How to Write a Research Paper Title

A good title tells readers the topic, the population or setting and, ideally, the design, accurately and concisely. It helps readers decide to read and helps databases and search engines index the paper correctly.

Principles

• Be accurate: do not claim more than the study shows.
• Be informative: include the main concept, population and design.
• Be concise: avoid filler words such as "a study of" and "an investigation into" unless the journal wants them.
• Include key terms that people will search for.
• Avoid abbreviations and jargon that are not widely known.
• Check the journal's rules on length and format, such as subtitles or the study design in the title.

Common formats

• Descriptive: "Postoperative delirium in older adults after hip fracture surgery".
• Question or statement of finding (journal-dependent): "Early surgery is associated with lower delirium rates".
• With design: "...: a retrospective cohort study", often required by reporting guidelines.

Illustrative example

Invented for teaching. Weak: "Exercise study in patients". Better: "Supervised exercise and systolic blood pressure in adults with hypertension: a randomised controlled trial". Overclaiming: "Exercise cures hypertension" (not justified by a trial of blood-pressure change).

Checking your title

1. Does it identify the design in the way the reporting guideline recommends?
2. Would someone searching PubMed find it?
3. Can it be understood without the abstract?
4. Does it match the conclusion?

Titles for different article types

Original research titles often include the design after a colon. Systematic review titles should state that the report is a systematic review or meta-analysis, as PRISMA recommends. Case report titles name the condition and "case report". Letters and commentaries may use a short statement. Check how recent articles in the target journal phrase titles, and match its conventions on capitalisation, subtitle use and length.

Common pitfalls

• A title that is a whole sentence of results with exaggeration.
• Vague words such as "role" or "impact" with no specifics.

Key takeaways

• Accurate, specific, searchable, concise.
• Include the design where guidelines suggest it.

This page is general educational information about research methods. It is not medical, legal or regulatory advice; follow your institution's ethics board and your target journal's instructions.