Five Key Attributes of an Effective Title
- Prashant V. KamatPrashant V. KamatUniversity of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United StatesMore by Prashant V. Kamat
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The title is the gateway to your scientific article. It should be informative and concise, and should reflect the scientific content. The title gives readers the main take-away of the entire study and its key findings. While accurate and engaging scientific discussion and data presentation are critical, the title is what makes the first impression on editors, reviewers, and potential readers. Hence, it is important to take extra care when composing a title. Every word or phrase you use can make a big difference in conveying the major findings of your study. By composing an effective title, you can make your scientific research stand out among the works of your peers.
How Can You Write a Good Title?
Think about the article titles that have caught your eye and encouraged you to read the article. What was it that attracted you? Also, check the list of a journal’s “Most Read Articles”. Highly effective titles helped capture the attention of potential readers, encouraging them to read the articles and help elevate the articles to “Most Read” status. Use the titles of popular articles as good examples to help you compose your own titles. The examples presented in this Editorial are from a recent list of “Most Read Articles” from ACS Energy Letters (the list is refreshed daily and is available from a link on the journal’s Web page: see https://pubs.acs.org/action/showMostReadArticles?journalCode=aelccp).
Earlier editorials, “The Art of Writing the Title of Your Paper” by Buriak (1) and “What’s in a Name” by Kamat and Schatz, (2) have discussed the importance of the title in a scientific paper. This Editorial focuses on five key attributes of an effective title (Figure 1). Keep in mind these attributes when composing your title:
Figure 1
Figure 1. Five key attributes of an article title.
1. Journal Scope
The keywords and phrases used in the title should reflect the focus of the journal. You may have the topically best article, but if it does not match the journal’s focus, you will not reach the appropriate readers. The choice of words in the title indicates whether the paper is best suited for a broader or more specialized journal.
2. Simplicity
There are many demands on peoples’ time. Potential readers may not stop to read an article with an overly long, complex/convoluted title. Keep the title as concise as possible. Simple phrases that directly reflect the research topic can bring well-deserved attention to your work. Here are two recent titles from our “Most Read” list:
What did you notice about these titles? Short, simple titles, followed by well-focused discussions, are highly effective.
3. Inquisitiveness
Just like a compelling fictional story, titles that raise curiosity can draw readers and make them want to find the answer to an important scientific issue. Here are a couple recent examples. Note that the third title has a play on words, which can also spark the interest of potential readers.
4. Conjunctions
We sometimes need to expand the scope of the title to provide a broader focus of the research. The use of conjunctions (e.g., “and”, “or”, “with”, “instead”, “for”, “but”) in the title helps to link two different aspects of the study quite effectively. For example, in the title “Two-Dimensional Dion–Jacobson Structure Perovskites for Efficient Sky-Blue Light-Emitting Diodes”, the first part focuses on the material while the second part focuses on the application. The use of conjunctions in titles is quite popular and helps readers better identify the significance of the research.
Excessive use of conjunctions, however, can be counterproductive. If the title becomes too long (e.g., with three or more conjunctions), it can make it harder to identify the article’s true focus, and consequently the reader might be less interested in reading the paper. It is no surprise that a reader will go on to the next paper in the Table of Contents if he or she has to read the title repeatedly to grasp what the article is about.
5. Breaking the Title
When two different phrases or subtopics cannot be combined through the use of a simple conjunction (“joining” words) or conjugation (variation in the form of the verb), breaking the title into two parts becomes beneficial. For example,
Such a break in the title makes it easier to read and communicate the focus of the article. Just be careful not to overuse long and/or multiple phrases.
What to Avoid?
There are certain things that you will want to avoid when creating an effective title. Avoid common words such as “Investigation”, “Study”, or “Demonstration” in the title. Why? They are redundant—the research you are reporting is an investigation. These words may also (inadvertently) imply that the research is a traditional research report. Similarly, adjectives such as “Novel”, “Facile”, and “Superior” undermine the impact of the work. It is a good idea not to include them. The use of adjectives, buzzwords, and/or superlatives simply for capturing the reader’s attention is likely to be counterproductive. For example, we frequently see “Highly Efficient” or “High Efficient” in titles to describe a newly synthesized photocatalyst or electrocatalyst. The use of these two superlative phrases in recent decades has grown exponentially (Figure 2),
Figure 2
Figure 2. Number of papers containing the phrases “Highly Efficient” and “High Efficient” in the title published during 1980–2020. Source: Web of Science, April 3, 2021.
Figure 3
Figure 3. An illustration of composing a title. This hypothetical example shows how to condense the phrases to create effective titles (Step 3).
Many journals, including ACS Energy Letters, recommend that the title consist of less than 15 words. While it can be challenging to condense a title, it is also an opportunity to provide a better focus of the work being presented. There is no need to include all the keywords in the title. A best practice is to write down the title representing the key findings and then shorten it by deleting repetitive or redundant words, unnecessary adjectives, and any phrases that might divert attention away from the study’s main focus (Figure 3). Prescreening titles is very worthwhile. Compose four or five differently worded titles and seek the opinions of your group members and colleagues. Ask them what they think the article is about based solely on the title. The title favored by the majority will be the clear winner.
Author Information
ARTICLE SECTIONS
- Prashant V. Kamat, Editor-in-Chief, ACS Energy Letters, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States,
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2465-6819
Acknowledgments
ARTICLE SECTIONS
P.V.K. thanks Constance Biegel for helpful suggestions in composing this Editorial.
Related Readings
ARTICLE SECTIONS
This article references 2 other publications.
- 1Buriak, J. M. The Art of Writing the Title of Your Paper. Chem. Mater. 2014, 26, 3349– 3350, DOI: 10.1021/cm5017917Google Scholar1https://chemport.cas.org/services/resolver?origin=ACS&resolution=options&coi=1%3ACAS%3A528%3ADC%252BC2cXpt1Kqsrw%253D&md5=37facaf32f4a63aa43c8670df3c5f2ddThe Art of Writing the Title of Your PaperBuriak, Jillian M.Chemistry of Materials (2014), 26 (11), 3349-3350CODEN: CMATEX; ISSN:0897-4756. (American Chemical Society)There is no expanded citation for this reference.
- 2Kamat, P. V.; Schatz, G. C. What’s in a Name?. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2014, 5, 2879– 2879, DOI: 10.1021/jz5014888Google Scholar2https://chemport.cas.org/services/resolver?origin=ACS&resolution=options&coi=1%3ACAS%3A528%3ADC%252BC2cXhtlaisb7L&md5=d5f98fc4650c04aa2eb07eb007863bb6What's in a Name?Kamat, Prashant V.; Schatz, George C.Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters (2014), 5 (16), 2879CODEN: JPCLCD; ISSN:1948-7185. (American Chemical Society)There is no expanded citation for this reference.
Cited By
ARTICLE SECTIONS
This article is cited by 6 publications.
- Jillian M. Buriak, (Executive Editor, ACS Nano)Gregory V. Hartland, (Deputy Editor, The Journal of Physical Chemistry C)Prashant V. Kamat (Editor-in-Chief, ACS Energy Letters). Mastering the Art of Scientific Publication – Part 2. ACS Energy Letters 2023, 8
(3)
, 1626-1628. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.3c00300
- Jillian M. Buriak, Executive Editor. First Impressions of Your Science: Title Matters. ACS Nano 2022, 16
(12)
, 19609-19611. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.2c11900
- Song Jin (Senior Editor). Fewer Sandwich Papers, Please. ACS Energy Letters 2022, 7
(10)
, 3727-3728. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.2c02197
- Raymond E. Schaak (Deputy Editor). Increase Your Impact: Writing Tips to Reach a Broader Audience. ACS Nanoscience Au 2022, 2
(4)
, 250-252. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnanoscienceau.2c00030
- Arthi Jayaraman, (Deputy Editor)Harm-Anton Klok (Associate Editor). Publishing in and Reviewing for ACS Polymers Au. ACS Polymers Au 2021, 1
(3)
, 131-133. https://doi.org/10.1021/acspolymersau.1c00051
- Sara E. Skrabalak. My Manuscript Was “Rejected without Review” from Chemistry of Materials: A Lesson in Burying the Lede. Chemistry of Materials 2021, 33
(21)
, 8145-8146. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.1c03512
Figure 1
Figure 1. Five key attributes of an article title.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Number of papers containing the phrases “Highly Efficient” and “High Efficient” in the title published during 1980–2020. Source: Web of Science, April 3, 2021.
Figure 3
Figure 3. An illustration of composing a title. This hypothetical example shows how to condense the phrases to create effective titles (Step 3).
Related Readings
ARTICLE SECTIONSThis article references 2 other publications.
- 1Buriak, J. M. The Art of Writing the Title of Your Paper. Chem. Mater. 2014, 26, 3349– 3350, DOI: 10.1021/cm5017917Google Scholar1https://chemport.cas.org/services/resolver?origin=ACS&resolution=options&coi=1%3ACAS%3A528%3ADC%252BC2cXpt1Kqsrw%253D&md5=37facaf32f4a63aa43c8670df3c5f2ddThe Art of Writing the Title of Your PaperBuriak, Jillian M.Chemistry of Materials (2014), 26 (11), 3349-3350CODEN: CMATEX; ISSN:0897-4756. (American Chemical Society)There is no expanded citation for this reference.
- 2Kamat, P. V.; Schatz, G. C. What’s in a Name?. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2014, 5, 2879– 2879, DOI: 10.1021/jz5014888Google Scholar2https://chemport.cas.org/services/resolver?origin=ACS&resolution=options&coi=1%3ACAS%3A528%3ADC%252BC2cXhtlaisb7L&md5=d5f98fc4650c04aa2eb07eb007863bb6What's in a Name?Kamat, Prashant V.; Schatz, George C.Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters (2014), 5 (16), 2879CODEN: JPCLCD; ISSN:1948-7185. (American Chemical Society)There is no expanded citation for this reference.