Whether you’re writing your proposal or the introduction to your dissertation or thesis, you will need to convince your supervisor or examiner that you’ve identified a researchable problem.
The trouble is that not every problem is a research problem.
Methodologists like Van de Ven (2007) provide guidance on how to distinguish between an ordinary problem and a research problem.
A problem becomes a research problem when you, as the researcher, identify the need for researching the issue by including the following four details:
- The perspective from which you’re examining the problem.
- The social, or real-world, significance of addressing the problem.
- Some potential resolution/diagnosis of the problem.
- The potential resolution/diagnosis that is based on the theoretical literature.
Would you like help with identifying your research problem?
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