Asking Questions

Once you have identified a topic upon which you would like to focus, it is useful to ask a research question to guide you. Questions serve a number of important functions in research:

A question calls for an answer. Consider the difference between the topic, "Greenpeace," and the question, "Is Greenpeace effective in accomplishing its mission?" The topic has no answer, nor does it suggest one. The question, on the other hand, demands an answer, even though there may be some disagreement with it.

Questions also provide a way to evaluate answers. Whenever you look for information to solve a problem, you are always asking a question, even if it is only implied. As you read the sources you find, ask yourself, "Does this information help me answer the question I have asked?" "Is it important for me to know this?" This also makes it easier to tell when you have finished your research. "Have I answered my question? Is there anything else I need to know?"

There are two common types of questions in the information research process: factual and research.

Factual questions seek specific facts, e.g. "What was the population of China in 1860?" or "How many Lithuanians were employed in agriculture in the 18th century?" These questions can normally be answered by reading a single source - a reference book such as an almanac, encyclopedia, handbook, statistical abstract, or even an authoritative web site.

Research questions are open-ended and require information from a variety of sources that will require synthesis of related data to formulate an answer. "How does the size and scale of Mitsubishi's operations affect its success?" is a research question.

Most research projects attempt to answer a single overarching question and will contain several embedded factual questions. For example, in order to answer the question above, it will be necessary to know:

• What is the history of Mitsubishi?
• What is Mitsubishi's stated mission?
• What is the international scope of Mitsubishi's operations?
• What indicators describe the success or failure of Mitsubishi?