The Research Strategy
Step 1:
Narrow your topic to one
manageable issue.
Step 2: The words are
key: create a good
keyword search strategy.
Step 3: Start searching
for scholarly research.
1. Narrow your topic
LEGAL
• Government Policy.
• Minors.
• Smoking in public
places.
• Tobacco companies’
liability for smoking
related deaths.
CULTURAL
• Native traditional
tobacco
• Age limits
• Cultural history
MEDICAL
TOBACCO
& SMOKING
• Lung diseases
• Addiction
• Cessation
• Prevention
• Deaths
• Second-hand smoke
ECONOMIC
SOCIAL
• Cost of treating
smoking-related
illness.
• Taxes
• Industry
• Advertising
• Peer pressure
• Stereotypes
• Public opinion
• Changing public
opinion
• Smoking in public
Example of Narrowed Topic
Animal Cruelty
“Is horse racing cruel and dangerous to horses?”
Research requirements:
1. Discover potential health risks to horses from racing.
2. Examination of injuries to racing horses.
3. Your own analysis based from your findings.
Excellent Narrowed Topic
Same Sex Marriage
“Who does same sex marriage hurt?”
Research requirements:
1. Research and list reasons people and groups oppose same
sex marriage.
2. Examine those reasons that have an affect on people.
3. Take one side or the other, and use research findings to
support your conclusion.
Narrow Your Topic
Most topics
are too
ambitious
“What triggers an eating disorder in
a teenager and what physical and
emotional affects does it have?”
Select ONE
compelling
aspect of
your topic,
and focus
on that
aspect only.
Research Requirements:
• Causes for eating disorders – psychological, social, cultural,
etc.
• Symptoms of eating disorders – binge eating, compulsive
exercise, bulimia, anorexia, etc.
• Long and short term physical affects from all eating
disorders for both male and female teens
• Long and short term emotional affects from all eating
disorders for both male and female teens
How to narrow your topic: two steps
Topic: Should prostitution be legal or illegal?
1. Read overview of subject in a subject encyclopedia.
• i.e. Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment
2. Look for research questions identified in encyclopedia article.
New Topic: Do legalization programs promote the customer’s
well being or the prostitute’s? Comparison of working
conditions for prostitutes in Nevada, Australia, and the
Netherlands.
Sources to use to narrow your topic
The following sources provide excellent scholarly
summaries for many topics:
1.
CQ Researcher
Available on campus using the CQ Researcher database:
http://library.riohondo.edu/
2.
Subject Encyclopedias – Print or Online
Print.
Online: Gale Virtual Reference http://library.riohondo.edu/
3.
Issues and Controversies http://library.riohondo.edu/
4.
SIRS http://library.riohondo.edu/
2. Identify the Best Keywords
1. What is my issue?
Example: Prostitution
2. What do I want to know?
Do legalization programs promote the customer’s well being
or the prostitute’s? Comparison of working conditions for
prostitutes in Nevada, Australia, and the Netherlands.
3. What are the main words in the question?
Prostitutes
Nevada
Legalization
Australia
Working conditions
Netherlands
Construct a keyword search
4. What are other forms of my keywords?
SIMILAR & RELATED TERMS
Find ALL related resources
Prostitution
(prostitution OR “sex workers”)
“sex workers”
prostitut*
PHRASE SEARCHING
Use “quotation marks” around
common phrases
TRUNCATION
Searches for all words with the same stem
(prostitute, prostitutes, prostitution)
3. Start Searching!
5.
Put your keywords together and use them to search both periodical databases and
internet search engines:
(prostitut* OR “sex workers”) AND (legalization OR legalisation)
AND work* AND conditions
Thank you for visiting Rio Hondo College Library!
http://library.riohondo.edu/
QUESTIONS?
Tatiana Shabelnik – tshabelnik@riohondo.edu