The following information is taken from the University
of Georgia library and the University of Washington library websites.
Creating Your Research Question
From Topic to Research Question
A good research topic asks a clear, concise question instead of simply stating a broad issue. Asking a research question helps you keep a tight focus on your topic as you wade through the available research. You'll be able to more easily identify the material that answers your question and reject material that discusses your topic too generally.
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Broad Topic: |
Legalization of Marijuana |
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Research Question: |
How would the legalization of marijuana affect the US court system? |
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Research Question: |
Would the legalization of marijuana increase or decrease drug use among US teenagers? |
Tweaking Your Research Question
A good research topic is broad enough to allow you to find plenty of material, but narrow enough to fit within the size and time constraints of your paper. As you begin to research your topic, if you discover that your topic is either too broad or too narrow, consider adding or eliminating the following elements to solve the problem:
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Time Period: |
century, decade, future, etc. |
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Population Type: |
age, gender, nationality, species, etc. |
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Geographic Location: |
country, state, region, etc. |
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Point of View: |
economic, social, cultural, biological, |
Check with your instructor if you have any doubt that your topic is a good one. You'll both be glad you did!
* Above information taken directly from: University
of Georgia. University of Georgia Libraries. http://www.libs.uga.edu/researchcentral/defining/creating.html
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RESEARCH 101
Topics |
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Using A Topic to Generate Questions |
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Research requires a question for which no ready answer is available. What do you want to know about a topic? Asking a topic as a question (or series of related questions) has several advantages:
1. Questions require answers. A topic is hard to cover completely because it typically encompasses too many related issues; but a question has an answer, even if it is ambiguous or controversial.
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TOPIC |
QUESTION |
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Drugs and crime |
Could liberalization of drug laws reduce crime in the U.S.? |
2. Questions give you a way of evaluating the evidence. A clearly stated question helps you decide which information will be useful. A broad topic may tempt you to stash away information that may be helpful, but you're not sure how. A question also makes it easier to know when you have enough information to stop your research and draft an answer.
3. A clear open-ended question calls for real research and thinking. Asking a question with no direct answer makes research and writing more meaningful to both you and your audience. Assuming that your research may solve significant problems or expand the knowledge base of a discipline involves you in more meaningful activity of community and scholarship.
Developing a question from a broad topic can be done in many ways. Two such effective ways are brainstorming and concept mapping.
brain·storm·ing noun: 1. A method of shared problem solving in which all members of a group spontaneously contribute ideas. 2. A similar process undertaken by a person to solve a problem by rapidly generating a variety of possible solutions.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000
Brainstorming is a free-association technique of spontaneously listing all words, concepts, ideas, questions, and knowledge about a topic. After making a lengthy list, sort the ideas into categories. This allows you to inventory your current awareness of a topic, decide what perspectives are most interesting and/or relevant, and decide in which direction to steer your research.
con·cept map·ping noun phrase: 1. A process, focused on a topic, in which group or individual brainstorming produces a visual graphic that represents how the creator(s) thinks about a subject, topic, etc. It illustrates how knowledge is organized for the group or individual.
You may create a concept map as a means of brainstorming; or, following your brainstorm, you may take the content you have generated and create your map from it . Concept maps may be elaborate or simple and are designed to help you organize your thinking about a topic, recognize where you have gaps in your knowledge, and help to generate specific questions that may guide your research.
Combining brainstorming and concept mapping (brainmapping, if you will) can be a productive way to begin your thinking about a topic area. Try to establish as your goal the drafting of a topic definition statement which outlines the area you will be researching and about which you will present your findings.
A question that is too narrow or specific may not retrieve enough information. If this happens, broaden the question. Most questions have multiple contexts and varying levels of specificity.
The underlined terms below represent broader ways of asking without changing the basic meaning. If you find sources that treat a subject broadly, use the index or table of contents to locate useful sections or chapters. Or ask yourself, "How might the arguments made here support my argument?"
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INSTEAD OF |
Should Makah whaling rituals be permitted despite endangered species laws? |
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TRY |
Should Native Americans practice religious and social customs that violate local and Federal laws? |
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INSTEAD OF |
What are the economic impacts of sweat shops on development in South Asia? |
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TRY |
What are the impacts of U.S. labor practices on developing countries? |
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Narrowing a Research Question |
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A question that is too broad may retrieve too much information. Here are some strategies for narrowing the scope of a question. They may be used individually or in combinations.
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Strategy |
Explanation |
Internet Security Topic |
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Time
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Since 1990? This year? In the future?
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Current Internet security initiatives. |
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Place
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Local social norms & values, economic & political systems, or languages. |
Internet security initiatives in the U.S |
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Population
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Gender, age, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, educational attainment, species, etc. |
Filtering software and childrens' access to Internet pornography |
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Viewpoint
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Social, legal, medical, ethical, biological, psychological, economic, political, philosophical? A viewpoint allows you to focus on a single aspect. |
The constitutionality of Internet filtering technology |
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Selecting Key Words and Concepts |
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Prepare for searching by identifying the central concepts in your research question.
Computers are programmed to match strings of characters and spaces and do not often understand the natural language we use with each other. They can't guess what you mean, don't "read" subtexts, and are easily confused by ambiguity, so clarify for them what you will be looking for. Focus only on essential concepts.
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"media |
Media cover events. Unless the media caused the event, this term is unnecessary. |
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Value words like "favorite," "advantage," or "better" are not useful if you need to gather evidence to help you make a decision or develop a solution. Don't just grab an opinion or the "right" answer off someone else's shelf. |
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dissertations |
Many databases and search engines are programmed to ignore common words that don't impact a search. These are called "stopwords" and typically include terms like "the," "from," "about," "when," etc. |
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Broadening and Narrowing Vocabulary |
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Earlier we discussed narrowing and broadening a research question. Vocabulary can also be broadened or narrowed to find different types of sources. This chart suggests some alternative vocabulary for the following research question:
"Should Native Americans practice religious and social customs that violate local and Federal laws? "
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Key word(s) |
Broader |
Related |
Narrower |
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Native Americans |
Indigenous peoples, North American history |
Indians, Amerinds, |
Makah, Nez Perce, |
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Customs |
Social systems, |
Marriage, social relations, spirituality, rites and ceremonies, |
Lodge house(s), hunting, whaling, potlatch, etc. |
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Law |
Criminal justice, |
Legislation, |
Bureau of Indian Affairs, |
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Broader terms. What broad disciplines or subjects may address your research question? Related terms. Synonyms and other terms that describe issues or activities that relate to your key concepts. Narrower terms. Specific examples of your key concepts. These might be cases, events, names, places, etc. |
Above information taken directly from: “Research 101” University of Washington. University Libraries. http://www.lib.washington.edu/uwill/research101/topic00.htm