your research

Start your research

Get started on your research.

There are six key steps to starting your research. This guide gives an overview of the steps and offers resources to get help.

Step 1: Pick a good topic

The first step in doing research is to choose a good research topic. A good topic should be focused and clear and not something that can be answered by a Google search.

For example, instead of asking "Why is social media harmful?" you could ask, "How is interacting with social media, like TikTok and Twitter, impacting the mental health of college students?"

When choosing a research topic, you should pick something that you are interested in and something that fits the assignment you are doing.

Watch this video on choosing a research paper topic to learn more.

Step 2: Prepare keywords

Once you have chosen a good topic you will need to identify your keywords (search terms). Find the main themes in your research question and list them. For example:

Then, think of synonyms for each keyword. Here are some synonyms for our example:

Think about what a scholar would use - for example: rather than teens, you could try adolescents or young adults .

After that, use quotation marks around keywords that are phrases. Otherwise the search will break them apart and you will lose the phrase in your search.

Step 3: Create a search strategy

The next step is to group your keywords or search terms together into a search strategy. Searching a library database with a search strategy will save you time and give you better results.

To get started, link keywords together using AND, OR or NOT.

• AND limits a search - it must include all of the keywords
• OR expands a search to include similar keywords
• NOT excludes keywords

For example: social media AND mental health AND college students OR undergraduates

Watch this video to learn more about creating an effective search strategy .

Step 4: Find sources

Now it’s time to search! You will use your search strategy in a library database to find some great sources.

Library databases can be general (search all sorts of disciplines) or specific (search a specific discipline).

Start with a general database and then try more specific ones.

• general database examples: Academic Search Premier or Google Scholar
• specific database example: APA PsycInfo

Enter your search strategy into the library database.

Watch this video on what is a library database and why should I use one .

Watch these videos to learn more about some of our general databases including:

• how to get to the database
• keyword searching and filtering search results
• getting to the full text
• creating a citation

Let's talk databases: Libraries Search

Let's talk databases: Academic Search Premier

Step 5: Evaluate what you find

Once you find some sources that might work in your research, evaluate them to find the most useful sources.

Watch this video on evaluating sources for some good strategies to use.

Skim the library databases!

Read the abstract or summary, and glance at the introduction, headings, conclusion. At the end of the article, look at the references.

Ask the 5W questions (who, what, when, where, and why) about every source

• Can you trust the authors based on their credentials? Do a quick Google search to find out more on the author’s background.
• Can you tell which type of source you are looking at? Is it a scholarly article? A news article? Instructors generally prefer a variety of sources!
• Depending on your topic you might want current sources, older sources, or a mix. For example, a topic of artificial intelligence might benefit from looking at recent sources.
• You will need to determine if the source is from a reputable site or publisher. Google the journal, magazine, or newspaper title to find out more about it.
• To share new research, to entertain, to give an opinion?

Step 6: Cite your sources

Citations are critical to academic research and academic writing.

Academic writing is a combination of mixing your own ideas and opinions with the ideas, opinions, and quotes from other sources. You will need to tell your readers (aka your professor) which are your ideas and words and which are the words and ideas of others. There is a standard way to do this: citations.

Citations have different styles like APA and MLA, but in the end do the same thing. Check your assignment or ask your professor which style to use if you aren’t sure. Each professor might be different.

Watch this video on the rules of the scholarly conversation for an overview of citations.

This tutorial will help you learn about citation and attribution practices: Using sources in your University work.

Getting help

The Libraries can help you at every stage of your assignments, research, or projects. Contact us using Chat 24/7, Email, Phone, or in-person.

Peer Research Consultants (PRCs) help you narrow your topic, pick good keywords, search the library databases to find sources, and work with citations. Make an appointment with a PRC (during Fall and Spring Semesters).

Libraries | Research Guides

Start your research, purpose of this guide, develop a research question, decide on sources, locate your resources, sage campus: research process.

• Tips for Reading and Notetaking
• Course Reserves This link opens in a new window
• Cite Your Sources
• Individual and Group Study Spaces
• Make an Appointment to Meet with a Librarian This link opens in a new window

This tutorial on research methods will help you gain practical skills and knowledge you can apply for all research needs.

Scroll down to learn about:.

• Developing a Research Question : How do you get background knowledge? Develop a thesis? Start searching?
• Deciding on Sources : What's the difference between academic and popular sources, or primary and secondary sources?
• Locating Sources : How do you locate articles, books and literature reviews both from NUL and other academic institutions?
• Tips for Reading and Note-taking : What are different strategies for reading scholarly articles and books?

Have a question or need help? Contact any NUL Subject Specialist Librarian for personal assistance.

• Build Background on your Topic
• Build a Question
• Videos: Choose and Search Keywords

Somewhere in between your initial idea and settling on a research question, you'll need to do background research on how scholars in a particular subject area have discussed your topic. You may find background research in your textbook or class readings, academic books in the library's collection, or reference sources.

The databases below compile reference sources from a variety of disciplines, and they can be a great way to consider how your topic has been studied from different angles.

• Oxford Bibliographies This link opens in a new window Offers annotated bibliographies of the most important books and articles on specific topics in a growing range of subject areas. Particularly useful for anyone beginning research.
• Oxford Reference Online This link opens in a new window Online version of many Oxford University Press reference works, ranging from specialized dictionaries and companions to major reference works such as the Encyclopedia of Human Rights, the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink, the Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States, and the Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History, among many others.
• CQ Researcher Plus Archive This link opens in a new window The CQ Researcher is a collection of reports covering political and social issues, with regular reports on topics in health, international affairs, education, the environment, technology and the U.S. economy.

Use  NU Search  to browse for books, reference entries, and periodicals to build background information.

After you have an initial project idea, you can think deeper about the idea by developing a "Topic + Question + Significance" sentence. This formula came from Kate Turabian's  Student's Guide to Writing College Papers . Turabian notes that you can use it plan and test your question, but do not incorporate this sentence directly into your paper (p. 13):

TOPIC: I am working on the topic of __________, QUESTION: because I want to find out __________, SIGNIFICANCE: so that I can help others understand __________.

Remember : the shorter your final paper, the narrower your topic needs to be. Having trouble?

• Which specific subset of the topic you can focus on? Specific people, places, or times?
• Is there a cause and effect relationship you can explore?
• Is there something about this topic that is not addressed in scholarship?

Turabian, Kate L.  Student's Guide to Writing College Papers . 4th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 2010.

How do you move from a research question to searching in a database? You first have to pick out keywords from your research question.

• Evaluating Sources
• Academic vs. Popular Publications
• Primary vs. Secondary Sources
• Video: Types of Scholarly Articles

When evaluating a source of information, consider both the content of the source itself and  the context in which the source was created.  

CONTENT 

•  What does it say? What is its main point or argument? Relevance to your topic? What new information, facts, or opinions does it include? 
•  Where did you find it? Where was it published? 
•  When was it written? Within the past few days, weeks, or years? Is it historical? Has its information changed over time? 
•  Who created this information? What are their credentials? 
•  Why does this source exist? Is its purpose to inform, persuade, or entertain? 
•  How does it incorporate data or evidence? What kinds of evidence?

CONTEXT  

•  What is the audience for this source? General readers, people who work in a specific field, academics? Does it assume previous knowledge? 
•  Where can you find other information about this topic? 
•  When was this information last updated? Has it been revised, redacted, or challenged? 
•  Who is missing from the conversation? Does it include opposing viewpoints, marginalized voices, or global perspectives? 
•  Why do you need this information? Is it for an academic assignment, work project, personal decision-making, or to share with others?* 
•  How did the information find you?  Was it through a relevance-ranked search, social media algorithm, advertising cookie, or press release? 

 *Sources that may be appropriate for sharing with others, deepening personal understanding, or decision-making may not be appropriate for an academic assignment or work presentation. When in doubt, check with your librarian or professor for more guidance! 

Adapted from  Beyond the Source  created by the DePaul University Libraries .

Not all "articles" are the same! They have different purposes and different "architecture".

• Original article – information based on original research
• Case reports – usually of a single case
• Technical notes -  describe a specific technique or procedure
• Pictorial essay – teaching article with images
• Review – detailed analysis of recent research on a specific topic
• Commentary – short article with author’s personal opinions
• Editorial – often short review or critique of original articles
• Letter to the Editor – short & on subject of interest to readers

Peh, WCG and NG, KH. (2008) "Basic Structure and Types of Scientific Papers." Singapore Medical Journal , 48 (7) : 522-525.  http://smj.sma.org.sg/4907/4907emw1.pdf  accessed 4/24/19.

• What are the differences between types of articles? "Scholarly articles," "trade journals," "popular magazines," and "newspapers" are all referred to as "articles" - pretty confusing, right?! Check out this table which distinguishes between the different kinds of "articles" that could be useful sources.

Primary sources  provide the raw data you use to support your arguments. Some common types of primary resources include manuscripts, diaries, court cases, maps, data sets, experiment results, news stories, polls, or original research.  One other way to think about primary sources is  the author was there .

Secondary sources  analyze primary sources, using primary source materials to answer research questions.  Secondary sources may analyze, criticize, interpret or summarize data from primary sources. The most common secondary resources are books, journal articles, or reviews of the literature. 

Depending on the subject in which you are doing your research, what counts as a primary or secondary source can vary!  Here are some examples of types of sources that relate to dragons in different disciplines:

There are many types of primary resources, so it is important to define your parameters by:

• Discipline (e.g. art, history, physics, political science)
• Format (e.g. book, manuscript, map, photograph)
• Type of information you need (e.g. numerical data, images, polls, government reports, letters)

Look at the  Primary and Secondary Sources  guide for more clarification on what primary and secondary sources are in different disciplines! 

• Find Articles
• Videos: Books at NU and Other Libraries
• Find Literature Reviews

Northwestern has access to millions of articles not available through Google!

From the library website , enter your keywords into the NUSearch search box. All results with those keywords in the title or description will appear in the search results. Limit your results to "Peer-reviewed Journals" for scholarly articles.

For a more specific search,  go to one of the Libraries' many scholarly databases. If you know the name of your database, find it with  Databases A-Z . Find subject-specific lists of databases in our  Research Guides.

Searching a scholarly database is different from using a Google search. When searching: 

• Use an advanced search, which  allows you to search for multiple keywords. "AND" allows you to enter more than one term in multiple search boxes to focus your search (e.g. apples AND oranges) for articles about both. "OR" broadens your results (e.g. apples OR oranges) for articles about either. 
• The results may link to a full-text version of the article, but if one is not available, the library can likely get it for you! Clicking the "Find it @ NU" button  on the database's left-hand navigation will display other Northwestern databases that may have access to it. If we don't have access to the article, request it through Interlibrary Loan. 

Locating Books

To locate a book, use the NUsearch.  The catalog will tell you the location and call number for retrieval. You can also request for books to be pulled and picked up at the Circulation desk of your choosing.

Borrowing Materials from other Institutions

Need to borrow a book Northwestern does not own or have an article PDF scanned and sent to you? Log into (or create) your interlibrary loan account.  You may also check the status of your interlibrary loan requests here. Contact the Interlibrary Loan Department for more assistance.

• Interlibrary Loan Department

• Annual Reviews The Annual Reviews provide substantially researched articles written by recognized scholars in a wide variety of disciplines that summarize the major research literature in the field. These are often a good place to start your research and to keep informed about recent developments.
• Oxford Handbooks Online Scholarly reviews of research in 15 subject fields including: Archaeology, Business/Management, Classical Studies, Criminology/Criminal Justice, Economics/Finance, History, Law, Linguistics, Literature, Music, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Physical Sciences, Political Science, Psychology, Religion, Sociology.

Search for literature review articles in subject databases:

• Type the phrase "Literature Review" (with quotation marks) as a search term OR
• Look to see if there is an option to limit your search results by  Document Type  (this may appear underneath the search box or among the filters on the left side of the search results display).

Be careful The document type "Review" is often used and may identify articles that are book reviews, software reviews or reviews of films, performances, art exhibits, etc.

Sage Campus supports the teaching and learning of skills and research methods through 280+ hours of structured online learning. The online courses are self-paced and instructor-led, comprising an engaging mix of Sage-quality content, video, interactives, and formative assessments.

NOTE: Initial access requires registration with Northwestern email address.  Registered user can access from anywhere at: https://classroom.sagepub.com

The following courses are all at the Beginner learner level.  Estimated time to complete each course is listed below however, feel free to use just those modules within a course that you find useful.

• Module One: What Is a Search Strategy?
• Module Two: Boolean Logic Searches
• Module Three: Searching Online Repositories
• Module Four: Managing and Analyzing Search Results
• Module One: What Topics Are Right for Your Research?
• Module Two: What Is the Power of the Research Question?
• Module Three: How Do I Articulate My Research Question?
• Module Four: Do I Need a Hypothesis?
• Module Five: DIY: Write Your Research Question
• Module Six: How Do I Know if My Question Is Any Good?
• Module One: Why Do I Need to Check Sources?
• Module Two: What Should I Consider When Checking Sources?
• Module Three: What Other Strategies Can I Use?
• Module One: Being Critical: What, How, and Why
• Module Two: Being a Critical Reader
• Module Three: Reading the Right Things, the Right Way
• Module Four: Preparing to Write Critically
• Module Five: How to Write Critically
• Module One: Why Bother Thinking Twice?
• Module Two: What's the Point of Arguments?
• Module Three: How Can I Argue My Case?
• Module Four: What's the Best Explanation?
• Module Five: Why We Get Things Wrong
• Module Six: Handling Information Overload

Need Help? Ask Your Librarian

Created by...

Created and maintained by Instruction & Curriculum Support , with content also developed by Chris Davidson, Jason Kruse, Gina Petersen, and Amy Odwarka (intern, fall 2019). 

• Next: Tips for Reading and Notetaking >>
• Last Updated: Nov 18, 2024 9:33 AM
• URL: https://libguides.northwestern.edu/start-research