Shayla Schumacher

First Year Experience-Honors

November 1, 2017

Research Essay

The Skills of a Researcher

Research may seem like a complicated idea, but in reality, people use it on a day to day

basis. Research can be as complicated as a scientific experiment or a simple as checking the

weather. I have written many research papers throughout high school and into this first semester

of college. This has given me skills and resources to improve my abilities and my understanding

on what it means to be a researcher.

Research is based on trust. This means that it is expected that people give credit to the

source they found their information, follows guidelines and ensure that their research is ethical

and be honest about their work and findings (The National Academic Press, 2009). It is

important to find credible, academic based sources for research papers and projects. This adds to

the writer’s ethos and credibility, as well as the general understanding of the topic. It is also

important to have multiple sources to back up any research done, this ensures that it is accurate

and correct. It is important that any that is done is ethical. This means that if people are involved,

they must consent and be debriefed on the experiment. There are also policies that must be

followed for any animal involvement. People also need to be honest with their results. If the

results do not turn out how they expected, or hoped for, it is still important to portray them

truthfully.

How people engage in research and information is changing. Today, everything is online

and people have constant access to information. Information literacy is when people know “they
have a need for information, identifying information needed to address a given problem or issue,

finding needed information, evaluating the information, organizing the information, and using

the information effectively to address the problem or issue at hand” (as cited in Breivik, 2005).

This is important in today’s society as there is a lot of “meaningless” information out there. This

is similar to critical thinking, where the reader or writer needs to be able to look at information

critically, and think “why does this matter” and “what is the author’s perspective.”

In a world where full of innovation, people have to open-minded. Creativity is becoming

more and more important. It is a way to stand out from the crowd and “we need to create

intellectual property in order to create wealth” (Wagner, 2012). There is a large demand for

creative, innovative people. By becoming a better researcher and critical thinker, a person will

stand out and desired for employment.

Keeping all of this in mind, I will continue to improve my skills as a researcher. I

understand how find and access credible information and how to use it ethically and honestly. I

can integrate multiple sources to support my arguments. I will continue fine tuning my

researching capabilities as I write research papers for classes and work on my undergraduate

research project. Most of my research over the course of my time here at MSU Mankato will be

writing and researching papers, as my major is political science. As of right now, I do not have

any ideas for what my undergraduate research project will be. I enjoy psychology and sociology,

and it is possible that I will work on a research project in those fields of study. I plan on meeting

with professors and using the Undergraduate Research Center for help and support, in finding

my research project.
 References

Breivik, P. (2005). 21 st Century Learning and Information Literacy.

The National Academic Press. (2009). On Being a Scientist. The National Academic Press.

Wagner. (2012). Creating Innovators.