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: G1112, Scientific Writing I
: 2006
: v 1.0 rev 1
Module 3
Hypotheses
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What’s inside
1. thesis statement
2. research question.
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Thesis Statement
Thesis statement is used for the argumentative Paper
Some defining features of a thesis :
• For most student work, it's a one- or two- sentence statement that
explicitly outlines the purpose or point of your paper. A thesis is to a
paper what a topic sentence is to a paragraph
• It should point toward the development or course of argument
the reader can expect your argument to take, but does not have to
specifically include 'three supporting points' as you may have once
learned
• Because the rest of the paper will support or back up your thesis, a
thesis is normally placed at or near the end of the introductory
paragraph.
• It is an assertion that a reasonable person could disagree with if
you only gave the thesis and no other evidence. It is not a fact or
casual observation; it must beg to be proved. And someone
should be able to theoretically argue against it (how successfully will
depend of course on how persuasive you are)
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Thesis Statement (cont)
• It takes a side on a topic rather than simply announcing
that the paper is about a topic (the title should have
already told your reader your topic). Don't tell a reader
about something; tell them what about something.
Answer the questions "how?" or "why?"
• It is sufficiently narrow and specific that your supporting
points are necessary and sufficient, not arbitrary; paper
length and number of supporting points are good guides
here
• It argues one main point and doesn't squeeze three
different theses for three different papers into one
sentence
• Most importantly, it passes The "So What?" Test
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The “So What Test”
• Whenever you plan on writing a research paper, there
is an extremely important point that you must constantly
keep in the forefront of your mind--even English
teachers frequently mention it as something students
fail to do time and time again. What is it? To be sure to
choose a topic worth arguing about or exploring. This
means to construct a thesis statement or research
question about a problem that is still debated,
controversial, up in the air.
• What this means is that during the topic-formulating
stage and again now, always keep asking "SO
WHAT?", "WHO CARES?" or to paraphrase the
famous Canadian journalist Barbara Frum:
"Tell me something new about something I care about."
That will automatically make your paper significant and
interesting both for you to write and the reader to study.
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Research Question
• Research Question is required for
analytical research
• There isn't as much to say about research
questions as thesis statements because
the former are much more straightforward.
A research question is needed because
your broad topic, given out in the
assignment or devised on your own, is too
abstract to give you any focus for your
upcoming research. The key is refining.
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RESEARCH QUESTION
RESEARCH QUESTION EVALUATION
1.
2.
3.
Does the question deal with a topic or issue that interests me enough to spark my own
thoughts and opinions?
Is the question easily and fully researchable?
What type of information do I need to answer the research question?
e.g., The research question, "What impact has deregulation had on commercial airline
safety?," will obviously require certain types of information:
–
–
–
–
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
statistics on airline crashes before and after
statistics on other safety problems before and after
information about maintenance practices before and after
information about government safety requirements before and after
Is the scope of this information reasonable? (e.g., can I really research 30 on-line writing
programs developed over a span of 10 years?)
Given the type and scope of the information that I need, is my question too broad, too
narrow, or o.k.?
What sources will have the type of information that I need to answer the research question
(journals, books, internet resources, government documents, people)?
Can I access these sources?
Given my answers to the above questions, do I have a good quality research question that I
actually will be able to answer by doing research?
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Examples
The Context (Occasion):
• Imagine that you've been asked to write a research paper for a
Communications course on the Personal Impact of Modern Media
Technologies. You get a choice on what kind of paper to write. You
weren't given a sheet of thesis statements or questions, but you've
been to all the classes and, well, have just lived long enough to
know that radio is a modern medium that would definitely have
personal impacts.
• After some brainstorming about your personal experiences and a bit
of refining and preliminary research, you've decided to write a paper
on the impact music-listening has on students' grades. That's your
refined topic.
• Now if you were a real researcher, you could set up an empirical
study and actually test this, but that's not the type of research paper
we're talking about here; not you personally doing the research, but
finding out what others have to say on the matter and using it
intelligently for your own purposes.
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Examples
If it's for an argumentative paper
• After some thought about your opinions on the issue
(maybe combined with some preliminary research),
you've come up with a tentative thesis statement like
this: "Contrary to popular, parental, and librarian opinion,
'quiet study time' does not in fact enhance but instead
impairs students' productivity. Listening to music while
studying is in fact a beneficial activity to add to a study
regime for better grades because of the way music
motivates students and keeps them alert" or something
like that. The wording doesn't really matter at this point,
just the fact that you have transformed your topic into
that second provocative, declarative sentence.
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Examples
If it's for an analytical paper
• To transform your topic into a research question
for this example, all you have to do is stick an
interrogative pronoun at the beginning and tack
a question mark at the end; in other words,
MAKE IT A QUESTION! Your research question
would be something like "What is the ultimate
effect of music-listening while studying on
grades?" The paper will then go on to analyze
and explore the range of answers. If your
question is refined enough, this simple tactic
works quite well.
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How to create a thesis
THESIS = TOPIC + SPECIFIC ASSERTION
1. Started with a medium "radio" as our initial topic
2. Refined it to "music-listening" (as opposed to talk shows,
commercials, contests, etc.)
3. Further refined it to "music-listening while studying" as opposed to
other contexts where people would listen to radio music
4. For assertion, we looked at the title of the course and reasoned that
a good term paper would likely look at the personal impact of our
topic on something else
5. After some thought and observation, that something else turned out
to be "student grades“
6. The specific assertion was THE NATURE OF THAT IMPACT (which
we felt was a positive one in our sample thesis statement: musiclistening while studying enhances academic performance)
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How to create a thesis (Cont)
• What is a gut feeling you get when you think at or look at your
topic?
"I could never get through studying without music on!"
• Why do you think you feel like that?
"If I didn't have music, I'd fall asleep or get bored. Music keeps
me motivated, engaged, and alert."
• What qualifications or conditions might be needed to make
your response more objective and specific, especially for
skeptics?
"Oh yeah, I listen to instrumentals; I should probably mention
that. The tempo of the music is probably important or I would
fall asleep. And volume matters And what I'm studying might
matter too"
• Is there any other information you will need to include that's
critical to the comprehension of your idea?
"I may need to include some definitions. And I should definitely
point to the fact that mine is opposite to popular opinion."
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How to create a Research
Question
Research Question
• The best technique for coming up with a research question is to do a
lot of brainstorming that keeps breaking up your topic into subunits
and/or specific conditions--all by repeatedly asking yourself
questions. The journalist's 5Ws can be helpful here.
• Below is the imaginary evolution of our sample research question.
As you read it, think of it as a kind of inventive "dialogue" you might
have had with yourself once you'd chosen radio as your medium:
• Is it the medium itself I'd like to look at?--light, portable, easily worn
close to the ears (maybe I could look at the effect of walkmans on
hearing) Or am I more interested in the content of radio?
• So what are the different parts of a radio program?
(music, news, commercials, contests, sports broadcasting, talk shows
(what is it like to hear a sport but not see it? how does it change the
spectator experience?)
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How to create a Research
Question (cont)
• Hmmm. I don't like sports--what about music? Where do
people listen to radio music? Jogging (walkmans)? (Do they
run farther because of it?)
• In the car? (Does it ever contribute to accidents?)
• At the dentist's office, at work?(Are people more satisfied at
their jobs?)
• At home? Where at home? In the bedroom? Who listens to it?
I do! Who am I?
• A student!! That's it! When do I listen to music? When I study!
(Does that impact my grades?)
Just keep asking yourself questions about words and other
questions. There are half a dozen possible research questions
embedded in the note-taking exercise above. Finding one that
interests you can't be too hard.
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