A monograph is a detailed essay or book that covers a specific topic, intended to educate and advance the author’s field. It usually has one author, but collaboration is possible. The content includes research purpose, findings, implications, and sources. Review, defense, and presentation are part of the publication process. Monographs are usually published in academic journals or small printing houses, and distributed to research libraries and academic departments. With the rise of digital publishing, more publications are available online.
A monograph, sometimes called an academic treatise, is a highly detailed essay or book that covers a very specific or limited topic. It is designed to stand alone in most cases, even if some are produced with a finite number of volumes. The publication presents new information that advances the author’s career and field and generally follows a predictable pattern in terms of the content covered. Only one author is usually involved, but a writer can collaborate if needed. Review, defense, and presentation are usually part of the monograph publication process, and the paper itself is usually short.
Goals
The main goal of a monograph is to present information and scholarly research on a very specific topic. The data included is always intended to educate others in some way, and ideally should also advance the author’s field as a foundation for future research. This means that the people writing these papers should always ensure that they are not conducting research and writing on previously covered topics without contributing something new.
Given the primary purpose of academic treatises, practitioners typically produce them as a means of showcasing their expertise and gaining credibility and, consequently, advancing to new, higher positions. Many fields require these texts to be published before an author can get a degree or a particular job. In general, the more an author publishes, the more respected he becomes, although in some cases a single essay or book may be so influential that the author is always known for that work, regardless of additional publications.
Key content
Monographs generally share the same basic elements, regardless of the topics covered. They usually identify a purpose for the research and the main question the author was trying to answer, as well as what the results of his research were expected. These papers outline the findings and discuss the implications and applications of the work. The last item is sources and references.
While most scholarly treatises include these elements, the author may be required to present them in a slightly different way, depending on his or her field, or may need to add or omit sections. People in the liberal arts and humanities usually format their document using the Modern Language Association (MLA) format, for example, while those in the social sciences usually use the American Psychological Association (APA) format.
Paternity
Most of the time, a single author is behind an academic treatise, although two academics can collaborate if they have researched together. In cases where more than one person writes the work, the author whose name appears first is usually considered the primary author or lead researcher. The more complex a research study, or the longer it takes, the more likely the essay or book will be longer and use more authors. Collaboration brings additional expertise and ideas to a project, but it can make writing the work more logistically challenging and can lead to conflict if the authors disagree on what is being said.
Length and construction time
Short monographs are similar to long essays, although they are usually longer than articles because they have to go into more detail. Long publications are the length of the books. It can take an author several weeks or months to write a short one, but a long version can take a year or more. When these longer papers also require a long period of research, the commitment to the topic must be solid.
Review, defense and presentation
Virtually all academic papers go through a review period. The author’s field colleagues review the work for issues such as methodological flaws and basic structural errors. The author may need to revise extensively based on the review findings, which sometimes means doing more research. Sometimes it will have a final revision of the document in the form of a defense, particularly when the text concerns the acquisition of a degree. The author will then typically present the final version at conferences or other events relevant to her field.
Publication
Authors are usually offered a one-off publication for academic treatises. Very rarely, one will be of interest to a wider community, deserving a slightly bigger press to meet demand. Because print runs are very small, within several years of publication it can be difficult to obtain a copy.
When one of these works takes the form of an essay, it is usually published in an academic journal. Universities or small printing houses usually maintain book releases, but rising publishing costs can make it impractical to publish books with limited copies and potential interest. There is ongoing debate about the monograph’s future, although a growing number of technologies are seen by many scholars as a potential solution. Publishing a treatise on the Internet can make it more widely available, and electronic publications are often much less expensive to produce than paper publications. Some question the legitimacy of such publications, fearing they may be subject to less thorough review and evaluation, but the value of these outlets has increased in recent years.
Distribution and location
Monographs usually go to research libraries once published. They also go to the academic departments of universities and companies closely related to research. A work on anatomy, for example, could be useful to both a biology department and a hospital. With the rise of digital publishing, an increasing number of publications are being made available online, often free of charge, to anyone interested.
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