(1) research topic:

The research topic is the first step in selecting a topic, so we should have a preliminary judgment on the research topic/object, which can be something that pops up in our minds or something we are interested in. Experience is the fastest way to determine the research topic, and the probability of choosing a good topic is relatively high, so we recommend this method to determine the research topic.

You can choose the research topic with the help of others' strength, such as consulting literature and choosing the research topic you want by summarizing others' research.

In addition to the above two sources, there is another way to determine the theme through some materials, such as reading the annual topic selection guide and choosing suitable topic selection schemes published by some journals or some news hotspots.

It should be noted that news hotspots have the lag of communication time. When most people see hot spots, authoritative experts in academic circles may have studied this issue, and hot spots are more difficult for ordinary authors and may not be easy to publish, so it is not recommended for ordinary authors to choose hot spots for research.

However, the topic selection guide and periodical topic selection plan still have certain research orientation, and you can choose the topic you want to study from them.

(2) Research questions:

The second part of the topic is the determination of the research question.

The research problem needs to be carried out according to the research topic, and a specific problem is selected around the research topic for research. This question can be a direct question or a non-questioning question, but in either form, it must be an unknowable question.

In other words, questions that can't be answered without investigation, those obvious questions can't be counted as research questions of academic papers. There are both theoretical and practical problems in the research. For ordinary authors, it is generally necessary to write theoretical questions or theorize practical problems, so as to find theoretical support for our research and strengthen the proof basis.

(3) Research methods:

The third part is the determination of research methods.

There are many research methods of academic paper writing, including speculative research and empirical research. Empirical research includes quantitative research, qualitative research and mixed research. Quantitative research includes experimental research, correlation analysis and investigation. Qualitative research includes case analysis, in-depth interview, text/content analysis, grounded theory, field investigation, discourse analysis and ethnography.

Which method to choose depends on the research problem and which method is actually used. For example, most people in humanities are not familiar with quantitative research and can't use relevant methods, so it is not suitable to choose this method.

Some people are not familiar with these methods, so they can learn some easy methods, such as grounded theory and content analysis.