Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
ILOCOS NORTE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND TRADES
Laoag City

LECTURE IN PRACTICAL RESEARCH I

CHAPTER 3: Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem

Tips in Choosing a Research Topic

1. Choose something that interests you.

Do not choose a topic unless you are truly interested in the subject matter. Investigating
something that does not excite you makes the research process far more arduous, and you will
likely regret it. In addition to being time-consuming, research can also be frustrating as you
usually run into unforeseen obstacles. Staying motivated is difficult enough when the topic is
something you are really passionate about.

2. Choose a topic that is feasible.

There are many great topics out there, but some topics are more feasible than others. Since
every researcher has different limitations or restrictions, the question of feasibility often
depends on the individual researcher, but some questions you can ask yourself are:
 Do you have the know-how needed to conduct this research?
 Do you have access or can you obtain access to whatever it is you want to research?
 Do you have the time needed to devote to this research?

3. Choose a topic that is “research-worthy”.

Most people that begin research have an end goal in mind. Research is typically written for
an audience, and you have to keep this audience in mind as you select your research topic. You
may be very interested in a topic, but if it does not meet your intended audience’s needs, your
end goal, then it is probably not a good topic to select.

4. Think of 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?

Why do Research Titles Matter?

Before we look at the characteristics of a good research title, let’s look at an example that
illustrates why a good research paper should have a strong title.

Imagine that you are researching meditation and nursing, and you want to find out if any studies
have shown that meditation makes nurses better communicators.  You come up with results that
have the following titles:

 Benefits of Meditation for the Nursing Profession: A Quantitative Investigation

 Why Mindful Nurses Make the Best Communicators
 Meditation Gurus
 Nurses on the Move: A Quantitative Report on How Meditation Can Improve Nurse
Performance

All four of these titles may describe very similar studies—they could even be titles for the same
study! As you can see, they give very different impressions.

 Title 1 describes the topic and the method of the study but is not particularly catchy.
 Title 2 partly describes the topic, but does not give any information about the method of
the study—it could simply be a theoretical or opinion piece.
 Title 3 is somewhat catchier but gives almost no information at all about the article.
 Title 4 begins with a catchy main title and is followed by a subtitle that gives information
about the content and method of the study.

Characteristics of a Good Research Title

According to rhetoric scholars Hairston and Keene, making a good title involves ensuring that the
title accomplishes four goals.

 A good title predicts the content of the research.

 A good title should be interesting to the reader.
 It should reflect the tone of the writing.
 It should contain important keywords that will make it easier to be located during a
keyword search.

Tips for Writing an Effective Research Title

 Make sure your research title describes (a) the topic, (b) the method, (c) the sample, and (d)
the results of your study. You can use the following formula:
[Result]: A [method] study of [topic] among [sample]
Example: Meditation makes nurses perform better: a qualitative study of
mindfulness meditation among German nursing students
 Avoid unnecessary words and jargons. You want a title that will be comprehensible even to
people who are not experts in your field.
 Make sure your title is between 5 and 15 words in length.

Writing the Background of the Study

  Announce your research topic.
You can start your introduction with a few sentences which announce the topic of your
paper and give an indication of the kind of research questions you will be asking. The first
few sentences should act as an indication of a broader problem which you will then focus in
on more closely in the rest of your introduction, leading to your specific research questions.

 Consider referring to key words.

You may also have certain key words in your title which you want to establish and
emphasize in your introduction.

 Introduce the topic through an anecdote or quotation.

You may begin with an illustrative anecdote or quotation that points the topic of the
research. This is a variation of the "inverted triangle" technique and can generate interest in
your paper in a more imaginative way and demonstrate an engaging writing style.

 Grab Your Reader

Avoid writing a first sentence that is too dry or direct. Instead of telling your reader about
your topic in the first sentence, try leading with a related and unusual fact that will grab the
reader's attention. Take the opportunity to draw your reader in while remembering your
audience. Keep an appropriate, authoritative tone and avoid using irrelevant humor.

 Hit the Highlights

Use the middle sentences of your introduction to cover the main points of your essay. Since
you've already outlined or completed the body of your essay, reword the main ideas from
each main section or paragraph to serve as a preview for your reader. Keep it brief since
you will elaborate in greater detail later.

 Other Considerations
Avoid some common downsides that could make your introduction fall short. Forego the
common practice of including dictionary definitions of words in their introductions. While
semantics are important, dictionaries are often not the most authoritative source for
specific research contexts. Also, don't make the introduction too busy. While it's important
to grab your reader with something loud, choose a quote, fact or anecdote you found in
your research, but not all three. Keep the format simple and straightforward or you risk
confusing your reader.

Reminders on Writing the Background of the Study

 Avoid emotional or sensational introductions; these can create distrust in the reader.
 Generally avoid using personal pronouns in your introduction, such as "I," "me," "we," "us,"
"my," "mine," or "our."
 Don't overwhelm the reader with an over-abundance of information. Keep the introduction
as concise as possible by saving specific details for the body of your paper.

Stating the Research Problem

 After selecting the research problem, it has to be adequately stated. There are two ways
stating research problems, namely: declarative or descriptive manner or in question form. In most
educational institutions in the country, the declarative form is used when stating the main problem
while the question form is used when stating the specific problems of the proposed research.

To be able to state the main problem, be clear as to what you really want to accomplish.
Certainty with what you want to find out will definitely enable you to state the main problem easily
and correctly. State your research problem in a sentence showing what you want to describe,
explain or predict. Once you have stated your main problem, try to answer the following question:

1. Is the problem statement clear? Being able to identify what exactly is to be investigated
from the problem statement is an indication that it is clear.
2. Does it provide adequate focus and direction for research? Knowledge of what is it to be
done after stating the main problem means that it had guided you on what to do and
what to emphasize in research.
3. Does it identify the key factors or variables of the study? If the key factors cannot be
identified from your statement of the research problem, then it is wrongly stated.

As most problems are too large or too complex to be solved, they have to be subdivided.
Every problem can be broken down into smaller discrete units. These sub-parts are called sub-
problems. As pointed out by Leedy (1993), it is by viewing the main problem through the sub-
problem that the researcher gets a better view of the entire research endeavor.

1. Each sub-problem should be a completely researchable unit. A sub-problem should be

researched as a separate sub-project within the larger research goal.
2. Interpretation of data must be apparent with each sub-problem. The fact that the data will
be interpreted must be clearly evident from the statement of the sub-problems.
3. The sub-problems must add up to the totality of the problems. This simply means that the
sub-problems aid the researcher in covering all the significant areas of the main problem.

Delimiting Research

One way of making a study more focused is by delimiting it. Delimiting research is giving full
disclosure of what the researcher intends to do or does not intend to do. When a researcher is able
to set the scope and delimitation of his study, he can make his research manageable. At the same
time, this can direct him to the choice of the research method to employ.

How can a researcher delimit his research on an identified problem? A researcher can set
the scope and delimitation of his study by focusing on the following:

 Purpose of the study;

 Time coverage of the investigation;
 Geographical coverage of the inquiry;
 Variables to be studied;
 Specific indicators of variables;
 Types and size of the respondents of the study; and
 Data collection tools.
How to delimit a study is illustrated below.
 This study analyzed the most commonly used strategies in developing cognitive skills among
preparatory pupils in the Makati City, during the academic year 1997 – 1998. It involved 70 or 100%
of the preparatory teachers in the public pre – schools in the venue of the study. Frequently used
strategies were determined with the use of the Teaching Strategies Inventory (TSI) which was
developed and validated by Salasac in 1997. Strategies employed by the respondents were
reckoned in terms of the following domains of cognitive objective.

Defining Key Terms in the Problem

In any study, you need to define the key terms or concepts in the statement of the problem
in order to avoid confusion or ambiguity (Kumar, 1996). Examine the following statement of a
research problem:

This research attempts to probe the relationship between the perceived management styles
of middle – level managers and faculty behavior in Philippine Christian University, during the
academic year 2001 – 2002.

What are the key terms that should be defined in the stated problem? To ensure clarity and
focus, define the following terms: management styles; middle – level managers; and faculty
behavior. Researchers usually define key terms either conceptually or operationally.

Conceptual definition is the definition of a term as given by authorities. On the other hand,
operational definition is the researcher’s own definition on a term, based on how it will be used in
the study. According to Fraenkel and Wallen (1993), this type of definition requires the researcher
to specify actions or operations necessary to identify and measure the term. Consider the following
definitions of the key terms in the previously stated research problems.

Management style refers to the manager or executive’s distinctive mode of managing an

organization in terms of his performance of the managerial functions of planning, organizing,
staffing, directing, controlling, and budgeting (Stoner, 1996). In this study, the term shall be taken
to mean as the college dean’s mode of managing his academic unit in relation to the key result
areas in educational management.

The definition of key terms establishes the rules and procedures the researcher will use to
measure the variables of the study. Moreover, it provides an unambiguous meaning to terms that
otherwise can be interpreted in different ways.

Significance of the Study

The significance of the study provides details to the reader on how the study will contribute
such as what the study will contribute and who will benefit from it.
 The statement of the problem will guide you to write a significance of the study.  Based on
your statement of the problem you will see the potential benefits of your study. Just answer
this question, “What are the benefits or advantages of the study based on the problem?”
 Determine the specific contribution of your study to the society as well as to the individual.

Prepared by: HAZEL MARIANNE L. MARIANO