The Question

Luker raises a valid point in the assigned readings for this week. This being that, as students, we need to “transform [our] research interest into a research question” (51). She further elaborates on this point, stressing the need to focus/frame the topic and the question. Having read a handful of research proposals from class, it is interesting to view the variety of approaches available to us (some of which I had never even encountered nor used myself). The format of the proposal about the “Cocktail Party” seems to appeal to me the most so far. Something that was raised among our group discussion was that this format attempts to prevent the formation of bias by the reader (it even raises the potential, as ChristinaF pointed out, that the format chosen is a ‘sales tactic’). The author chose to include their personal information (i.e. program of study, experience etc...) in the last paragraph of the proposal. As such, this allows a neutral presentation of their study, appealing to a vast audience (instead of the community of feminist theorists of which the author is part of). Nevertheless, while I seem to have found a comfortable format, it seems like a long road ahead awaits me trying to determine my research question for the SSHRC and particularly forming “a set of relationships between or among concepts” (51). For now, my only ideas are to attempt a proposal around the field of LIS and architecture. From these I hope I can find a suitable relationship which can contribute to social life, yields a range of possible answers (as Luker deemed necessary) and which I can appropriately ‘sell’ to the SSHRC committee.