Agenda

1. Announcements
2. Review leaders
3. Student survey
4. Lecture – research writing
5. Qs?

REVIEW LEADERS

https://canvas.ubc.ca/courses/30777/external_tools/6073

STUDENT FEEDBACK SURVEY (15 MINS)

WRITING UP QUALITATIVE RESEARCH… FOR A POLICY AUDIENCE.

AUDIENCE

WHO IS THE BRIEF FOR?

Clarifying who is going to read your brief will help you determine what to emphasize and how to speak to them.

1. Primary audience — the main users of the brief
   1. Who are they?
   1. What do they need from the brief (purpose)? Could it help them do their jobs? Better direct resources? Develop a new line of work? Advocate for something? What could you do as writers to help them achieve

that?

• What format do they usually receive information in? What kinds of people do they usually receive information from? What does this mean for how you write the brief?
• Secondary audience
• Is there a secondary audience? What do they need from the brief?

Example 3: Mid-level program officers, data scientists at tech companies AND UN orgs

Example 1: ILO staff (lawyers, researchers, policymakers)

WHO IS YOUR BRIEF FOR?

Let’s test this out.

1. Primary audience
   1. Who are they?
   1. What do they need from the brief (purpose)?
   1. What could you do as brief writers to help them achieve that?
   1. What format do they receive info in, and from who?
   1. What implications does this have for how you will write your brief?
2. Secondary audience
   1. Is there a secondary audience? What do they need from the brief?

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

RESEARCH BRIEF STRUCTURE

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

MAIN COMPONENTS OF A 2-PAGE POLICY BRIEF

1. Punchy title – draw the reader in but also make it clear what the brief is about
3. Summary – super short high-level points telling the reader what it’s about
4. **Introduction – context. Your problem statement + lit review are useful here.

** Needs a punchy, communicative title

• Methodology / approach  – this should be concise (relay key info) + transparent. Bake into introduction.
• **Findings – put these into conversation with your literature review
• **Conclusion – final brief summary of main report arguments (**might not be required)
• Recommendations – what should the readers of the brief do next? More research? Consultations?
• References and sources – to orient the curious or skeptical reader. These are in addition to 2-pgs!

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

DECIDE WHAT THE FINDINGS ARE

1. What did you learn from your document analysis that helps you answer your research questions?
   1. What if you didn’t learn anything at all? Tweak your question, based on other interesting themes from the documents. OR analyze and find other documents.
   1. What did you learn from the data that is useful to your audience?
      1. Why is it useful?
      1. How can you say it in a concise, memorable way?
   1. Did what you find confirm other findings, from other studies or reports in your literature review? Did it offer something new? Contradict?

SUBSTANTIVE OUTLINES ARE YOUR FRIEND

A substantive outline provides a structured framework for your brief. It organizes the key points that you know you need to cover and helps you make sure you are being concise (making each point only once). It is the opposite of free-writing. My favourite version of a substantive outline includes:

1. Sections
   1. Subsections
      1. First sentence of the paragraph. (And sometimes the second sentence too, if you are on a roll!)
      1. First sentence of the next paragraph.
      1. First sentence of the next paragraph.
   1. Repeat.

*Note that when I need to remind myself the purpose of a paragraph, I use [xyz].

WHAT MAKES A BRIEF READABLE?

1. An summary for busy people who don’t know if the brief is useful to themThe purpose of the brief is clearly stated at the outsetHeadings and subheadings that communicate section contentEvery paragraph has a purposeParagraphs are a reasonable lengthShort sentencesA few key well-supported findings or conclusions, rather than lots of half-baked onesA few clear, actionable recommendations for specific audiences

What strikes you about this research brief?

Break into groups, open the link, *skim* the brief & answer the following Qs:

1. What do you notice about the title and sub-titles?
2. Do you find the brief readable or not? Why?
   1. (Prompts: paragraph & sentence length, jargon)
3. What do you notice about the research design section?
4. What do you notice about how the findings are presented?
5. What do you notice about the recommendations?

WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CAPTIVATING RESEARCH BRIEFS IN YOUR FIELD?

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

WRITING THE SUMMARY (LAST)

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

Purpose: To tell the reader what the brief is about/ what the brief does.

Audience: 1) Busy people who may are deciding whether or not the full brief is worth their time; 2) People whose attention you want.

Content:

1. Purpose of the brief
2. What the brief is based on (type of research e.g. document analysis of xyz).
3. Key (most important) findings / conclusions/ takeaways (“key messages”).
4. Key recommendation.

COOKSON, WINTER TERM 2, 2021-2022

TIPS FOR WRITING A SUMMARY

1. Return to your substantive outline to remind yourself of the ‘big picture.’
2. Integrate your key messages. What are the main things the reader needs to know?
3. Avoid jargon.
4. Keep it brief. One short paragraph. Max.
5. Ask yourself: Can this summary stand on its own?

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THIS SUMMARY?

EXPECTATIONS FOR LAST ASSIGNMENT

1. Write it like you were writing for a client — a member of your audience/
   1. This means it should be:
      1. Peer-reviewed, thoroughly Proof read. Free of spelling errors, formatting errors, missing fullstops /periods etc.

presenting my own research brief!

• Leave yourself time for substantial peer review!