Starting with a research question will:

• Act like a filter, helping you to decide what's worth looking at and what you can skip.

If your question is "What are the leading factors contributing to depression among college students" you'll know to look broadly, considering studies on academics, finances, social pressures, and technology use, then narrow in on which factors matter most.

• Help you pick better keywords. The words in your question turn straight into strong search terms for OneSearch, Google, or other search tools.

From that question, you might pull search terms like college students, depression, mental health, academic stress, social media, and financial stress, which will bring up a wide range of useful sources. 

• Level up your research. With a question as your roadmap, you'll explore multiple possible answers. You won't get stuck only looking for studies that confirm your initial hunch. You'll compare perspectives and weigh evidence to figure out which factors are most significant.

Jumping straight to conclusions closes doors before you even open them. When you close doors, you risk:

• Missing alternative perspectives

If you start with the conclusion that "Students are depressed because of social media," you might miss research pointing to other causes like academic pressure, financial stress, or lack of sleep.

• Confirming your own bias

Once you've decided social media is the cause, you'll probably only notice sources that agree and ignore research showing mixed or no correlation.

• Spending time proving something instead of discovering what's true.

You could spend hours trying to prove your claim about social media, rejecting strong studies that don't fit, instead of letting the evidence reveal a fuller picture of student mental health.

Think like a detective: Stay curious, keep asking better questions, and let your thesis grow from the evidence, not the other way around.

Instructions: Work through these steps to move from your general interest to a research-ready question. Notice how each stage narrows the focus. Study the good and bad examples provided, and you’ll see how clarity, specificity, and neutrality can make or break your research process.

#1 - Name your area of interest

Write a broad topic you find interesting

Example: mental health

#2 - Focus your topic (narrow the scope)

Choose a specific aspect, group, situation, or place related to your interest.

Example: Depression among college students

#3 - Draft a research questions

Turn your focused topic into an open-ended questions invites exploration. What do you want to find out?

Example: What are the leading factors contributing to depression among college students?

Avoid yes/no questions or biased questions that assume an outcome.

• Yes/no questions like "Is social media bad for college students' health?" limit exploration.
• Biased or leading questions like "Are college students depressed because of social media?" assumes one cause and ignores others.

If you’re having trouble turning your narrowed topic into a good research question, the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) is an easy process for quickly generating and improving questions. Start by listing any questions that come to mind about your topic, then reshape them to be open-ended and interesting. Finally, choose one to explore and jot down why it grabs your attention.

#1 - Start with your focused topic.

Example: Depression among college students

#2 - Ask questions rapid-fire

Write down as many questions as you can, without judging or editing, even ones that seem silly or unimportant. If you get stuck, think about what interests, frustrates, or puzzles you about the topic. The goal is to go beyond surface-level ideas and uncover questions that really spark your curiosity.

Why are rates of depression rising among college students?

How does social media use affect depression in college students?

What role do finances or housing insecurity play in student depression?

How does access to counseling influence depression levels?

Do cultural differences shape how students experience or talk about depression?

#3 - Improve your questions

Change yes/no or leading questions to open-ended ones.

Yes/No: Is social media bad for college students’ mental health?
Improved: How does social media use influence depression among college students?

Yes/No: Do finances cause depression?
Improved: What financial factors contribute most to depression among college students?

Yes/No: Is depression the same for everyone?
Improved: How do cultural or social differences shape experiences of depression among college students?

#4 - Prioritize for research

Pick one or two questions that genuinely interest you.

What are the leading factors contributing to depression among college students?

#5 - Reflect & Next Steps

Take a moment to consider why your selected question matters to you, clarifying what you hope to discover or learn.

I want to explore the leading factors that contribute to depression among college students because understanding which causes matter most could help colleges and communities better support student mental health.

If your course allows AI use, you can use an AI tool to guide you through developing your research question. The strategy is to ask AI to act as a research coach, posing questions back to you rather than simply generating ideas. This back-and-forth dialogue helps you discover what genuinely interests you and refine your thinking until you land on a research question worth exploring.

How to Use This Prompt:

1. Copy the prompt below
2. Paste it into an AI tool such as ChatGPT, Copilot, or Perplexity
3. Replace the bracketed text with a brief description of your course and assignment
4. Follow the AI's questions. Answer thoughtfully and let each response guide the next question until you have formed a strong research question.

Research Coach Prompt:

You are a research coach helping me develop a strong research question. I am working on [describe your course and assignment in a sentence or two].

Here's how I'd like you to help:

1. Ask me one thoughtful, open-ended question at a time to explore what angles, topics, or problems genuinely interest me within this assignment
2. Listen carefully to my answer and ask a follow-up question that digs deeper—helping me move from broad interest toward a focused, specific question I can actually research
3. Help me notice patterns in what excites me so I can identify what matters most
4. Once I've explored several angles, help me shape what I've discovered into a clear research question that is specific enough to research but open enough to be interesting

Need help developing your research question?

Chat with us. During open hours, your FC librarians are standing by.

Prefer face-to-face help? Stop by the reference desk or make a virtual or in-person appointment. 

We'll get you unstuck and moving forward.