and citations throughout the paper.

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3.Adopt a clear, objective voice throughout the paper. Remember that your job is to report the results of
the survey. Try not to cast judgment on the participants or the survey results. If you would like to make
recommendations, only do so in the last section of the paper.[14]

Try not to editorialize the results as you report them. For example, don’t say, “The study shows an
alarming trend of increasing drug use that must be stopped.” Instead, just say, “The results show an
increase in drug use.”

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4.Write in concise, simple sentences. State the information in the simplest way possible. Avoid flowery or
complicated language. Since some surveys can be very complex, a simple writing style will help your
readers understand your results.[15]

If you have a choice between a simple word and a complex word, choose the simpler term. For example,
instead of “1 out of 10 civilians testify to imbibing alcoholic drinks thrice daily,” just say “1 out of 10 people
report drinking alcohol 3 times a day.”

Remove any unnecessary phrases or words. For example, instead of “In order to determine the frequency
of the adoption of dogs,” just say “To determine the frequency of dog adoption.”

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5.Revise your paper thoroughly before submitting. Make sure that there are no grammatical errors,
misspellings, or other typos in the paper. Before submitting the report to your boss or professor, check
that the formatting is correct.[16]

Make sure you have page numbers on the bottom of the page. Check that the table of contents contains
the right page numbers.

Remember, spell check on word processors doesn’t always catch every mistake. Ask someone else to
proofread for you to help you catch errors.

IMPORTANCE:

A survey is a data collection tool used to gather information about individuals. Surveys are
commonly used in psychology research to collect self-report data from study participants. A
survey may focus on factual information about individuals, or it might aim to obtain the opinions
of the survey takers.
Extensive. Surveys are useful in describing the characteristics of a large population. No other
research method can provide this broad capability, which ensures a more accurate sample to
gather targeted results in which to draw conclusions and make important decisions.