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Literature Reviews: 1. Choose topic

Your Research Question

 

Choose your topic

Seek advice from your instructor on this. It is very common for students to bite off more than they can chew, simply because they have not realized the full breadth and complexity of an apparently simple topic. It is better to cover a tiny topic perfectly, than a huge topic superficially.

Look for a topic on which there is evidence both for and against. It often helps to pick a topic in which a question is being asked, for example: Is a particular surgery more beneficial to an injured athlete than another, non-invasive treatment?

When researchers disagree, this provides an opportunity for you to enter the debate and present evidence (from the literature) in support of one idea or another.