Develop Your Topic
Before you develop your research topic or question, you'll need to do some background research first.
Some good places to find background information:
- Your textbook or class readings
- Encyclopedias and reference books
- Credible websites
- Library databases
Try the library databases below to explore your topic. When you're ready, move on to refining your topic.
Find Background Information:
- Credo Reference This link opens in a new window
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Encyclopedias on different subjects to help jump-start research projects with topic guides, images, and videos. - Issues & Controversies This link opens in a new windowUnderstand today’s criticial issues by exploring hot topics in politics, government, business, society, education, and popular culture. Presented in a balanced, pro/con format, each article presents the key facts, arguments, history, and current context.
Now that you've done some background research, it's time to narrow your topic. Remember: The shorter your final paper, the narrower your topic needs to be. Here are some suggestions for narrowing and defining your topic:
- Is there a specific subset of the topic you can focus on?
- Is there a cause and effect relationship you can explore?
- Is there an unanswered question on the subject?
- Can you focus on a specific time period or group of people?
Describe and develop your topic in some detail. Try filling in the blanks in the following sentence as much as you can:
I want to research ____(what/who)____
and ____(what/who)____
in ____(where)____
during ____(when)____
because ____(why)____.