Hi all,
Welcome to ScienceIQ! This post is for newbies (students) or anybody who is looking for research ideas for their academic assignments. It is quite daunting to prepare a proposal when you have absolutely no idea about what is it that you wish to do or what is expected in such research assignments. I have written a post on How to Prepare a Research Proposal https://scienceiq.blog/2020/11/16/how-to-prepare-research-protocols-for-beginners/ which you can consider reading. In this post I will share some ideas as the first few steps towards your research journey.
I suggest looking for areas which intrigue you and you wish to find a solution for a clinical problem. A good starting point would be your clinical placements where you can reflect on your interests and areas in which you would like to contribute through your research. For example, you may be curious to know which treatment technique might be potentially effective for a clinical problem in a specific condition or patient population or understanding how one clinical parameter is linked to another or monitoring health benefits of an intervention or applying any known treatment technique in another population to understand its effects. Some examples could be:
What can we do to mitigate freezing of gait in Parkinson’s?
Will managing tremors in PD lead to lesser falls?
Does interval training work well in team sports?
How does managing depression improve mobility in elderly?
PS- these are just random thoughts and not intended to direct you in considering these research questions.
Therefore, once you find your topic of interest then you can begin researching it. Read relevant and recent articles on that topic. Read the future research scope sections to see if it matches with your idea or a potential tweak!
Once you have gained some more clarity, the next step would be to have a second opinion on your topic. This is time to have a discussion with your supervisor and consider their expert opinions. After consolidating your ideas and your supervisors’ feedback, consider the specific details such as:
Study design – Single group interventional study or randomised control trial or feasibility study or observational study
P- Population of interest
I – Intervention/exposure
C- Comparison if relevant
O- Outcome
Some essential points to consider while planning your research are:
Time available to conduct the research – If you are just proposing research idea then you will be unlikely to think about implementation but if you are supposed to complete the research then think about the time available to conduct the research and have a set timeline to achieve goals using Gantt chart.
Ethical issues – Your proposed research should not cause any harm to the patients or participants and in fact it must have potential benefits. Consider mental as well as physical harm because of your intervention before planning your study.
Practicality/Feasibility – This would include time, cost, affordability, equipment available and your expertise in carrying out the proposed research. It should be achievable and within your skillset.
Novelty/significance– A very important point that I always tell my students is to think about the novelty of the study and what impact it might have on patients or population you chose to study. If the topic had been extensively researched, then it would not add any value or contribute to science. So, ensure that your topic bridges the gap in literature and the findings can have potential impact in clinical practice or on overall quality of life of patients.
To summarise, think of a topic that you gravitate towards. Read pertinent articles to identify gaps in literature and fine tune your question. Discuss with your supervisor and plan the specific details. Consider patients’ safety, practicality, and implementation while thinking about your research question.
Hope you find it useful,
Cheers,
Amreen
Science IQ 