The First Six Steps to Research
- Define and articulate a research question (formulate a research hypothesis).
- Identify possible sources of information in many types and formats.
- Judge the scope of the project.
- Reevaluate the research question based on the nature and extent of information available and the parameters of the research project.
- Select the most appropriate investigative methods (surveys, interviews, experiments) and research tools (periodical indexes, databases, websites).
- Plan the research project.
From 15 Steps to Good Research by Georgetown University
Questions to help with steps 1 through 3:
- What are the core concepts for your project or research?
- What are the core disciplines? Closely related disciplines?
- How comprehensive do you need to be in your literature review?
- What time span is relevant?
- Which individuals and organizations are likely to publish content on your topic and why?
What would be a hypothetical title for your final paper?
- Reviewing the Literature.
Chapter 4 in: Paulus, Trena M, et al. Digital Tools for Qualitative Research. London, : SAGE Publications Ltd, 2014. SAGE Research Methods. Web. doi: 10.4135/9781473957671.
"Literature Review as a Critical and Creative Process
Literature reviews demonstrate your ability to critique and synthesize the previous research in such a way that a new perspective is gained (Boote and Beile, 2005). Rather than a simple summary, a literature review should, through critical analysis, articulate a new interpretation of previous work to be shared with the research community. Contrary to how the literature review is often understood, it is a creative process ‘in which the knower is an active participant constructing an interpretation of the community and its discourse’ (Montuori, 2005, p. 375). It is a construction, through critical analysis, rather than a mere reproduction, through summary, of what has been said before."
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Handbooks, research tips, and tools to aid research design, methodologies, and output. Check out the Research Planner or search for content related to your discipline or research method.
- Arts-Based Research: SAGE Encyclopedia of Qualitative Research Methods
In: Given, Lisa M. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Qualitative Research Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2008. SAGE Research Methods. Web. doi: 10.4135/9781412963909.
"Arts-based research is a form of qualitative research in the human studies that employs the premises, procedures, and principles of the arts. It is defined by the presence of aesthetic qualities (or design elements) within both the inquiry process and the research text. Therefore, arts-based research is quite different in many ways from traditional forms of research that are associated with the social sciences." - Handbook of the Arts in Qualitative Research: Perspectives, Methodologies, Examples, and Issues
Knowles, J. G and Ardra L Cole. Handbook of the Arts in Qualitative Research: Perspectives, Methodologies, Examples, and Issues. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2008. SAGE Research Methods. doi: 10.4135/9781452226545.
"Art-based research can be defined as the systematic use of the artistic process, the actual making of artistic expressions in all of the different forms of the arts, as a primary way of understanding and examining experience by both researchers and the people that they involve in their studies."
"Rather than just reflecting upon artistic phenomena in case studies, interviews, and other explanatory texts, students now ask if they can pursue the process of painting to learn more about a particular aspect of painting or elicit the creative imagination to let the characters in their expressions describe themselves and their experiences, and so forth. We are discovering how these art-based methods, making use of a larger spectrum of creative intelligence and communications, generate important information that often feels more accurate, original, and intelligent than more conventional descriptions."