Qualitative Methods
Writing Qualitative
Research Papers
Writing Qualitative Research Papers
Introduction
The introduction is where you let your intended audience (other social scientists or qualitative researchers) why they might want to read this paper. The first sentence and the first paragraph of a qualitative research paper are extremely important. Your first sentence should pose an interesting issue that will "grab" the reader. And your first paragraph should develop your main focus more fully so that a reader should be able to discern the basic argument of the paper, and how it will be developed.
You should also reaffirm, in the introductory paragraphs, why this work is important and relevant to other researchers. You might situate your argument admist any ongoing debates in the literature--Are you going to argue against rational choice theory? Introduce a new way of understanding social control? Provide data on an understudying social group? Tell the reader what is innovative about your work in the introduction. Let them know why they should read this paper.
Moreover, the introductory section should give readers a good idea of what awaits them in the rest of the paper. Social science writing is not supposed to be suspenseful; it is not mystery writing. After reading the introduction, the reader should have a good idea what you are going to say, why it is important, and to whom the information will be most useful (the expected audience). The length of the introductory section may vary from a couple of paragraphs to a couple of pages.
At the end of the introduction, as with all the sections of the paper, it is useful to conclude with a summary of the main points of that section, with a transition to the next section. These summary sections continually remind readers of your purpose and help guide them through your work.
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