Steps to Writing a Research Essay
Boolean Logic is used to broaden and/or narrow your search. Boolean Logic is simply the term used to describe certain logical operations that are used to combine search keywords/key-terms in many search engine databases and directories on the internet.
Basic Boolean Search Operator: AND
Using AND narrows a search by combining keywords/key-terms; it will retrieve documents that use both the search keywords you specify, as in this example: Mineral AND Deposit
Basic Boolean Search Operator: OR
Using OR broadens a search to include results that contain either of the keywords/key-terms you type in. OR is a good tool to use when there are several common spellings or synonyms of a keyword/key-term, as in this example: Mineral OR Ore
Basic Boolean Search Operator: NOT
Using NOT will narrow a search by excluding certain search terms. NOT retrieves documents that contain one, but not the other, of the search terms you enter, as in this example: Mineral Deposit NOT Mining.
PS: Be sure to try many different keywords/key-terms when searching for information. For instance if you are searching for information on globalization you might also want to use the synonyms "transnational" or
"international" or "multinational. " You might also use key-terms such as "global citizens," "global democracy," "global poverty policies," or “global capitalism."
Steps to Writing a Research Essay

Steps to Writing a Research Essay
If your topic can be summed up in a word or two, like globalization, poverty, education, overweight teens, corporeal punishment, Venezuelan independence, or Reggaeton, it is too broad. If you have trouble writing a clear focused question, your topic is probably too broad.
How to Narrow Your Topic
The best way to narrow your topic is to apply a few of the usual question words, like who, what, where, when, why, and how.
Example 1:
* Globalization.
* Globalization in Venezuela. (where)
* Economic effects (results) of globalization in Venezuela. (what and where)
* Economic effects of globalization in Venezuela on middle class. (what, where, and who)
Example 2:
* Globalization.
* Globalization and music. (what)
* Globalization and music in Jamaica. (what and where)
* Globalization´s affect (influence) on Jamaican music and Bob Marley. (what, where, and who)
Once you have narrowed your topic, it is a good idea to turn your narrowed topic into a research question. The question should include all elements of your narrowed topic. In the examples above the first question formed might be “What are the economic effects of globalization on Venezuela´s middle class?” The second example might be “How has globalization affected the music of Bob Marley?” Remember that even the question might need to be narrowed and clarified more during subsequent research and reconsideration of the topic. In the case of globalization in Venezuela you might be talking about international petroleum commerce and in the case of Globalization´s affect Bob Marley you might be talking about the interchange of music between Senegal, Jamaica and the United States.
Steps to Writing a Research Essay

Steps to Writing a Research Essay
 What are the author's credentials--institutional affiliation (where he or she works), educational background, past writings, or experience? Is the book or article written on a topic in the author's area of expertise?
 Is the author associated with a reputable institution or organization? What are the basic values or goals of the organization or institution?
 Note the publisher. If the source is published by a university press, it is likely to be scholarly. Although the fact that the publisher is reputable does not necessarily guarantee quality, it does show that the publisher may have high regard for the source being published.
 When was the source published? This date is often located on the face of the title page below the name of the publisher. If it is not there, look for the copyright date on the reverse of the title page. On Web pages, the date of the last revision is usually at the bottom of the home page, sometimes every page.
 Is the source current or out-of-date for your topic? Topic areas of continuing and rapid development, such as the sciences, demand more current information. On the other hand, topics in the humanities often require material that was written many years ago. At the other extreme, some news sources on the Web now note the hour and minute that articles are posted on their site.
Steps to Writing a Research Essay

Steps to Writing a Research Essay
Quotations and paraphrases serve many purposes. You might use them to . . .
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Provide support for claims or add credibility to your writing
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Refer to work that leads up to the work you are now doing
• Give examples of several points of view on a subject
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Call attention to a position that you wish to agree or disagree with
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Highlight a particularly striking phrase, sentence, or passage by quoting the original
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Distance yourself from the original by quoting it in order to cue readers that the words are not your own
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Expand the breadth or depth of your writing
Here are two ways of incorporating other writers' work and information into your own writing.
Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the source. They must match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.
Examples:
In her article, "Be Smooth: Incorporating Research into Your Text," Jennifer Nemec states,
"It's important for writers to incorporate quotes directly into their own sentences, making them a part of their own constructions" (64).
Nemec stresses that "it's important for writers to incorporate quotes directly into their own sentences, making them a part of their own constructions" (64).
Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source. Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.
Examples:
As Jennifer Nemec states in her article, "Be Smooth: Incorporating Research into Your
Text," writers should take care to weave quotations directly into their own sentence structures (64).
According to Nemec, writers should incorporate quotations smoothly into their texts (64).
Steps to Writing a Research Essay

Steps to Writing a Research Essay
In MLA style, referring to the works of others in your text is done by using what's known as a parenthetical or in-text citation. Immediately following a quotation from a source or a paraphrase of a source's ideas, you place the author's name followed by a space and the relevant page number(s).
Human beings have been described as "symbol-using animals" (Burke 3).
When a source has no known author, use a shortened title of the work instead of an author name. Place the title in quotation marks if it's a short work, or italicize or underline it if it's a longer work.
The in-text citation will correspond with an entry in your Works Cited page, which, for the
Burke citation above, will look something like this:
Burke, Kenneth. Language as Symbolic Action: Essays on Life, Literature, and Method.
Berkeley: U of California P, 1966.
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Begin your Works Cited page on a separate page at the end of your research paper.
It should have the same one-inch margins and last name, page number header as the rest of your paper.
Label the page Works Cited (do not underline the words Works Cited or put them in quotation marks) and center the words Works Cited at the top of the page.
 Double space all citations, but do not skip spaces between entries.
 Indent the second and subsequent lines of citations five spaces so that you create a
 hanging indent.
List page numbers of sources efficiently, when needed. If you refer to a journal article that appeared on pages 225 through 250, list the page numbers on your

Works Cited page as 225-50.
If you're citing an article or a publication that was originally issued in print form but that you retrieved from an online database, you should provide enough information so that the reader can locate the article either in its original print form or retrieve it from the online database.
Steps to Writing a Research Essay