EE+Guides+for+Developing+your+Research+Question

**Getting started:** The next step in the process of your Extended Essay, is to develop your research question. Very careful consideration must be given to this step because it will be the foundation of your entire paper and will guide you though the entire process of research, formulating your arguments and organizing your paper.

For your paper to be acceptable for credit by IB, it must be a persuasive / position paper. It is NOT an exposition. Your research question must be a DEBATABLE one and one which you can discuss evidence on both sides and then pick one to support.

**Suggested approaches:**
 * An evaluation of theories of the origins of a behavior
 * Cross-cultural evaluations of a theory or explanation of behavior
 * Compare and contrast two theories
 * Evaluation of a treatment or application
 * To what extent is something true?
 * How to solve a specific problem (For example: bully in schools)

**Finalizing your question:** Before you can finalize your question, you MUST:
 * have already done sufficient preliminary research, to see what questions can be answered by scientific evidence.
 * have found a __minimum__  of three (3) scientific studies that support your argument <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">**AND** <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"> a <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">__minimum__ <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"> of three (3) that are counter to your argument
 * <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">base your research on studies done AFTER 1991.

<span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">**Meeting with your advisor:** <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">When you meet with your advisor, be prepared to explain and justify your research question by:
 * <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">giving a brief overview of a minimum of three (3) studies that "support" your supposition
 * <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">giving a brief overview of a minimum of three (3) studies that "counter" your supposition
 * <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">explaining why the "counter" studies do not apply in your case
 * <span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">providing proof--supported by scientific evidence to "shoot down" the counter arguments