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Strategies for Selecting a Research Topic

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 Technical Article n

STRATEGIES FOR SELECTING A RESEARCH TOPIC

Dr. G. R. Adhikari

Abstract
Selection of a research topic is a challenge for students and professionals alike. This paper addresses those challenges by presenting
some strategies based on existing body of knowledge and the author’s own experience. It identifies the attributes necessary to
effectively generate ideas and to convert those ideas into research topics. The study proposes a ‘FRIENDS’ framework comprising
seven best practices for selecting a research topic for Ph.D. dissertations or research projects. An example of using the suggested
framework is presented.

1. INTRODUCTION • Conduct literature review to determine what is known

A topic is different from a subject, although these terms are and what is not known and the areas that need additional
sometimes used interchangeably. To avoid any confusion, let research. Carefully look through “Recommendations
us recall that in high schools, we studied different subjects. for future research” and ‘Limitations’ sections of
Physics was a subject and ‘Newton’s laws of motion’ was dissertations and review articles published in scholarly
a topic. A subject of a research study refers to broad and journals.
general contents whereas a topic of research is a specific • Search on the internet but be careful
issue being investigated. that not every website is trustworthy and secure. Try to
avoid non-trustworthy websites.
Selecting the right topic is the first step in the research journey
• Attend presentations, discussion and recommendations
towards Ph.D. or any other research project. In the case
of conferences/seminars in the field to get ideas about
of Ph.D., the following scenarios are prevalent in practice:
the current and future research needs. The participant
a) If the scholarship for a Ph. D. program is funded from a
can approach the authors for their suggestions for
research project, then the candidate is supposed to work with
further research.
the already identified topic and objectives. If the research
is sponsored by a company, the researcher has to conduct • Build an academic network within and outside the
studies on the problem identified by the management. In this university. Topic selection does not have to be an
scenario, the researcher has limited flexibility in modifying individual effort. The researcher can interact with fellow
the topics and objectives, b) The supervisor may suggest students, seniors and teachers who can stimulate
some research topics which may be an extension of his prior innovative ideas. If possible, visit nearby research and
research. In this case, the supervisor may have knowledge academic institutes to know what others are doing.
in the topic and the researcher may get support from him, • Attend as many viva voce as possible because the
and c) Other research scholars have to select their own discussions that occur during a dissertation’s oral
topics. It is important to adopt proper strategies so that they defense may open up the eyes for potential topics.
do not struggle for this purpose. • Check the thrust areas for research on the websites of
Universities of interest, related ministries/departments
This paper examines the available literature (Kumar, 2011; and international funding agencies. A good proposal
Saunders et al, 2009; Hulley et al, 2013; Kothari, 1985; from the areas that are of interest to the sponsor has a
Young, 2019; Parija and Kate, 2018; Jensen, 2013; Tayie, better chance of winning a fully funded scholarship or
2005; Donaghey, 2020; France, 2019; Lindawati, 2017) projects.
from a fresh perspective based on the author’s experience.
• Find out the problems of the industries of interest and
It suggests strategies on how to generate ideas and how
ideas to find solutions to the problems can win fully
to transform those ideas into research topics for a Ph. D.
Industry funded research.
programme or any other research project.
• Organise some brainstorming sessions in a group of
2. GENERATE IDEAS FOR POTENTIAL RESEARCH 4-6 knowledgeable people and ponder on the ideas
TOPICS generated.
Creative thinking is needed to generate new, original and • A good research idea may arise from certain conditions
unique ideas. Some of the sources of research topics are or situations in the world. The present situation due
(Wang and Park, 2016; Roberts 2010): to COVID-19 has created opportunities for research

Formerly Prof., Mining Engineering, Goa College of Engineering, Email: [email protected]

Mining Engineers’ Journal, Vol. 22, No. 1 27 August 2020

n Technical Article

in microbiological, immunological, pathological, option. The PhD scholar, who depends on the supervisor’s
clinical, preventive and socio-economic aspects of the expertise, may not try to work independently. Quadrant IV is
pandemic. not advisable because the scholar has limited interest in the
topic and the supervisor has little involvement.
A mind map may be used to visually organise ideas. The
central idea can be placed in the center of the diagram while
related ideas are added to it in a radial fashion.

3. CONVERTING IDEAS INTO RESEARCH TOPICS

Once researchers have ideas, they need to evaluate those
ideas critically to come up with potential research topics.
This process involves the following, not necessarily linear
steps:

3.1 Topics of Interest

Choose potential topics of interest so that the researcher
continues being motivated to successfully overcome
problems that are generally encountered in the course
of the study. The topic should also be interesting to the
supervisor and other members of the committee, and meet
the specifications and the standards of the university.

3.2 Topics Appropriate to the Discipline

Researchers’ interest should be either in the core discipline Figure 1 Choosing a topic and an adviser matrix [14]
or in closely related disciplines. Interdisciplinary research is
now encouraged within the specifications and the standards Although most supervisors are honest, there are examples of
set by the institute. Try to identify three potential topics and exploitation of PhD students by their supervisors. Therefore,
write a clear statement of the problem and describe research try to investigate the track record of the faculty member
methodology in each case. Also think about the alternatives before choosing someone as the supervisor (Martin, 2013).
for discussion with the supervisor.
3.4 Narrow Down the Broad Topic to a Specific Topic
3.3 Identify a Supervisor When the scope of a topic is too broad or too narrow, it will
In most higher education systems, an application for Ph. be difficult to conduct research. If the topic is too broad, the
D. registration is accompanied with a proposal. At that time researcher will end up writing only in general and is unlikely
the candidate has to identify a supervisor whose main role to go deeper into the problem due to the limitations of time
is to guide through the dissertation process. Every Ph. D. and resources. If the topic is too narrow, it becomes difficult
student has a supervisor from the same department. In to find adequate literature which is necessary to describe
case of interdisciplinary work, the student may have a co- the background of the study and to identify a research gap.
supervisor from the other department. Part-time candidates It is necessary to narrow down the broad topic to a specific
can have co-supervisors usually from the research institute/ topic that is suitable for research.
company where they are employed. In the case of projects
taken up by scientists of a research institute, the role of Let us take a research topic “Unemployment problem in
supervisor is usually replaced by a coordinator/advisor. India”. It is too broad or too general for a focused study, and
However, every academic or research institute may have its it may not be possible for a researcher to cover all sectors
own regulations. within a given time frame and budget constraints. The topic
can be limited to the mining sector, which can be further
Figure 1 shows a matrix for choosing a topic and a supervisor restricted to the iron ore mining sector. It can be further
considering the candidate’s involvement in the topic and the restricted to a specific category of graduates such as mining
involvement of a supervisor (Single, 2010). The quadrant I graduates. Figure 2 illustrates how the topic can be gradually
(Mentoring) represents the best option as the involvement narrowed down to a specific topic “Unemployment problem
of both the supervisor and the scholar in the topic is high. for mining graduates in the iron ore mining sector in India.”
Quadrant II (Coaching) is the next best option if the researcher By narrowing down the scope, we have not downplayed its
is capable of working independently with minimum support importance but made it suitable for a focused study which is
of the supervisor. Quadrant III (apprenticeship) is not a good relevant to a specific audience.

Mining Engineers’ Journal, Vol. 22, No. 1 28 August 2020

 Technical Article n

themselves for the purpose of specific study through

interviews, surveys, and laboratory or field experiments. The
possibility of collecting the data is also to be explored. One of
the Ph. D. scholars did not get permission to collect gold mill
tailings samples from a mining company, and this problem
was not anticipated at the time of registration. He had to
abandon his Ph. D. program after two years of registration.
Secondary data which has already been collected in the past
can save time and money. However, the researcher needs to
Figure 2 Converting a broad topic to a narrow topic by restricting certain check whether or not the data are accessible, reliable and
parameters complete.

3.5 Scientific, Practical, Social or Personal Relevance The researcher may conduct his/her own SWOT (Strength,
It is important that the topic has scientific, social or practical Weakness, Opportunity and Threat) analysis. If the topic
relevance or is useful to other researchers, practitioners and does not match the strength in terms of qualification and
policy makers. It should be useful to a researcher’s career experience, the researcher may have to stretch beyond
goals. comfort zones in acquiring new skills.

The research on the topic should ideally make an original 3.7 Ethics in Research
contribution to the field. As evidence for original and novel Research ethics is an essential part of a research project,
research work conducted by the candidate, most universities and it needs to be considered, particularly when the study
make it mandatory for the candidate to publish 2/3 papers involves humans and animals. The researcher needs to be
in reputed journals before submission of Ph.D. dissertation. aware of the applicable codes of ethics related to the project
Research can be conducted to solve practical problems and should keep the following in mind (Saunders, 2009,
of the industries or organisations. The industry will have Hulley et al, 2013, Wang and Park, 2016):
interest and support if anticipated research will be beneficial
• Necessary approval for all studies that involve humans
to them. Research should be relevant to the communities or
from the competent authority.
society in which it is conducted.
• Necessary approval for clinical trials of drugs from the
Select a research topic that may help to get a job or a competent authority.
promotion. If a final year M.Sc. (Mining Geologist) student • Any risk of harming people, the environment, or
is keen to work in the cement sector, a dissertation topic property.
related to detailed exploration of limestone deposits would • Privacy and confidentiality.
be appropriate.
• Society’s cultural, moral, religious and legal values.
3.6 Feasibility of the Study • Honesty and integrity in conducting research.
It is necessary to assess the feasibility of potential topics
whether the project can be undertaken with available 4. FRIENDS: THE ESSENCE OF TOPIC SELECTION
resources in terms of manpower, time frame, financial, An acronym FRIENDS, which is formed by using the first
equipment and other facilities.. letter of the word (Figure 3), captures the essence of topic
selection criteria. Additional words or phrases on the right
Research studies are time-bound. Sometimes, researchers side corresponding to these words (Figure 3) act as the
have to deal with uncertainties that affect the project pointers to the details of each word.
schedule. In one of our projects, the principal equipment
did not work, and we lost one year in procuring/repairing 5. TOPIC SELECTION: AN EXAMPLE
equipment. As a result, the project was completed in four Let me first explain the background of the study which is in
years instead of three years. the area of ground vibration due to blasting. Blasting is the
principal method of rock breakage in mines but may create
It is necessary to assess the financial aspect of a research adverse effects in the surrounding in the form of ground
study. The budget framework should indicate the total cost vibration, noise and flyrock. Seismographs are used to
and its break up towards the purchase of equipment, travel, monitor and control blast vibrations. A typical seismograph
contingency etc. consists of a recording unit and a transducer. Proper mounting
(placement) of transducers is important while monitoring
Researchers can also plan whether to use primary or blast vibration. Several mounting methods were suggested,
secondary data. Primary data is collected by the researchers but there was no consensus among international bodies,

Mining Engineers’ Journal, Vol. 22, No. 1 29 August 2020

n Technical Article

blasting experts and equipment manufacturers regarding also important for mining professionals and policy makers
methods of transducer mounting. Some used to bury the as its outcome had potential applications in ground vibration
transducer in soil, some used spikes or sandbags while monitoring.
others placed it freely on the ground surface. Most experts
agreed that the best coupling can be achieved if transducer The idea for the study was conceived in 2001, but it was
is buried in the ground. The transducer mounting methods not feasible to conduct the study at that time due to non-
were inconsistent and contradictory, which clearly indicated availability of necessary equipment. We needed four to
a gap in understanding. Therefore, a topic for research five seismographs of the same model from a reputed
“influence of different transducer mounting methods on manufacturer of seismographs. Necessary seismographs
ground vibration measurements” was identified. were procured in 2002 under a major research project which
was funded by the Ministry of Coal, Government of India. In
conducting this study at a surface coal mine in 2002-03, four
seismographs were mounted at one location side by side
using four different methods to simultaneously record ground
vibrations from the same blasts. The measurement surfaces
in all these experiments consisted of soil. Only difference
was in the placement of transducers. The first transducer
was placed freely on a horizontal surface, the second one
was ‘sandbagged’, the third one was ‘spiked’ and the fourth
one was buried in soil. The field work was completed in two
weeks and 14 blasts were monitored. In this example, it
took a few years from idea to field experimentation. Unless
the researcher has a sustained interest, such ideas are
forgotten or become absolute if someone publishes results
of similar studies.

Taking the buried transducer as the standard, performance

of transducers was evaluated in terms of peak particle
velocity, peak vector sum and frequency. The analysis of
the data showed that transducers should never be placed
freely on the surface irrespective of anticipated vibration
levels. Sandbagging and spiking methods also did not give
accurate results in some cases. Therefore, burial should be
the preferred method of mounting transducers in soil.

Regarding the ethical aspect, no human or animal was

involved in this study. The mines had permission for storage
of explosives and for conducting blasting operations. The
mines’ team followed the stipulated safe procedures for
Figure 3 Suggested framework for topic selection
blasting. The details of the studies are available in our
published paper (Adhikari et al, 2005).
The identified research topic was evaluated with reference
to the FRIENDS framework. We had interest and curiosity, 6. CONCLUSIONS
and it was within the area of our specialisation. Identification The choice of a research topic is governed primarily by the
of supervisor was not applicable as work was not for an interest and passion of the researcher. The research interest
academic degree. In this research project, the Institute’s is normally limited to the core or related disciplines to be
Director was an advisor. The scope of the work was acceptable to the supervisor and the university. Narrow and
already focused and specific; hence, there was no need to focused topics that might advance scientific knowledge or
narrow down the scope. This topic had scientific relevance solve practical problems or might benefit society are further
because there was no clear understanding about methods examined from the feasibility and ethical aspects. The
of transducer mountings. This understanding was essential ‘FRIENDS’ framework for topic selection, which incorporates
to assess and control ground vibrations for the welfare of different aspects, might be useful for research scholars in
the people residing nearby the mines. Hence, the study was general and Ph. D. scholars in particular.

Mining Engineers’ Journal, Vol. 22, No. 1 30 August 2020

 Technical Article n

Obituary Obituary
Shri Jahir Ali J Makarani, aged
52 years, an MEAI Life Mem-
ber (LM No. 1353/Ahmedabad
chapter) and a Mechanical En-
gineer for 33 years with GMDC,
succumbed to Covid-19 on 2nd
July 2020 at Bhuj Hospital,
Gujarat. Late Shri Makarani
did Diploma in Mechanical En-
Shri Jahir Ali J Makarani gineering from Govt. Polytech-
(5.5.1968 – 2.7.2020)
nic Dahod (Gujarat) and joined Shri Kolli Umamaheswara Rao
GMDC in the year 1987. Since (02.01.1945 - 20.07.2020)
then he worked with GMDC at its various mines/projects.
He is survived by his wife and three daughters. Shri Kolli Umamaheswara Rao (K.U.Rao), Joint
Secretary cum Treasurer and National Council Member
The members of MEAI express their heartfelt condolenc- breathed his last on 20th July 2020 at Hyderabad after a
es to his family and pray for his soul rest in peace. brief illness. The MEAI family lost a great personality who
rendered commendable service to the MEAI for several
decades.
REFERENCES
Kumar, R.; 2011, Research Methodology: A Step-by-Step Guide for
Beginners, Sage Publication, 3rd edition, New Delhi. The MEAI family is deeply saddened on his untimely
Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhill, A., 2009, Research Methods for demise and pray the almighty to grant the Noble soul
Business Students, 5th edition, Prentice Hall, New York. rest in peace. We also express our deep sense of grief
Hulley, S. B., Cummings, S. R., Browner, W.S., Grady, D. G., Newman, T.
B., 2013, Designing Clinical Research, Philadelphia, Lippincott, Williams, & to the family and pray God to grant them strength and
Wilkins, Philadelphia. fortitude to bear this great personal loss.
Kothari, C. R., 1985, Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques, 2nd
edition, New Age International (P) Ltd., New Delhi. Shri K.U. Rao has been the Joint Secretary cum Treasurer
Young, S. N., Vanwye, W. R., Schafer, M. A., Robertson, T. A. and Poore,
A.V., 2019, “Factors Affecting Ph. D. Student Success,” Int J Exercise of MEAI since 2017 and life member from Hyderabad
Science 12(1), pp. 34-45. Chapter. He was active participant in every program
Parija, S. C. and Kate V., 2018, Thesis Writing for Master's and Ph. D. conducted by MEAI headquarters, Hyderabad. He was
Program, Springer, Singapore.
one of pillars of the MEAI and has notable contribution
Jensen, P. H., 2013, “Choosing Your Ph.D. Topic (and Why it is Important),”
The Australian Economic Review, 46 (4), pp. 499-507. in shifting MEAI HQ to Hyderabad and in expanding and
Tayie, S., 2005, Research Methods and Writing Research Proposals, Cairo modernizing our HQ office and many more significant
University. contributions to his credit.
Donaghey, J., 2020, “Choosing Your Topic: A Supervisor’s Perspective,” How
to Keep Your Doctorate on Track: Insights from Students’ and Supervisors’
Experiences, Townsend, K., Saunders, M.N.K., Loudoun, R., Morrison, E. Upon completion of his education, Shri K.U. Rao worked
A.; eds., Edward Elgar Publishing Limited., UK. in Coal, Limestone, Bauxite, Granite, Clay Mines in the
France, A., 2019, “Sources of Research Topic Generation: Lessons state of Andhra Pradesh and other states for over 12
from Proficient Researchers of Business Management Disciplines.” The
Electronic J Business Research Methods, 17(2), pp. 74-85. years. He worked in IDL Industries, now known as Gulf
Lindawati, 2017, Cracking a Ph D.: Revelation of 5 Stages in Doctoral Oil Corporation Ltd, a multinational company, for over 25
Journey, Springer, Singapore. years in various capacities in marketing of explosives
Wang, G. T. and Park, K., 2016, Student Research and Report Writing: and associated products. He retired in the year 2003
From Topic Selection to the Complete Paper, First edition, John Wiley &
Sons Ltd., West Sussex, UK. as Business Manager in charge of South India & Goa.
Roberts, C.M., 2010, Choosing a Dissertation Topic, The Dissertation He was also a Certificate holder in handling explosives
Journey: A Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Planning, Writing, and and “Advanced Rock Blasting Technique” issued by Nitro
Defending Your Dissertation, SAGE Publications.
Nobel A. B Sweden.
Single, P. B., 2010, Demystifying Dissertation Writing: A Streamlined
Process from Choice of Topic to Final Text, Stylus Publishing, Sterling,
Virginia. Shri K.U. Rao led a successful family life and survived by
Martin, B., 2013, “Countering Supervisor Exploitation,” J Scholarly his wife, daughter (settled in USA), son and grandchildren.
Publishing, 45(1), pp. 74-86.
The members of MEAI pray for his rest in peace and
Adhikari, G. R., Theresraj, A. I. and Gupta, R. N., 2005, “Influence of
transducer-ground Coupling on Vibration Measurements,” Fragblast J, 9(2), express heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.
pp. 79-92.

Mining Engineers’ Journal, Vol. 22, No. 1 31 August 2020

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