Be prepared to be flexible with your research question or thesis.
If you find too much information, your topic/thesis may be too broad. You will need to narrow or focus it.
If you are finding very little information, your topic/thesis may be too specific, narrow, specialized or current. With a topic that's too narrow, it may be difficult to find enough information to write your paper.
| Narrow Your Topic | |
|---|---|
| Time |
Modern time period vs. historical perspective
|
|
Location
|
Town, city, state, nation, country |
|
Population
|
Age, race, gender, nationality, ethnic group, occupation |
| Event or Aspect |
Focus on an event within your topic: mass incarceration prevention. Or consider a particular aspect: historical, sociological, psychological |
|
Person or Group
|
Related to your topic: drug offenders, adolescents, poor, whites, Latinos, African Americans |