** The best help you can give yourself is to start your research early **
- The Basics
You have a research assignment, but what does “research” mean? Research is:
- Asking questions
- Gathering information
- Assessing or evaluating information
- Organizing and then presenting the information
- Select a Topic
Try to find an issue or topic that interests you. A good topic is:
- Narrow: focuses on the essential element of the topic
- Challenging: engages the reader or encourages debate
- Grounded: can be argued from fact, not just belief
- Background Information
Start by looking through:
- general encyclopedias
- subject specific encyclopedias
- dictionaries
- almanacs
- course textbooks
- lecture notes
These will give you a basic overview of the topic and may provide lists of other books or articles you could consult during your research.
- Refine Your Topic
You will probably need to narrow the focus of your topic since most are too broad to be covered in a research paper. Sometimes, however, a topic is so narrow in scope there is little information available. In this case, you will need to expand your focus.
Go from a general topic, to a more specific topic and then hone it to the precise topic that you will research. For example:
State your topic as a question. This will help you formulate your thesis or the main purpose of your topic. This will usually be stated at the beginning of your paper. For example, you might pose the question:
- “What are the health effects on urban residents near oil refineries?”
In addition, you can brainstorm other questions that might have bearing on your topic, such as:
- Shape your Search Strategy
Once you have your research question, you can begin to look for information:
How do you do this? There are 3 steps!
- Identify the key concepts and terms in your research question “What are the health effects on urban residents near oil refineries?”
- Health
- Urban
- Oil
-
Refineries
- Think of related terms for these concepts
- health - wellness, illness, sickness
- urban - city, town, residential, neighbourhood
- oil - petroleum, gas, energy
- refinery - plant, production processor
Tip: Use quotation marks to search for exact phrases, such as: “oil refineries”.
- Combine terms using Boolean operators. These apply whether using a catalogue, database, or Internet search engine
- AND- narrows and locates items that have ALL your search terms
Example: health AND urban AND oil
- OR- broadens and locates items that have ANY of your terms
Example: (urban OR city OR residential) -- put words joined together by OR in brackets
- NOT- excludes items by eliminating a concept
Example: urban NOT rural
Combine your operators for more exact searching
Health AND (urban OR city OR residential) AND (“oil refineries”)
- Evaluate your Information
Now that you have identified some resources, you need to decide if the information is reliable and useful. Some key considerations are:
You should also consider your use of scholarly and popular publications in your research. Generally, scholarly articles - those written by experts for academic periodicals - add more weight, or importance, to your research than articles found in popular magazines. This guide on the Types of Journals provides more information.
- Begin Writing
Now it is time to begin writing. If you need guidance on writing the research project, consult with your instructor or make an appointment at the Writing Centre.
Adapted from SAIT Polytechnic
Library Research Strategy Guide