Field Independence Report

By: Kylie Goetz, Carol Haldeman, Klein Burkholder

Technical writing is a common technique that can be used in fields ranging from the
medical arena to the engineering field. Within this writing style there are both independent
and dependent techniques that are commonly used to develop a document. This report will
be solely focusing on field independence found in all technical documents. Field
independence expresses ideas that are similar throughout all technical writing without
focusing on one specific major or field of study. 

A wide variety of topics can be seen in all technical documents, but this report will be
examining the top five topics that should be used in all documents. The first topic discussed
will center on the use of professionalism in writing. The use of headings, subheadings, and
citations within a document will also be considered. Format of documents can affect the
organization of a technical paper and the overall readability for the audience. Lastly,
graphics and tables will be discussed about their highly regarded use in reports. 

Professionalism

Every technical report is either being sent to a client, superior, or in some cases the U.S.
government. You do not want to come off as a person that is immature in the field in which
you work. A client might always choose a different company all together if you do not act
professional. This includes when writing technical reports or field independence reports.
When writing outgoing documents, you should not be using slang or abbreviating words
for convenience. You should be able to communicate your message or information
effectively and with details that go above and beyond expectation. But not too complicated
that the reader will lose interest in the document or report. 

A great example of professionalism is a doctor writing a generic letter of medical necessity

from a physician to an insurance company. The doctor explains what medication the
patient needs and why the medication is needed quickly but thoroughly. Doctors do the
same thing when writing a return to work note for a patient. The doctor explains what
happened and when the patient can return quickly while using correct grammar and
punctuation. The tone throughout the letter is kept professional and indicates that the
doctor has many years of experience in the field. 

There are documents where you cannot be so quick to explain something, but you always
have to have a professional tone. Professionalism is key in the workplace and is a widely
used concept throughout all field independent studies. 
Headings & Subheadings

Headings and subheadings play an important role in technical documents. They represent
the key concepts and supporting ideas for the document. Each heading or subheading
should be a description of what can be found in that section of the paper [1]. This allows
the reader to skim the headings and find the section with the information they need instead
of reading the entire document. 

If the heading or subheading doesn’t describe the information found in that section and it
only explains the function of the section, it will be of no help to the reader when they want
to scan the document. This can be seen in Figure 1. The left image is of headings that
describe the function, and the right image shows headings that describe the information
found in that section. Between the two images, it can be noted that the right image, with the
description of the information, would be easier to scan and find the exact information you
are looking for.

Figure 1 Function vs Descriptive Headings [1]

Headings and subheadings can also provide other functions throughout the document
besides allowing the reader to scan the document easier:

 Shows logical development of ideas

 Increase readability of the document by providing breaks and white space
 Shows hierarchical relationship of ideas
 Provides organizational overview of the document [1]

Headings and subheadings provide the groundwork for a technical document. They must
be descriptive in nature to create an organized and readable document. Headings should be
used at the start of the reports and subheadings utilized throughout the rest of the
document. All field independent pieces can and should take the advantage of the use of
headings and subheadings.
Citations

Citations are used in all types of writings to give credit to the information that is being used
within the document. Citations help to indicate and verify where your collected ideas came
from and help to avoid plagiarism. While citations can follow a wide variety of formats the
main citation style that can be used in technical documents is IEEE format [2]. This format
follows specific guidelines and regulations to give credit back to a source. 

The first principle for IEEE is the use of in-text citations. In-text citations are used to
provide credit to a source within the piece. The format for these citations consists of, “. . .
they appear on the line, in square brackets, inside the punctuation” [3]. In-text citations are
vital to all non-field specific reports and must be used.

Another crucial aspect of citations for technical documents is providing an accurate

reference list. This reference list is provided at the end of the paper and lays out a number
list of all the sources that were used within the piece [2]. The number that corresponds
with a particular source in the list indicates when the source was used.

Citations are critical for the validity of any technical report or document that is written.
Issuing citations once again helps to circumvent plagiarism and provide credit where it is
needed. A reader will find citations in all field independent reports, following an IEEE style
guide or another accredited style guide.     

Format

Formatting is used in field documents to keep the document organized and to increase the
readability of the document. The format keeps the document organized by having a specific
layout of each type of document you might have to type up. It does this by having an
introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion or summary of the document. 
You always want to have an introduction to your document. 

The introduction is used to explain what the document will be about. In the medical field it
could be about what happened to the patient. If you are writing a proposal you want the
reader to know what you are proposing and why it is important. For engineering if you are
writing a patent you want to introduce what the invention does and a quick overview of
what the invention does. Of course, in the different fields there are different headings and
subheadings to organize the document even more. 

The body paragraphs give more information about the topic. In the medical field, this could
be used to explain the in-depth details of the medication being used and why. For engineers
that are writing a patent this is where you go into the specific details of what the invention
does. Every little detail of the invention goes into the body paragraphs. 

The conclusion of a document is where you wrap up the document. The conclusion can be
where the author asks the reader to accept the request of the document. The conclusion
can also be a summary of what was described in the body paragraphs above. These three
essential parts: introduction, body and conclusion of every document is how formatting
keeps all field independent documents readable and organized. 

Graphics 

Graphics are used in every field when writing a document. Graphics can be tables, or charts
that can show important data from a patient or set of data. They can also be the logo of the
company with their slogan. Drawings or pictures of an invention to help explain what it
looks like and how it functions can also be identified as a type of graphic. All of these types
of visuals can help the document in many ways. 

Tables and charts are important tools that can be used to show all types of important data.
In the medical field, these types of graphics can show patient history. It can also show the
medication a patient is on. In the engineering field, tables and charts can show the data
coming from devices and other important measurements that need to be shown. 

Graphics can also be logos of companies and their slogans. In every field this helps to
communicate which company the information is coming from. These parts can also work as
advertising which is great for every company. They can help doctors recommend a patient
to a specific place. Another example could be if the document is made public for a
construction project the engineering firm might get good publicity which could help them
get future construction projects. 

Drawing and pictures are also different forms of graphics. These types of graphics can be
utilized in many ways. In the medical field, pictures of an injury, via X-Ray, MRI, and other
forms of imaging, can be sent in the text to help other doctors understand what type of
injury and how serious it is. In the engineering field, pictures can be used to explain an
invention or design. Pictures can also be used to have a visual of steps that occur to
construct a project. 

While graphics may differ from field to field understanding their usefulness in a document
is vital. Some reports may benefit from the use of illustrations and some may not. It is the
writer’s job to determine whether a graphic or table is needed to enhance the report’s
readability or not. Field independence can encompass a multiple range of similar topics and
ideas but most importantly the use of professionalism, headings and subheadings, citations,
format and finally graphics. 
References
[1] “Headings,” Pressbooks. [Online]. Available:
https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/technicalwriting/chapter/headings/. [Accessed: November 2,
2020].

 
[2] “Frequently Asked Questions,” Pressbooks. [Online]. Available:
https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/technicalwriting/chapter/faqs/. [Accessed: November 3, 2020].
 
[3] “IEEE Reference Guide,” IEEE. [Online]. Available: https://ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/wp-
content/uploads/IEEE-Reference-Guide.pdf. [Accessed: November 3, 2020]. 
Appendix A

Three different lists made by each group member for the topic five topics to be included in
all independent field reports.

Carol Haldeman
1. Headings/subheadings
2. Citations
3. Format
4. Graphics
5. Readability

Kylie Goetz
1. Citations
2. Format of Document
3. Headings and Subheadings
4. Organization of Document
5. Graphics

Klein Burkholder
1. Tables and Charts
2. Organization
3. Citations
4. Format
5. Professionalism