Module 2: Design Your Search Strategy, Analyze Your Topic (1 page 1) what's this?
| Analyze Your Topic | Learn the Stages of Research | Discover Appropriate Sources |
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Developing a search strategy begins with an
analysis of your topic. You'll want
to begin your analysis by answering the questions below
based on what you already know about your topic.
Don’t worry if you can’t answer all the questions right
now. These questions
aim to get you started in the researching process. As you research, you’ll learn much more about your topic,
so you may be able to fill in more of the blanks as you begin your
preliminary research and you may devise other questions.
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 What
are the details of the “problem” you want to investigate? |
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Who is the information important to? |
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What unique words are associated with your topic?
(Include here abbreviations or acronyms.) |
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What have other scholars said about your topic (both those you agree
and disagree with)? |
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Who (individuals, organizations, societies) or what (journals,
magazines, databases) can you think of that might have information
about your topic? |
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What words are likely to be found in the documents you are searching
for? Or what key words will you need to use in your searches?
(Another way of thinking about this question is what “buzzwords” or
phrases are common in your topic area. Include here synonyms for
these words.) |
You now
have a preliminary list of ideas to begin searching. Where do you start?
That’s a good question because researching is typically completed in
stages. Choose next to learn more about the stages of research.
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Copyright 2003 by the Academic Center, the University of Houston-Victoria, and
Summer Leibensperger.
Created 2003 by Summer Leibensperger.
Define
Your Topic | Design Your Search Strategy
| Locate & Retrieve Information
Evaluate Information | Use & Cite Information