The title is the first thing an editor, a reviewer and academic search engines read. In a few words it decides whether someone opens your article and whether databases find it when another person searches for your topic. That is why a good title is not creative: it is precise (Tullu, 2019).
What it should say
An informative title answers four questions directly: what was studied, in whom, where and, when it helps, with what design.
Financial self-efficacyVariable 1 andRelationship saving habitsVariable 2 among university studentsPopulation in Honduras:Context a cross-sectional studyDesign
How it should sound
- Specific. Name the variables as you measured them, not a general topic.
- No filler. “A study of”, “An analysis of” or “An approach to” add no information: every article is a study (American Psychological Association [APA], 2020).
- No acronyms or abbreviations. People search for “burnout”, not “BO”.
- Consistent with the design. If your study is cross-sectional, avoid “effect of”, “impact of” or “influence of”: they promise a causality the design cannot show. The STROBE guideline for observational studies also recommends stating the design in the title or abstract (von Elm et al., 2007).
Before and after
| Weak title | Problem | Improved title |
|---|---|---|
| A study of stress in students | Filler phrase, vague variable, imprecise population | Academic stress and performance among first-year university students |
| The impact of social media on adolescents’ self-esteem | Promises causality in a correlational study | Social media use and self-esteem among secondary school adolescents: a cross-sectional study |
| The relationship between EI and BO in teachers | Acronyms nobody searches for | Emotional intelligence and burnout among primary school teachers |
In two languages
Many journals ask for the title in both Spanish and English. The English version must say exactly the same, using the terms of the international literature: it is the one most reviewers will read and the one databases will index.
What each journal decides. Maximum length, whether a subtitle after a colon is allowed, capitalization and the short running title change from one journal or conference to another. Always check their author guidelines before submitting.
Before you call it done
- Does it name the study’s central variables?
- Does it state the population and context?
- Does it avoid acronyms and filler phrases?
- Is its wording consistent with the design, without promising causality?
- Does it say the same in both languages?
Once you also have your abstract and keywords, the Journal Finder suggests journals that match your study.
References
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000
Tullu, M. S. (2019). Writing the title and abstract for a research paper: Being concise, precise, and meticulous is the key. Saudi Journal of Anaesthesia, 13(Suppl. 1), S12–S17. https://doi.org/10.4103/sja.SJA_685_18
von Elm, E., Altman, D. G., Egger, M., Pocock, S. J., Gøtzsche, P. C., & Vandenbroucke, J. P. (2007). The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) statement: Guidelines for reporting observational studies. PLoS Medicine, 4(10), e296. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0040296