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✕ Common misconception Correction

Match the question to the kind of
Writing a broad or causal question and
knowledge it seeks. If the design cannot
then choosing a method that cannot
exclude alternative explanations, do not
answer it.
phrase the question causally.

? Question to consider: would a contrary result still matter?
If the result came out against your expectation, would the question still be important and

the method still acceptable? If not, the wording may have been designed to establish a
position rather than to discover knowledge.

↻ Try it yourself: narrow one topic
Write a broad topic, then turn it into a two-line problem, a demonstrable gap, one

question, and two operational definitions. Ask the tool for three alternative explanations,
then revise the question if needed.

● Remember: Section summary
• Key idea: A research question is the result of a problem, a gap, and clear definitions, not
merely an interrogative sentence.
• Practical decision: Check the question against the type of knowledge, the five criteria,

measurability, and ethics.
• Mistake to avoid: Framing a broad or causal question without a method that allows it to
be answered.

7.3 Searching for Evidence: From Keywords to a Repeatable Strategy
◆ Key idea: searching is a repeatable strategy.
Good searching is not one session in a search engine. It is a documented strategy that
links the concepts of the question to synonyms, databases, and time and language limits.
AI can widen the vocabulary and turn a question into queries, but the completeness and
quality of the search need human review and testing against known studies.

The search tool differs with the question. Web engines are useful for reaching reports, sites,
and recent data, but they do not give systematic coverage of the literature. Specialized

databases index journals, fields, and subject descriptors, but they differ in scope and
language. One index does not represent all knowledge, so a search may need more than one
database, along with grey literature such as government reports, theses, protocols, and

standards.

AI-supported search tools sit between several worlds: an academic database that surfaces
indexed records, a general search engine that finds recent pages and reports, a paper-
summarizing tool that rephrases what you supply it, and a reference manager that stores

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