Find a research topic or several topics that you can explore before you begin your project. If you do not know enough about your topic and current issues in your topic, try using reference sources (encyclopedias, dictionaries, and online reference databases like CREDO Reference) and information on current issues (try our current issues databases) to learn more. 

Ask yourself: 

• What are some things that interest me in my field? 
• What would I like to learn more about? 
• What is a problem that I have identified in my field?

Example: Noticing the popularity of "keto" on social media makes you wonder whether the information about ketogenic diets promoted by "health gurus" is promoting false nutritional information. Is it up to the current hype? 

Corresponding Topic: the short-term effect of the ketogtenic diet on indicators of heart disease risk 

Characteristics of a Good Research Topic

• interesting to you
• does not have a known answer
• allows you to explore several perspectives in your paper
• specific enough to narrow into a research question
• broad enough to find information on

A research question states the problem that you want to address in your paper and that you want to find the answer to in your research study. Your research question may change as you work on your literature review and find out more about your topic. 

• What do you want to learn about this topic? 
• What information is available on this topic? (reference sources, articles, books, etc.) 
  • Have you identified gaps in the research? Is there a problem that has not been addressed adequately in available research studies? Is there a problem that you have observed personally and would like to learn more about? 
• What open-ended question would you like to ask about your topic based on the information available to you?
• Use inquiry words like "why, should, could, how" to help formulate your question. 

Example: Noticing the popularity of "keto" on social media makes you wonder whether the information about ketogenic diets promoted by "health gurus" is promoting false nutritional information. Is it up to the current hype? 

Corresponding Topic: the short-term effect of the ketogtenic diet on indicators of heart disease risk 

You do some preliminary research and find that there is conflicting evidence on this new diet fad and whether it is healthy for long-term use

Research Question: Does a three-week shift to ketogenic dieting significantly reduce levels of LDL cholesterol in currently-training athletes? 

What do you think will happen based on your research? Why? 

Example: A three week shift to a ketogenic diet does not effect LDL levels in currently training athletes. 

Your research will inform your hypothesis and make up the entirety of your literature review. Use library resources, guidance from your professor/advisor, and other academic sources to gather your research.

Choose peer-reviewed research articles and watch out for book reviews and editorials. (These are published in peer-reviewed journals, but are not research articles.) 

Are you unsure if a research article fits your criteria? Test it with the P.R.O.V.E.N. Method or ask a librarian! 

How will you test your hypothesis? Determine the best method for the information that you want to discover. 

• Will you use qualitative or quantitative research methods? 
• How will you gather your data? Will you use surveys, observational studies, or something else? 
• Who will you study? Will you have a small or a large subject group? How will you choose a subject group? 
• Can you draw from previous studies used in your literature review? (If you do, cite them appropriately!) 
• Determine the most ethical and professonal manner of conducting research.
  • Are there risks or drawbacks to your methods? 
    • Are you using human subjects? 
      • Obtain appropriate training and design a study that will meet IRB approval. 

Using the methods of data analysis outlined in your methodology section, analyze your data to determine the outcome of your experiment. 

To determine how to analyze your data: 

• Look at the tools available to you. What can you use? 
• Consult previous studies. 
• Consult your research textbook. 
• Consider analytical software, if applicable. 

Expressing your data visually in charts and graphs helps others grasp the results of your research. Use the information that you gathered in your study to determine whether or not your hypothesis was correct. 

Consider drawbacks in your study and the implications of your research when discussing your results: 

• Was the sample size representative of your studied population? 
• Were there other factors that could have skewed the results of your study? 
• What does this study suggest for future research in the field? 
• How might the results of the study be applied in the field?