In general, the broader your topic, the more challenging your research will be.
Broader search terms often return tens of thousands of results, leading to information overload.
Use the tips on this page to develop an appropriately focused research topic or question.
Asking Good Questions
A good research question...
- does not have a clear, simple answer
- is free of bias
- requires original research or data analysis to answer
- advances your own knowledge
When developing research questions, keep in mind...
- what you already know about the topic-at-large
- what foundational or background knowledge you might be missing that could help you ask better questions
- what you're curious about or want to know
Examples of Weaker Research Questions
Review the examples of research questions below and expand the drop down to learn how the question could be improved and strengthened.
This question has a simple, factual answer that would be easy to find on the web.
Stronger: What is the impact of corporal punishment on the academic success of low-income high school students?
Strong research questions do not have a clear-cut answers. For example, this stronger question cannot be answered with yes or no, and would instead require significant research or data analysis to answer. Additionally, this question specifies an intervention/independent variable (corporal punishment), an outcome/dependent variable (academic success), and a population (low-income high school students). This allows for more specific searching in the library databases, helping you find more relevant results more quickly!
This question is biased and results from your search may only tell one side of a complicated story.
Stronger: How do manufacturing emissions of electric vehicles compare to lifetime emissions of gasoline powered vehicles?
Strong research questions are free of bias. When you start your research with preformed opinions, it can negatively impact the quality of your searching. Try to set your opinions and biases aside and ask neutral and impartial questions. In this example, our stronger question will allow us to find specific data that we can use to compare the two types of vehicles, allow us to make an argument based on our research rather than our preexisting ideas or opinions.
This topic is very broad, and searching for this topic would result in finding tens of thousands of sources.
Stronger: What impact does microplastic pollution in the ocean have on whales?
By narrowing the research topic to a specific question, our research efforts can be more targeted and return fewer results that are more relevant.
Brainstorming
Not sure what to write about?
Try these strategies to get started.
Find Background Information
Look up your topic on the web or through the library to find background information that will deepen your understanding. The more you know about a general topic, the easier it will be to develop strong, appropriately scoped research questions.
Use sources like encyclopedias, textbook chapters, Wikipedia articles, government websites, respected national organization websites, professional association websites, or other high-quality and credible sources. Look for important terms, people, dates, laws, theories, etc.
Set a timer for 5, 10, or 15 minutes. Write about your ideas or topic without stopping (either with pencil and paper or on your computer) until the timer ends. The most important part of this strategy is not to self-edit while you write; just let the words flow without overthinking, editing, or worrying about whether things make sense.
Once the timer goes off, read back over what you wrote. Highlight, circle, or underline any interesting themes or ideas that emerged in your writing.
Write your topic in the center of a piece of paper and draw a circle around it. Next, draw lines out from the central circle connecting to related ideas or terms. Keep branching out in this way to guide your thinking deeper into each idea or term related to your topic.
Draw a star in the center of a piece of paper. In the center of the star, write your general idea or topic. Above the each point of the star, write one the following words: who, why, what, how, where/when. Then, start coming up with questions for each of the five areas that start with the related word.
For example, if your topic is "electric cars," you might come up with questions like:
- Who buys electric cars?
- Why do electric cars cost more than gasoline powered cars?
- What makes electric car batteries expensive?
- How can we improve electric car infrastructure?
- When were electric cars invented?
