Strategy 1:
Think about what questions you have about your topic.
Strategy 2:
Create a concept map of your topic that consists of all of the possible aspects and angles of your topic. Here is a great video on Concept Mapping for a research paper.
Strategy 3:
Think about:
- Who is the specific person/group to which you would like to limit your research?
- What specific aspect of the broad topic idea is interesting to you? What would you like to know more about? Or, what problem needs to be resolved?
- To which specific geographic area or region would you like to limit your research?
- On what time period would you like your research focused?
- Why do you think this is an important/interesting topic?
Strategy 4:
Do some background reading to help you land on a great research question. Sometimes you simply need to learn more about your topic before you can decide on a particular research question or hypothesis. Pay attention to questions that come while you are reading.
