Chapter 2: Research Ideas and Hypotheses
related to that subject
Getting Started
o Pick a Topic in Which You Are Interested
o Do Your Homework – read books and journal articles
to familiarize yourself with the topic: what is already
known, what has been done, and what questions
remain unanswered
o Keep an Open Mind – be flexible and be critical;
making adjustments is a normal part of the research
process and usually improves the result
o Focus, Focus, Focus – discard irrelevant items, and
focus on one question at a time
o Take One Step at a Time – research is a step-by-step
journey
Sources of Research Ideas
Common Sources of Research Topics:
o Personal Interests and Curiosities
o Casual Observation
o Reports of Others’ Observations
o Practical Problems or Questions
➢ Applied research – intended to answer practical
questions or solve practical problems
➢ Basic research – intended to answer theoretical
questions or gather knowledge simply for the sake
of new knowledge
o Behavioral Theories
Finding Background Literature: Conducting a Literature
Search
Literature – mass of published information
Two Basic Goals of a Literature Search:
1. To gain a general familiarity with the current research
in your specific area of interest
2. To find a small set of research studies that will serve as
the basis for your own research idea
Primary source – a firsthand repot of observations or
research results written by the individual(s) who actually
conducted the research and made the observations
Secondary source – a description or summary of another
person’s work
[Goal of] Literature Search – to find a set of published
research repots that define the current state of
knowledge in an area and to identify an unanswered
question
Subject words – used to identify and describe the
variables in the study and the characteristics of the
participant
Database – provides a list of the publications that are
Abstract – a brief summary of the publication, usually
about 200 words
Screening Articles During a Literature Search
1. Use the title of the article as your first basis for
screening.
2. Use the abstract of the article as your second
screening device.
3. If you are still interested after looking at the title
and the abstract, look for a link to a full-text
version.
4. If it still looks relevant, then read the article
carefully and/or make a copy for your personal
use.
5. Use the references from the articles that you
have already found to expand your literature
search.
Finding an Idea for a Research Study from a Published
Research Article
o Find Suggestions for Future Research
o Combine or Contrast Existing Results
o The Components of a Research Article–Critical
Reading
➢ Introduction – discusses previous research that
forms the foundation for the current research
study and presents a clear statement of the
problem being investigated
➢ Method section – presents details concerning
the participants and the procedures used in the
study
➢ Discussion section – typically begins by
summarizing the results of the study, stating the
conclusions, and noting any potential
applications
Characteristics of a Good Hypothesis
o Logical
o Testable – it must be possible to observe and measure
all the variables involved
o Refutable – it must be possible to obtain research
results that are contrary to the hypothesis
o Positive – it must make a positive statement about
the existence of something, usually the existence of a
relationship, the existence of a difference, or the
existence of a treatment effect