Research Design

Research is not a precise science. In order to do it well you need to combine a number of skills: some (like having original ideas) involve creativity or innovation, others (like building your knowledge of a subject area) require diligent persistence. Research projects can be big or small; ambitious or modest; exploratory or aiming to confirm existing theses. To try to give the idea of research more shape though, you could say that the classic definition of research suggests four key areas to cover:

Recognising and defining an important question or problem
Developing enough expertise on the topic area to make sure your contribution is valid and relevant
Understanding the methods you will need to respond to your question properly and systematically
Following these methods rigorously to provide a convincing solution

Research design is all about getting the first three of these areas right. The resources available via the sign will help you. You can find out about:

• What research is in the first place
• How to formulate a question or topic that will lead to a good research project
• How to review the important knowledge that is already out there; this helps you make sure your project is worth doing (that is, relevant) and based on the best available information (that is, valid)
• How to make sure you respect the needs of the research subjects by considering ethics
• How to design the most useful and effective experiments
• How to produce a successful proposal for a research project

For University of Sheffield users, there is also a Library resource list, suggesting some print resources about research design it might be useful to explore.