Module : TTU Teacher : Ms.

Imene CHIBOUB

Level : 1st Year Academic Year : 2020/2021

Groups : 7, 8

Formulating a Research Problem

1. What is a Research Problem?

Broadly speaking, any question that you want answered and any assumption or assertion

that you want to challenge or investigate can become a research problem or a research topic for

your study. However, it is important to remember that not all questions can be transformed into

research problems and some may prove to be extremely difficult to study. According to Powers,

Meenaghan and Twoomey (1985: 38), ‘Potential research questions may occur to us on a

regular basis, but the process of formulating them in a meaningful way is not at all an easy

task.’ Based on former, how should we find a “doable” research topic? Shell we first find our

subject area of interest then formulate a question ? or shell we ask the question then consult the

literature?

Consider you are planning an extremely unusual trip… you have never seen the Sahara

desert and you want to see what it is like there:

a) Should you start by deciding exactly where within this huge desert you want to

visit and then get the appropriate maps?

b) Should you get the maps first and then use these to decide where best to visit?

Clearly if there is a specific place you want to visit then you need to work out how to get to

that specific place , but sometimes it is best not to start out with a firmly fixed idea of your

destination but to let your destination be dictated by pragmatic concerns.

1
In a similar way when writing a research paper you may suppose that you should start by

defining your research topic and then find appropriate research papers (literature—what has

been said before). However this approach can lead to very specific problems:

1. What if no one is doing research on your chosen topic because it is too difficult

(e.g. time travel?)

2. What if the research in this area was all done years ago and researchers have

now moved on to newer topics? ( e.g. ‘transputers’… a computing research topic

that was hot in the 1990s but is now no longer a current topic).

Remember research is about pushing forward to boundaries of the human knowledge. If you

do not know where these boundaries are, you cannot decide on an appropriate topic.

Read the Formulate

Find your Start your
Choose a related your
area of research
topic literature to research
interest
your topic problem

2. The Importance of Formulating a Research Problem

The formulation of a research problem is the first and most important step of the

research process. It is like the identification of a destination before undertaking a journey. In

the absence of a destination, it is impossible to identify the shortest – or indeed any – route.

Similarly, in the absence of a clear research problem, a clear plan is impossible. To use another

analogy, a research problem is like the foundation of a building. The type and design of the

building are dependent upon the foundation. If the foundation is well designed and strong you

can expect the building to be also. The research problem serves as the foundation of a research

study: if it is well formulated, you can expect a good study to follow. According to Kerlinger:

2
If one wants to solve a problem, one must generally know what the problem is. It can be said

that a large part of the problem lies in knowing what one is trying to do. (1986: 17)

The formulation of a problem is like the ‘input’ to a study, and the ‘output’ is entirely dependent

upon. Initially, you may become more confused but this is normal and a sign of progression.

Remember: confusion is often but a first step towards clarity. Take time over formulating your

problem, for the clearer you are about your research problem/question, the easier it will be for

you later on. Remember, this is the most crucial step.

3. How to find a Research Problem?

Finding a research problem depends solely on finding a research topic. For many

students, the most confusing and most difficult aspect of doing any research is finding the right

topic for research.

1. It must be original and interesting something that will not only strike the

teachers interest as worth researching but be interesting enough to maintain you

motivated for the long term.

2. It must be broad enough to connect with the background theory(ies) and the

ideas you find in your literature of the subject, and narrow enough to deal with

in depth.

3. You should have an adequate level of expertise for the task you are proposing.

Allow for the fact that you will learn during the study and may receive help from

your research supervisor and others, but remember that you need to do most of

the work yourself.

4. Equally important, there must be a sharply defined question as the heart of your

project that will direct and control your thinking as you search for answers.

5. Make sure that your topic of interest has available data in the form that you

want.

3
 3.1 Steps in formulating a research problem

If you do not know what specific research topic, idea, questions or issue you want to

research (which is not uncommon among students), first go through the following steps:

Step 1 : Identify a broad field or subject area of interest to you. Ask yourself, ‘What is

it that really interests me as a student. For example, if you are interested in Linguistics, inclined

to work in the area of discourse analysis or language acquisition . Or if you are interested in

Didactics, you might be interested in teaching theories and teaching methods. Or as a student

of Literature you can be interested in literary criticism or literary periods. these are the broad

research areas. It is imperative that you identify one of interest to you before undertaking your

research journey.

Step 2 : Dissect the broad area into subareas. At the onset, you will realise that all the

broad areas mentioned above have many aspects. For example, there are many aspects and

issues in the area of literary criticism. Similarly, you can select any subject area from other. In

preparing the list of subareas you should also consult others who have some knowledge of the

area and the literature in your subject area. Once you have developed an exhaustive list of the

subareas from various sources, you proceed to the next stage where you select what will

become the basis of your enquiry.

Step 3: Select what is of most interest to you. It is neither advisable nor feasible to study

all subareas. Out of the list you make, select issues or subareas about which you are passionate.

This is because your interest should be the most important determinant for selection, even

though there are other considerations which have been discussed in the previous section,

‘Considerations in selecting a research problem’. One way to decide what interests you most

is to start with the process of elimination. Go through your list and delete all those subareas in

which you are not very interested. You will find that towards the end of this process, it will

become very difficult for you to delete anything further. You need to continue until you are left

4
with something that is manageable considering the time available to you, your level of

expertise and other resources needed to undertake the study. Once you are confident that you

have selected an issue you are passionate about and can manage, you are ready to go to the next

step.

Step 4: Raise research questions. At this step ask yourself, ‘What is it that I want to

find out about in this subarea?’ Make a list of whatever questions come to your mind relating

to your chosen subarea and if you think there are too many to be manageable, go through

the process of elimination, as you did in Step 3.

Step 5: Formulate objectives. Both your main objectives and your subobjectives now

need to be formulated, which grow out of your research questions. The main difference

between objectives and research questions is the way in which they are written. Research

questions are obviously that – questions. Objectives transform these questions into behavioral

aims by using action-oriented words such as ‘to find out’, ‘to determine’, ‘to ascertain’ and ‘to

examine’. Some researchers prefer to reverse the process; that is, they start from objectives and

formulate research questions from them. Some researchers are satisfied only with research

questions, and do not formulate objectives at all. If you prefer to have only research questions

or only objectives, this is fine, but keep in mind the requirements of your institution for research

proposals.

Step 6 : Assess your objectives. Now examine your objectives to ascertain the

feasibility of achieving them through your research endeavor. Consider them in the light of the

time, resources (financial and human) and technical expertise at your disposal.

Step 7: Double-check. Go back and give final consideration to whether or not you are

sufficiently interested in the study, and have adequate resources to undertake it. Ask yourself,

5
‘Am I really enthusiastic about this study?’ and ‘Do I really have enough resources to undertake

it?’ Answer these questions thoughtfully and realistically. If your answer to one of them is ‘no’,

reassess your objectives.

6
FIGURE 4.3 Formulating a research problem – the relationship between fertility and mortality