Understanding Research

Research process
Select a topic
Refine a topic
Identify objectives Choose approach
Explore a topic
Plan a search
Evaluate info

Finding Books

Finding Articles

Do I Have a Manageable Topic?

After you have identified a possible topic, test your topic by asking yourself if you can sufficiently address the topic you've chosen given the following:

• Length of your paper
• Length of time you have to write your paper
• Amount of resources available on the potential topic

Do some initial research by searching for books in the ODU Library Catalog or for articles in a library database. (Consult Finding Books and Finding Articles to learn how to use these tools effectively.)

If you find TOO MUCH information, which is often the case, you may need to REFINE, or NARROW, your topic to one or two ideas that you can research and present effectively.

If you find TOO LITTLE information, you may need to BROADEN your topic.

Ask a reference librarian for help in refining your ideas and developing a good research strategy to make sure you have a manageable topic.

Next: How Do I Refine (Narrow) My Topic?