What we mean when we talk about implications in this context, is the larger meaning that the research or the idea the author has presented might have. When academics conduct and write about research, they intend it to make a difference, even if it’s only in a small way. What might a reader do with the results or the new knowledge presented in the paper?

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.