The document provides guidance on developing a research topic and question, including how to narrow a topic by adding limiters related to population, time, viewpoint, and place. It also outlines the basic steps in the research process, from selecting a topic to writing and revising the paper, and provides examples of how to refine topics and formulate focused research questions using limiting criteria.

2. Selecting a Topic
Formulating a
Research Question
Identifying Main Ideas
Identifying Information
Sources & Tools
Gathering Background Info
Locating & Retrieving
Materials
Determining Relevancy
Organizing Info
Writing the Paper
Revising the Paper
The Research Process
Ten Basic Steps

3. BusinessReligionPoliticsTechnologySciencehealth
Term Paper Topics
• Abortion
• Affirmative Action
• AIDS
• Animal Rights
• Anthrax
• Assisted Suicide
• Asteroids
• Blackout
• Capital Punishment
• Child Abuse
• Cloning
• Conjoined Twins
• Diabetes
• Drunk Driving
• Easter Island
• Eating Disorders
• E-mail Spam
• Empire State Building
• Global Warming
• Gangs
• Gender Issues Health Care
• Holocaust Immigration Islam
A topic is general. It is a
category, frequently
expressed in a single word
or phrase, such as
“alcoholism" or “teenage
mothers.” A topic is a good
starting point, but by itself,
it is usually too broad, and
so it must be refined.

4. Ask Yourself Questions
About Your Topic:
•Is the topic of interest to
me?
•Is my topic appropriate for
my audience? Is it relevant to
my course?
•How much or how little do I
know about it?

5. The Q the researcher asks that guides his or her inquiry
into the topic. A good research question asks a clear,
concise question and helps you keep a tight focus on
your topic.
A good RQ is broad enough to allow you to find enough
material, but narrow enough to fit within the size and
time constraints of your paper.
Choose a RQ worth arguing about or exploring (So
what?).
FORMULATE A RESEARCH QUESTION

6. Evidence
Find evidence
to support your
research
question

7. Anecdotal
StatisticalDocumentary
Types of Evidence

8. books
articles
reviews
textbooks
bibliographies
Web sites
census data
laws
diaries
speeches
autobiographies
tech reports
transcripts
e-mail
musical scores
letters
Data or
information that
has not been
analyzed or
evaluated
Data that has
been analyzed

10. Topic Limiters Research
Question
(To narrow and refine topic)

11. Narrow by Viewpoint
Research
Question
Viewpoint
Limiters
What is the constitutionality
of Internet filtering
technology in public libraries?
Topic
•Cultural
•Social
•Legal
•Medical
•Ethical
•Biological
•Psychological
•Economic
•Political
•Philosophical
Teen
Pregnancy

12. Topic Research Question
Narrow by Population
Eating
Disorders
What new
therapeutic
options are
available to
Bulimia in teenage
girls?
Population Limiters
Age, Gender,
Nationality, Species,
Group

13. Narrow by Time
Research
QuestionTopic
Vitamins
What new
developments in
vitamin therapy will
help prevent heart
disease?

14. Topic Research Question
Fast Food & Obesity Is fast-food to blame
for the rising obesity
rates in the United
States?
PLACE LIMITERS
•Country
•Continent
•Region
•City
•State
•Place
•Organization
•Institution
Narrow by Place

15. Population
Time
Viewpoint
Place
Research Question
Topic
Limiters

16. What current, effective management practices have American Fortune 500
companies initiated to eliminate the “glass ceiling” for their women managers?
Viewpoint
Narrowed Research
Question
Limiting
Criteria
Limiters
Management practices to
eliminate the glass ceiling
Place
Time
American corporations; Fortune
500 companies
Current initiatives?
Topic: Management
Women managersPopulation
“glass ceiling”
U.S.
Present
Women

18. IT’S EASY TO
REMEMBER
• WHO
• WHAT
• WHEN
• WHERE
• WHY
• POPULATION
• ASPECT-
VIEWPOINT
• TIME
• PLACE
• SO WHAT??????

19. The overwhelming majority of scholars
and researchers publish their work
in academic journals available from
subscription bibliographic databases
acccessible from the library homepage
NOT FREE on the Internet.