Learn How to Research

The Steps of Research

• Select a topic that interests you.

• Explore your topic: get definitions, summaries, and history by using websites, magazines, newspapers, and encyclopedias (you can use non-scholarly sources for this part, but sure to find quality sources for your references). 

• Brainstorm the issues surrounding your topic using a concept map and the 5 W’s:

  • Why is this an important/interesting issue?

  • Who is affected by this topic? o What aspects of this topic are of interest to you?

  • Where is this issue happening, or on which geographic region are you focusing?

  • When did this issue happen, or on what time period is your research focused? 

• Create research questions based on your topic using open-ended questions (how, why, should, to what extent, at what point, etc.).

• Identify the most important concepts in your research question. These will become your searching keywords.

• List any similar words or synonyms for your keywords (e.g.: university OR post-secondary OR college).

• Use the keywords and synonyms to search for books (in the Library Catalogue) and scholarly articles (in databases such as EBSCO).

• Use Boolean Operators to narrow (AND) or broaden (OR) your search results as necessary.

• Evaluate the information you have found using the STAR criteria.

  • Source: who is the author, and what makes them an expert?

  • Timeliness: when was it published?

  • Accuracy: is it free of errors and bias?

  • Relevance: does the information relate to your research question?

• Cite your sources with in-text citations and a reference

NorQuest College Librarians. (2017). Research essay checklist [handout]. Retrieved on September 24, 2020, from https://libguides.norquest.ca/ld.php?content_id=32337297