Choosing a Topic

In: Designing and Managing a Research Project: A Business

Student’s Guide

By: Michael J. Polonsky & David S. Waller

Pub. Date: 2021
Access Date: May 25, 2022
Publishing Company: SAGE Publications, Inc
City: Thousand Oaks
Print ISBN: 9781544316468
Online ISBN: 9781071849279
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781544316499
Print pages: 18-34
© 2019 SAGE Publications, Inc All Rights Reserved.
This PDF has been generated from SAGE Research Methods. Please note that the pagination of the
online version will vary from the pagination of the print book.
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Choosing a Topic

“In the process of doing this assignment, I found that cooperation is a very important thing.
It helps us avoid making many mistakes and do an efficient job in a short time.”

Business Student

This chapter examines issues associated with selecting a topic for your research project. It is essential that
you formalize your topic as soon as possible in order to ensure that you are focused. Defining a topic is
the first and most important step in the research project process. According to Sharp, Peters, and Howard
(2017, p. 27), “Until a topic has been selected the research cannot be said to be underway”; however, if the
topic is poorly chosen or defined, it will adversely affect all other aspects of the research project including the
research design, the questions asked, the analysis undertaken, and the recommendations proposed. It has
been suggested that once you fully understand the research problem, the answers are generally easy to find.
Therefore, it is important you really understand what it is you want to explore.

Some students often want to research very broad, all-encompassing topics that involve too many different
activities and variables. We sometimes suggest to these students that they are trying “to solve all the world’s
problems at once” rather than focusing on one manageable issue or aspect of the problem. Doing too much
in a single project is usually impossible and causes unnecessary stress on you and your research team.
Broad topics involve substantially more effort and expertise than most undergraduate students can effectively
manage. This can, therefore, be a source of conflict between group members, which will be discussed in
Chapter 4 (Group Work, Group Dynamics, and the Role of Conflict). The focus of your topic must be narrowed
into something manageable and achievable that advances your learning outcomes, but it should not be too
narrow, or it will be too difficult to obtain sufficient data or too small to result in a suitable project (Collis &
Hussey, 2013; Saunders, 2011). The goal, therefore, is to define and concentrate on a specific, appropriate
topic (Ellis & Levy, 2008). If it is too big, it will be impossible to address all the issues; thus, a lack of success
will be caused by poor problem definition, not any skill shortage you might have (Sekaran & Bougie, 2016).
Table 2.1 provides a few links to videos on choosing a research topic.

Table 2.1 Sites Discussing Choosing the Topic

Materials Sites

“How to Choose a Thesis Topic” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v71302KBsyc

“How to Develop a Good Research Topic” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXNztCLYgxc

“How to Find a Research Topic & Question” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26vpgBTnlA4

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Student Examples

On the book website, there are three examples of student research projects
(http://polonskywaller.com/student-examples): three honors theses, and one group project
as part of an undergraduate capstone subject. As mentioned in the text, it can vary
depending on the subject or professor whether a topic is assigned or chosen by the
student(s). For these examples, the honors students were allowed to choose the topic;
however, they were directed to keep in mind the school’s expertise and the interest(s) of
their professors. The group assignment example was assigned the overall topic and the
client, although there was some freedom in choosing the specific focus that the group
undertook, which had to be approved by the client and the professor.

In looking at Honors Thesis 2 “Game Set Match,” note that the student has a specific
section titled “Research Justification” (p. 5). There is also discussion of the underlying
motivations within the “Background to the Study” of the thesis (i.e., on pages 1–4).

In some classes, you may be assigned a specific research topic by a professor, or alternatively, you may get
to choose one for yourself. Even if a topic has been assigned to you, there may be some room for you to
put your own specific focus on the project so that it will become your own. It is, therefore, vitally important for
you to consider a number of factors before choosing a topic for your research project, which will ensure that
your topic is manageable and suitable for the research assignment at hand. To begin, you must ask yourself,
Has the topic been assigned to me, or must I decide on the topic for myself? From past experience, we have
found that even though students like to select their own topic, it is sometimes difficult for them to be able to
develop something that is not too broad or too narrow, or acceptable to all group members when it is a group
report. This usually occurs because the student(s) has/have not undertaken a research project before. Project
learning outcomes are about not only the specific project but also about the research process in general.

Has the Topic Been Assigned?

You may have no choice as to what your topic is. If this is the case, you still should not jump into the secondary
or primary research until you are comfortable with the scope of the topic and know exactly what you plan
to examine. This understanding will not only identify the types of issues that need to be explored but also
possibly point to potential methodologies and solutions. Think about the type of final research paper or report
you are expected to produce. You must make sure that your approach to examining the topic addresses the
requirements of the assignment. Are you to write a general overview of an issue, or are you expected to
undertake detailed analysis of the topic? In most cases, even if a general topic is assigned, you will have
the option of determining the specific question to be researched or the focus you will take in answering the
question. There is rarely one way to examine a topic, even if it is assigned, and there are frequently many
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parts to one business problem.

You need to make sure your topic is specific, and if it seems to be too general, you should choose a narrower
subtopic to examine. Assume that the assigned topic is a very general one such as “Implementing Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR).” Even if your task is to write an overview, there are many aspects that could be
considered. For example, are you looking at the value of various CSR activities or looking at a more narrowly
focused issue about how to implement one specific CSR program. For example, a question proposed in
the High Performance Shoes (HPS) case was to discover how consumers will respond to more explicit
integration of CSR-related activities in regard to managing suppliers, or it could be something more specific
in regard to evaluating which type of CSR accreditation program is more aligned with HPS’s activities. Both
are equally valuable questions and are related to the same general issue, but they are also very different.
Thus, the question of should the company undertake CSR activities, in fact, comprises a number of important
subquestions, and each could be considered. However, trying to undertake them all would generally be too
much for one student project. Of course, the specific requirements of the assignment will direct the project
(and it could be that groups of students will complete different projects that all revolve around the larger
question).

If you must narrow your assigned topic, it is worthwhile to continue reading this chapter to assist you in
identifying strategies that you can use to narrow the alternatives into a more manageable business project
topic. It is important that you spend some time thinking about research possibilities and options, as whatever
you decide to do will direct all your research activities. Do not necessarily choose the first idea that comes
into your head, because you may end up writing about something that is not really the best topic for the
assignment or that may not be able to maintain your interest in the long run. The best topic is the one that
can successfully achieve your assignment requirements and that will keep you interested over the length of
the project. Once you have determined that your topic is suitable, you can move on.
Table 2.2 Steps in Choosing a Topic
Step 1: Define your purpose

Step 2: Explore potential topics

Step 3: Evaluate each potential topic

Step 4: Finalize your topic

Step 5: Begin your research

If the Topic Has Not Been Assigned . . .

If you have not been assigned a topic, then an exciting opportunity lies before you. This means that you

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are free to choose a topic of interest to you, which will often make your essay a stronger one (Veal, 2005).
However, you need to ensure that any topic achieves the desired learning objectives set out and that you are
not simply researching an “interesting” topic, which does not address the assignment requirements. Though in
some classes the choice of topics available is totally up to you, there are several ways that academic staff can
assist you with this activity. That person might, for example, provide a list of topics that he/she is interested
in supervising, thus linking topics with staff expertise (Polonsky & Waller, 1998). If you are determined to
develop a topic on your own, see in Table 2.2 five important steps to assist you in choosing a topic for a
business research project. Based on our experience, however, when students choose their own topics, they
often complain that there is not enough direction in the literature or that the selected topic is too difficult to
examine. In these cases, we always suggest that they complain to the person who selected the topic; that is,
they should blame themselves! Selecting the right topic for you and your assignment is essential.

“If the topic is poorly chosen or defined, it will adversely affect all other
aspects of the research project.”

Business Student

Steps in Choosing a Topic

Step 1: Define Your Purpose

The first thing you must do is to think about the purpose of the project you must complete. What is the
overall purpose of the project? Is the project designed to be part of a single subject, or is it designed to be a
substantial part of your degree, such as a research class assignment, an honors thesis, or even a master’s
thesis? Each of these types of projects has specific requirements that must be fulfilled, and your professor or
the institution usually clearly specifies these requirements (for example, the Assignment Summary document
in the online resources). The assignment requirements will cover issues such as the length, objectives, and
tasks undertaken for an undergraduate business project, which would be very different from those expected
for a master’s thesis (Phillips & Pugh, 2010; Sharp, Peters, & Howard, 2017). It is, therefore, important to
keep in mind the overall purpose of the project.

Second, what are the more specific learning outcomes of the project that should be achieved? Is it to
undertake an academic examination of an issue of interest, to examine some practical business-related
research and communicate the findings, to explain to the reader how to complete a particular task, to give the
researcher experience in using a particular methodology, to educate the reader about a specific thing or idea,
or to teach you about the complexities of research? An important challenge is to ensure that your research
project assignment actually achieves the educational learning objectives (Dehler, 2006). Therefore, whatever
topic you choose, it must fit within the assigned purpose.
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It is important that all business-related projects, even those that are not directly involved with a particular
organization, have some statement of the “business or managerial implications.” This may be outlined within
several alternative sections, such as the introduction, background section to your project or within the
justification section (see the section “Managerial Benefits,” p. 5 of Honors Thesis 1 “Social Influences of
University Education Choice” or sections in Honors Thesis 2 “Game Set Match” at http://polonskywaller.com/).

This will assist you in giving the project a practical purpose and focus the project to make it worthwhile to
undertake and complete. One of the overall objectives of a research project is to demonstrate your ability
to apply theory to practical business problems in a serious academic fashion (Wilson, 2014). The journey
of exploration is generally a core part of the assignment, although its weighting will depend on the type of
assignment. In some cases this may be the main aim, with the outcomes being less important. Of course, the
specific requirements of your project will specify the importance of this objective.

You must also complete your project within a given time and monetary constraints, and your specific level
of expertise (Jankowicz, 2005; Sekaran & Bougie, 2016). Thus, projects must have definable boundaries.
There is probably a limited time schedule within which to work on your project, for example, one semester
or one year. Although many topics may be potentially excellent issues to study, they may require more time,
money, or expertise than you would like or are able to invest in order to properly examine them. Remember,
you might be free to choose the topic of the project, but you must still adequately cover the topic, no matter
how much time, money, or effort that takes. These constrains may make a very interesting topic, one that
you cannot complete successfully within the time limits; thus, understanding your abilities is essential. A good
understanding of the purpose of your project will greatly help you to complete it successfully.

Step 2: Explore Potential Topics

Once you have determined the purpose of your research, you should write down some subjects or ideas that
interest you (or your group members if it is a group project) and explore the feasibility of studying these issues
as a project. There may be an endless number of topics that could be suitable. The trick is to choose one that
you can successfully complete and that is of interest to you.

If you are having trouble thinking of potential topics, begin by looking at issues that interest you. Are there
issues of interest in your textbook, online discussions, the newspaper, or other aspects of your life that you
find interesting and worthy of more research? Interesting current events or “hot topics” might be the subject
for a good topic. For example, the issue of whether consumers will pay for an online streaming service to
watch movies and televisions shows (legally) online is one that has been discussed in the news as well as
in academic journals. Write down all the possible ideas on a piece of paper. Do not jump in and start your
research based on the first idea you thought of, as there may be the need for some refining and focusing to
make it feasible to complete. Remember, this topic will be the focus for the rest of your research project.

If you have a group project, it is important to have conversations with other members in your group, as
they too need to be interested in looking at the topic. If you are undertaking an individual project, you can

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discuss ideas with other students, friends, or academic staff, as they may be a good source of ideas and
sounding boards for how to approach the project. Discussing the topic with others might also help you to
identify potential problems in researching a possible area that you did not think of. Therefore, use others
to help identify the value of a topic and possible pitfalls that you may need to overcome. The latter point is
especially important because when you get too close to a topic, you may not see the potential difficulties. You
should also go to your library or use online resources, such as Google Scholar (which will be discussed in
Chapter 7), to look at recent issues of newspapers, industry magazines, and academic journals related to the
field you are studying for some inspiration and to get a feel for the type of topic that would be worthwhile for
your project. Newspapers report current events and developments while magazines may give more detailed
analysis of issues from an industry point of view, whereas academic journals may look at previous research
of issues, provide a background to the issue, summarize and/or discuss past research, plus present the
results of current studies on the topic. There may be some reference to relevant works (i.e., citations) in
academic journals or textbooks, which will identify other sources or references for your literature review, give
valuable background to your analysis, and indicate whether this topic is an area of interest that is worth further
analysis. Some sources of good potential ideas include the following:

Newspapers: USA Today, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Wall Street Journal
Magazines: Business Week, Time Magazine, Marketing News, HR Magazine, and The Economist
Journals: Harvard Business Review, Journal of Marketing, and Journal of Human Resource
Management

Electronic information tools, such as the library’s online catalog, online indexes, web search engines, subject-
based web directories, and electronic databases (such as Google Scholar, ABI/Inform, EBSCO, and Factiva)
can also be important sources of information and inspiration for potential topics. If you are not sure how to
search these resources, you should talk to one of the librarians at your university, as training is often provided
to students, or there may be online tutorials available. However, when undertaking an electronic search, you
will have to decide on the keywords that describe your topic. If you have a general idea of the subject area,
think about what words would be significant for your project. These words will become the key for searching
the catalogs, indexes, directories, and databases for information about your subject. We will discuss this a
bit more in the Literature Review chapter, but Table 2.3 has some links to sites that discuss the data search
process, which might be used to assist in sourcing information, academic and industry.
Table 2.3 Sites Discussing the Online Data Search Process
Materials Sites

“Search Strategies and Tips” (University

http://guides.lib.uchicago.edu/c.php?g=297835&p=1991782
of Chicago)

“Help Finding Information Online” (The https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/library-museum-gallery/finding-

University of Edinburgh) resources/library-databases/databases-overview

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“Plan Your Search” (University of https://web.library.uq.edu.au/research-tools-techniques/search-techniques/plan-

Queensland) your-search

Potential Topic: What are consumer attitudes toward paying for online streaming services?
Keywords: Consumer
Attitudes
Online
Streaming
Movies

At this stage, you are still exploring and learning about your potential topic and a possible focus for your
project. Be careful that you do not spend too much time reading, printing, and gathering as much information
as you can on the broad topic, especially if you have not properly defined your topic. This could result in a lot
of wasted time and effort if you decide to focus on only one aspect of the topic area. Also, you must keep in
mind Step 1, the purpose of the project, and make sure that the potential topics you may choose will match
the overall purpose of the project.

Finally, while you are exploring the possibility of potential topics for your project, you should ask yourself a
number of questions:

• Are you interested in the topic?

• What do you already know about the topic?
• Are the other group members (if any) also interested in the topic?
• Will the topic fulfill the purpose of the project?
• Is there enough information about the topic?
• Will you be able to collect primary data on the issue, if this is required?
• Do you have the skills or knowledge of the methodology to complete the topic?
• Will your professor, or the audience, be interested in your topic?
• Could the topic offend some members of your audience?
• Will this topic keep your interest for the time it will take to complete the project?

Another potential method to narrow or refine your topic even further is to use the 5 Ws method. This is where
you ask yourself some Who, What, When, Where, and Why questions. These questions could be: Who does
this topic affect? What are the issues relating to the topic? When is the topic important? Where is the topic an
issue? Why is this topic important?

If you have positive responses to these questions for a few potential topic ideas, there is still some important
evaluation to be done to finalize the best project for you. These will be discussed in the next step.

Step 3: Evaluate Each Potential Topic

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If you can think of a few topics that would potentially be appropriate (at this stage, there should be only
two or three possibilities, according to Phillips & Pugh, 2010), you must then consider each one individually.
Think about how you feel about each topic and whether you could work on it as a project topic through to
its completion in regard to your deadline, which could be one semester or a whole year. Even if a potential
topic does not seem particularly appealing, it may be useful to work with it and focus on a new angle, or a
“hook,” that may make the topic better than you first thought. Although if nothing about the topic interests
you, then you should possibly reconsider whether it is indeed a potential option, as you might lose interest or
enthusiasm in selecting such an option. To assist you in evaluating your potential topic, a number of issues
should be considered:

Interest of Researcher/Audience

As mentioned earlier, your topic must be interesting to you. This is really an obvious, but very important, point.
The topic you choose will have to keep your interest until the completion of the project. An enormous amount
of time will be spent doing your research, and a topic that does not hold your interest can easily become
tiresome and result in an unsuccessful project (Jankowicz, 2005). If, on the other hand, you are interested in
the topic, the whole project will be much easier to complete. Your interest will make you more enthusiastic
about the project, your confidence in analysis, and your ability to clearly write your findings. Even if your topic
has been assigned to you, try to discover an aspect of your topic on which to focus the research that will
make it interesting to you and motivate you to do a good job.

Similarly, the topic you choose should be of interest to your audience (Cornford & Smithson, 2006). This
may include your professor, examiners, fellow students, or local business managers, if it is a business-linked
project. Research projects should be undertaken that are worthwhile; otherwise, it could be a total waste of
your valuable and limited time and energy. If the topic does not gain the audience’s interest, the group will
easily become bored—not responding in any presentations of your work, possibly making it harder to get a
high grade, or resulting in a lack of interest from businesses that may have initially been interested in learning
the results of your research. Ultimately, you cannot bore a professor or marker into giving you a better grade.

Appropriate for the Purpose

It is not enough that the topic you choose is interesting to you and your audience. As mentioned earlier, you
should be clear on the purpose of your project and make sure that your topic matches its purpose (Cornford &
Smithson, 2006). While you are evaluating the potential topics, you should continually confirm that the topic is
appropriate for its purpose. Is the potential topic more appropriate for a PhD thesis than for an undergraduate
project or an MBA assignment? You must also keep in mind the size of the project. What are the requirements
of your project and the amount of information needed to complete it? Does the proposed topic fulfill these
requirements? Does covering the topic require more time and effort than is available (or than you are willing
to invest), particularly when the report has a given deadline, which usually cannot be extended? Does the
proposed topic directly relate to the overall subject of the project?

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Feasibility

There are many potential subjects that you might pick, but unfortunately, not all will work well as research
topics for a student project. It is important that the topic you choose is feasible; that is, you are able to
complete all phases to answer the research question(s) being asked. Remember that you must have time to
obtain enough information, undertake the research and craft an informative report or presentation (Jankowicz,
2005). This is a practical issue, as there is no sense in choosing a topic if you cannot finish the work within
the allocated time period. Some current hot topics may be too recent to have generated enough available
literature in the library or might be so popular that competition from other students will make obtaining
information or choosing a unique perspective on them difficult. Other topics may be too obscure or require too
much creative thinking, which does not easily lend itself to project research, at least not for all students. Do
not forget that in all cases, you will also need to be able to access the information needed, whether this is from
managers, employees, consumers, or others, if a questionnaire is being used from a sample of respondents
to answer your question. For example, a student was talking enthusiastically to a group of professors about
a project they wanted to do, but the professors identified that they might not be able to peruse it because the
organization involved was not interested or willing to give them access to the relevant information or its staff.
This would be a bad project, as it would not be doable within the time frame.

Therefore, when evaluating topics, it is a good idea to spend a small amount of time to ensure that there is
enough information presently available on your chosen topic or that you can obtain the required information,
from secondary and primary sources. Once you have begun, it may be difficult to change your topic to
any significant degree, and professors often do not look favorably on major topic changes after you have
committed yourself to a specific topic. As for secondary information, this may mean that when you go online
or to a library to check the availability of resources, you should make sure that the materials you need are
available. You could personally speak to a librarian and undertake both broad and narrow online searches,
which can be helpful for finding out if important reference material is available (see Table 2.3 for guidance on
undertaking online Searching; this is further discussed in Chapter 7). Most academic journals are available
online or have abstracts available on the journal’s website. If a full paper is not available through the journal
website, in many cases your university subscribes to the relevant databases, which could give you full access
to articles. If your library does not own the resource or right to access it, you may be able to request the
material be sourced through interlibrary loan (although this is sometimes restricted to honors, masters, or
PhD students). If there is not enough material available to you to successfully complete a particular topic,
then the topic should be discarded and another one should be considered.

Another issue we have already mentioned is time. Is it feasible for you to complete the project based on your
chosen topic within the deadline set by your professor? How much time do you have to become familiar with
the subject matter? How much time will you have to properly complete the literature review, data gathering,
analysis, writing up, and so forth? You must ensure that you can reasonably complete the project within the
amount of time allowed. For example, looking at how consumers respond to a specific road safety campaign
may require that you do a measure before and after the campaign is undertaken (or access data already

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collected pre- and post-advertising campaign), this might fall outside the constraints of semesters in which
your project is to be undertaken. Of course, you could be lucky as some organizations may have data
available that they will let you use to undertake your research, and thus, time is less an issue. However,
organizing access itself can be a time-consuming activity, which must be taken into account.

Topics of Other Research Projects

It is often valuable to get a list of past research projects that have been completed or those currently being
researched by fellow students. These can be valuable when trying to determine the subject area to choose.
These should give you an idea of the scope of what your project should cover as well. Ideally, you should
choose a topic that no one else is working on (or has recently completed) so that you don’t have to directly
compete with others for the resources, such as books, journal articles, or respondents to surveys, if required;
and so that the examiners do not directly compare two projects on the same topic—examiners would much
prefer a topic that is interesting and different, which would also eliminate any concern regarding potential
plagiarism. Of course, it is also possible that you could use these to identify alternative aspects of projects.
For example, if someone did a quantitative study understanding environmental consumer behavior, you could
decide to look at the same issue using qualitative research to get a deeper understanding of the issues.
Alternatively, you could find an old project that may be interesting to replicate today and see if there is a
change over time (assuming there is a rationale that time should matter). For example, might attitudes toward
products with “Made in China” labels have changed from 20 years ago, given the prominence of Chinese
manufacturing today? Alternatively you could seek to examine a specific segment of the market in more detail,
as that may be more important than a study of the wider population as was done in earlier work—for example,
looking at the children and seeking how their views influence their parents.

Questionable Topics

You may find some potential topics are interesting and that you are able to find a sufficient amount of
published information about them. However, there are topics that may simply be too controversial for a
student project—that is, you might offend some people (including those being researched) if you do not
handle your research sensitively. When topics fall within the range of questionable, students should be
able to justify that they meet the desired criteria of achieving the research purpose and that there is some
rationale to explore them. Most professors would generally discourage students from such projects, simply
because there is no need to explore issues that may be problematic for the students and those involved
in the research. Some topics could result in interesting research, such as racism or sexual harassment in
business, the gay market, or nudity in advertising, but unless you can bring something new to the discussion
and collect data in a way that will not offend your audience, these types of topics should generally not be
considered. For example, one student group wanted to examine the strategic implications of using varying
levels of female nudity in jeans ads. To do this, the students suggested that they would develop their own
advertisements. After many discussions with the students, they demonstrated that they could do this and that
the materials would really be levels of bare skin rather than true “nudity.” They were allowed to proceed only
after convincing their professor that they had the necessary skill, resources, and sensitivity to undertake the
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project they suggested. You should always consider the ethical considerations of any topic before you finally
commit to it. Some potential ethical issues are discussed in Chapter 5.

Business-Linked Projects

It is generally important for research projects to discuss business or managerial implications, although this
will most certainly vary with the type of project being undertaken. For some research, it will be essential to
involve a business in these research projects (Browne, 1979; de los Santos & Vincent, 1989; Humphreys,
1981; Moylan, 2008). For example, in the Group Report “Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children”
(http://polonskywaller.com/student-examples), almost all of the analysis and discussion is focused on what
it means for the organization to better target consumers, whereas in the three honors thesis examples, the
discussion is more focused on business or policy implications of the work.

At some universities, professors proactively seek out organizations that want a given piece of research
undertaken, which may be suitable for your research project. You could be encouraged to talk independently
with businesses involved with your area of interest to seek information, input, assistance with data collection,
and possibly some financing. Often, there may be small and medium-sized firms that would like to use student
projects in this way. This might include a firm that is launching a new product and would like to examine
attitudes and adoption rates, a local shop wanting to find out why local residents frequent other shops, or
a firm that wishes to find out how well various management levels have adopted a service culture. In some
cases, universities have an external relations department that encourages businesses or charities to contact
them if they are interested in being involved in a student project.

Not only are business-linked projects encouraged at some institutions, but evidence exists as well of an
increase in the incidence of client-sponsored research projects in universities (Phillips, 2010). For students,
there can be several benefits in being involved in client-sponsored research, including the opportunity to
work on a meaningful, real-world project as part of a team and develop consulting and research skills that
are highly sought after by industry (Bove & Davies, 2009). Further, interacting with clients allows students
to gain practical skills and the opportunity for “self-directed learning” within a relatively unstructured task
environment (Phillips, 2010). This is also aligned with the push in universities to have more realistic (referred
to as authentic or proximal) assessment tasks (Steiner, 2016).

Even though involving businesses gives the project more practical relevance, it is important that the business
managers you work with understand that the primary focus of the process is to help you (a student) in
completing your degree and that any useful information would be a positive by-product. In many cases,
businesses want information more quickly than is reasonable within a project, or they may “hijack” a project
by interfering with your independence, but these instances may impinge on the quality of the project (this
issue will be discussed further in Chapter 3). It is, therefore, vital that your professor monitors any agreement
between the firm and you. Having said this, it is still possible that firms who initially agree to assist you may
change their mind, thus leaving you without a data source. For example, one student had received approval
from one manager to survey the firm’s employees; unfortunately, the manager left the firm before the study

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started, and the new manager did not want to have a student surveying the firm’s employees. In this instance,
the student found another firm who would help, but if this was not the case, the student would possibly have
not been able to complete the assignment. While having real clients is exciting, it does raise another level of
complexity.

It is also important that all feedback from you to the organization is carefully checked by your professor.
We have had past students who have been very good at “marketing” their work by overselling their findings
and recommendations, and have ignored important limitations and/or had errors in their analysis and
interpretation. As such, this could result in organizations acting on inaccurate information. All student-based
feedback to businesses should, at the very least, include comments from the group’s professor to ensure that
any limitations are highlighted (Polonsky, 1996).
Table 2.4 Online Materials Discussing Selecting and Narrowing a Topic
Materials Sites

https://www.youtube.com/
“Choosing a Manageable Research Topic” (3:43 [min:s])
watch?v=BDuqfJQhFeM

“Choosing and Narrowing Research Topics for APA & MLA Essays”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSHXb83Xtsk
(6:33)

“What Is Research: Choosing Your Topic” (3:36) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_cYq256YEA

“Broad Versus Narrow Research Topics” (4:41) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8anmqCZjIU

https://www.youtube.com/
“Selecting a Research Topic & Formulating a Research Question” (3:34)
watch?v=z58VBWXYzGg

Client Example

On the website, there is an interview with two executives from a charitable organization,
Osteoporosis Australia, which has used student projects to undertake basic research to
assist them to understand the attitudes of potential donors. In the interview, they discuss
what was expected from the student groups and how satisfied they were with the final
reports (http://polonskywaller.com/).

Step 4: Finalize Your Topic

Once you have evaluated the potential topics, look at them again to further focus, refine, and finalize the

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topic you have selected for your project. Think again about the type of research project you are expected
to complete and your abilities and motivations (Sekaran & Bougie, 2016). Will your topic produce a suitable
outcome? It is important to be flexible as your topic’s focus may need to change, and you might need to
revise your research strategy as you undertake your preliminary search for information. You might discover
an interesting article or newspaper item that could introduce an interesting “twist” in your topic. It could be
worthwhile to follow this lead and reconsider your focus. Even though this could feel like a time-consuming
process, it can be a valuable exercise in focusing your research, which can result in a more interesting final
project than what was first planned. Of course, you do need to ensure that you do not try too many twists in
addition to the core focus. This is very tempting as it is easy to say “what if we add X,” but from our experience,
these extensions can easily distract the project or broaden the scope too much. In many cases, students are
forced to leave this extra material, responses to questions, and discussion out of final reports, simply to keep
the report focused and within the word limit. Thus, keeping focused often makes your job easier.

When finalizing your topic, you should also double check whether your topic is too general or too specific (Ellis
& Levy, 2008). Researchers often start with a broad topic, which they must narrow to make a more focused
project (Saunders, 2011). A major criticism of unsuccessful projects is often that the basic idea was too vague
and there was insufficient work refining it in the early stages (Jankowicz, 2005). If your topic is too broad, you
may find that there is too much information that you can assimilate into the project and that it will become
vague, unfocused, and confusing. If your topic is too narrow, or specific, you may discover that there is not
enough information available, and your project will be too detailed to fully analyze in an acceptable depth. If
you realize that your topic is either too general or too narrow, you must be willing to narrow or broaden your
existing topic accordingly, to create an acceptable final topic.

To help in narrowing a topic, you may choose to focus on a specific aspect of the broader subject area. To
help you, ask yourself some questions: What do I already know about this subject? What aspect of the subject
am I really interested in? Is there a time period on which I should concentrate? Is there a geographic region
or country on which I should focus? How will I obtain primary data to examine the issue (if this is required)?
For example,

Broad Topic: Buying on the Internet

Interests: Factors influencing online purchase behavior of movies, TV programs
Time span: Last five years
Place: U.S.A.
Narrowed Topic: What are local university students’ attitudes toward paying for online streaming
services?

To broaden topics, think of parallel and broader associations for your research to find a topic that will be easier
to research. Again, to help you, ask yourself some questions: Are there more broad aspects of this subject
area to research? Are there more broad aspects of this subject that interest me? Are there other countries or
regions to include in my research? What wider issues does this topic include?

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Following the process discussed in this chapter means that you will ultimately undertake the following steps:

1. Select a potential topic

2. Survey information on the topic
3. Locate materials
4. Evaluate your topic, resources, and research strategy
5. Reevaluate your topic
6. Revise and edit
7. Finalize your topic

Also, if you are undertaking a project as part of a group assignment, there needs to be a frank discussion,
negotiation, and agreement with all group members. This will be discussed further in Chapter 4. If you
have any difficulty in finding or refining your research topic, make sure that you talk with your professor
before spending too much time and effort on the project (Jankowicz, 2005). Your professor would have more
experience with research projects and may suggest alternative approaches or recommend important sources
of information to assist you.

Step 5: Begin Your Research

Once you have determined that your topic will be suitable and achievable, and you are committed to it,
you can move on to start the research. Go on to the next step to establish your research objectives.
Chapter 6 discusses the planning of your research. Before undertaking the research, it is important to
discuss issues associated with the research, such as defining the role of your supervisor (Chapter 3), issues
associated with working in groups (Chapter 4), and understanding ethical considerations (Chapter 5). Those
of you undertaking an individually based minor research project that is part of a course might wish to skip
chapters that are not relevant, although these chapters may serve as valuable resources for future research
assignments.

Project Checklist

* Do you have to choose a topic, or is it given to you?

* What is the purpose of your project?
* Evaluate your topic. Is it feasible?
* Does your topic need to be refined further?
* Does your topic require you to collect additional skills or knowledge,
and do you want to do this?
* Are you ready to begin your research?

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Table 2.5 Additional Video, Audio, and Interactive Resources

Resource Brief Description Link

A video that discusses approaches to designing a research

“Develop a
question
Research https://www.youtube.com/
Question That Video resource watch?v=8aYA1ooRce8
Works”
Duration: approx. 5 minutes

“Develop a A step-by-step guide to designing the research topic; also

Research Topic” discusses background research and secondary sources
[Information that help to identify topics http://www.youtube.com/
Literacy Series]
watch?v=nUjoEOUYBDE
Online tutorial
Johnson Wales
University Duration: approx. 7 minutes

Online tutorial that provides an introduction to research

“Library Research projects. Topics include designing a research topic,

identifying information requirements, and evaluating
Tutorial” https://subjectguides.library.american.edu/
information.
American infolit

University Online tutorial

Duration: approx. 1 hour

ThatQuirkyGirl discusses her thesis.

“10 Tips for
https://www.youtube.com/
Writing Your Video resource
watch?v=Y7Cv_jFdExw
Dissertation”
Duration: approx. 4 minutes

Case Study

The management of High Performance Shoes (HPS) has asked for a research project to discover how
consumers will respond to more explicit integration of CSR-related activities in regard to managing suppliers.
While the overall goal has been specified, you do still have some flexibility regarding how you examine the
issue, as what HPS management has asked for could be seen as quite general in its focus. Thus, you need
to think about how you can refine the topic. Do consumers see the link to the supplier’s CSR as important?
How might HPS communicate the link to suppliers to relate CSR and its shoes? Might there in fact be any
negative consequences with trying to make this link? Can HPS in fact ensure that suppliers in fact operate
responsibly?

• Are there other research questions that could be asked?

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• What do you see as the main advantage and disadvantage of each potential project?
• How interested and able are you to undertake each alternative?

Chapter Questions

1. Identify which step you think is the most important in the process of choosing a topic.
2. Identify a few ways or places that you might look to define the topic you would choose to
research.
3. What are your motivations for undertaking a project, and how might these impact your choice?
4. Do you have any limitations that might affect the type of projects you would select?
5. What would make a specific project topic a bad choice generally?

References

Bove, L. L., & Davies, W. M. (2009). A case study of teaching marketing research using client-sponsored
projects: Method, challenges, and benefits. Journal of Marketing Education, 31(3), 230–239.

Browne, W. G. (1979). Using corporate sponsored marketing management projects. Journal of Marketing
Education, 1(2), 39–47.

Collis, J., & Hussey, R. (2013). Business research: A practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate
students. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Cornford, T., & Smithson, S. (2006). Project research in information systems (2nd ed.). Basingstoke, UK:
Palgrave Macmillan.

Dehler, G. E. (2006). Using action research to connect practice to learning: A course project for working
management students. Journal of Management Education, 30(5), 636–669.

de los Santos, G., & Vincent, V. (1989). Student research projects are gaining in popularity. Marketing News,
23(1), 3.

Ellis, T. J., & Levy, Y. (2008). Framework of problem-based research: A guide for novice researchers
on the development of a research-worthy problem. Informing Science Journal: The International Journal
of an Emerging Transdiscipline, 11, 17–33. Retrieved from http://www.inform.nu/Articles/Vol11/
ISJv11p017-033Ellis486.pdf

Humphreys, M. A. (1981). Client-sponsored projects in a marketing research course. Journal of Marketing

Education, 3(2), 7–12.

Jankowicz, A. D. (2005). Business research projects (4th ed.). London, UK: Thomson Learning.

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Moylan, W. A. (2008). Learning by project: Developing essential 21st century skills using student team
projects. International Journal of Learning, 15(9), 287–292.

Phillips, C. (2010). Students’ research experiences during consulting projects: Three themes emerging from
case studies. Behavioral & Social Sciences Librarian, 29(2), 91–108.

Phillips, E. M., & Pugh, D. S. (2010). How to get a PhD: A handbook for students and their supervisors (5th
ed.). Berkshire, UK: Open University Press.

Polonsky, M. (1996). Making student research more ethical: A preliminary examination. In E. J.Wilson & J.
FHairJr. (Eds.), Developments in marketing science (pp. 74–75). Coral Gables, FL: Academy of Marketing
Science.

Polonsky, M. J., & Waller, D. S. (1998). Using student projects to link academics, business and students.
Journal of Teaching in International Business, 10(2), 55–78. doi.org/10.1300/J066v10n02_04

Saunders, M. N. (2011). Research methods for business students (5th ed.). New Delhi: Pearson Education
India.

Sekaran, U., & Bougie, R. (2016). Research methods for business: A skill building approach. Hoboken, NJ:
Wiley.

Sharp, J. A., Peters, J., & Howard, K. (2017). The management of a student research project. Farnham,
UK: Grower.

Steiner, H. H. (2016). The strategy project: Promoting self-regulated learning through an authentic
assignment. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 28(2), 271–282.

Veal, A. J. (2005). Business research methods: A managerial approach (2nd ed.). Sydney: Pearson
Education Australia.

Wilson, J. (2014). Essentials of business research: A guide to doing your research project. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage.

http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781544316499.n2

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