Find Trends in Your Profession

Choose an Issue to Research Further

  

You have now researched the top trends of your industry or area of study, and submitted a draft of the first section of your project. Now you will conduct research on an issue of interest within a trend or your industry in general that you think is noteworthy. But first we should review how you will  cite your sources accurately and  manage information ethically, giving credit where it is due. 

Begin your review by completing  Module 3 and  Module 4 of UMGC's Academic Integrity Tutorial. These lessons review how to write well with sources and develop authentic synthesis, and how to correctly attribute and cite others' ideas. Mastering these skills is critical to your academic success.  

Next, think of the issue of interest as a research problem, and consider drafting a simple  research question or statement of the problem to inform your research and keep your focus tight. Remember: the more focused the question, the better your search results will be. Remember that in academic work, you will normally avoid normative or open-ended questions, which start with the words  should or  would, or any question that can be answered with a yes or a no.

It might help to think about the scientific method. You must first identify the problem. Then, when you have researched a bit more, you will form a reasonable assumption (a hypothesis) of a potential resolution or answer. You will look for more information that reflects different viewpoints on the issue and use analytical thinking to arrive at a well-reasoned conclusion. This conclusion may or may not bear out your original assumption; however, your goal is to arrive at an answer that is well-supported and based on facts. Remember, you are considering the impact of this issue on your industry, so your analysis may be a step toward a practical solution for your organization.

In the project scenario, you are trying to prepare your search committee to interview and select a senior leader for your organization. That team must be well-informed of the current and emerging state of the field. Choose an issue that has potential for great impact on the field. Your research should reveal if the question has already been answered or if there is enough information on the topic. Consider your  statement of the problem and ask yourself, "so what?" Will your answer contribute to knowledge about the issue you have selected?  

Once you have chosen your issue and completed enough research to provide a well-reasoned answer or solution, move on to the next step, in which you will draft this section of your paper and begin the editing process for your final project.