Hi all. I was wondering if you had any tips for me. I am new to the PhD process, and am floundering as to how to best formulate a PhD question. I have my basic research framework - in that I want to analyse conflict in Zimbabwe as an inherent symptom of a distinctive political logic that is to be found throughout Africa. I know it is broad at this stage, but I am only a month in to the general research, and I have found that unless I have a QUESTION, my research really could be endless. Has anyone else had difficulties with formulating the basic question? I am getting increasingly frustrated as I am doing all of this work, and don't feel any closer to clarity. Any tips?

What would you say if I met you in a pub and asked 'So what exactly are you trying to find out with this research of yours' Imagine I am reasonably intelligent, but have no specific knowledge of your area.

Heathy - it really does depend on how long you have been researching up to this point. The norm is that you spend the guts of the first year reading around the area to build up knowledge and to get the underlying trends. Then you decide on which route will give your research a novel edge. It might help that you start writing up some form of a lit review or get a conference paper out covering the general area soon. These could form a reference point and may also be used as a means of introducing yourself to other researchers in the area.

I know getting a specific area is a pain in the ar$e (I am over 18 months and only getting a specific idea now). Once you get an idea, there is still a hell of work to be done but at least you know what you have a clear goal in sight. Good luck

I think its too early to think about a research question. What you are expected to do at this stage is to read a lot around your topic and take note of important/interesting facts. Keeping a good workbook and a neat filing system would be an idea. Keeping regular fixed working hours would help you to reduce frustration - Dont ever think about your work outside these hours. Make sure that you enjoy your life and keep a clear receptive mind..

Hi all, thank you for your responses! I may not have been clear about this - I am still at the proposal stage...I have met with my potential supervisor, and whilst he likes the direction I am coming from, he has advised that I get as focussed as possible as to what it is that I am asking. Which is, of course, logical, but it is pretty damn difficult. I'm just wondering how others approached this?

Ah yes, for your proposal you do need to have a question. But it's a matter of getting a foot in the door. Just be aware that your research question will most definitely change over time. What I am working on now is very different to what I said I would be working on in both my funding and PhD applications. The thing is, it is almost impossible to know the question that intrigues you, that is meaty enough to sustain you for upwards of three years, and that is likely to produce original insights at this very early stage because, by nature, that's something that gets worked out in the process of researching. You have the broad frameork so maybe look at what's been done recently, consider the directions that new work points in and formulate a list of questions/queries about these directions. Allow your own curiosity to guide you. Good luck

Thank you so much! This is exactly the thing - finding a question that is meaty enough to be sustained, but not so complex as to be completely incomprehensible. Oh. And original.

have you read 'how to get a phd' by pugh and 'working for a doctorate' by verma- they offer excellent tips on how to get started with research questions.

Ask yourself 'what is the problem i am trying to address?'. Then there is the issue of uncertainty- in the existing literature you are reading are there any gaps/ uncertainties that could be examined further- ask yourself- 'how can i fill this gap or reduce uncertainty?' and from that formulate themes, ideas and so on.

And remember 'originality' as pugh states has different meanings- for eg, it can mean looking at an old problem from a different perspective (there are other definitions it's all in the book!). Finding this out helped me because it made me realise that you don't have to singlehandedly change the way your field is perceived (phew!!). At phd level you are just teasing out gaps etc, you can leave all the 'groundbreaking' stuff till after the phd. Anyway, hope this helps.

Hello Heathy

You have some good advice here! I would like to add that it helped me in my proposal to come up with three or four research questions or obectives. This really made me think about the bigger points of the research that I want to address. I would say to to and organise a rough title of less than 15 words that represents these objectives... If this isn't too hard! Making up titles is really scary so I understand your stress. If it helps my title has totally changed in the two years I have been doing this PhD, although the topic is essentially the same... So it doesn't matter too too much - hopefully the selecting team will be able to see past the title to the actual value of the proposed project stated within your proposal. Post it here if it helps - we can help you maybe?

i'd suggest getting a fairly up to date well written literature review of your general area and reading the discussion/conclusion. this is where they outline what further research is needed in the area. once you know what other people have said needs to be done you might find one of these areas interests you. or, perhaps, none of these are what you're after. in that case, what assumptions are the basics based on? is there some methodological flaw in previous research etc etc etc.

have fun!

A

Wow, thank you everyone for your responses, you've been so helpful! I am definitely going to find the books mentioned, and have a look through. Thank you all once again!