Hypothesis and Research Questions
In the technical field, you may be asked to complete research for several reasons. Research can be used to confirm theories (hypotheses), gather information over a topic and necessary services, describe a population, find a solution to a problem, and/or to provide background information. You will likely perform research for most, if not all, the documents you create in class or the workplace. For example, you may do background research on a group of people to revise a document for that audience, such as to tailor your résumé for a position at a specific business. Or, you may research a problem in order to provide a solution and present that research in a report. Depending on the genre, you may need a specific type of research, or a combination of several types. The type(s) of research you choose should be based on your purpose, audience, and, often when completing a research project, your hypothesis and research questions.
Hypothesis
It can be difficult to decide where to start researching for your task, especially if you are not given specific guidelines. Most scientific or medical research begins with a hypothesis. A hypothesis is tentative, testable answer to a question. It is based on your current knowledge of the situation or topic; therefore, it is a “guess” of what the outcomes will be. For example, a pharmaceutical company creates a new prescription strength sunscreen for people with an elevated risk of melanoma. They theorize that daily use of the sunscreen, applied every three hours with normal sun exposure, will lower the risk of skin cancer by 75%. This is a classic example of a hypothesis. You may or may not be asked to create a hypothesis for a research topic. It depends on the purpose and topic, or the type(s) of research you need to produce.
When you create a hypothesis for your problem or topic, it is always written as a statement. It is predictive in nature and typically used when some knowledge already exists on the topic. In the sunscreen example above, scientists in the pharmaceutical industry should have knowledge on how the product and individual compounds work before it goes to clinical trials. Based on your hypothesis, you can collect data, analyze it, use it to support or negate the hypothesis, and (eventually) arrive at a conclusion at the end of the research.
Hypotheses work to limit the scope of your research. A complete hypothesis should include the variable, the population, and the predicted relationship between the variables. For example, some limits on the sunscreen example are the number of applications per day and a “normal” amount of exposure (as opposed to working outside all day without protective clothing). A hypothesis also applies to a specific population—in this case, people with elevated melanoma risk. Once established, a hypothesis will guide your research for credible outcomes.
Research Questions
Whether or not you create a hypothesis, you will often create research questions to help direct your research. These questions need to be answered through your research for you to thoroughly investigate and analyze a topic. What are the major questions that need to be answered for you to create a solid conclusion about your topic? For example, imagine you are asked to research the effect of final exams on student academic success. There are many areas you could choose to focus on—student mental or physical health, knowledge attainment and/or recall, effectiveness of timed exams, cumulative exams versus application of materials, and so on. As there are so many aspects of this topic, you will most likely not have time to adequately research all of them. Establishing research questions will help you focus your research on specific areas of the topic.
How do you decide which areas are the right areas to research? Base your decision on factors such as:
- What is your area(s) of interest?
- What will be most likely to persuade the reader? (Did they ask for a specific type or area of research? What is their main goal for the research? What do they want to alter, improve, or disprove? Which of the audience’s needs, wants, or values might help guide your research?)
- What areas can you feasibly research within the time frame or any other limitations you have?
- Are there any areas where research seems to be missing or underdeveloped on the topic?
Once you decide on a few areas of focus, you can construct research questions to help guide you. Normally, three or more questions are standard for a topic. They should be written in the form of a question and must be inquisitive in nature. A properly written question will be clear and concise, and contain the topic being studied (purpose), the variable(s), and the population.
If you were doing research on the final exam example above for a university’s Student Affairs office, your research questions might be:
- What is the current system for final exams, and what are the reason(s) for its structure and schedule?
- How does the current system compare to other similar universities, including scheduling, exam grades, GPA, and overall graduation rates?
- Have any connections been proven between the final exam system and student academic success or failure?
The type of question you choose depends on the best way you can study your topic and your hypothesis. The following list includes the six main types of research questions:
Types of Research Questions
- Comparative questions: look for the similarities and differences between multiple variables.
- Causal questions: look for relationships between two or more occurrences.
- Descriptive questions: seek out a description and explanation for a specific situation.
- Exploratory questions: help try to better understand something through observation.
- Predictive questions: determine what will happen in the future or if a change happens.
- Interpretive questions: gather feedback on a topic or perception without altering the outcome.
After creating your questions, you will need to decide the best type(s) of research to help you answer them.
