LibGuides: COMM 110: Perez: Choose Your Topic

Choosing Topics

Whenever you are given the freedom to do so, select a topic that genuinely interests you and/or is relevant to your life. Do a quick inventory:

What makes you tick? What defines you?
What problems affect you or someone close to you?
What do you think the biggest problem in society is?

You'll want to consider the following issues before you select your topic:

Will it sustain my interest?
Does it fit the parameters of my assignment?
Is credible information on this topic readily available?

You can get ideas for research topics from several Cañada article databases and from the Web. Each of these databases has a "browse topics" tab.

CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
CQ Researcher includes current, hot topic reports providing unbiased coverage of health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy.
Opposing Viewpoints in Context This link opens in a new window
Opposing Viewpoints is an engaging online experience for those seeking contextual information and opinions on hundreds of today's hottest social issues. Drawing on the acclaimed Greenhaven Press series, the solution features continuously updated viewpoints, topic overviews, full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, statistics, images, videos, audio files and links to vetted websites organized into a user-friendly portal experience.
Wall Street Journal This link opens in a new window
The Wall Street Journal is a news source that focuses on business issues but also includes articles on society, politics, and more. Cañada College Library has joined the Wall Street Journal in a collaboration that will provide students, faculty, and staff with direct access to the Journal. You can use your Cañada-sponsored WSJ membership to research topics relevant to your courses and careers, save and share pertinent articles with others, follow companies and industries that interest you, track real-time stories and trends, and follow coverage of arts, culture, and life.
For more information check out our Wall Street Journal FAQ Guide: https://guides.canadacollege.edu/wsj/FAQ
New York Times This link opens in a new window
Cañada College Library offers online New York Times accounts for all students, staff, and faculty. This includes unlimited access via mobile apps on tablets and smart phones. NYTimes.com accounts are good for one year for eligible Cañada College community members only (current students, staff, and faculty), after which accounts need to be renewed.
For more information check out our NYT guide https://guides.canadacollege.edu/newyorktimes
Communication & Mass Media Complete (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Communication & Mass Media Complete provides the most robust, quality research solution in areas related to communication and mass media. You can search numerous journals in communication, mass media, and other closely-related fields of study to create a research and reference resource of unprecedented scope and depth encompassing the breadth of the communication discipline. This database includes full text for over 450 journals.

Develop Your Topic

Once you identify a strong topic you need to find a manageable focus for your work. Focusing involves clearly defining the specific aspect of the topic you will explore. Think of formulating a guiding research question that captures the main idea of your research. In short: what are you trying to figure out?

Things to consider when focusing:

How long is the finished product supposed to be? What can you reasonably cover in that amount?
What is your task? Remember, your task for this essay is to inform.

Here are some methods by which you can begin to focus. For example: "The Psychological Properties of Color"

Go back to “why” you chose your topic. What made you choose your topic in the first place? Sometimes articulating the “why” out loud will directly reveal the direction you want to go with your topic. Example: I want know how colors affect our moods?

Do some preliminary reading. Take a few minutes to run your topic through the library catalog and the library databases. Note how others are exploring your topic. What “grabs” you? What doesn’t?

Talk to others about your topic. Check in not only with your professors and librarians, but talk to your friends, family and classmates about your topic. Having your topic reflected by someone else can often spark great ideas, and any chance to articulate your topic “out loud” is beneficial.