Can You Use Words He, It, Etc in a Research Paper?

What is a Research Paper?

There exist many definitions of what is a research paper. Generally, any research paper can be defined as a piece of writing that presents a personal interpretation or evaluation of particular arguments and is based on either or inductive or deductive approaches. The keywords of any traditional research paper assignment are credibility, authenticity, and coherence.

Contrary to what one may think, writing a research paper is not only copping some information from the external sources and putting them together. First of all, it involves the process of analysis. As far as credibility is concerned, a person should read particular literature and get acquainted with many credible sources before starting writing the paper. To make sure that authenticity is addressed, it is significant to avoid any form of plagiarism and learn the proper citation standards.

Can you use the word “It” in a research paper?

One of the most frequent questions students ask is whether the word “it” can be used in a research paper. Before answering the question, it should be mentioned that whether the word “it” can be used depends on a type of assignments and format. Generally, it is acceptable to use “it” writing a research paper, especially as far as APA style of formatting is concerned. However, one should remember that in some cases using “it” may make sentences needlessly wordy.

Revising the paper, consider whether the phrase starting with the word “it” may be paraphrased or not. Also, the use of the word “it” depends on the role a subject plays in a sentence. In most cases, the use of “it” takes the emphasis off of the subject and may make the gist of the message unclear and complicated to understand. Lastly, the use of the word “it” instead of naming the subject may lead to the occurrence of passive voice that is very often unacceptable according to the original instructions, for ex. ” It is said that…” In fact, many studies on academic writing recommend reducing the passive voice as much as possible for the sake of clarity.

Nevertheless, there are also some cases when using the word “it” is not only acceptable but also recommended. One of such specific reasons is avoiding the overuse of the subject. Also, it may help to avoid the repetition and vary the structure of sentences. Hence, even though it is grammatically acceptable to begin a sentence with the word “it,” one should ask oneself whether it is truly needed and whether the writing sounds concise and accurate.

Can you use “He” in a research paper?

As far as academic writing is concerned, pronouns may be simple to define but very confusing to use. Even though the use of a particular pronoun may sound correct, some points should be taken into account. In general terms, it is acceptable to use “he” in a research paper. As well as with other personal pronouns, the use of “he” depends on the field of research. It is not a grammatical mistake to use “he” when referring to a singular agenda or “they” in case you refer to a plural form. Most forms of assignments are still okay with this.

However, if you want to adhere to the existing academic rules, it is much better to use “he or she” instead of merely “he” to avoid possible gender-biased language. According to some newer versions, it is even preferable to use “they” instead of “he or she.” In fact, the sentence with “they” may sound more respectful and flow better in a sentence. Lastly, to avoid any biases, it is possible to use “a person” instead. Try to remove this person factor to make sure that your paper is flawless. The only case when it is needed to use the pronoun “he” is when you refer to a specific subject of male sex.

Can you use “etc.” in a research paper?

Every student will find the use of “etc.” generally prevailing in academic writing. Most people use it in their writing assignments. However, some individuals avoid it as they are afraid to make possible grammar mistakes. The term “et cetera” is a synonym for “so forth” and helps to decrease the list of things. First of all, it helps to avoid the redundancy of the information. Also, it assists in securing the tone of academic writing as is an excellent analog for “so on” that is not acceptable in a research paper. However, in case you use “et cetera” in your academic papers, you need to know some basic rules.

Firstly, one of the most significant points in using etc. at the end of a particular list is that all its components are related, for ex. “It is necessary to investigate our emotions, including joy, anger, fear, etc.” Also, an essential rule that most students ignore is if you introduce the list using “such as” it is recommended not to use “etc.” as the meaning is already apparent. One more rule is that one should never use “and” before “etc.” to avoid redundancy.

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As far as the norms of punctuation are concerned, it is a well-known fact that “etc.” is an abbreviated form of “et cetera.” Hence, it is significant to place a period after it in every case. If a student uses “etc.” in the middle of a sentence, it is necessary to use a comma after it. Lastly, it significant to not use “etc.” more than once in one sentence as it is more informal language. All in all, remembering the rules of using “etc.” in your research paper, you may use this abbreviated form without any fear.