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Unwillingness to Draw Conclusions

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It is often hard for inexperienced researchers to draw conclusions about the results of their study. They believe that they do not have sufficient knowledge or experience to make statements about what their findings mean. The privilege of drawing conclusions is not something that you "earn" by doing a lot of research. It is an expected part of communicating study results.

Given that you have taken great care in the design and implementation of your study, you are in the best position to draw conclusions. The conclusions do not have to be strong and definitive statements but they should convey what you think your results mean. One way to help you draw conclusions is by comparing your results to those of other studies. By considering how the specific question or study methods differ, you might generate some ideas about where your findings fit into the larger literature. Keep in mind that all study conclusions are speculative; studies rarely provide a definitive answer to a research question.

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