Research

Notes and techniques for better systematic inquiry

Elements of a research project

Topic selection
Research question formation
Information gathering
Hypothesizing & Thesis generation
Synthesis
Production

Topic selection

Keep an idea journal

Start some form of note taking to jot down ideas and questions you come across. You will find your own way for generating ideas. the important thing is to start. As with so many other aspects of independent scholarship, it is the doing that teaches us how.

Examples of "intellectual journals" you can look to for inspiration: source: The Independent Scholar

Eric Hoffer, Working and thinking on the waterfront
Adelbert Ames Jr., The morning notes
Paul Goodman, Five Years
John Robben, Coming to my senses
Jessamyn West, Hide and Seek
Charles Darwin, Diary of the Voyage of HMS Beagle
André Gide, The Journals of André Gide
Andy Warhol, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol (From A to B and Back Again)
Anais Nin, A Woman Speaks: The Lectures, Seminars, and Interviews of Anais Nin
Henry Thoreau, The Journal
Christopher Isherwood, Kathleen and Frank
Suzanne Mitchell, My Own Woman: The Diary of an Analysis

Recon new realms of knowledge

Do recon on a new source of knowledge. Browse a local library and online on the topic. Keep moving, and keep a list. You are compiling your "little black book" of intellectual attractions - books, ideas, authors, points of view, realms of fact or imagination with which you want to make a date sometime, get to know better, and perhaps fall in love with.

Start browsing books, magazines, and other media sources to get a sense of the subject. Find places to hang out with people.

Writing good research questions

Focus on a single topic.
Avoid value judgements. - Don't use words like "good", "bad", "better", or "worse." Find more clear criteria for your question.
The more specific, the better.
Should not be answerable with a "yes" or "no." This "how" instead. More scope here leads to more room for investigation and discussion.
Shouldn't be too easy to answer. If you can answer it with a simple Google search, you haven't found a big enough gap in knowledge to be interesting.
Aim to answer a timely debate.
Don't dig into questions that have already been answered.

Below are templates to get you started, try to think of questions that make sense in the context of your project.

Research question templates

Describing and exploring
- What are the characteristics of X?
- How has X changed over time?
- What are the causes of X?
- How has X dealt with Y?
Explaining and testing
- What is the relationship between X and Y?
- What is the role of X in Y?
- What is the impact of X on Y?
- How does X influence Y?
Evaluating and acting
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of X?
- How effective is X?
- How can X be improved?
Inspired by species of interesting ideas ( don't forget to invert!)
- Does X appear disorganized, but is in reality a structured phenomenon?
- Is X actually a collection of dissimilar elements?
- Does X appear local, but is actually global?
- Is X stable or is it changing?
- Is X efficient or inefficient?
- Do X and Y appear related but aren't?
- Can X and Y co-exist?
- Is the positive correlation between X & Y actually a negative one?
- Do X & Y appear to be similar, but are actually opposites?
From Just Enough Research
- Is X the right problem to be solving?
- What are the competitive advantages of X?
- What changes to X would make a huge difference?
- What blind spots and biases do I have about X?
- How long has X really been going on?
- How do you define the success of X?
- What concerns do you / other people have about X?
- What are greatest challenges around X?
- What are the most common tasks related to X?
- What problems have you noticed with X?
- What workarounds to people have with X?
Applied research questions
- Are there any quick wins to move towards X?
- What are effective tactics for X?
- How will you measure progress on X?

Developing a research project

The important part of the first project is not that it succeeds but that it is yours. Because it is your first piece of original research, you do not have to worry about whether or not it succeeds. One of the purposes of the first project is for you to decide what success means to you in this kind of activity.

Write up a project plan (~1 page) it should include a 1-2 sentence brief, your plan for research, projected outcomes with a timeline, how to get feedback, who would be interested, and how they can be reached.
Before reading, come up with some theories of your own. It helps you think for yourself instead of following what other people think.
Start forming questions and a research plan
Begin drafting as findings begin to emerge
complete the work
distribute as needed

Writing a research project description

Describe the project - list objectives in order of their performance Why did you select it? What was the original impuse?
What are the anticipated major problems?
What form is the project going to take?
What people are going to help on this project?
What is the budget for costs, materials, books, equipment, fees, etc.
List of books
When will your project be completed and presented?
What other projects do you have going on? How much time per week can you give to the project?
Could you teach someone about this topic later?
How is this project valuable to you?
Who will critique your project?

"Imaginative conjectures are often exciting, harmless, and occasionally rewarding" - Ronald Glass

Resarch tactics

Use scholar.google.com, or other source to find several articles & books. Pull as many relevant sentences and quotes as you can from those pieces. Sort them and look for themes. Form thesises from the patterns you find.
Comparing yourself to previous work or at least acknowledging related work is universally necessary. It helps better inform your work.
idea: separate the "research" from the writing. Those are two activities with different outcomes.
Remember that your research needs to tell a story. #storytelling (note: this may be more of a "writing" problem than a research problem.)
Skimming - read the first and last paragraph of articles, and scan and headlines before committing to read the entire piece.
Google queries for finding statistics
- “State of [topic]”
- “[Topic] report”
- “[Topic] survey”
- “[Topic] statistics”
- “[Topic] case study”
- “[Topic] examples

Data collection methods

sales safari
Reading articles & books
Research papers
Finding statistics
Googling it
Youtube search
Twitter search
Find Aggregators on Twitter
Build Twitter lists of
- researchers - prominent people
- News aggregators
- Founders / VCs (if applicable)

How to read a research paper

from How to read a research paper quickly & effectively Read the title, it should explain the method and result

read the abstract - it explains why, methods, and result
read the first and last paragraph of the introduction - summarize the hypothesis and results
read headings of results
read conclusion
if it looks useful - look for specific points in the results
read limitations if available
look for other references that look interesting to dive into later.

Pitfalls of research

Failing to read predecessors in his field, waste time researching a subject that has already been done.
Being ignorant of bibliographical methods or standards. Believing that any book is a reliable source.
Not knowing where to go for reliable information or service.
Not knowing how to read carefully or write precisely.
Lacking a legitimate reason for writing on the topic - A nonexistent or unimportant problem.
Lacking a wide background and being able to provide a proper perspective on a topic
Naively injecting predjucies and assumptions
Lacking logical thinking. Thus, present conclusions that do not follow from his evidence, or misinterpreted evidence
Not knowing how to take accurate notes
Resisting the temptation to include colorful or amusing scenes and anecdotes that only have journalistic value

Types of research

There are different ways to think about research, most of which I've had some interest in. Some of these might be the same, but aim to give me an idea of where to start looking.

Scientific research - forming experiments, trying to discover information
Journalistic research - finding, and verifying sources
Writing research papers - easier entry point, since students do it.
Product research - for work, in product, growth, customer research, etc.
Personal research - research about a person specifically. "Who is Jeff Bezos?"
Applied research - research designed to fix a real-world goal
Design research - research to help inform design decisions
Generative research - deciding what problems to solve, looking for new ideas, looking for unmet needs.
Organization research - understanding how an organization works, who is involved, and what their priorities are.
User research - understand the needs and priorities of your users

Research classes

Librarian - collector of books and resources, great at finding connections
Scholar - large expertise in a limited field
Reporter - general interests, good at evaluating evidence, favors sharing over learning
Detective - primarily interested in human behavior, the motive behind stories, and uncovering secrets
Scientist - interested in running experiments, data
Clinician - looks for practical insights via in-field practice
Philosopher - seeks wisdom through reflection and dialogue
Activist - searches for new ideas via reflection and action