How to Write a Results Chapter: Structure, a Formula for Each Hypothesis and APA Templates
How to write the results (findings) chapter of a seminar paper or thesis - chapter order, preliminary analyses, descriptive statistics and a correlation table, a five-part formula for each hypothesis, ready APA templates for every test, and common mistakes.
Part of the series: Seminar Paper Structure: Every Chapter, What Goes In It and How Long It Should Be
The results chapter is the one students fear most - and it's actually the most predictable. It has a fixed structure, and each hypothesis has a five-part formula. Once you know them, the chapter almost writes itself.
Rule one: in the results chapter you report, you don't interpret. What was found goes here. What it means and why goes in the discussion.
Chapter structure
- Preliminary analyses - data preparation: missing data, outliers, normality, scale reliability (if not reported in the method).
- Descriptive statistics - means, standard deviations and a correlation table of the study variables.
- Hypothesis tests - a paragraph (or subsection) per hypothesis, in the same order and numbering as in the introduction.
- Additional analyses - findings that weren't hypothesised, clearly labelled "supplementary analyses".
The formula: five parts per hypothesis
- Restate the hypothesis - in a short sentence.
- Name the test - which analysis, between which variables.
- Report the result - the statistic, degrees of freedom, p, effect size.
- Describe the direction in words - who is higher, positive or negative relationship, with means.
- Give the verdict - the hypothesis was supported / partly supported / not supported.
A full example
Hypothesis 1 predicted a negative relationship between test anxiety and the quantitative score. A Pearson correlation was computed. There was a significant negative relationship, r(180) = −.31, p < .001: the higher the test anxiety, the lower the quantitative score. Hypothesis 1 was supported.
Four sentences, five parts. The same formula works for every test.
Templates by test
| Test | Reporting template |
|---|---|
| t-test | [Variable] differed significantly between [group A] (M = .., SD = ..) and [group B] (M = .., SD = ..), t(df) = .., p = .., d = .. |
| Correlation | There was a significant [positive/negative] relationship between [A] and [B], r(df) = .., p = .. |
| ANOVA | [Variable] differed significantly between [groups], F(df1, df2) = .., p = .., η² = ..; [Tukey] comparisons showed that... |
| Regression | The model explained [x]% of the variance in [variable], R² = .., F(df1, df2) = .., p = ..; [predictor] significantly predicted [outcome], β = .., t = .., p = .. |
| Chi-square | There was a significant association between [A] and [B], χ²(df, N = ..) = .., p = .., V = .. |
Details for each test: t-tests, correlation and regression, ANOVA, regression in APA, chi-square, effect sizes.
When a hypothesis isn't supported
Report it exactly the same way - with all the numbers:
Test anxiety did not differ significantly between women (M = 3.21, SD = 0.70) and men (M = 3.09, SD = 0.74), t(180) = 1.12, p = .264, d = 0.17. Hypothesis 2 was not supported.
Don't call p = .08 "a trend" as if it were a finding, and don't drop an unsupported hypothesis.
Table or text?
- A few numbers - in the text.
- Many numbers (descriptives, correlations, regression) - in a table, with only the main finding in the text and a reference: "(see Table 2)".
- Not both - don't repeat every table value in the text.
Formatting: APA tables and figures.
APA number rules
- Statistical symbols in italics: M, SD, t, F, r, p, N.
- No leading zero for values that can't exceed 1: p = .015, r = .31, β = .28.
- Exact p to 2–3 decimals (p = .032); below .001, p < .001. Never p = .000.
- Usually two decimal places.
Common mistakes
- Interpretation in the results ("probably because...") - that's for the discussion.
- Pasting SPSS output instead of an APA table.
- A different order from the hypotheses.
- Only "significant / not significant" without direction and effect size.
- N or df that don't match the participants section.
FAQ
Is the results chapter written in the past tense? Yes: "was found", "was computed", "was not supported".
Do I restate the hypothesis? Yes, briefly - it helps the reader, especially with several hypotheses.
Where do I report assumption checks? In the preliminary analyses, or in a sentence before the relevant test.
"Results" or "findings"? Same chapter; the name depends on the institution.
Have the data but unsure how to turn output into a chapter? That's exactly what we do. Tell us about your study - we'll go from output to an APA-written chapter together.
Tell us what you need, and we'll come back with an expert in Statistical analysis and a quote.
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