Among all the sections of a typical research paper, the acknowledgements section is the easiest to write—which is probably why most books on writing research papers tend to ignore it. Yet, acknowledgements can be politically tricky. By forgetting to acknowledge those whom you should have acknowledged, you risk offending them; but even those whom you have acknowledged in your paper can take offence at the manner in which this is done. At times, when the help received is substantial, it can be hard to decide whether you should acknowledge the support or offer authorship instead. Wish this were as simple as remembering that it is Acknowledgments without the ‘e’ in US English but Acknowledgements with the ‘e’ in UK English.
This article discusses the purpose of the acknowledgements section in a research paper and offers tips on who should be mentioned in it and how, who should be excluded, and how the section should be formatted.
Why acknowledge?
In academic writing, the time-honoured method of acknowledging people is to cite their work, but that does not apply here. And yet, it is only proper that you put on record – by means of an appropriate mention in the acknowledgements section – any help that you received in conducting your research, in writing about it and publishing it. By doing so, albeit indirectly, you make your work more credible: for instance, when you acknowledge the help you received from a statistician in designing your experiment and in analysing its results, you reassure journal editors and, more important, those who review your manuscript, about the experimental design and the analysis of results. Similarly, acknowledging the help you received from a copy editor shows that you have taken care of the language, style, and formatting.
Who should be acknowledged ?
Broadly, you should acknowledge those who helped you by going beyond their normal call of duty, especially those whose help proved crucial to your work or who provided expertise that you lacked. Such people may include some of your peers, your mentors (research supervisors or guides), and even your students. If you received funding, the fact should be acknowledged. Some funding agencies may have specific instructions about how their funding should be mentioned; if that is so, make sure that the form of acknowledgement is consistent with such instructions. You should also consider acknowledging any material or other resources made available to you free of charge. However, if such help is mentioned as part of a conflict-of-interest statement, it should not be repeated in the acknowledgements section.
Consider including reviewers, even if they are anonymous, if their suggestions have resulted in a substantially improved manuscript.
It is also advisable to have your phrasing approved by those mentioned in the acknowledgements, because such a mention may imply that they approve of the contents of the research paper.
