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TRIO McNair Undergraduate Research Guide: Choosing a Title

The title summarizes the main idea or ideas of your study. A good title contains the fewest possible words that adequately describe the contents and/or purpose of your research paper. 

The title is without doubt the part of a paper that is read the most, and it is usually read first. If the title is too long it usually contains too many unnecessary words, e.g., "A Study to Investigate the...." On the other hand, a title which is too short often uses words which are too general. For example, "African Politics" could be the title of a book, but it does not provide any information on the focus of a research paper. 

Structure and Writing Style

The following parameters can be used to help you formulate a suitable research paper title: 

  1. The purpose of the research 

  1. The narrative tone of the paper [typically defined by the type of the research] 

  1. The methods used 

The initial aim of a title is to capture the reader’s attention and to draw his or her attention to the research problem being investigated. 

Create a Working Title 
 
Typically, the final title you submit to your professor is created after the research is complete so that the title accurately captures what was done. The working title should be developed early in the research process because it can help anchor the focus of the study in much the same way the research problem does. Referring back to the working title can help you reorient yourself back to the main purpose of the study if you feel yourself drifting off on a tangent while writing. 
 
The Final Title 
 
Effective titles in academic research papers have several characteristics. 

  • Indicate accurately the subject and scope of the study. 

  • Avoid using abbreviations. 

  • Use words that create a positive impression and stimulate reader interest. 

  • Use current nomenclature from the field of study. 

  • Identify key variables, both dependent and independent. 

  • May reveal how the paper will be organized. 

  • Suggest a relationship between variables which supports the major hypothesis. 

  • Is limited to 10 to 15 substantive words. 

  • Do not include "study of," "analysis of" or similar constructions. 

  • Titles are usually in the form of a phrase but can also be in the form of a question. 

  • Use correct grammar and capitalization with all first words and last words capitalized, including the first word of a subtitle. All nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs that appear between the first and last words of the title are also capitalized. 

  • In academic papers, rarely is a title followed by an exclamation mark. However, a title or subtitle can be in the form of a question. 

The Subtitle 
 
Subtitles are quite common in social science research papers. Examples of why you may include a subtitle: 

  1. Explains or provides additional context, e.g., "Linguistic Ethnography and the Study of Welfare Institutions as a Flow of Social Practices: The Case of Residential Child Care Institutions as Paradoxical Institutions." [Palomares, Manuel and David Poveda. Text & Talk: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Language, Discourse and Communication Studies 30 (January 2010): 193-212]
  2. Adds substance to a literary, provocative, or imaginative title or quote, e.g., "Listen to What I Say, Not How I Vote": Congressional Support for the President in Washington and at Home." [Grose, Christian R. and Keesha M. Middlemass. Social Science Quarterly 91 (March 2010): 143-167]
  3. Qualifies the geographic scope of the research, e.g., "The Geopolitics of the Eastern Border of the European Union: The Case of Romania-Moldova-Ukraine." [Marcu, Silvia. Geopolitics 14 (August 2009): 409-432]
  4. Qualifies the temporal scope of the research, e.g., "A Comparison of the Progressive Era and the Depression Years: Societal Influences on Predictions of the Future of the Library, 1895-1940." [Grossman, Hal B. Libraries & the Cultural Record 46 (2011): 102-128]
  5. Focuses on investigating the ideas, theories, or work of a particular individual, e.g., "A Deliberative Conception of Politics: How Francesco Saverio Merlino Related Anarchy and Democracy." [La Torre, Massimo. Sociologia del Diritto 28 (January 2001): 75 - 98]
  6. Identifies the methodology used, e.g. "Student Activism of the 1960s Revisited: A Multivariate Analysis Research Note." [Aron, William S. Social Forces 52 (March 1974): 408-414]
  7. Defines the overarching technique for analyzing the research problem, e.g., "Explaining Territorial Change in Federal Democracies: A Comparative Historical Institutionalist Approach." [Tillin, Louise. Political Studies 63 (August 2015): 626-641.

Anstey, A. “Writing Style: What's in a Title?” British Journal of Dermatology 170 (May 2014): 1003-1004; Balch, Tucker. How to Compose a Title for Your Research Paper. Augmented Trader blog. School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech University; Choosing the Proper Research Paper Titles. AplusReports.com, 2007-2012; Eva, Kevin W. “Titles, Abstracts, and Authors.” In How to Write a Paper. George M. Hall, editor. 5th edition. (Oxford: John Wiley and Sons, 2013), pp. 33-41; Hartley James. “To Attract or to Inform: What are Titles for?” Journal of Technical Writing and Communication 35 (2005): 203-213; General Format. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Kerkut G.A. “Choosing a Title for a Paper.” Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Physiology 74 (1983): 1; “Tempting Titles.” In Stylish Academic Writing. Helen Sword, editor. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2012), pp. 63-75.