Narrowing a Research Question

A question that is too broad may retrieve too much information. Here are some strategies for narrowing the scope of a question. You can use these strategies individually or in combination.

Strategy	Explanation	Internet Security Topic
Time	Since 1990? This year? In the future?	Current Internet security initiatives
Place	Local social norms & values, economic & political systems, or languages.	Internet security initiatives in the U.S.
Population	Gender, age, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, educational attainment, species, etc.	Filtering software and childrens' access to Internet pornography
Viewpoint	Social, legal, medical, ethical, biological, psychological, economic, political, philosophical? A viewpoint allows you to focus on a single aspect.	The constitutionality of Internet filtering technology

Topics Sections

1. Topics
2. Basic Pointers
3. Generating Questions
4. Broadening Questions
★ Narrowing Questions
6. Selecting Keywords
7. Vocabulary