Research 101

Now that you have a research question, it's time to develop a research strategy, a tentative road map to guide your research. One method for developing a research strategy is to create a preliminary outline of the information you will need to answer your research question.

Preliminary outlines:

• break your research question into smaller more manageable components,
• provide a tentative structure to your research project,
• and help save time by avoiding lengthy investigation into topics tangential to your research question.

1. The risk of increased flooding due to climate change
2. The disadvantages of damming rivers to mitigate flooding
3. Sustainable alternatives to dams to control flooding
4. Conclusion

The short outline above provides clear direction regarding what information is needed to both start gathering sources in order to answer the stated research question and provides an initial organization to composing a research project. Preliminary outlines should not be extensive and detailed. At this stage, a few bullet points are sufficient to provide some focus to your research and allow for revisions to your research question.

Next, you will want to think about what kind of sources you will need to answer your research question. What kinds of sources you need will be determined by two factors. First, your instructor likely has provided some guidance in the assignment instructions about what types of sources are permissible. Second, your research question will require specific types of sources. For example, a research question developed for an assignment in a history class may require primary historical sources. Or a research question developed for sociology class that explores contemporary social problems may require sources that document first hand observations of people experiencing social marginalization and peer reviewed academic journal articles that document the issue. The point is your research question will guide you to the types of sources and the tools needed to find them.