Developing a Research Question

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Developing a Research Question

Before you start searching for sources to support your work, it’s a good idea to develop your rough topic into a thesis statement. You can then turn it into a research question that you will set out to answer.

Before you start searching for sources to support your work, it’s a good idea to develop your rough topic into a thesis statement, and then turn it into a research question that you will set out to answer.

Why do this?

It will narrow your focus and make your topic more precise.

It will help guide your search for related literature, ensuring that it is neither too broad nor too narrow.

This in turn will help you avoid duplicating existing research, and help you identify any gaps in the existing research.

Last but not least, developing a research question will help you define the value and uniqueness of your research.

The most important thing to remember is that your research question influences your search results.

If your question is too broad, you could be overwhelmed by the amount of information you find.

If your question is too narrow, you may not find enough information.

How do you get from a rough topic to a thesis statement and then to a research question?

First of all, brainstorm and write out everything you know about the topic.

You can draw a concept map or use other techniques that will help you in this process.

Talk to colleagues, including your fellow students, professors, researchers, or whoever you think may be helpful.

Also, be sure to talk to a librarian about using the appropriate search tools to conduct your search.

After you have found relevant sources on your research topic, read them, identify possible gaps, and take notes to help you construct your thesis statement and research question.

Here’s an example:

This section would animate like a flow-chart with arrows.

Your rough topic could be: Elvis’s Karate dancing.

Your thesis statement might be: Elvis Presley’s dance style (after 1970) was influenced by his Karate skills.

So your research question could be: How was Elvis Presley’s post-1970, onstage dance style influenced by his Karate skills?

With your thesis statement and research question clearly defined in this manner, you will have a better chance of conducting successful research.

For more assistance, contact your library.