Developing Your Research Questions

Developing Your Research Questions#

After exploring some literature about your topic, you have to determine what exactly you want to add to the field. In other words, you have to define your research question.

Standard Practice

Defining Components of Your Research Question
Break down your questions in specific parts and specify for each part what you will study

AI Assist 1

Looking into Outstanding Research Questions in Your Topic of Interest
Use AI to brainstorm on outstanding research questions in your topic

AI Assist 2

Revising Your Draft Research Question
Use AI to comment on your draft research question

Recap Standard Practice: Defining Components of Your Research Question#

Formulating a research question means defining specifically the who, what, where and why you are going to study. You can break this down into broader or more narrow components, partly based on the preliminary brainstorming and literature exploration you have done.

The image below provides an example on more narrow and broader components of a research question.

”From broad to narrow: writing your research question” by Maastricht University Library is licensed CC-BY-SA

Need more information? Check out this guide from Maastricht University

AI Assist 1: Looking into Outstanding Research Questions in Your Topic of Interest#

Much like getting an overview of the topics prominent in a research field, you can also use academic tools to provide you with research questions current to your field of interest.

Use the research questions provided by the tools as inspiration to dive deeper into the topic and define the who, what, where and why of your own question further.

Example Prompt

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. Provide me with a list of 10 research questions current to the field.

AI Assist 2: Revising Your Draft Research Question#

You can use general tools to reflect on your draft research question, and help make it more specific. Ideally you want to have a specific basis to start from.

Example Prompt

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. I have developed the following research question: [draft research question]. Give me suggestions to improve the research questions. Present the suggestions in a bulleted list. For each suggestion, explain how the research question can be adjusted and how that improves it.

If you are looking for specific improvements, you can make your prompt more specific. For example, if you already know that your research question is too broad, you ask for suggestions to make it more specific.

Example Prompt

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. I have developed the following research question: [draft research question]. Give me suggestions to make the research questions more specific. Present the suggestions in a bulleted list.

Guided Activity: Develop a Research Qquestion

Step 1: Develop your initial research question

  • Have a look at your exploration of academic literature and your brainstorm. Identify the who, what, where and why of what you want to study.

Step 2: Use general AI tools to refine your draft research question

Select a general AI tool Options

  • Copilot

  • ChatGPT

  • Claude

Example Prompt:

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. I have developed the following research question: [draft research question]. Give me suggestions to improve the research questions. Present the suggestions in a bulleted list. For each suggestion, explain how the research question can be adjusted and how that improves it.

Step 3: Reflect

  1. How did the AI tool’s version of your research question differ from your own draft?

  2. Which of its suggestions made your question clearer, narrower, or more focused?

  3. Which suggestions will you include?

Summary and Prompts#

Task

Standard Practice

AI Assist

Tools

Example Prompts

Develop a research question

Define the who, what, where and why of your research, based on initial literature exploration

Ask tool to provide research questions prominent in your topic for brainstorm purposes

Academic tools e.g. Consensus, Perplexity Pro, Elicit

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. Provide me with a list of 10 research questions current to the field.

Ask tools to review your draft research question

General tools

I am a [x year] student in [study]. I am working on a literature review paper on [topic]. I have developed the following research question: [draft research question]. Give me suggestions to improve the research questions. Present the suggestions in a bulleted list. For each suggestion, explain how the research question can be adjusted and how that improves it.

References#

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