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Research: Where do I begin?

Summary:

We live in an age overflowing with sources of information. With so many information sources at our fingertips, knowing where to start, sorting through it all and finding what we want can be overwhelming! This handout provides answers to the following research-related questions: Where do I begin? Where should I look for information? What types of sources are available?

Before you begin your research, you should ask yourself some questions. These will help narrow your search parameters.

What kind of information are you looking for?

Do you want facts? Opinions? News reports? Research studies? Analyses? Personal reflections? History?

Where would be a likely place to look?

Which sources are likely to be most useful to you? Libraries? The Internet? Academic periodicals? Newspapers? Government records?

If, for example, you are searching for information on some current event, a reliable newspaper like the New York Times will be a useful source. Are you searching for statistics on some aspect of the U.S. population? Then, start with documents such as United States census reports. Do you want some scholarly interpretations of literature? If so, academic periodicals and books are likely to have what you’re looking for. Want to know about commercial products? Will those companies have Web sites with information? Are you searching for local history? Then a county library, government office, or local newspaper archive is likely to be the most useful.

How much information do you need?

How many sources of information are you looking for? Do you need to view both sides of the issue?

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Purdue OWL
General Writing
- General Writing Introduction
- The Writing Process
  - The Writing Process Introduction
  - Writing Task Resource List: What Do You Need To Write?
  - Invention: Starting the Writing Process
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  - Academic Writing Introduction
  - The Rhetorical Situation
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    - Classical Argument
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    - Adjective or Adverb?
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- Visual Rhetoric
  - Visual Rhetoric Introduction
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Research and Citation
- Research and Citation Resources
- Conducting Research
  - Conducting Research Introduction
  - Research Overview
  - Conducting Primary Research
  - Evaluating Sources of Information
  - Searching Online
  - Internet References
  - Archival Research
- Using Research
  - Using Research Introduction
  - Writing with Statistics
  - Strategies for Fair Use
  - Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing
  - Paraphrase Exercises
  - Avoiding Plagiarism
  - Writing Scientific Abstracts Presentation
  - Formatting in Sociology (ASA Style)
  - Resources for Documenting Sources in the Disciplines
    - Overview
    - Complete Discipline Listing
  - Citation Style Chart
- APA Style
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Teacher and Tutor Resources
- Writing Instructors
  - Writing Instructors Introduction
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  - Writing Across the Curriculum: An Introduction
  - Creative Nonfiction in Writing Courses
  - Poetry in Writing Courses
  - Teaching Detailed Writing and Procedural Transitions
  - Teaching OSDDP: A Guide for Professional Writing Instructors
  - Email Etiquette for Professors
- Writing Letters of Recommendation for Students
- Writing Tutors
  - Writing Tutors Introduction
  - Purdue Writing Lab Quick Tour
  - Meeting One-on-One with Students
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- Preventing Plagiarism
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Subject-Specific Writing
- Professional, Technical Writing
  - Professional, Technical Writing Introduction
  - Workplace Writers
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  - Audience Analysis
  - Prioritizing Your Concerns for Effective Business Writing
    - Higher Order Concerns
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  - Parallel Structure
  - Activity and Postmortem Reports
  - Tone in Business Writing
  - HATS: A Design Procedure for Routine Business Documents
  - Basic Business Letters
    - The Basic Business Letter
    - Sample Letters
  - Accentuating the Positives
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  - Grant Writing
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  - Technical Reports & Report Abstracts
    - Writing Report Abstracts
    - Reports, Proposals, and Technical Papers
  - White Papers
  - Revision in Business Writing
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- Writing in Literature
  - Writing in Literature Introduction
  - Literary Terms
    - Literary Terms
  - Literary Theory and Schools of Criticism
  - Writing About Fiction
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  - Writing in Literature (Detailed Discussion)
  - Writing About Poetry
  - Image in Poetry
  - Poetry: Close Reading
  - Writing about World Literature
    - Writing about World Literature
    - Thesis Statement PowerPoint
  - Writing About Film: Terminology and Starting Prompts
- Writing in the Social Sciences
  - Writing in the Social Sciences Introduction
  - Social Work Literature Review Guidelines
  - Writing in Psychology: Experimental Report Writing
- Writing in Engineering
  - Engineering Project Documentation
  - Writing in Engineering Introduction
  - Writing Engineering Reports
  - Handbook on Report Formats
  - Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS)
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- Creative Writing
  - Creative Writing Introduction
  - Fiction Writing Basics
  - Pattern and Variation in Poetry
  - Pattern and Variation: Aural
  - Pattern and Variation: Visual
    - Visual Patterning
    - Visual Variation, Exercises
  - Characters and Fiction Writing
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    - Poetry Writing: Invention
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    - Overview of Creative Nonfiction
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- Healthcare Writing
  - Healthcare Writing Introduction
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- Journalism and Journalistic Writing
- Writing in the Purdue SURF Program
- Writing in Art History
Job Search Writing
- Preparing an Application
  - Preparing an Application Introduction
  - Tailoring Employment Documents For a Specific Audience
  - Tips and Terms
  - Writing the Personal Statement
  - Job Skills Checklist
  - Action Verbs to Describe Skills, Jobs, and Accomplishments in Employment Documents
    - Action Verbs
    - Action Verbs List
  - Example Employment Documents
- Job Search Letters
  - Job Search Letters Introduction
  - Letters Concerning Employment
  - Model Letters for Various Purposes
  - Cover Letters 1: Quick Tips
  - Cover Letters 2: Preparing to Write a Cover Letter
  - Cover Letters 3: Writing Your Cover Letter
  - Cover Letters Workshop
  - Academic Cover Letters
    - Academic Cover Letters
    - Academic Cover Letter Sample
- Résumés and CVs
  - Résumés and CVs Introduction
  - Introduction
  - Résumé Sections
  - Using Two Pages or More
  - Scannable Résumés
    - Introduction
    - General Guidelines
  - Résumé Design
  - Scannable Résumés Presentation
  - Management Résumés
  - Résumé Workshop
  - Reference Sheets
  - Writing the Curriculum Vitae
  - Sample Résumés
  - Résumés for Military Veterans
- Video Résumés
English as a Second Language
- ESL Instructors, Tutors
  - ESL Instructors, Tutors Introduction
  - ESL Orientation for Writing Lab Tutorials
  - ESL Teacher Resources
    - ESL Teacher Resources
    - Code Switching
  - ESL Instructors and Students
- ESL Students
  - ESL Students Introduction
  - US Higher Education: A Local Introduction
    - A "Local" Introduction
    - Maintaining Lines of Communication
  - Tips for Writing in North American Colleges
  - Plagiarism and ESL Writers
  - Writing for Global Business Audiences: An Introduction
  - Writing for an Indian Business Audience
    - Writing for an Indian Business Audience
    - Writing for an Indian Business Audience: Samples
  - Writing for a Chinese Business Audience
  - Understanding Writing Assignments
  - Writing for a North American Business Audience
  - Key Concepts for Writing in North American Colleges
  - Audience Considerations for ESL Writers
  - Combining Sentences
  - Nominalizations and Subject Position
  - Prepositions
  - Pronouns
  - Punctuation
  - Paraphrasing and Summary
About the OWL
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Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.