This page will help you understand the basic steps of starting research for any assignment or project, how to build vocabulary related to your topic, and find different types of sources.
Example Research Topic
Topic: The impact of social media on teenagers' mental health
Step by Step Research Process
1. Getting Started
When you're starting with any topic or struggling with research topic ideas, look to:
Google (or any search engine): type in phrases like "impact of social media on teens" or "social media mental health teenagers"
Google News: skim for hot topics or relevant news. News sources are non scholarly sources that help build background understanding and are generally at an easy reading level.
LibrarySearch tool and Library databases: You can use these to find news and magazine sources: Go to the "Use LibrarySearch" tab to see how to search
Your class notes: review what you've learned in class for ideas and context
Your personal experience, your friends and family: draw on these for insights and perspectives
2. Develop your Topic:
Let's say you are interested in the impact of social media on teens. You find this source on Google* discussing how social media affects teens' mental health. After reading this source, you might focus on the mental health impacts on girls or explore differences by gender. You could look at specific aspects such as body image, self-esteem or anxiety. Narrowing your topic helps you avoid covering too much ground and makes your research manageable and focused. To narrow, you can consider time, location and population. Example I am interested in the last 10 years, Canada/US, and impact on teenage girls specifically.
*Though it is not a scholarly source, it is still helpful to get started. Learn more in the "Scholarly Information" tab.
Watch this video here from another library that shows ideas for narrowing your topic:
2. Understand your topic
When you are searching using library search tools, you'll want to break down your topic into key concepts. For example:
Social media
Teenagers
Mental health
3. Build your vocabulary
Make a list of related terms or synonyms as you check all of the above sources in #1. Use a thesaurus to help you! This will help you search more effectively. Example:
Social media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok
Teenagers: Adolescents, Youth, Teens
Mental Health: Well being, Emotions, Depression, Anxiety
These keywords will be helpful when we look at searching in LibrarySearch tools and Library databases in the next tab.
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