Writing a government research paper is often similar to writing any other type of research paper, and following a few simple steps can make the process go much more smoothly. Begin by deciding on your topic, or a specific aspect of the topic you’ve been given or chosen. This will allow you to conduct research more precisely and collect the data you’ll need to write your paper. After you’ve completed your research, you’ll be able to create an outline for your paper. Following your outline and following the proper style and citation guidelines for your class, you can then write your paper.
A government research paper should start with a goal or a topic on which you’ll be writing. Your instructor may assign this or you may be allowed to choose your own topic. In either case, you should have a clear understanding of the topic or goal. You can then start doing the research you’ll need to finish your paper, which is often the most time-consuming part of the process.
The majority of your research for a government research paper will be done in a library, but you should be prepared to use the Internet as well. You should try to find terms that are not only directly related to the topic of your paper, but also terms that are related to it. If your paper is about “The Creation of the United States Constitution,” for example, you should look for materials that are directly related to this topic. You could also look for resources on the Articles of Confederation, the Bill of Rights, constitutional debates, and other related subjects to supplement your initial research.
You can create an outline for your paper once you’ve completed your research — and remember to allow plenty of time for it. You’ll need a direction for your paper regardless of which style you use, which is usually the American Psychological Association (APA) style. Your outline should show you how to start your paper, where to go throughout it, and how to wrap it up. This can help you not only get started on your government research paper, but also get you out of a rut while writing it.
You can then write your government research paper more quickly by referring to your outline for guidance. Most instructors in a government class will require you to write your paper in APA format, but you should double-check. If you must adhere to APA style guidelines, you must ensure proper citation both within your writing and in your works cited section at the end of the paper. You’ll also need to create an APA-style title page and abstract for your government research paper, which you should do after you’ve finished writing the paper to make the abstract more complete and accurate.