Research question

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A research question is "a question that a research project sets out to answer". [1] Choosing a research question is an essential element of both quantitative and qualitative research. Investigation will require data collection and analysis, and the methodology for this will vary widely. Good research questions seek to improve knowledge on an important topic, and are usually narrow and specific. [1]

Contents

To form a research question, one must determine what type of study will be conducted such as a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed study. Additional factors, such as project funding, may not only affect the research question itself but also when and how it is formed during the research process. Literature suggests several variations on criteria selection for constructing a research question, such as the FINER or PICOT methods. [2] [3] [4]

Definition

The answer to a research question will help address a research problem or question. [5] Specifying a research question, "the central issue to be resolved by a formal dissertation, thesis, or research project," [6] is typically one of the first steps an investigator takes when undertaking research. Considerations, such as project funding or methodological approaches may influence the research process, including when and how the research question is developed. [7] Clearly and accurately defining the research question can become an iterative process. [ citation needed ] How the question is constructed can depend on the type of research or discipline.

Constructing a research question

Specifying the research question is one of the first methodological steps the investigator has to take when undertaking research. Having an interest in or knowledge of a particular subject can be useful in the construction of a research question. [8] Formation of the research question is largely determined by, and likewise influences, where and what kind of information will be sought. [9] The research question must be accurately and clearly defined. Choosing a research question is the central element of both quantitative and qualitative research and in some cases it may precede construction of the conceptual framework of study; in all cases, it makes the theoretical assumptions in the framework more explicit and indicates what the researcher wants to know most and first. [ citation needed ] Therefore, the investigator must first identify the type of study (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed) before the research question is developed. Forming the research question may become an iterative process when parameters of the research process, such as field of study or methodology, do not fit the original question. Literature suggests several methods for selecting criteria in the development of a research question, two of which are the FINER and PICO methods.

Construction method examples

FINER criteria

The FINER [10] method can be a useful tool for outlining research criteria used in the construction of a research question. Due to the flexibility of the criteria, this method may be used for a variety of research scenarios. The FINER method prompts researchers to determine whether one has the means and interest to conduct the study. It also asks one to consider the ethical ramifications, as well as the relevancy of the research.

According to Farrugia et al., the FINER criteria "highlight useful points that may increase the chances of developing a successful research project". These criteria were first suggested in the book Designing Clinical Research by Hulley et al., detailed below.

F – Feasible

  • Adequate number of subjects
  • Adequate technical expertise
  • Affordable in time and money
  • Manageable in scope

I – Interesting

  • Getting the answer intrigues investigator, peers and community

N – Novel

  • Confirms, refutes or extends previous findings

E – Ethical

  • Amenable to a study that institutional review board will approve

R – Relevant

  • To scientific knowledge
  • To clinical and health policy
  • To future research

PICOT criteria

PICOT criteria [7] tend to be used to frame questions used in evidence-based studies, such as medical studies. Such research may focus on assessment or evaluation of patients or problems, as well as what may be the causal factor(s) with control and experimental groups.[ citation needed ]

P – Patient (or Problem)

I – Intervention (or Indicator)

C – Comparison group

O – Outcomes

T – Time

Continuing the research process, the investigator then carries out the research necessary to answer the research question, whether this involves reading secondary sources over a few days for an undergraduate term paper or carrying out primary research over years for a major project. When the research is complete and the researcher knows the (probable) answer to the research question, writing up can begin (as distinct from writing notes, which is a process that goes on through a research project). In term papers, the answer to the question is normally given in summary in the introduction in the form of a thesis statement.

Aggregated research questions and coordination

Scientists often communicate open research questions. Sometimes such questions are crowdsourced and/or aggregated, sometimes supplemented with priorities or other details. A common way open research questions are identified, communicated, established/confirmed and prioritized are their inclusion in scientific reviews of a sub-field or specific research question, including in systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Other channels include reports by science journalists and dedicated (sub-)websites such as 80000hours.org's "research questions by discipline" [11] or the Wikipedia articles of the lists of unsolved problems, [12] [13] [14] aggregative/integrative studies, [12] as well as unsolved online posts on Q&A websites and forums, sometimes categorized/marked as unsolved. [15] [ additional citation(s) needed ] There have been online surveys used to generate priority research topics which were then classified into broader themes. [16] Such may improve research relevance and value [17] or strengthen rationale for societal dedication of limited resources or expansions of the limited resources or for funding a specific study.[ citation needed ]

Prioritization and evaluations

In terms of priorities and related concepts, the proposed strategy of differential technological development suggests research to focus primarily on questions and tools that are thought to increase safety and mitigate issues rather than risky technologies which are instead best to delay. [18] [19] Concerning control strategies for gene drives, researchers have however cautioned that such may lead to a counterproductive false sense of security. [20] Not all technological progress may be beneficial in general or in contemporary contexts (environments or systems) and various research may for example result in engineered pandemics. [21]

Many studies "ask uninteresting research questions, [and] make only marginal contributions". [22] One study suggests that while research on climate change "is valuable, it does not tackle head-on the most urgent question: how to change society to mitigate climate change right now". [23] In the ethical framework of effective altruism, research questions with the greatest potential benefits from investments (not necessarily of financial nature) are identified to maximize research benefits. [24] 80,000 Hours has compiled a small list of "Research questions that could have a big social impact, organised by discipline". [11] In public health research, "it is vital that research questions posed are important and that funded research meets a research need or a gap in evidence". [25]

ICTs, participation and routine procedures

Platforms, e.g. citizen science ones, can "support identification of problems, formulation of research questions, and study design". [26] Participatory research can "improve study outcomes and foster greater data accessibility and utility as well as increase public transparency". [27] Participants can have continued discussions and iterations regarding new questions. [28] Research questions can be or are positioned at varying levels of detail – from broad to very specific questions – which are semantically or can be displayed as nested – for instance via category trees.[ additional citation(s) needed ] In one platform, about invasion science and based on Wikidata, users "can zoom into the major research questions and hypotheses" of the field, "which are connected to the relevant studies published in the field and, if available, the underlying raw data" with tools like the Wikimedia project Scholia. [29] Individuals "who can ask novel, field-altering questions" may vary from "those who can answer them" or vary per question. [30] Translation of a (societal) problem "from its meaning in an everyday context into a scientifically valid research question means defining the goals of research in such a way that their contribution to practical solutions of a societal problem is narrow enough to be useful". [31] Both everyday practical knowledge and scientific knowledge play a role in this process. [31] In interdisciplinary research, integration "takes place at the level of the posing of research questions in the overlapping areas between various disciplines". [31] There is research into enabling presenting scholarly knowledge "flexibly enriched with contextual information" for specific research questions. [32]

Identification of open research questions may be useful for the adoption and application of science in society and accelerating specific research and development. There has been a suggestion for establishing a public non-profit organization that would identify "gaps in the science that need addressing", referring to the field of sustainable food system. [33]

Examples and breadth of "research questions"

Similar to outlining open research questions, there have also been proposals to e.g. combine specific fields or sources of data and knowledge as the subject or method of new research [34] or to engage more and more scientifically in specific research topics along with the establishment of new high-quality data gathering systems. [35] [36] One approach for the generation of research questions is [identifying, highlighting, and] challenging assumptions of existing theories and studies. [37]

Sometimes research questions overlap with or also refer to challenges of a specific theory or field such as how to solve known problems with the Standard Model. Research issues and knowledge gaps can also overlap or be synonymous.

Examples of lists of open significant research questions in reviews include a list of "major outstanding questions" for (applied) human life extension, [34] "fundamental" research questions in subterranean biology, [38] open research questions for digital twins (across fields), [39] open questions in performance measurement of sustainable supply chains, [40] knowledge gaps in antimicrobial resistance, [41] and unaddressed or neglected questions in the literature about 100% renewable energy systems. [42]

Types and purpose

The research question serves two purposes

  1. It determines where and what kind of research the writer will be looking for. [43]
  2. It identifies the specific objectives the study or paper will address.

Therefore, the writer must first identify the type of study (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed) before the research question is developed.

Qualitative study

A qualitative study [43] seeks to learn why or how, so the writer's research must be directed at determining the what, why and how of the research topic. Therefore, when crafting a research question for a qualitative study, the writer will need to ask a why or how question about the topic. For example: How did the company successfully market its new product? The sources needed for qualitative research typically include print and internet texts (written words), audio and visual media.

Here is Creswell's (2009) example of a script for a qualitative research central question:

Quantitative study

A quantitative study [43] seeks to learn where, or when, so the writer's research must be directed at determining the where, or when of the research topic. Therefore, when crafting a research question for a quantitative study, the writer will need to ask a where, or when question about the topic. For example: Where should the company market its new product? Unlike a qualitative study, a quantitative study is mathematical analysis of the research topic, so the writer's research will consist of numbers and statistics.

Here is Creswell's (2009) example of a script for a quantitative research question:

Alternatively, a script for a quantitative null hypothesis might be as follows:

Quantitative studies also fall into two categories:

  1. Correlational studies: A correlational study is non-experimental, requiring the writer to research relationships without manipulating or randomly selecting the subjects of the research. The research question for a correlational study may look like this: What is the relationship between long-distance commuters and eating disorders?
  2. Experimental studies: An experimental study is experimental in that it requires the writer to manipulate and randomly select the subjects of the research. The research question for an experimental study may look like this: Does the consumption of fast food lead to eating disorders?

Mixed study

A mixed study [43] integrates both qualitative and quantitative studies, so the writer's research must be directed at determining the why or how and the what, where, or when of the research topic. Therefore, the writer will need to craft a research question for each study required for the assignment. A typical study may be expected to have between 1 and 6 research questions.

Once the writer has determined the type of study to be used and the specific objectives the paper will address, the writer must also consider whether the research question passes the "so what" test. The "so what" test means that the writer must construct evidence to convince the audience why the research is expected to add new or useful knowledge to the literature.

Problematique

Problematique is a term that functions analogously to the research problem or question used typically when addressing global systemic problems. The term achieved prominence in 1970 when Hasan Özbekhan, Erich Jantsch and Alexander Christakis conceptualized the original prospectus of the Club of Rome titled "The Predicament of Mankind". [44] In this prospectus the authors designated 49 Continuous Critical Problems facing humankind, saying "We find it virtually impossible to view them as problems that exist in isolation – or as problems capable of being solved in their own terms... It is this generalized meta system of problems, which we call the 'problematique' that inheres in our situation."

Situations similar to the global problematique in their complexity are also called problematiques. These situations receive different designations from other authors. In organizational theory and related fields, researchers C. West Churchman, Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber, and Chris Argyris [45] called these situations wicked problems; Russell Ackoff called them "messes".

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interdisciplinarity</span> Combination of two or more academic disciplines into one activity

Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity. It draws knowledge from several fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, economics, etc. It is related to an interdiscipline or an interdisciplinary field, which is an organizational unit that crosses traditional boundaries between academic disciplines or schools of thought, as new needs and professions emerge. Large engineering teams are usually interdisciplinary, as a power station or mobile phone or other project requires the melding of several specialties. However, the term "interdisciplinary" is sometimes confined to academic settings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Research</span> Systematic study undertaken to increase knowledge

Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to controlling sources of bias and error. These activities are characterized by accounting and controlling for biases. A research project may be an expansion of past work in the field. To test the validity of instruments, procedures, or experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the project as a whole.

Within the realm of communication studies, organizational communication is a field of study surrounding all areas of communication and information flow that contribute to the functioning of an organization. Organizational communication is constantly evolving and as a result, the scope of organizations included in this field of research have also shifted over time. Now both traditionally profitable companies, as well as NGO's and non-profit organizations, are points of interest for scholars focused on the field of organizational communication. Organizations are formed and sustained through continuous communication between members of the organization and both internal and external sub-groups who possess shared objectives for the organization. The flow of communication encompasses internal and external stakeholders and can be formal or informal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interview</span> Structured series of questions and answers

An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers. In common parlance, the word "interview" refers to a one-on-one conversation between an interviewer and an interviewee. The interviewer asks questions to which the interviewee responds, usually providing information. That information may be used or provided to other audiences immediately or later. This feature is common to many types of interviews – a job interview or interview with a witness to an event may have no other audience present at the time, but the answers will be later provided to others in the employment or investigative process. An interview may also transfer information in both directions.

A case study is an in-depth, detailed examination of a particular case within a real-world context. For example, case studies in medicine may focus on an individual patient or ailment; case studies in business might cover a particular firm's strategy or a broader market; similarly, case studies in politics can range from a narrow happening over time like the operations of a specific political campaign, to an enormous undertaking like world war, or more often the policy analysis of real-world problems affecting multiple stakeholders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multimethodology</span>

Multimethodology or multimethod research includes the use of more than one method of data collection or research in a research study or set of related studies. Mixed methods research is more specific in that it includes the mixing of qualitative and quantitative data, methods, methodologies, and/or paradigms in a research study or set of related studies. One could argue that mixed methods research is a special case of multimethod research. Another applicable, but less often used label, for multi or mixed research is methodological pluralism. All of these approaches to professional and academic research emphasize that monomethod research can be improved through the use of multiple data sources, methods, research methodologies, perspectives, standpoints, and paradigms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qualitative research</span> Form of research

Qualitative research is a type of research that aims to gather and analyse non-numerical (descriptive) data in order to gain an understanding of individuals' social reality, including understanding their attitudes, beliefs, and motivation. This type of research typically involves in-depth interviews, focus groups, or observations in order to collect data that is rich in detail and context. Qualitative research is often used to explore complex phenomena or to gain insight into people's experiences and perspectives on a particular topic. It is particularly useful when researchers want to understand the meaning that people attach to their experiences or when they want to uncover the underlying reasons for people's behavior. Qualitative methods include ethnography, grounded theory, discourse analysis, and interpretative phenomenological analysis. Qualitative research methods have been used in sociology, anthropology, political science, psychology, communication studies, social work, folklore, educational research, information science and software engineering research.

Educational research refers to the systematic collection and analysis of evidence and data related to the field of education. Research may involve a variety of methods and various aspects of education including student learning, interaction, teaching methods, teacher training, and classroom dynamics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Content analysis</span> Research method for studying documents and communication artifacts

Content analysis is the study of documents and communication artifacts, which might be texts of various formats, pictures, audio or video. Social scientists use content analysis to examine patterns in communication in a replicable and systematic manner. One of the key advantages of using content analysis to analyse social phenomena is their non-invasive nature, in contrast to simulating social experiences or collecting survey answers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Methodology</span> Study of research methods

In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for bringing about a certain goal, like acquiring knowledge or verifying knowledge claims. This normally involves various steps, like choosing a sample, collecting data from this sample, and interpreting the data. The study of methods concerns a detailed description and analysis of these processes. It includes evaluative aspects by comparing different methods. This way, it is assessed what advantages and disadvantages they have and for what research goals they may be used. These descriptions and evaluations depend on philosophical background assumptions. Examples are how to conceptualize the studied phenomena and what constitutes evidence for or against them. When understood in the widest sense, methodology also includes the discussion of these more abstract issues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Literature review</span> Review of the current knowledge of a particular topic

A literature review is an overview of the previously published works on a topic. The term can refer to a full scholarly paper or a section of a scholarly work such as a book, or an article. Either way, a literature review is supposed to provide the researcher/author and the audiences with a general image of the existing knowledge on the topic under question. A good literature review can ensure that a proper research question has been asked and a proper theoretical framework and/or research methodology have been chosen. To be precise, a literature review serves to situate the current study within the body of the relevant literature and to provide context for the reader. In such case, the review usually precedes the methodology and results sections of the work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Systematic review</span> Comprehensive review of research literature using systematic methods

A systematic review is a scholarly synthesis of the evidence on a clearly presented topic using critical methods to identify, define and assess research on the topic. A systematic review extracts and interprets data from published studies on the topic, then analyzes, describes, critically appraises and summarizes interpretations into a refined evidence-based conclusion. For example, a systematic review of randomized controlled trials is a way of summarizing and implementing evidence-based medicine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Research design</span> Overall strategy utilized to carry out research

Research design refers to the overall strategy utilized to answer research questions. A research design typically outlines the theories and models underlying a project; the research question(s) of a project; a strategy for gathering data and information; and a strategy for producing answers from the data. A strong research design yields valid answers to research questions while weak designs yield unreliable, imprecise or irrelevant answers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography</span> Study of lands and inhabitants of Earth

Geography is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding of Earth and its human and natural complexities—not merely where objects are, but also how they have changed and come to be. While geography is specific to Earth, many concepts can be applied more broadly to other celestial bodies in the field of planetary science. Geography has been called "a bridge between natural science and social science disciplines."

Implementation research is the systematic study of methods that support the application of research findings and other evidence-based knowledge into policy and practice. It aims to understand the most effective pathways from research to practical application, particularly in areas such as health, education, psychology and management. Intervention research, also known as intervention science, evaluates how various interventions or approaches are adopted and applied in "real world" settings in order to establish an understanding of their effectiveness in different contexts.

Thematic analysis is one of the most common forms of analysis within qualitative research. It emphasizes identifying, analysing and interpreting patterns of meaning within qualitative data. Thematic analysis is often understood as a method or technique in contrast to most other qualitative analytic approaches – such as grounded theory, discourse analysis, narrative analysis and interpretative phenomenological analysis – which can be described as methodologies or theoretically informed frameworks for research. Thematic analysis is best thought of as an umbrella term for a variety of different approaches, rather than a singular method. Different versions of thematic analysis are underpinned by different philosophical and conceptual assumptions and are divergent in terms of procedure. Leading thematic analysis proponents, psychologists Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke distinguish between three main types of thematic analysis: coding reliability approaches, code book approaches and reflexive approaches. They describe their own widely used approach first outlined in 2006 in the journal Qualitative Research in Psychology as reflexive thematic analysis. Their 2006 paper has over 120,000 Google Scholar citations and according to Google Scholar is the most cited academic paper published in 2006. The popularity of this paper exemplifies the growing interest in thematic analysis as a distinct method.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interview (research)</span> Research technique

An interview in qualitative research is a conversation where questions are asked to elicit information. The interviewer is usually a professional or paid researcher, sometimes trained, who poses questions to the interviewee, in an alternating series of usually brief questions and answers. They can be contrasted with focus groups in which an interviewer questions a group of people and observes the resulting conversation between interviewees, or surveys which are more anonymous and limit respondents to a range of predetermined answer choices. In addition, there are special considerations when interviewing children. In phenomenological or ethnographic research, interviews are used to uncover the meanings of central themes in the life world of the subjects from their own point of view.

Metascience is the use of scientific methodology to study science itself. Metascience seeks to increase the quality of scientific research while reducing inefficiency. It is also known as "research on research" and "the science of science", as it uses research methods to study how research is done and find where improvements can be made. Metascience concerns itself with all fields of research and has been described as "a bird's eye view of science". In the words of John Ioannidis, "Science is the best thing that has happened to human beings ... but we can do it better."

Research synthesis or evidencesynthesis is the process of combining the results of multiple primary research studies aimed at testing the same conceptual hypothesis. It may be applied to either quantitative or qualitative research. Its general goals are to make the findings from multiple different studies more generalizable and applicable.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qualitative geography</span> Subfield of geographic methods

Qualitative geography is a subfield and methodological approach to geography focusing on nominal data, descriptive information, and the subjective and interpretive aspects of how humans experience and perceive the world. Often, it is concerned with understanding the lived experiences of individuals and groups and the social, cultural, and political contexts in which those experiences occur. Thus, qualitative geography is traditionally placed under the branch of human geography; however, technical geographers are increasingly directing their methods toward interpreting, visualizing, and understanding qualitative datasets, and physical geographers employ nominal qualitative data as well as quanitative. Furthermore, there is increased interest in applying approaches and methods that are generally viewed as more qualitative in nature to physical geography, such as in critical physical geography. While qualitative geography is often viewed as the opposite of quantitative geography, the two sets of techniques are increasingly used to complement each other. Qualitative research can be employed in the scientific process to start the observation process, determine variables to include in research, validate results, and contextualize the results of quantitative research through mixed-methods approaches.

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