Brainstorming Activity Background Information- McQuade Library

Choosing An Appropriate Topic
At this point, you should be thinking of general concepts or topics, but if your topic is too broad, like violence, for example, you should try to narrow it to a particular focus using the following suggestions.

What is the general topic area am I interested in researching?
To familiarize yourself with the many aspects of a broad topic, do preliminary research using reference sources, course textbooks, articles, web sites.
Listen to what is being said about your topic in class by your professor or in class discussion.

Exploring Subtopics
Ask yourself the following questions:

What do I already know about this topic?
Can I answer who, what, when, where, why and how?
Are there historical or cultural influences that I know about that might be important to the topic?
What aspects of the topic interest me?
Will I limit my research to a particular time period or geographic region or population?
What don’t I know about my topic?

Forming Your Question
A good way to start your research is to state your topic as a question. This will help you clarify your thoughts and focus your topic. For example, “What impact has technology had on education?” When forming your research question, consider the following guidelines:

What about this subtopic do you want to find out? Be specific.
Your question should be a clearly articulated, open-ended question that calls for real research and thinking.
This should not be a yes or no question.

Identifying Concepts

Read your research question carefully.
Which keywords from that question express the most relevant concepts in your question?
Which keywords would probably be present in the title, subject heading or abstract of a source that helps you to answer your question?
For example, with the research question "What impact has technology had on education?" the keywords technology, impact and education would all likely be present in a source that helped to answer the question.

Brainstorming your topic

Now think of other terms or related terms that also describe your topic. For example, alcohol use is related to binge drinking.
Also consider any synonyms, alternative spellings, or common abbreviations. For example, "FDA" for "Food and Drug Administration".
Are there broader or narrower terms related to your research question? For example, substance abuse is a broader term than binge drinking.
Are there organizations or groups that might have information on your topic? For example, the Department of Health and Human Services.