RESEAR

CH
PROBLE
M
PRESENTED BY: GROUP 3
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

a. DEFINITION
b. ELEMENTS OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
c. GUIDELINES IN THE SELECTION OF A RESEARCH PROBLEM OR
TOPIC
d. FORMULATING TITLE
e. GUIDELINES IN WRITING THE TITLE
f. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
g. ASSUMPTIONS
h. HYPOTHESIS
 A.
DEFINITIO
N
A. DEFINITION
 A research problem is a statement about an area of concern, a
condition to be improved, a difficulty to be eliminated, or a troubling
question that exists in scholarly literature, in theory, or in practice that
points to the need for meaningful understanding and deliberate
investigation. In some social science disciplines the research problem
is typically posed in the form of a question. A research problem does
not state how to do something, offer a vague or broad proposition, or
present a value question.
 A research problem is a specific issue or gap in existing knowledge that
you aim to address in your research. You may choose to look for
practical problems aimed at contributing to change, or theoretical
problems aimed at expanding knowledge.
Step 1: Identify a broad problem
area
This could be:
• Issues with performance or efficiency
• Processes that could be improved
• Areas of concern among practitioners
• Difficulties faced by specific groups of
people
 step 2: Learn more about the
problem
This could be:
• Who does the problem affect?
• Is it a newly-discovered problem, or a well-
established one?
• What research has already been done?
• What, if any, solutions have been proposed?
• What are the current debates about the problem?
What is missing from these debates?
 Why does Research Problem is
Important?
There are several benefits of formulating a research problem. The actual research begins with the
formulation of a research problem. It makes you well aware of the tasks that you have to perform in
order to accomplish the research. Research is a process that you have to complete in a sequence. A
research problem helps you formulate that sequence. Research problem also helps you avoid
unnecessary steps during the research.

1. A research problem is the preliminary step in conducting a research study. A research problem helps
you understand the research procedure in a better manner. A scientific research problem is one that
can be solved using scientific procedures.
2. In actual the purpose of the research problem is to determine the objective and intention of the
research, in the absence of an aim or objective you cannot determine the research methodology. A
research problem can help you identify each and every step of the research process: the study
design, sampling strategy, research instrument and research analysis.
3. The research problem should have great clarity since the research process in itself generates more
questions. In the absence of a clear and well defined research problem the researcher can become
confused. In addition the research question or research problem should have to be interesting so
that the researcher become well engaged in the research. The passion of the researcher in
conducting the research matters a lot in the research.
b. Elements of
research
problem
 B. Elements of Research Problem
A research problem refers to some difficulty either of a theoretical or practical character which an
individual or organization is experiencing and wants to obtain a solution for the same. There are a
number of elements (components) which a problem must have before it becomes a research problem
ready for study.

1. Objective or aim of the problem which is to be investigated. This answers the question “Why?”
Why is there a need for investigation, inquiry or study?
2. The topic or theme which needs to be investigated. This answers the question “What?” What is to
be researched or studied?”
3. The time dimension of a decision problem is always the future. The period or time of the study
when the data are to be gathered. This answers the question “When?” When is the research to be
performed?”
4. The area or location in which the study is to be conducted. This answers the question “Where?”
Where we need to conduct the study? The space coordinates give you the geographic boundaries
within which the action is to be taken.
5. Population or universe from whom the data needs to be gathered. This answers the question
“Who?” or “from whom?” Who are the respondents? From who are the data to be collected?” They
may include persons, groups of persons, business establishments.
C. Guideline in a
selection of
Research
Problem or Topic
 GUIDELINE in a selection of Research Problem
or Topic

 The research problem must be chosen by the researcher.

 The problem must be within the specialization of the researcher.
 The researcher problem must be manageable.
 The problem must be within the interest of the researcher.
d. Formulating title
 Formulating title

According to rhetoric scholars Hairston and Keene, making a good title for a
paper involves ensuring that the title of the research accomplishes four goals
as mentioned below:

1. It should predict the content of the research paper.

2. It should be interesting to the reader.

3. It should reflect the tone of the writing.

4. It should contain important keywords that will make it easier to be located

during a keyword search.
 TIPS IN FORMULATING A
RESEARCH TOPIC

o Avoid unnecessary words and jargons. Keep the title statement as concise as
possible. You want a title that will be comprehensible even to people who are
not experts in your field.
o Make sure your title is between 5 and 15 words in length.
o If you are writing a title for a university assignment or for a particular academic
journal, verify that your title conforms to the standards and requirements for that
outlet
o Use a descriptive phrase to convey the purpose of your research efficiently.
o Most importantly, use critical keywords in the title to increase the discoverability
of your article.
e. Guidelines in
writing title
 Guidelines in writing the title

 The “title” should be descriptive, direct, accurate, appropriate, interesting, concise,

precise, unique, and should not be misleading. The “abstract” needs to be simple,
specific, clear, unbiased, honest, concise, precise, stand-alone, complete, scholarly,
(preferably) structured, and should not be misrepresentative.

Step 1: Answer some key questions about your research paper-What does your paper seek
to answer and what does it accomplish? You can create these questions by going through
each section of your paper and finding the MOST relevant information to make a research
title.

Step 2: Identify research study keywords-Now that you have answers to your research
questions, find the most important parts of these responses and make these your study
keywords. Note that you should only choose the most important terms for your keywords–
journals usually request anywhere from 3 to 8 keywords maximum.
Step 3: Research title writing: use these keywords-The sentence above is clearly much too
long for a research paper title. This is why you will trim and polish your title in the next two
steps.

Step 4: Create a working research paper title-To create a working title, remove elements
that make it a complete “sentence” but keep everything that is important to what the study is
about. Delete all unnecessary and redundant words that are not central to the study or that
researchers would most likely not use in a database search.

Step 5: Remove any nonessential words and phrases from your title-This will aid
significantly in your research paper title being found in search engines and database
queries, which means that a lot more researchers will be able to locate your article once it is
published.
f. Statement of the
problem
 A problem statement is an explanation in research that describes the issue that is in need of
study. What problem is the research attempting to address? Having a Problem Statement allows the
reader to quickly understand the purpose and intent of the research. The importance of writing your
research proposal cannot be stressed enough.
 A strong, clear description of the problem that drew you to your research has to be straightforward,
easy to read and, most important, relevant. Why do you care about this problem? How can solving this
problem impact the world? The problem statement is your opportunity to explain why you care and
what you propose to do in the way of researching the problem.
 It is expected to be brief and concise, and should not include the findings of the research
or detailed data. The average length of a research statement is generally about one page. It is going
to define the problem, which can be thought of as a gap in the information base. There may be several
solutions to this gap or lack of information, but that is not the concern of the problem statement. Its
purpose is to summarize the current information and where a lack of knowledge may
be presenting a problem that needs to be investigated.
 The purpose of the problem statement is to identify the issue that is a concern and focus it in a
way that allows it to be studied in a systematic way. It defines the problem and proposes a way to
research a solution, or demonstrates why further information is needed in order for a solution to
become possible.
 What is included in a problem statement

Besides identifying the gap of understanding or the weakness of necessary

data, it is important to explain the significance of this lack.

 How will your research contribute to the existing knowledge base in your
field of study?
 How it is significant?
 Why does it matter?

Not all problems have only one solution so demonstrating the need for
additional research can also be included in your problem statement. Once you
identify the problem and the need for a solution, or for further study, then you
can show how you intend to collect the needed data and present it.
 How to write a statement of problem in research
proposal

 It is helpful to begin with your goal. What do you see as the achievable goal if
the problem you outline is solved? How will the proposed research
theoretically change anything? What are the potential outcomes?
 Then you can discuss how the problem prevents the ability to reach your
realistic and achievable solution. It is what stands in the way of changing an
issue for the better. Talk about the present state of affairs and how the
problem impacts a person’s life, for example.
 It’s helpful at this point to generally layout the present knowledge and
understanding of the subject at hand, before then describing the gaps of
knowledge that are currently in need of study. Your problem statement is a
proposed solution to address one of these gaps.
 Example of problem statement in research
proposal
 If, for example, you intended to research the effect of vitamin D supplementation on the immune
system, you would begin with a review of the current knowledge of vitamin D’s known function in
relation to the immune system and how a deficiency of it impacts a person’s defenses.

you would describe the ideal environment in the body when there is a sufficient level of vitamin D. Then,
begin to identify the problems associated with vitamin D deficiency and the difficulty of raising the level
through supplementation, along with the consequences of that deficiency. Here you are beginning to
identify the problem of a common deficiency and the current difficulty of increasing the level of vitamin D
in the blood.

At this stage, you may begin to identify the problem and narrow it down in a way that is practical to a
research project. Perhaps you are proposing a novel way of introducing Vitamin D in a way that allows for
better absorption by the gut, or in a combination with another product that increases its level in the blood.

Describe the way your research in this area will contribute to the knowledge base on how to increase
levels of vitamin D in a specific group of subjects, perhaps menopausal women with breast cancer. The
research proposal is then described in practical terms.
g. assumptions
 Assumption are statements that are taken for granted or are considered
true, even through they have not been scientifically tested.
 Assumption are principles those are accepted as being true based on
logic or reasons, but without proof or verifications.
 The research assumptions are tentative affirmations or denials of
the research problem. They can be conjectures about possible
characteristics, causes, specific problems, or statements about the
phenomenon to be studied. They do not need to be tested for validity with
statistics.
h. hypothesis
 A research hypothesis (also called a scientific hypothesis) is a statement
about the expected outcome of a study (for example, a dissertation or
thesis). To constitute a quality hypothesis, the statement needs to have
three attributes –(specificity, clarity and testability).
 A good research hypothesis needs to be extremely clear and
articulate about both what’s being assessed (who or what variables are
involved) and the expected outcome (for example, a difference between
groups, a relationship between variables, etc.).
1. A research hypothesis (or scientific hypothesis) is a statement about
an expected relationship between variables, or explanation of an
occurrence, that is clear, specific and testable.
2. So, when you write up hypotheses for your dissertation or thesis, make
sure that they meet all these criteria. If you do, you’ll not only have rock-
solid hypotheses but you’ll also ensure a clear focus for your entire
research project.