Introduction – Developing a Research Question
Learning Objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Identify a knowledge gap.
- Select a research topic.
- Identify attributes of a good research topic.
- Refine the research topic.
- Develop and refine questions that focus your inquiry.
- Identify and explain key features of a good research question (PICOT).
- Explain why it is important for nurses to be clear and focused when creating a research question.
- Identify which research designs may be useful for answering your research question.
Welcome to Chapter 5: Developing a Research Question
Every nursing research study begins with a question. Often, that question grows from something a nurse notices in practice, a recurring clinical challenge, an unanswered question, or a desire to improve care. Learning how to transform curiosity into a focused, meaningful clinical question is one of the most important skills in nursing research.
In this chapter, you will learn how researchers identify knowledge gaps, select and refine research topics, and develop researchable questions that can guide evidence-informed nursing practice. You will explore practical strategies such as concept mapping, literature searching, and the FINER criteria to evaluate whether a question is feasible, interesting, novel, ethical, and relevant.
You will also be introduced to the PICOT framework, a widely used tool for organizing clinical questions and developing focused quantitative research questions. While PICOT is traditionally associated with quantitative and intervention-based research, it can also be adapted for qualitative inquiry by modifying or omitting elements that are not applicable (such as comparison or time). If taking a nursing research course, you may be asked to use PICOT as a flexible framework to help organize and refine your own clinical question, recognizing that the final wording should always fit the purpose and methodology of the study.
Remember, developing a strong research question is rarely a one-step process. Researchers continually refine their ideas as they review the literature, reflect on clinical practice, and consider what knowledge is still needed. By the end of this chapter, you will have the tools to develop a focused clinical question that provides a strong foundation for the rest of the research process.
Key definitions when developing research questions
Research Question: A clear, focused question that guides an entire research study.
Research Topic: A broad area of interest that may eventually be developed into a research question.
Knowledge Gap: An area where evidence is limited, inconsistent, or absent, indicating a need for further research.
Clinical Observation: Something noticed during nursing practice that may generate ideas for research.
Concept Map: A visual tool used to organize ideas and narrow a broad topic into a focused research question.
PICOT Framework: A structured framework that helps nurses organize and refine focused clinical or research questions. It encourages researchers to clearly identify the Population (P), Intervention or Issue of Interest (I), Comparison (C), Outcome (O), and Timeframe (T) when appropriate. Although PICOT is most commonly used for quantitative and evidence-based practice questions, it can be adapted for other types of clinical inquiry by modifying or omitting elements that do not apply.
FINER Criteria: A framework used to evaluate whether a research question is Feasible, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, and Relevant.
Hypothesis: A prediction about the expected relationship between variables, usually developed for quantitative studies.
Conceptual Hypothesis: A broad statement predicting the relationship between concepts.
Operational Hypothesis: A specific, testable prediction describing how variables will be measured and related.
Feasibility: Whether a study can realistically be completed with available time, resources, participants, and expertise.
Research Design: The overall plan (blueprint) used to answer a research question. Different questions require different research designs. Researchers should be able to replicate a good research design.
Quantitative Research Question: A question that investigates measurable variables, interventions, or relationships.
Qualitative Research Question: A question that explores experiences, meanings, perspectives, or social processes rather than measuring variables.
Identifying a Knowledge Gap
The first and foremost step in conducting research is identifying previously unexplored research areas. Choosing an unexplored area in your area of clinical practice or research field will increase the value of your research and your chances of getting the work published. It would be devastating to complete a research project and be unable to publish the study findings because another researcher has already published something similar or be unable to see it applied to practice because some elements are not authentic/realistic and it is not relevant to practice settings. It is therefore important to identify knowledge gaps i.e., problems that have not been addressed before in your field of study or clinical practice, before you embark on choosing a research topic/question.
You may ask the question: How do I select a research topic/question? Experienced researchers often have a clear idea of what research topic/question they want to pursue. However, novice researchers, often find it difficult to identify original and innovative research topics. Recall the three major ways of identifying research gaps by seeking them in Chapter 4, in the Identifying a Knowledge Gap section.
Remixed from:
- An Introduction to Research Methods for Undergraduate Health Profession Students by Faith Alele and Bunmi Malau-Aduli (2023), James Cook University, under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
References
Alele, F., Malau-Aduli, B. (2023). Chapter 2: “Planning a research project.” In An Introduction to Research Methods for Undergraduate Health Profession Students. James Cook University. https://jcu.pressbooks.pub/intro-res-methods-health/part/2-planning-a-research-project/
A clear, focused question that guides a research study by identifying what the researcher wants to understand, describe, explain, or test.
The broad subject or area of interest that a researcher plans to investigate.
An area where limited or insufficient evidence exists, indicating the need for further research.
Something noticed during nursing practice that may generate ideas for research.
A visual tool used to organize ideas and narrow a broad topic into a focused research question.
A structured framework that helps nurses organize and refine focused clinical or research questions. It encourages researchers to clearly identify the Population (P), Intervention or Issue of Interest (I), Comparison (C), Outcome (O), and Timeframe (T) when appropriate. Although PICOT is most commonly used for quantitative and evidence-based practice questions, it can be adapted for other types of clinical inquiry by modifying or omitting elements that do not apply.
A framework used to evaluate whether a research question is Feasible, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, and Relevant.
A micro-theory; a best guess or prediction about what one expects to find about the variable outlined in the study.
A broad statement predicting the relationship between concepts.
A specific, testable prediction describing how variables will be measured and related.
Whether a study can realistically be completed with available time, resources, participants, and expertise.
The overall plan (blueprint) used to answer a research question. Different questions require different research designs. Researchers should be able to replicate a good research design.
A question that investigates measurable variables, interventions, or relationships.
A question that explores experiences, meanings, perspectives, or social processes rather than measuring variables.