FAQ: What is a research question and how do I develop one?

A research question is the question that is answered by your research. So when you are developing one, you want to ask yourself: What do you want to know about a topic? When doing research, you want to address your topic as a question for which there are no immediate answers.

For example:

Topic: video games and violence

Research Question: Does playing violent video games lead to juvenile violence?

Try these steps to formulate a research question:

1. Start by identifying your topic (e.g. texting and driving).
2. Focus your topic by asking your self: who? what? when? why? where? (e.g. texting and driving and accidents).
3. Formulate a question to ask about your topic (e.g. How many car accidents are caused by drivers who are texting?)
4. Narrow your question further if possible again by asking your self: who? what? when? why? where? (e.g. How many car accidents are caused in the U.S. per year by drivers who are texting?).

Further Help

Campus Students

To access academic support, visit your Brightspace course and select “Tutoring and Mentoring” from the Academic Support pulldown menu.

Online Students

To access help with citation and more, visit Academic Support via modules in Brightspace:

• The Complete Guide to Using Academic Support via Brightspace This link opens in a new window
• Accessing Writing STEM Help This link opens in a new window