Develop Your Topic & Research Question/Thesis

III. Develop Your Topic & Research Question/Thesis

A. Choosing an interesting research topic is important because it is what drives the research. Mind maps can help you choose and develop an interesting research topic.

1. Make a list of appropriate topics (nouns) that interest you:

a.Mars

b. Cloning

c. Fracking

2. Then, add verbs:

a. Colonizing Mars

b. Cloning may cause health problems

c. Fracking causes pollution

B. Research your topic (a.k.a. a thesis statement), as a question:

1. Is Mars hospitable for humans?

2. Will cloning cause health problems in humans?

3. How does fracking cause pollution?

 

C. Broaden/Narrow Topic: Students often choose topics that are too broad (climate change) or too narrow (organic rice labeling in SW Arkansas). It is important to select a topic that can be addressed in the time frame and is appropriate for the length of the assignment.

1. If your topic is too broad you will:

a. find it difficult to combine all the information you find about the topic.

b. not be able to cover the topic in the assigned number of pages or words.

2. If your topic is too narrow you will:

a. find little or nothing written about it.

b. be able to fully write about it in far fewer than the required pages (or words).

This EBSCOHost video explains how to narrow or broaden your topic, so you can find enough research materials to write intelligently about you topic and aren’t overwhelmed by an unmanageably large topic.