Formulating+a+Good+Research+Question

@http://writingcenter.gmu.edu/?p=307

@http://hccedl.cc.gatech.edu/documents/115_Fisk_research%20questions%202003.pdf

@http://libguides.lmu.edu/content.php?pid=10084&sid=1965230

@http://www.lib.ku.edu/splat/coursepages/general/FormulatingaResearchQuestion.pdf

@http://www.socscidiss.bham.ac.uk/research-question.html

@http://www.theresearchassistant.com/tutorial/2-1.asp

@http://www.atsu.edu/research/pdfs/campbell_syllabus.pdf

@http://airs.library.qut.edu.au/1/1/

@http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/extracts/9780199202959_bryman_SRM.pdf

4 P's

1) People

2) Problems

3) Programs - evaluate their effectiveness

4) Phenomenon - look at existence of

=**Research Questions vs. Thesis Statements**=

They are two sides of the same coin.

A research question addresses a problem to be solved.

A thesis statement is a //tentative answer// to a research question.

It is tentative in that your written research project is going to have to test your thesis and hopefully show it to be correct.

Thus, if your research question were:

//To what extent should the U.S. government have known of the risk of the New York 9/11 disaster before it happened?//

your thesis statement could be:

//There was sufficient warning of a New York 9/11-type disaster before it happened, so the U.S. government should have been well prepared for its occurrence//.

Or your thesis might be:

//Despite the signs of a potential terrorist attack, there is no way that the U.S. government could have had sufficient information to be prepared for the New York 9/11 disaster.//

For either of these possible thesis statements the onus would be on you to provide convincing evidence to support your thesis (as well as giving due consideration to contradicting evidence).

The thesis statement route does have a tendency to create a bias, so that it's tempting to overlook or minimize evidence that does not support your case. Thus, unless you have been told to provide a thesis statemnt, **using a research question is more likely to have you entering the investigation with an open mind.**

From: William Badke, //Research Strategies//