Developing a Research Question
A research paper begins by deciding on a question or topic that requires further investigation. Oftentimes, deciding on that topic and refining it into a viable research question appropriate for your assignment is a task all its own. How do you even get started?
It is important to know that research is something that you will be doing every step of the way, not just when you figured out your question. Some preliminary research is essential to helping you figure out your question in the first place. Developing a research question is an act of refinement, and there are several ways you can get started.
You can refine your topic by narrowing it down with further questions.
- Who – Are you interested in how this topic relates to a specific group of people? Can you narrow your topic through demographics (age, gender, sex, ethnicity, socio-economic class, etc.)? Who are the key people connected to your topic?
- What – What are some of the issues surrounding your topic? Do you notice any gaps or questions when reading background materials that have not yet been answered or explored?
- When – Is this your topic contemporary or historical? Is there a specific time period you could investigate further? What are the events or developments that led to your topic?
- Where – Is your topic tied to a specific region or place?
- Why – Why this topic? Why does it interest you? Why should it interest others?
- How – Do you need a particular kind of information source, such as statistics or primary documents?
You can also refine your topic by searching for additional information. This will give you additional ideas as you learn more about your topic and help you decide what you want to focus on.
- You can search the open web with Google to get a sense of what has already been done with this topic or current issues or questions surrounding it.
- You can look at existing research by looking at library databases such as Academic Search Complete or Google Scholar
Keep the following in mind as you refine your general topic into a specific research question:
- The scope of the question needs to match the length of the assignment
- The question should not be too broad or too narrow
- How much time you have for the project
You can move from a general broad topic to a focused research question by asking questions to narrow it down further and finding some books or articles that help build your background knowledge about the topic.
Turning a Topic Into a Question
Research Help
Research is Messy
The "process" part of "research process" implies something orderly that can be followed from beginning to end. You think it looks like this, but it often looks like this.
Do not get discouraged. The steps of the research process often blend together, and you may find yourself bouncing back and forth often as your needs change or when you encounter setbacks. This is normal. The more you embrace the back-and-forth nature of the process, the stronger your project will be in the end.
Don't Be Boring
Something about your research question should interest you or, at the very least, make you curious enough to seek out an answer. It is much easier to motivate yourself when you have a topic that excites you compared to one that does not. A topic that does not excite you is a chore to research and a chore to write. And if you're bored writing it, your professor will be bored reading it. A spark of interest can spark better grades.