Choosing and Narrowing a Topic

Sometimes your instructor will give you a list of possible themes or questions, and other times you will have the liberty to choose your own topic. Sometimes the assignment will have a precise purpose i.e. an analysis paper or an argumentative essay, and other times you will have the autonomy to resolve the purpose (term paper, research paper). This freedom can be both grand and terrifying. If you have difficulty choosing what to inscribe about, start with a few thoughts and choose the best after several steps. You can also confer with your tutor about the best topic choice.

How to Choose a Topic

Think about things linked to the course that you are interested in. If there is nothing which interests you, look throughout the textbook,

course slides, instructor-recommended resources, current periodicals and handouts for possible ideas. 

Then you need to narrow your ideas from subjects to topics. A subject is usually a broad concept e.g. abortion, conflict management, the Cold War, capital budgeting, organizational culture, Toyota’s management style, global warming and EU agricultural subsidies are a few examples. These are not paper topics. These could all be the subjects of books.

Narrow a subject by examining its smaller parts, or by choosing a precise problem, time period, or place to cover. You may need to do a little research if you do not know much about the subject. Also asking yourself “Who? Where? What? When? How? and Why?” questions about the subject can help you limit the subject and determine your interests.

For example, doing this with abortion leads to topics like the reasons American women choose abortion more than adoption, the psychological effects of past abortions on women who become pregnant again, the consequences of Poland’s ban on abortions on women’s lives, solutions to mitigating the practice of using abortion as a tool for gender assortment in India, and whether or not the morning after pill ought to be sold to girls under 16. From here, select a topic which fits the prescribed rationale of your paper.

Specific topics like these are more likely to fit the goal of academic writing and to fit the number of pages allowed in your paper.

Writing your Topic as a Question

Once you have a precise topic for your paper, write your topic as the question which your paper will answer. Doing this is a superb way to focus on your paper and ensure that you meet the desired purpose. In fact, your rationale will determine the type of question that you ask.

For example, an argumentative paper would probably have a yes/no question, such as “Should the morning after pill be sold to girls under 16?” or “Should the U.S. have used the atomic bomb in World War II?” or “Which is a superior strategy for the EU to follow to promote change in Burma ; engagement or isolation?” And then, your paper would argue for your answer to the question.

An analytical paper most likely has a how/why question, e.g. “How has Poland’s ban on abortions affected women’s lives?” or “Why has childhood obesity been increasing in the United States?” And then, of course, your paper will analyze the various answers, justifying your point of view to the tutor.

An informative paper frequently has a what/how/why question, such as “How can managers evaluate whether to invest money in a software upgrade project?” or “What are the negative aspects of wind energy?” This is then followed by an explanation of the answers, giving the readers a new way of looking at the topic.

Characteristics of a Good Paper Topic

Your question is worth answering. The readers will mind about the answer to your question. Your answer will have some significance.

Your question does not have a simple answer. A good question has numerous alternative answers, or no accepted answer, or maybe an easy but unsatisfactory answer. In other words, there is no one “correct” answer to your question. Your paper will give and justify your own best answer(s), and it will require research and critical thinking to do this.

You are interested in the topic. You will spend a lot of time with this topic, so select something that will not bore or torture you.

Your paper will achieve its purpose. Will your informative paper truly give your audience a new perspective? Will your readers accept your analysis in your analytical paper? Will your persuasive paper succeed in changing your readers’ view?

This is especially important to consider with persuasive paper topics. Avoid topics in which arguments are mostly based on (usually unchanging) personal beliefs, rather than reason and evidence. Whether abortion should be legalized is such a topic.

There is enough (but not too much) information available in reliable sources. If you find too much information, you will need to narrow your topic further; if you find too little information, you should widen your topic.

The topic is the right size for the length of the paper. Make sure you will not have too little or too much to say for the number of pages allowed.

You have enough time to do what you need to do. How much time do you have before the due date? You may have to limit the complexity of your topic if you have waited too long to start….