Millennium Dome, London. Photo by Mark Power
4: Design Your Research Strategy (basic)
When you have formulated your research question and have a clear idea of what you are hoping to research, you are ready to begin the search for bibliographic resources. But before proceeding directly to search for resources, take a few minutes to formulate a research strategy. A research strategy is an organized "plan of attack" for consulting resources. Utilizing a research strategy is the best way to ensure that you cover all relevant search tools, which reduces the risk of missing anything important. It will also help further acclimate you to your topic, help identify gaps in your knowledge and provide leads for further exploration. The ordered links below offer a model research strategy.
- Getting Background InformationSuggestions for finding background information on your topic and why Wikipedia is frowned on as a source for academic research.
- Gathering informationHow to think about what you need, how what you need determines where and how you gather your information, and some tips for online tools to help you keep track of what you've gathered so you can make a bibliography and include citations in your papers.
- Information timelineCan't find what you need for that paper? Check out this information timeline to see if it's likely to have been studied and published in an academic or scholarly journal yet.
- Prepare to search for resourcesDiscusses how to connect the concepts you are looking for to find just the resources you need. Includes some links to visual aids and to streaming video (one for fun).
Research for Specific Areas
The information in the box to the left is good, general information. If you are working in the areas of Business, Education, or other specific areas of study, we have more focused guides to help you out. Check them out below.
- Check out our other subject guidesThere's most likely one for your subject, or maybe even for your class!
