Research Topic:
Your research paper will expand on one of the ideas or concepts found in Freakonomics.
You may choose a topic directly from Freakonomics or choose a topic that is inspired by
Freakonomics.
English 101
Possible topics include but are not limited to:
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Incentives
Performance incentives
Teacher pay incentives
Teacher cheating
Testing
Cheating in sports
Why do people cheat?
KKK – rise and/or fall
Real Estate Agents
Power of information
Effect of the internet on information
Crime rates rising/falling –
causes/effects
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Effects of crack…
Effect of legalized abortion
Parenting
Fear as motivation to act, buy, do…
Black/White test gap
Names – power of a name, effect of
a name on a child
Dispute a conventional wisdom
Impact of Freakonomics on society
Value of Freakonomics on society
Uncover the hidden side of
something
How do we begin???
 Begin by thinking about potential topics. You should
focus on a topic that interests you…a topic that you
are genuinely curious about. What do you want to
learn?
 Once you have a topic in mind begin searching for
information.
 Search and re-search for information!!!
 If you are not happy with the information that you are
finding, pick a different topic to research.
How do we begin???
 Your research should aim to answer a question
regarding your topic. You don’t need to know the
“question” right away. Your research on the topic
should help you determine what you want to answer.
 Once you have a question – continue researching the
topic to find the answer to your research question.
Keep track of all the sources that you use – especially
citation information.
Research Question
 The question that you will use to drive your research.
You can revise your question as often as you like
during your initial research. The answer to your
research question will become your thesis statement.
Topic – Violence in movies.
Question: How does violence
in movies effect children?
Thesis Statement
The clear and specific argument
you are proving in your paper.
The thesis statement must take a
specific stance. Your thesis is the
answer to your research question.
Thesis
The increased commercialization of
violence, especially in film and on
television, has a negative effect on
children.
Thesis Points
A. Watching violent films causes children to
behave more aggressively with their
peers.
B. The increase in ‘cartoon’ violence and
gore desensitizes children to ‘real’
violence.
C. Increased popularity of Mixed Martial
Arts causes children to be more apt to
settle disputes with physical
confrontation.