Research problem and research questions

Define your research topic early

Both the research problem and the research question go in the introduction.

State them upfront so the reader knows what they article is about and so they can interpret the lit review from the proper mind-set.

Writing the introduction Most of the example studies you looked at last week didn’t do

this, but the introduction of both a qual and quant study should be very similar.

The first paragraph is your own words. Put the citations in the second/third paragraph as you show the research problem is relevant and build to the research question. The citations here are the seminal or broad articles that put your work into context. (You probably will mention them again in the lit review.)

The introduction defines the research problem, the research question, gives a forecasting statement. And then stops, because it’s time for the lit review to start.

Research question This example was a quantitative study,

but these research questions are worded for a qualitative study. Notice how they are all very subjective in what would prove or disprove them.

One problem with them is they are yes/no answer questions, but ones that are always “yes, in some part”. They should be open-ended questions.

Your hypotheses, which come from the research questions should be clearly yes/no.

Forecasting statement

At the end of the introduction State what you are going to cover. Helps keep the reader oriented. Provides an explicit road map to the design

and contents of the paper. The points in the forecasting statement

become the headings of the paper.

Example Forecast

This analytical report will address the issue of the city of Lubbock needing more habitat for its playas in order to benefit bird populations as well as the city. In the first part, I prove the necessity of the need for more habitat. Then I consider the three solutions:

Provide nest boxes and feeders for the avian species.

Benefit the playas by constructing habitat improvements.

Increase public interests.

Finally, I offer my recommendation based on the analysis of the three possible solutions.

Example Forecast

In the following sections, I explain how I arrived at these questions, elaborate on the questions and the mapping metaphor, and offer an overview of research directions in each area.

Example Forecast

The following discussion begins with a brief background of academic location, the historical effect of location on programs, and theories of technical communication. Next, we discuss the methodology of our empirical research into the academic location of existing technical communication programs. We then present our findings and discuss some of the implications of location on technical communication programs.

Hypotheses After the lit review. Lit review builds to it. All of

them should be connected to the lit review and your research question.

Typically only done on a quantitative study.

Wording should be in form of a null hypotheses statement. The data analysis will prove or disprove it.

Evolution of the research question

“when exactly do we present our original research question(s) and how it/they evolved?”

You don’t. The reader doesn’t care about the path you took to get to your findings. They care about the results and the implications. The underlying motivation for why you undertook the study and how your direction changed 43 times between the start and the end is irrelevant to them.

A research article is a report of the journal as you should have taken it (blue), not how it really was made (red).