Focusing a Research Topic

Sparrow

• What is it?

Focusing a research topic is narrowing (or sometimes broadening) a topic so that you can demonstrate a good understanding of it, including enough examples and important details, within the size limits of the project you are required to produce.

• Why should I do it?

This is the #1 biggest trap in the research process.

If you pick a topic that is too big, you will not only have trouble selecting what to include from a huge selection of material available, you will probably leave out some critical information that will make it apparent that you don't really know what you are talking about.

If, on the other hand, you pick a topic that is too narrow, you won't find enough to write about and end up repeating yourself.

• How do I do it?

There are different ways to focus your topic. 

Whichever method you choose (and you may do a combination of them) try to pick something that interests you in some way.

Even if the overall subject doesn't seem interesting, you can pick an interesting

angle on it.

For example:

• If you like cars, try comparing the land vehicles used by the Germans and the Americans.

• If you like fashion, look at women's fashions during the war and how they were influenced by military uniforms and the shortage of certain materials.

Other Different Methods to Help Focus on Your Topic

A. The Encyclopedia Method

• In this method, you use an encyclopedia article to provide you with the information you need to focus your topic.

• Look up your topic in a general encyclopedia. • If you cannot find anything about your chosen

topic in a general encyclopedia, you may have to either broaden the topic, change it, or get some help finding another overview source.

• If you find an article about your topic and it is very short (less than a column) you may have to either broaden it or combine it with another topic.

• If the encyclopedia article is more than 5 pages long you will most certainly need to focus the topic down to a narrower one.

A. The Encyclopedia Method

Most good encyclopedias have helpful headings and sub-headings to organize the information within their longer articles.

A. The Encyclopedia Method

Focusing Using an Encyclopedia Article

•You can use these headings to help you focus your topic by picking one that looks interesting.

•You can read the entire article for an overview of the complete subject.

•You can also use the 'related articles' section at the end of the article to direct you to more useful information about the topic.

B) The Subtopic Method

This method lets you decide on a certain general subtopic word by which to focus your topic

You could choose to focus a topic by one, or even more than one, limiting subtopic. We'll use World War II as an example, a big topic that needs focusing. The limiting subtopics we'll look at are; chronological, geographical, biographical, event-based and technological.

World War two lasted from 1939 to 1945. In those 6 years much took place to change the lives of millions of people and to redefine the boundaries of many countries. You could pick a particularly crucial year, month, week, or even a day.

Focusing GeographicallyFocusing Geographically

• World War II affected almost every country in the world, even if fighting did not take place there. You could focus on the war in one geographical region, such as Europe or Asia where most of the actual fighting took place, or one country such as India and how, as a British Colony, it was affected.

Focusing BiographicallyFocusing BiographicallyYou may choose to look at the war through the focus of a particular person, or group of persons.

How about the mother of an American soldier, a German prisoner of war, an American nurse in a South Pacific naval base, an prisoner in a Japanese-American internment camp, or a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp?

Focusing on an EventFocusing on an Event

• You may want to look in depth at a particular event. The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Battle of the Bulge or the signing of a particular peace treaty are some examples.

• If you use this focus, you will want to look at the cause of the event and the effect it had, in addition to the event itself.

Focusing Technologically

If you are interested in science, you may choose this criterion. For World War II you could focus on a particular vehicle like German U-boats, submarines, B-52 bombers or even the atomic bomb.

C) Writing a Statement of Purpose

Writing a statement of purpose will do 4 things to help you:

• You will get more interested in your project. • It will keep you from getting overwhelmed and

panic-struck at all the information you may find. • It will help you develop a thesis statement, which

comes later on in the research process.• It saves you valuable time and effort.

A Statement of Purpose is a sentence that you write, which states what you want to learn about in your research project.

After you focus your topic, write a sentence that says what you want to learn about. Don't worry if you're not totally sure, your Statement of Purpose may change 3 or 4 times before you're done. To write the sentence, first answer these questions for yourself as best as you can

1. What is my real personal interest in the topic?

2. What do I specifically want to learn about my topic?

EX. I want to learn about what is being done by our government to stop air pollution.

This Statement of Purpose will lead one This Statement of Purpose will lead one to eventually write a Thesis Statement in to eventually write a Thesis Statement in which one will be able to make an which one will be able to make an assertion (a statement one can defend) assertion (a statement one can defend) and support it with the evidence one and support it with the evidence one gathered in one’s research.gathered in one’s research.

Make sure your Statement of Purpose is specific

enough A Bit Too General Much Better, More Specific

"I want to learn about 50 cent."

"I want to learn about what has influenced the music of 50 cent."

"I want to learn about AIDS." "I want to know how close we are to a cure for AIDS."

"I want to know about pro basketball."

"I want to know what it takes to be a professional basketball player."

"I want to learn about the Crusades."

"I want to know why Christians and Muslims fought so hard with each other during the middle ages."

THANK YOUTHANK YOU