Research

How it is used

The most basic word in academic life. You do, conduct or carry out research on or into a topic, and research shows, suggests or finds something. As a noun it is uncountable, so academics say 'studies' or 'a body of research' when they need a plural idea.

Example sentences

1. Previous research on online learning has focused mainly on university students.

2. She is carrying out research into water quality in rural areas.

3. More research is needed before we can draw firm conclusions.

Common collocations

• conduct research
• carry out research
• research on/into
• previous research
• further research

Related terms

• research questionA clear, focused question that a study is designed to answer; it guides the choice of methods, data and analysis.
• methodologyThe overall approach and reasoning behind how a study is done, including the choice of design, methods, data and analysis, and the reasons for those choices.
• carry outTo do or complete a planned task, such as an experiment, survey, analysis or piece of research.
• findingsThe results or information that a study discovers after its data have been collected and analyzed.

More terms: Research Design

• hypothesis
• qualitative
• quantitative
• sample
• participant
• questionnaire
• case study
• validity
• reliability
• mixed methods
• variable
• survey