COMM 2011: Intro to Communication Studies

The research question is a question you use to center your research. This will be used to guide your searching and develop and argumentative thesis. 

The research question should be:

• Specific and focused
• Complex - should not be answered with a simple yes or no
• Significant to you or a topic that requires further study
• Arguable - should lead to an outcome or proposed solution

Steps to developing your research question:

1. Choose a topic that interest you. You are likely to be more productive in your work if you choose a subject that genuinely interests you. It can be a broad topic to start.
2. Conduct preliminary research. Familiarize yourself with some of the recent discussions and research on your topic. Try to find gaps in the existing research or more specific areas that you would like to learn more about. What questions come to mind when you're reading?
3. Narrow down your topic. Consider subtopics or specific areas to focus your research. It may be useful to focus on a specific location, group of people, or time period. What points do you intend to make with your topic? 
4. Develop your question. The best research questions as why or how to engage others in thinking or discussion about the topic. You want to make sure it incorporates specific details that will guide your research. Ex. How can trauma-informed practices improve homelessness in rural cities of California?

Keywords are the words or short phrases you will enter into the search bar of OneSearch or other databases to find research materials. They work similar to tags or hashtags in that books, articles, and other research materials are tagged with keywords to help users find the content more easily. 

These words, sometimes called search terms, represent the main subject areas of your research topic or question to help you find articles, books, or other media. 

The process of selecting these keywords includes the following:

1. Identifying the main concepts of your research topic
2. Narrow down these concepts into 2-5 words - these will be your first keywords!
3. Brainstorm to identify synonyms, antonyms, or subtopics to use as alternative keywords
4. Make sure to spell out abbreviations and use correct spelling for best results

Useful Tip: Stay away from filler words that connect your main topics but don't provide any context (examples: explain, compare, contrast, assess)

Watch this short video for more information of narrowing your research topic!

Video: How to Narrow Your Topic