Introductions set the tone of a research paper and play a key role in the eventual success or failure of the work. They help in exciting the curiosity and interest of the persons reading the paper; on the other hand introductions also help in creating the groundwork for the style and manner of writing that is to follow during the main body of the paper.

Though it is considered the base of the paper, some students have a preference for starting with the main body of the work and finishing it competently before setting out on the trickier job of composing introductions and conclusions.
However, others believe in starting off with a quality introduction thereby garnering the confidence and the launching pad for the hard work that is to follow.

In whichever way it is approached; the introduction must put forward the thesis question at some point in the paper; preferably near the end. It should ideally contain some interesting and thought provoking information about the general subject matter that is being researched in the paper. All these factors help in substantiating interest among the readers for what is to follow.

The majority of students face the problem of what to begin with at the very beginning! Many interesting methods can be used to solve this problem.

One may start with an appealing quotation that would immediately draw the attention of the readers; however the quotation needs to be relevant to the topic and the relevance unambiguously mentioned in the paper.

Other interesting ideas include beginning with a story or a sketch that carries an underlying significance as far as the research question is concerned.

To make things more thought provoking one may start with a paradoxical statement or an ironical one. Some people also favor the use of a question or definitions to kick start their project.

An eye-catching introduction goes a great distance in the making of a complete research paper; it sets the rhythm and the mood of the paper and almost acts like a trailer for the larger framework that awaits.