The Writing of Abstracts

The abstract is not only the most important section of your report or paper, but also the most difficult to write. Effective abstracts 1) must contain enough specific information to satisfy the needs of a research worker looking for sources of information and of an administrator looking for a progress or status definition; 2) must be a complete, self-sufficient unit; 3) must be made as short as possible without violating accuracy or eliminating essential information; 4) must be written in fluent, easily understood language; 5) must be consistent in tone and emphasis with the parent report or paper; and 6) should make the widest possible use of numerals and standard, generally recognized abbreviations.