First-Generation Resource Guide

We understand that research can be overwhelming when you are beginning. Here are a few steps to get your research journey started. Remember: if you need support, reach out to us at Ask A Librarian. We are here for YOU! 

For more information on how to research using the ASU Library, visit our First-Year Composition Library Guide. 

There are many different kinds of research and ways to do it. The steps below focuses on academic research, which usually requires high-quality, peer-reviewed sources. Because research can be thought about in many different ways and broken down into many different steps, this guide presents but one way to break down the research process.

To view each step in more detail, visit the ASU Library First Year Composition Library Guide. 

STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR TOPIC 

Brainstorm topic ideas by browsing the internet or library resources. For example, if you’re interested in writing about "self-esteem in teenagers," you could use various search engines to gather information on the topic. Doing this might help you identify gaps in knowledge or narrow your topic so that it’s not too broad for a short assignment.

STEP 2: DEVELOP YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION

Watch videos, read articles, and explore more information around the topic that you chose. Take notes on what you find most interesting and engaging about your topic. Ask yourself the 5 W's: who, what, where, when, and why. Use the answers to these questions to formulate an open ended research question. 

STEP 3: FIND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Gather basic information about your topic to further develop your research question and knowledge of the subject. Resources such as Google, Wikipedia, textbooks, individuals (librarians, faculty, friends, or family) and library databases (Opposing Viewpoints Research and CQ Researcher), can give you inspiration for more information to search such as keywords, important events, important figures, or specific ideas. Note any interesting topics or information in the articles and keep a research notebook on the related topics and keywords that you find. Use this new information to identify the main concepts or keywords in your question.

Complete our ASU Library tutorial "Choosing a Topic with Background Research" to get more information on finding background information and narrowing down a topic.

STEP 4: DEVELOP A SEARCH STRATEGY TO FIND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

You can use Google and its other services, Google Scholar, Google News, YouTube, etc., to search and find information on the open Internet. You can also search in ASU Library’s One Search and many subject databases, where using Boolean operators, filters, and keywords will yield high-quality scholarly resources for your paper

Complete our ASU Library tutorial "Using Keywords and Search Connectors" to get more information on developing search strategies.

STEP 5: EVALUATE WHAT YOU FIND

ASU librarians and your professors want to ensure that you find sources that not only meet your assignment requirements but are also appropriate for your research. There are a variety of checklists or methods available to evaluate the reliability and credibility of information sources. You can use CRAAP, SIFT, ACT UP, and other frameworks to evaluate the quality of the books, articles, online sources, and other media that you locate.

Remember, if you’ve found too many or too few sources, you may need to narrow or broaden your topic. You can always use Ask a Librarian to get help on this adjustment and other research needs.

STEP 6: CITE WHAT YOU FIND 

Citing or documenting the sources used in your research serves a number of purposes:

• It credits authors for their work and ideas that you used to write your paper
• It demonstrates academic integrity by providing context and proving your paper is well-researched
• It allows your readers to find your sources and learn more about your topic
• It enables others to further your research and make new discoveries

You should always cite other people's words and ideas that you use in your papers. This includes but isn't limited to books, journal articles, webpages, reports, data, statistics, speeches, lectures, personal interviews, and more. Cite whenever you use a direct quote, summarize or paraphrase ideas, or use uncommon facts or statistics that relate directly to your argument. When other authors cite their sources properly, you can also use their research to enhance your own!

To learn more about citing sources in various citation styles and review examples of citing different source types, visit ASU Library's Citation Guide.