Research Guides: Writing a Research Paper: Background Research & Choosing a Topic

Background Research

Preliminary research will help you decide on a topic that interests you.

A good jumping off point for researching is Wikipedia, which offers an overview of topics with links to other resources. You should not use Wikipedia articles for the final paper. Use it as an idea resource or use the sources cited on Wikipedia pages after determining if they are credible.

Tips for Choosing a Topic

Choose a topic that interests you. Researching something you want to learn about will make it easier to work on the paper. Some research papers can take weeks or more to write. You want something that will hold your attention for that long.

Once you have chosen a topics ask yourself the who, what, when, where and why questions:

WHY did you choose the topic? What interests you about it? Do you have an opinion about the issues involved?
WHO are the information providers on this topic? Who might publish information about it? Who is affected by the topic? Do you know of organizations or institutions affiliated with the topic?
WHAT are the major questions for this topic? Is there a debate about the topic? Are there a range of issues and viewpoints to consider?
WHERE is your topic important: at the local, national or international level? Are there specific places affected by the topic?
WHEN is/was your topic important? Is it a current event or an historical issue? Do you want to compare your topic by time periods?

Questions source: MIT Libraries

Writing a Thesis

After you have done some research you can narrow your topic into a specific thesis statement. This will help you focus your paper on a specific point.

After you’ve decided on your thesis, ask yourself if your topic clearly states what your research is about, if there are resources available to research your thesis, and if it focuses on a specific topic. You don’t want to research something too broad or too narrow.

Remember as you research further your thesis may shift to narrow or broaden the topic.