Carol Mutch: Factors to consider when selecting a research topic
“1. Size
– Is your topic or question carefully stated in a way that sets out the limits of your study?
– Have you focused your research in a way that will keep you on track?
2. Scope
– Have you defined the scope in terms of population and sample or setting and case?
3. Time
– Have you made a calculated guess at the length of time this study will take?
– Is the study manageable in the time you have at your disposal?
– Can you fit this study around your other work, family, or community commitments?
– Can you meet the necessary deadlines?
4. Resources
– Can you obtain the resources (financial, material, administrative, and personnel) required?
– Do you have easy access to these or the finances to support them?
5. Skill
– Do you have the data-gathering and analytic skills to conduct this study?
– Can you get help or training if it is beyond your expertise?
6. Access
– How easy is it to gain access to the site, the sample population, and/or cases you need to study?
– Have you considered whose permission you will require and how you will get it?
7. Prior knowledge
– How well do you know the field within which this topic sits?
– How familiar are you with the research, theoretical, and methodological literature around this topic?
– Do you know where to go for support or advice?
8. Motivation
– Will this topic hold your interest for the required length of time?
– Have you considered what intrinsic and extrinsic incentives might keep you going throughout the research?”
Ref: pp. 37-38 Carol Mutch (2005) Doing Educational Research: A Practitioner’s Guide to Getting Started. NZCER Press: Wellington
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