Research questions: finding, formulating, revising
Different disciplines
Generally speaking, the structures of research questions in linguistics, sociology, and psychology tend to be quite similar. Structurally, research questions in these fields share the following characteristics:
- Research questions in linguistics, sociology, and psychology specifically indicate the people, objects, and behaviors under investigation.
- Research questions in linguistics, sociology, and psychology may be formulated as actual questions with a question mark or as statements with question words such as how, in how far, which, whether, etc.
In the following examples for research questions, you will see the sections from various research publications in different disciplines in which the researchers describe people, objects, and behaviors under inverstigation in sprecific, precise terms.
The research question above is a specific research question from the field of gaming studies. The research project focused specifically on video games. The effects of video game training on two types of cognitive abilities are investigated in the study: perception in comparison to thinking.
The research questions above are specific research questions from the field of health sciences. The research project focused specifically on a particular group of health care providers (dentists) in their interactions with a particular patient group (older adults). The focus of analyzes are the challenges and recommendations relevant for dentists.
The research question above is a specific research question from the field of sociology. A specific group of participants, namely fathers, is identified. The social context, namely parental leave, is clearly named. The objects under investigation, i.e. the number of working hours and the frequency of contact between fathers and children, are specified.