Digital Learning Commons: The Research Process: Formulate Research Questions & Thesis

Thesis

What is a thesis?

Dictionary.com defines a thesis as "a proposition stated or put forward for consideration, especially one to be discussed and proved or to be maintained against objections." Simply put, a thesis is a statement, or question, that you intend to address or form your paper around.

How do I write a thesis?

Easy! A good research question will lead you to a strong thesis statement.

For example, the question...

What are the effects of violent video games on teenaged boys?

...might lead to the following thesis:

"Exposure to violent video games negatively affects teenagers in a variety of ways: It increases aggressive behavior, physiological arousal, aggressive-related thoughts and feelings, and also decreases pro-social behavior."

How do I write a strong thesis?

A strong thesis statement is engaging, answers a question, can be challenged and defended, is supported in your paper, and is neither too broad or too narrow. Below are some resources to help you formulate a strong, focused thesis statement.

Creating a Thesis
Tips and examples for writing thesis statements put out by the Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab). These guys are the basically the top dog when it comes to this stuff, so check it out.
Thesis Builder
Enter some information (topic, opinion, etc), press the button, and VOILA, instant thesis!
Thesis Creator
A nice little thesis generator created by Dr. John McGarvey, a teacher at San Dimas High School in California. Easy as pie to use; check it out.
Thesis Statements
Hosted by the UNC-Chapel Hill Writing Center, this site provides all sorts of information on writing effective thesis statements.

Research Questions

Once you have selected an initial topic, the next step is to develop research questions. You'll do this by using probing questions, such as what, why, when, how, would/could, should.

Phrasing your topic in the form of questions helps direct the research process.

WHAT questions focus on a particular aspect of the topic: What is the driving force behind the popularity of video games?

WHY questions ask for an explanation of something--why something happened, why it did not happen, or why one thing is better than another. For instance, why are video games so popular among young teenage boys?

WHEN questions focus on timing or history. When did video games start to become popular? When were video games invented?

WHERE questions focus the topic on a location, either geographical or other. Where, or in which countries, are video games most popular?

HOW questions focus aspects of the topic, on a process, or on the origin. How do video games affect users?

WOULD / COULD questions focus on possibilities. Would video games be more popular with teenage girls if marketing targeted girls?

SHOULD questions focus on the appropriateness of a particular action, policy, procedure, or decision. Should the government regulate violent video games?