Research Question
Your research question should be a single question (is unitary), that puts a real choice (is falsifiable), and that is focused enough to be testable by data collection (is feasible).
The research question (RQ) is the literature review's main conclusion, and the core of your research. It comes before the method, as one cannot devise a method if one does not know the question. A research question is an abstract question, that is put in terms of abstract constructs, and can be answered by many different concrete methods, not just one. Good research aims to ask a good question, not to prove an answer, as proving something just shows what one already knows, i. e. it gives no new knowledge. It is in asking the questions that one does not know that creates knowledge. Today's technology benefits were created by asking open questions, not by pre-supposing answers. A good research question should:
Be a single question. This means it can be stated in a single sentence. Different questions need different studies to answer them. However one RQ may break down into many sub-questions, a., b., c. etc.
Put a real choice, e. g. "Does fear make one afraid?" is not a real question, as by definition fear makes one afraid. This circular question is like asking "Is 1 = 1?" A real question has more than one possible answer, and research whose answer is a foregone conclusion is not really research. That research puts a real choice means its theory is falsifiable by research data. Research tests its theories by asking risky questions.
Be testable by feasible data collection, e. g. "What affects life?" is a bad RQ as everything affects life and it is not feasible to collect data about everything. It is not a testable question. The more focused an RQ is, the more likely the research is feasible and thus that you will finish it.
Don't worry that it may take months for a student to define their RQ, and that you need an advisor to help you focus the RQ. If it is a good question, even if your data shows the opposite of what you expected, as good questions are always good research, not matter what the data results are.
Tags: Logical, Literature Review
Example(s)
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