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Beginning and Organizing your Research

Topic elements to consider 

  • Time period:
    •  Industrial revolution
    • The Bronze Age
    • A specific decade: 1950s
  • Geography
    • Region
    • City
    • Country
  • Age group/generation of people
    •  Generation X
    • Baby boomers
    • Teens
    • Tweens
    • Elderly/senior
  • Politics of region
    • Democracy
    • Communism
    • Monarchy

Examples:

Topic too broad: Photography

Why this is a problem:

  • There's no research question to pull out of this topic
  • You will be overwhelmed with the amount of information you find
  • Too much information to be covered in one paper

Topic too narrow: Use of photography in Vietnam's Bac Kan province in the 1950s 

Why this topic is a problem:

  • You will not find enough information
  • You will likely not have the the time to find the specialized information that is needed
  • You will become frustrated quickly!