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Writing a research question

Once you have a passion project you want to work on, the main priority for you will be to find a detailed way of showing the world that your research is worth paying attention to.

Step-by-step

Narrow the scope

Once you discovered that one topic that really gets you going and you feel enthusiastic about exploring it with more depth, you will begin to think about ways of narrowing the scope of the question, and focusing on 2 or 3 main things you want to resolve with your research.

The "So what?" factor

Ask yourself why this topic matters. This helps ensure your question has real-world relevance, such as addressing a societal need, improving a process, or expanding on a lesser-known topic.

Phrase it as a Question

Turn your topic into a question that can guide your research. Aim for clarity, focusing on who, what, where, when, why, or how. For instance: “How has AI improved diagnostic accuracy for rare diseases in clinical settings?”

Feasibility and Scope

Ensure the question is specific and manageable within your available resources and timeline. You want something that allows depth without being overwhelming or too broad.

Even without as many resources you can still aim high, and we'll be there to help with the writing process.

Research question: misconceptions and what to pay attention to

There are many issues that may arise from not being properly deep with your research question, and that may lead to issues with how you approach your research in the future, and how deep you can truly go with your analysis.

Here are some common mistakes you must learn to address:

Clarity

Ensure your question is clear, avoid being too broad or not specific enough:

Unclear: Why are social networking sites harmful?

Clear: How are online users experiencing or addressing privacy issues on social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook?

Unfocused

Not having a goal in mind when writing your question may lead to issues with focus:

Unfocused: What is the effect on the environment from global warming?
Focused: How is glacial melting affecting penguins in Antarctica?

Simplicity and the write degree of complexity

you're writing a paper which will be worthy of publication, so being unique and moderately complex is paramount to being successful:

Too simple: How are doctors addressing diabetes in the U.S.?

Appropriately complex: What are common traits of those suffering from diabetes in America, and how can these commonalities be used to aid the medical community in prevention of the disease?

Example #1:

How does the variety of Capsicum annuum L. (green bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, red bell pepper, red sweet long pepper) and Allium cepa L. (yellow onion, red onion, white onion) influence their vitamin C content in mg/100g, as measured by vegetable juice volume needed to titrate 2 ml of 0.1% DCPIP solution?

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