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Is your topic too broad?
- Is your searching giving you too much information? Too many search results?
- Is it too hard to cover your topic in detail?
Example: I want to write a paper on "fashion."
While fashion can be an interesting and exciting topic to explore, it can cover a wide range of areas and time periods, and will need to be narrowed down.
Ask yourself questions about your topic:
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What aspects of the topic are you interested in? For example: the influence of New York City fashion on other communities
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What time period do you want to cover?
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Is there a particular group or population that you want to focus on such as teenagers, women, or another group?
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What geographic region are you interested in: United States, New York, etc.?
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Are there other specific areas that are of interest to you that could help narrow your topic?
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Is your topic too narrow?
- Is your searching giving you back too little information? Too few search results?
- Are you able to state your entire topic in just a few words?
Example: I want to write a paper on "why ocean water is salty."
Finding out such a straight-forward answer can be interesting, but there probably won't be enough information to write an entire paper.
Look for parallels and opportunities for broader associations:
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Could you examine additional areas related to your topic? For example: how has climate change affected salt levels in the oceans?
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Could you step back and think broadly about your topic? For example: how are salt levels in the ocean important to wildlife?
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What other issues are involved? For example: How can water desalination projects help water-deprived areas of the planet and what are the drawbacks to these projects?
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