{"id":785,"date":"2019-07-25T14:33:23","date_gmt":"2019-07-25T14:33:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/?page_id=785"},"modified":"2020-03-30T16:16:32","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T16:16:32","slug":"narrowtopics","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/narrowtopics\/","title":{"rendered":"Developing Research Question &#038; Narrowing Research Topics"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row full_width=&#8221;stretch_row_content&#8221; foundry_background_style=&#8221;bg-dark&#8221; foundry_padding=&#8221;pb0&#8243; foundry_parallax=&#8221;not-parallax&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1564066438753{background-image: url(http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/cq.jpg?id=798) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;420px&#8221;][vc_row_inner enable_first_overlay=&#8221;true&#8221; first_overlay_opacity=&#8221;25&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1553093671111{background-image: url(http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/transparent_bg.png?id=676) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}&#8221;][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\">Developing Research Questions<br \/>\n&amp; Narrowing Research Topics<\/h1>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row foundry_padding=&#8221;pt64 pb64&#8243;][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Concepts<\/h2>\n<p>Remember the story of &#8220;Goldilocks and the Three Bears&#8221;? Goldilocks searched the bears&#8217; house looking for the chair, porridge, and bed that was &#8220;Juuust right.&#8221; Well, think of Goldilocks when you are formulating your research topic: you want to create the perfect one, the one that is &#8220;Juuust right.&#8221;[\/vc_column_text]<div id=\"mpc_tabs-9569d7141f19dc1\" class=\"mpc-tabs mpc-init mpc-transition mpc-tabs--left mpc-tabs--decor-line \"  data-active=\"1\"><div class=\"mpc-tabs__nav mpc-align--top\"><ul><li class=\"mpc-tabs__nav-item mpc-parent-hover mpc-active\" data-tab_id=\"1541520878432-8\"><div data-id=\"mpc_button-8969d7141f19e95\" class=\"mpc-button mpc-init mpc-transition mpc-typography--mpc_preset_20 \" ><div class=\"mpc-button__content mpc-effect-type--none mpc-effect-side--none\"><span class=\"mpc-button__title mpc-transition\">General Subject<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mpc-button__background mpc-transition mpc-effect-type--slide mpc-effect-side--right\"><\/div><\/div><\/li><li class=\"mpc-tabs__nav-item mpc-parent-hover\" data-tab_id=\"1541520878589-8\"><div data-id=\"mpc_button-4869d7141f19f36\" class=\"mpc-button mpc-init mpc-transition mpc-typography--mpc_preset_20 \" ><div class=\"mpc-button__content mpc-effect-type--none mpc-effect-side--none\"><span class=\"mpc-button__title mpc-transition\">Narrow Subject<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mpc-button__background mpc-transition mpc-effect-type--slide mpc-effect-side--right\"><\/div><\/div><\/li><li class=\"mpc-tabs__nav-item mpc-parent-hover\" data-tab_id=\"1541520878750-0\"><div data-id=\"mpc_button-4769d7141f19f94\" class=\"mpc-button mpc-init mpc-transition mpc-typography--mpc_preset_20 \" ><div class=\"mpc-button__content mpc-effect-type--none mpc-effect-side--none\"><span class=\"mpc-button__title mpc-transition\">Narrow Again<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mpc-button__background mpc-transition mpc-effect-type--slide mpc-effect-side--right\"><\/div><\/div><\/li><li class=\"mpc-tabs__nav-item mpc-parent-hover\" data-tab_id=\"1564065519297-3-4\"><div data-id=\"mpc_button-2969d7141f19fea\" class=\"mpc-button mpc-init mpc-transition mpc-typography--mpc_preset_20 \" ><div class=\"mpc-button__content mpc-effect-type--none mpc-effect-side--none\"><span class=\"mpc-button__title mpc-transition\">Your Topic<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mpc-button__background mpc-transition mpc-effect-type--slide mpc-effect-side--right\"><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div class=\"mpc-tabs__content mpc-transition mpc-typography--mpc_preset_1\"><div class=\"mpc-tab mpc-container mpc-transition \" id=\"1541520878432-8\" data-active=\"true\"><div class=\"mpc-tab__content\">[vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\">1. Start with the General Topic<\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Let&#8217;s say that your professor has given you the general subject of food and says you need to write a paper that is 3 &#8211; 5 double-spaced pages. Well, &#8220;food&#8221; is a pretty big topic. If you were going to discuss everything about food, you would be writing a book, or nine. Think of all the history, cultures, diets, recipes, chemistry, etc. that are wrapped up in the idea of food. It is quite a lot![\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=&#8221;794&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner]<\/div><\/div><div class=\"mpc-tab mpc-container mpc-transition \" id=\"1541520878589-8\" data-active=\"false\"><div class=\"mpc-tab__content\">[vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\">2. Narrow the Subject Down<\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<div id=\"u173-19\" class=\"clearfix grpelem shared_content\" data-content-guid=\"u173-19_content\">\n<p id=\"u173-5\">So, we need to narrow this subject down. Let&#8217;s say that your major is in history. You might be tempted to say &#8220;history of food&#8221; and consider that topic a job well done. Before you pat yourself on the back, think about it: there are many aspects of food\u2019s history to consider.<\/p>\n<p id=\"u173-8\">What will you discuss about the history of food?<\/p>\n<p id=\"u173-11\">The different cultural beliefs about beef?<\/p>\n<p id=\"u173-14\">The historic importance of rice in China?<\/p>\n<p id=\"u173-17\">The importance of food at a certain point in history?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"u524\" class=\"clip_frame grpelem shared_content\" data-content-guid=\"u524_content\"><\/div>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=&#8221;795&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner]<\/div><\/div><div class=\"mpc-tab mpc-container mpc-transition \" id=\"1541520878750-0\" data-active=\"false\"><div class=\"mpc-tab__content\">[vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"u179-2\">3. Then Narrow this Topic Down Even Further<\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<p id=\"u179-5\">You can narrow down your topic of the history of food even further. Let&#8217;s say that you decided to focus on the important foods at a certain point in history. This topic is certainly narrower than the giant topic of food, and narrower than history of food, but the topic is not narrow enough.<\/p>\n<p id=\"u179-8\">Here are some questions you could ask to help you narrow your topic down even further:<\/p>\n<p id=\"u179-11\">What specific point in history will you choose?<\/p>\n<p id=\"u179-14\">What geographic locale will the food be?<\/p>\n<p id=\"u179-17\">What is the food and the culture around that food?<\/p>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=&#8221;796&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner]<\/div><\/div><div class=\"mpc-tab mpc-container mpc-transition \" id=\"1564065519297-3-4\" data-active=\"false\"><div class=\"mpc-tab__content\">[vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"u181-2\">4. Now You Have Your Topic<\/h4>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<p id=\"u181-5\">After asking a series of questions to help narrow down the subject and doing some initial searching in Library Quick Search, we have decided on the topic:<\/p>\n<p id=\"u181-8\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">\u201cHow the Chili Queens Influenced San Antonio\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"u181-11\">Just like the pyramid to the right, we started off broad and ended to a point.<\/p>\n<p id=\"u181-14\">Use this process to narrow your own topic!\u00a0 At the final step, you can easily change your topic to a thesis, just like we successfully narrowed this topic from \u201cFood\u201d to &#8220;San Antonio\u2019s Chili Queens spread the love of cowboy food and Texas hospitality to San Antonio visitors.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=&#8221;797&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner]<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row foundry_background_style=&#8221;bg-secondary&#8221; foundry_padding=&#8221;pt64 pb64&#8243;][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">\u00a0Activity<\/h2>\n<p id=\"u190-2\">Now you know how to transform a broad idea to a specific one that can be discussed within a set page limit. Remember the pyramid: your topic should get narrower with each question that you ask. If the topic is getting bigger, there may be a problem.<br \/>\nUse this activity to narrow the topic of \u201csports\u201d to a topic that can be discussed in a 2-3 page paper to make it \u201cjuuust right.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html]JTNDcCUyMHN0eWxlJTNEJTIydGV4dC1hbGlnbiUzQSUyMGNlbnRlciUzQiUyMiUzRSUzQ2lmcmFtZSUyMHdpZHRoJTNEJTIyNzUwJTIyJTIwaGVpZ2h0JTNEJTIyNjI1JTIyJTIwc3JjJTNEJTIyaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZsaWIudXRzYS5lZHUlMkZMZWFybmluZ1RlY2hub2xvZ3klMkZuYXJyb3dpbmd0b3BpY3MlMkZhc3NldHMlMkZmb2N1c2VkLXJlc2VhcmNoLXRvcGljJTJGRm9jdXNlZCUyNTIwUmVzZWFyY2glMjUyMFRvcGljLmh0bWwlMjIlMjBmcmFtZWJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZpZnJhbWUlM0UlM0MlMkZwJTNF[\/vc_raw_html][vc_btn title=&#8221;Download PDF&#8221; style=&#8221;classic&#8221; color=&#8221;black&#8221; align=&#8221;center&#8221; i_icon_fontawesome=&#8221;fa fa-file-pdf-o&#8221; add_icon=&#8221;true&#8221; link=&#8221;url:http%3A%2F%2Flib.utsa.edu%2Flearning_technology%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F07%2FDeveloping-Research-Questions.pdf|title:MLA%20Practice%20PDF|target:%20_blank|&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row foundry_padding=&#8221;pt64 pb64&#8243;][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Practice<\/h2>\n<p id=\"u216-2\">Think you have the hang of this? Test yourself with the following practice questions. There are five questions. You might want to complete a\u00a0<a class=\"nonblock\" href=\"http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/find-information\/quick-search\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span id=\"u216-4\">Library Quick Search<\/span><\/a>\u00a0if you are unsure about how broad or narrow the topic is.<\/p>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html]JTNDcCUyMHN0eWxlJTNEJTIydGV4dC1hbGlnbiUzQSUyMGNlbnRlciUzQiUyMiUzRSUzQ2lmcmFtZSUyMHdpZHRoJTNEJTIyNzUwJTIyJTIwaGVpZ2h0JTNEJTIyNjI1JTIyJTIwc3JjJTNEJTIyaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZsaWIudXRzYS5lZHUlMkZMZWFybmluZ1RlY2hub2xvZ3klMkZucnRfcHJhYyUyRnN0b3J5Lmh0bWwlMjIlMjBmcmFtZWJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZpZnJhbWUlM0UlM0MlMkZwJTNF[\/vc_raw_html][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_btn title=&#8221;Download PDF&#8221; style=&#8221;classic&#8221; color=&#8221;black&#8221; align=&#8221;center&#8221; i_icon_fontawesome=&#8221;fa fa-file-pdf-o&#8221; add_icon=&#8221;true&#8221; link=&#8221;url:http%3A%2F%2Flib.utsa.edu%2Flearning_technology%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F07%2FDeveloping-Research-Questions-Practice.pdf|title:Cite%20it%20Right%20Practice%20PDF|target:%20_blank|&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_btn title=&#8221;Quiz for 1013 Students&#8221; style=&#8221;classic&#8221; color=&#8221;black&#8221; align=&#8221;center&#8221; i_icon_fontawesome=&#8221;fa fa-file-pdf-o&#8221; add_icon=&#8221;true&#8221; link=&#8221;url:https%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2Fforms%2Fd%2Fe%2F1FAIpQLSfMHlqP95FlCIkhXmdCsG5AApO68w5kHfE43Omo2xkOYAWM1g%2Fviewform|title:Cite%20it%20Right%20Practice%20PDF|target:%20_blank|&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row foundry_background_style=&#8221;bg-secondary&#8221; foundry_padding=&#8221;pt64 pb64&#8243;][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Resources<\/h2>\n<p>The more work that you do to get to a &#8220;Goldilocks research topic,&#8221; the better equipped you will be for your research journey. Remember, it took Goldilocks a couple of tries before she found the porridge that was &#8220;Juuust right&#8221; and it might take you a couple of tries before you find which topic will be just right for you too!<\/p>\n<p>Want some more help? These tutorials provide some different approaches to getting your topic juuust right.<\/p>\n<p id=\"u225-9\"><a class=\"nonblock\" href=\"http:\/\/libguides.reynolds.edu\/content.php?pid=81682&amp;sid=607243\"><span id=\"u225-7\">Reynolds Community College Libraries &#8211; Refine a Topic <\/span><br \/>\n<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.library.unlv.edu\/services\/instruction\/tutorials\/topic_narrowing\/\">University of Nevada, Las Vegas University Libraries &#8211; Topic Narrowing <\/a><br \/>\n<a class=\"nonblock\" href=\"https:\/\/libraries.psu.edu\/choosing-topic-tutorial\"><span id=\"u225-14\">Penn State University Libraries &#8211; Choosing a Topic <\/span><br \/>\n<\/a><a class=\"nonblock\" href=\"http:\/\/info-skills.lib.vt.edu\/choosing_focusing\/11.html?\"><span id=\"u225-17\">Virginia Tech University Libraries &#8211; Strategies for Narrowing a Topic<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row full_width=&#8221;stretch_row_content&#8221; foundry_background_style=&#8221;bg-dark&#8221; foundry_padding=&#8221;pb0&#8243; foundry_parallax=&#8221;not-parallax&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1564066438753{background-image: url(http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/cq.jpg?id=798) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;420px&#8221;][vc_row_inner enable_first_overlay=&#8221;true&#8221; first_overlay_opacity=&#8221;25&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1553093671111{background-image: url(http:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/transparent_bg.png?id=676) !important;background-position: center<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-785","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/785","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=785"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/785\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":788,"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/785\/revisions\/788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.utsa.edu\/learning_technology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}