A Recipe
for Good Research
Key Ingredient:
Strong Argument
• Strong arguments advance and support
one point of view while acknowledging the
legitimacy of the other side’s argument
and their support for it.
Argument
Key Ingredient:
Thesis
• A thesis is not a fact.
• A thesis is an opinion
• A good thesis
is arguable and
controversial
• Good research uses
facts, opinions, and
logic
– for support
– for rebutting the other
side’s argument
http://www.godloveseveryone.org/elephant/
Key Ingredient:
Question & Answer
• Your thesis is a
response to a
question about your
opinion.
• Example:
– Do you think
Alexander deserves
the title “Great?”
Research Process
Starts Broad, then Narrows
through Research,
Writing & Revision
•
•
•
•
•
Beginning
Inventory
Locate sources
Evaluate sources
Document sources
Distinguish facts from opinions
– Extract and categorize facts
• For or against?
– Evaluate and categorize opinions
• Extract and categorize evidence
• For or against?
•
Synthesize & Hypothesize
– Preliminary Thesis
•
•
Your 1st Draft
Reflect & Re-consider
– Thesis
•
End
Your Final Report
Inventory
• What do I know?
– Start by taking
stock of what you
already know
– Categorize what
you know in T-chart
form
+
-
Identifying Sources
• Types of Sources
–
–
–
–
–
Primary & secondary sources
Books, Journals & Magazines
Images & other media
Personal Interviews
Etc.
• Locations for Sources
– Libraries
– Internet
– Etc.
Evaluating Sources
• Primary, Secondary or Tertiary?
• Suitable or not?
– Authoritative or not?
– Biased or not?
– Current or not?
• Credible or not?
– Fact or Opinion?
– Accurate or not?
Primary Sources
• Primary sources are original materials
• They are from the time period involved
and have not been filtered through
interpretation or evaluation.
• Primary sources are original materials on
which other research is based.
http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html#primary
Secondary Sources
• Secondary sources are less easily defined
than primary sources.
• Generally, they are accounts written after
the fact with the benefit of hindsight.
• They are interpretations and evaluations of
primary sources.
• Secondary sources are not evidence, but
rather commentary on and discussion of
evidence.
http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html#primary
Tertiary Sources
• Tertiary sources consist of information
which is a distillation and collection of
primary and secondary sources.
http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html#primary
Examples
SUBJECT
PRIMARY
SECONDARY
TERTIARY
Art and
Architecture
Painting by Manet
Article critiquing art piece
ArtStor database
Chemistry/Life
Sciences
Einstein's diary
Monograph on Einstein's
life
Dictionary on Theory
of Relativity
Engineering
/Physical
Sciences
Patent
NTIS database
Manual on using
invention
Social Studies
/Humanities
Letters by Martin
Luther King
Web site on King's
writings
Encyclopedia on
Civil Rights
Movement
Social Sciences
Notes taken by
clinical
psychologist
Magazine article about the
psychological
condition
Textbook on clinical
psychology
Performing Arts
Movie filmed in
1942
Biography of the director
Guide to the movie
http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html#primary
Source Resources
• http://www.lib.washington.edu/uwill/resear
ch101/basic00.htm
• http://www.lib.washington.edu/uwill/resear
ch101/Images/primary.swf
Documenting Sources
Documenting Sources
Distinguishing Facts from Opinions
• Facts
– Have an objective reality,
an actual existence
– His father was a king
– He was a student of
Aristotle
– He conquered many lands
– He spread Hellenic culture
– He didn’t leave a successor
• Opinions
– An informationbased assumption,
which may be right
or wrong
– Alexander was
Great
Prioritizing & Organizing
• Is every fact important?
• Are some facts related?
• What do others think?
– Are they looking at different facts?
– Are they prioritizing differently?
Elements of Mr. Clarke’s Formula
• 1 - Support For
• 2 - Support Against
• 3 - Hypothesis/Thesis
2
1
3
1. Support For
• Here’s where you
collect findings
(facts and opinions)
that support your
argument.
– Alexander spread
Hellenic culture
throughout the
Mediterranean.
2. Support Against
• Here’s where you
collect findings
(facts and opinions)
that counter your
argument.
– Alexander’s empire
collapsed because
he failed to provide
for an orderly
succession.
3. Synthesize & Hypothesize
• Here’s where you
try to boil down all
the facts and
opinions you’ve
collected and form
a hypothesis (in
other words, a
preliminary thesis)
that you will defend
Applying Mr. Clarke’s Formula
• Although 2 (Support Against),
3 (Hypothesis/Thesis) because of
1 (Support For)
2
1
3
• Although Alexander’s empire collapsed because he
did not provide for an orderly succession he
deserves the title “Great” because he spread
Hellenic culture throughout the Mediterranean.
Pyramid Structure
• Ideas are related vertically
and horizontally
Audience’s Question
– Each level of the pyramid is
a summary of the level
below
– Items on the same level
have the same level of
importance
– Ideas are presented in
logical order
• Ideas generate questions
– How?
– Why?
Thesis
Next
Best
Support
Best
Support
Next
Best
Support
• Ideas force the reader into
a dialog
Detail 1 Detail 2
Detail 3
Detail 1
Detail 2
Detail 1
Constructing Your Paper
…or Presentation, or Poster, etc.
• There is one, clear, central
point at the core of a strong
argument.
• The primary supporting
elements in the argument
should develop from that
central point.
• Supporting elements of a
strong argument should be
presented in order of their
importance.
• Leave weak or loosely related
elements for later – or leave
them off entirely.
Audience’s Question
Thesis
Next
Best
Support
Best
Support
Detail 1 Detail 2
Detail 3
Detail 1
Detail 2
Next
Best
Support
Detail 1
Three types of groupings
• Classification
Top 3
Number 1
• Causes
Number 2
Number 3
Effect
Cause 1
• Parts of a whole
Cause 2
Cause 3
Rome
Republic
Empire
Falll
What happens when your findings
don’t support your hypothesis?
A
B
• Reflect
– Not enough support?
• More research
• More analysis
• Re-write your paper
using old thesis &
new-found support
• Reflect
– Not enough support?
• More research
• More analysis
• Revise hypothesis
• Re-write your paper
with a revised thesis &
using new-found
support
Your Final Paper
…Presentation, Poster, etc.
• Clear
– Well-written
• Coherent
– Logical
• Thorough
– As complete as
possible,
– though possibly not
perfectly complete
• Well-documented