An integral part of preparing for a research study is performing a literature review. This includes defining key terms which support your topic, searching for journal articles which support these terms, adjusting your search terms as needed, and then organizing the data you have.

Based on this foundation of early research, you can specifically focus on the most important aspects of the topic chosen and can even find gaps where other researchers have not explored.

This can be especially important because a research study which fills a gap is very important to developing society's and academic's thoughts on the subject - truly groundbreaking! In your initial post, address the following:

What topic are you most interested in studying? In one sentence state the essence of this study, then write your research title. Basically, choose a research topic that interests you - is it a social problem that affects a particular group in society?

Break down the elements: Who do you want to research?

What is the issue? Is there a particular place or other differentiator which is useful to describe your study?

Considering the research topic you selected, list five key terms related to your topic and use these terms to perform a database search for journal articles on the topic in the Ashford University Library.

What were the outcomes of your database search?

Did you modify your search terms to achieve a successful search? Which databases were most useful to you and why?

Considering the research topic you selected and the database searches you performed, list the five terms you think are important in this study and define/operationalize them.

Discuss the advantages and limitations defining these terms. To help you do this, list the terms and how they specifically support and are important to your research topic.

Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references.