A quick guide to research questions and keywords.

1. Research Questions and Key Terms

2. A research question is a question that guides your research.
It should:
 State main concepts identified for your topic.
 Be neutral and debatable.
 Be clear and specific.
It should not be:
o A question that can be answered with a simple yes or no.
Sample Research Questions – with keywords:
 What regulations should be placed on genetically modified foods?
 What effect does online shopping have on retail business?
 How do bans on smoking affect public health?
Research Questions

3. Good and Bad Research Questions
Bad: “Why are social networking sites harmful?”
Why it’s bad:
• ‘Harmful’ is a vague term, and it is subjective (It
means different things to different people.)
• No specific social networks are named. There are so
many and they are different from each other.
Good: “How do privacy policies affect users of
Facebook and Twitter?”
• This is good, because it is clearer and more specific.

4. Good & Bad, continued…
Bad: “What is the effect on the environment from
global warming?”
Why it’s bad:
• Way too broad. This question couldn’t even be
answered in a whole book.
Good: “How is the melting of glacial ice affecting
penguins in Antarctica?”
• Narrowing it by location and the specific animals
affected makes it clearer and more focused.

5.  Choose a general topic that interests you.
 Do some background research on that topic, using
reference sources like encyclopedias.
 In the reference articles, look for important ideas and
key terms.
 Identify the broader, narrower, and related terms.
 Ask yourself “how” and “why” questions about your
topic.
Writing a Research Question