How is the Research Question related to the Problem Statement?

As a lecturer and a postgraduate study leader, I constantly have to explain to students what a problem statement is, what a research question is, and what the relationship between the two is. 

Let me try and explain how the problem statement and research question works. These are my own explanations and are not meant to be academic and scientific. The purpose of this explanation is to help students understand the link between these two parts of research.

The problem statement is a sentence, not a question. It must describe a problem that must be solved. So, if you are interested in the topic of talent management and competitive advantage, what is the problem that you are trying to solve regarding talent management and competitive advantage? The problem is important because that problem is the reason your article/thesis/essay becomes worthwhile to read. If you just give me an essay that details talent management, the related processes, performance management and other topics, I can find that information myself. However, when you link these topics to a problem, I see the value in your study. When you link what literature says to the problem that you have identified, a contribution to scholarship could emerge.

Once you identify the problem statement, you will then dive into the various concepts in your problem statement. If talent management is a concern, you will look into literature to see what scholars have said about talent management (definition, characteristics, benefits, recent trends, etc.). You will also look at and unpack performance management and other topics linked to your problem statement.

As you scan literature, you may realise that there are aspects of your problem statement that have already been identified and studied by some scholars. You will discuss those aspects in the body of your literature review.

You may also find that there are some aspects of your problem statement that have not been studied. This ‘gap’ in literature is what you must identify. Your research question will address this gap. The gap or the research question is what you will go out into the field to find the answer of. So, while you may not be able to solve the problem in the problem statement, if you were to do research, by answering the research question, you would be solving a part of the puzzle that is the problem.

Let me use an example. Your poodle is not eating its food. There is a problem there, isn’t it? The problem statement is that the poodle is not eating its food. Now, you will read literature to look at what dogs are, what different breeds there are, what are the eating habits of different dogs, what types of food do they eat, recent trends in dog food, etc. As you read, you realise that while all of this information is useful, the information available makes you understand your dog and dog food more, but it is not telling you why your dog is not eating its food. So, the problem is still not solved.

However, you find out that no one has studied the relationship between different breeds of dog and their preference of dog foods, for example. Here’s the ‘gap’. Perhaps, there is a link between the breed and type of dog food. So, your research question will be ‘What is the relationship between the breed of the dog and its preference towards various brands of dog food?’. 

If you had the opportunity to do the research, you would have tested different brands of dog food on different breeds, and you would have perhaps found that your poodle does not like the brand of dog food that you gave it. So, then, you can buy another brand and try that. If the dog eats that food, problem solved. If not, you are one step closer to solving the problem.

Many may say that the key to a good study is to get the research question right. In my opinion, the key to a good study is to get the problem statement right. Remember, if your dog is eating its food, then there is no problem to investigate. So, now go work on what problem you are trying to solve.

GUILTY AS CHARGED

When I do not write, I feel guilty; 

When I write a paragraph, I feel guilty;

And after all that trouble, I finally complete a page; 

but the guilt stays with me.

When I ask for help, I feel guilty; 

When I do not, I feel guilty; 

Finally, when I solve the problem with or without help, 

the guilt somehow remains with me.

When I play with my baby, I feel guilty; 

When I wish she would go away, I feel guilty;

And when she tells me, ‘Ma, I understand that you have to work’, 

the guilt overwhelms me.

When I am selfish, I feel guilty;

When I am selfless, I feel guilty;

And when I lie in bed and reflect on the day that went by, 

the guilt is all I see.

The more I ponder, lying there in bed,

the more I see that the guilt is not outside of me. 

No - I realise in dismal shock -

I am guilty as charged by none other than me.

 

Why predict, when one can mould

I am obsessed with prediction. My PhD is about predicting the future of HR. I am constantly trying to predict behaviours. We live in a world where people are trying to predict everything. In fact, those of us who use data and information to predict what will happen next are admired and showcased. Prediction seems so cool.

Today, 4 incidents occurred that made me wonder about predictions. Four events from mutually exclusive fields.

Event 1 – I was feeling this lack of purpose. Things have been a bit quieter than usual, and instead of enjoying it, I am looking for my next busy high. Therefore, I asked a friend who is 10 years older about what his ambition is, and what he chases. He said, ‘Nothing’. He does not chase anymore, he is happy just being and enjoying the moment. I, on the other hand, chase. I, in fact, live from event to event, from holiday to holiday, from some form of excitement to the next form. I wonder if I will ever just enjoy being. Maybe for some small period. However, I will always want to achieve something. I am very future-oriented and therefore, I am always trying to predict what the future looks like. Sometimes, I imagine what a particular situation will look like, and almost always get it wrong. And it gets me disappointed.

Lesson 1 - Prediction has been a part of who I am, or how I identify with the world.

Event 2 – During my lecture, I made my students do some free writing. One of the students wrote about how they feel dejected because the University is not preparing them for the future world. My response to her is that the University cannot really predict what the future skills are. We are all trying to predict, but we can never get it right. What we can do is to prepare you with what we already know, so that the past at least is not as obscure as the future is.

Lesson 2 -  By looking to the past, one may be better prepared to face the future, not because one can predict, but because one can only be prepared with what one already knows.

Event 3 – I was listening to a linguistics lecture on Audible on my way home, when the speaker spoke of how the process of grammaticalisation changed various words over the years. He spoke about how many words do not come from the etymology that we may assume in our current practice. For example, alone does not come from a-lone person, but from all-one. In fact, lone comes from alone and from all-one. Similarly, hamburger comes from Hamburg-er steak, which is a steak that was developed in Hamburg, Germany. Now we use the term burger to describe fish burgers and vegetarian burgers, because we assumed that burger was a piece of meat with ham, because ham is associated with meat. In other words, in linguistics, one cannot really predict what a particular word will evolve into. One can try, but never get it right always.

Lesson 3 -  Predictions can never be accurate. This is truer for social sciences, than for natural sciences. Even in natural sciences, predictions are only a 100% accurate in controlled environments. In general, there are way too many things that are out of one’s control.

Event 4 – The previous events got me thinking about the concept of project management, where planning is such an integral part of the process. The purpose of planning is to predict the steps that must be taken to achieve a particular outcome, and in the process, what the outcome will look like. However, if you look at design thinking, planning is not focused much on. It’s all about developing a prototype and working from it. Perhaps, the beauty of design thinking is in that one does not know what one will come up with. As long as the purpose is in the right place, the outcome can be developed.

Lesson 4 - We need to move from always trying to predict, to determining the purpose behind what we are trying to do. 

We will then shift from trying to control behaviour based on predictions and data to moulding behaviours based on purpose, which is definitely more convincing. In any case, one cannot predict behaviour, so why even bother trying? Let us rather mould the future, instead of wasting time predicting.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. But am I?

When I saw the book titled 'Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine' in the top 10 in the Goodreads ranking, I realised that I hadn’t read fiction in a long while, and I almost always read mysteries and adventures. This particular day, when I bought this book, I was bored, waiting for my flight. This book would be a welcome change.

The back of the book said something about loneliness. I figured that the book would make me feel sorry for the character and grieve for her. I figured that if she was real, I would have adopted her and looked after her. But what a pleasant surprise! She made me relook at my life, about the things I do to myself and for myself. For instance, in my not-so-lonely life, I rarely find time to look after my needs. Eleanor made me crave for some things like makeup, and buying an outfit for myself. Eleanor has a structured life, with routine and clarity of purpose. Eleanor reminded me that I am kind, but that I should be outwardly kind more often. She is teaching me a few things. In fact, if she was real, she would perhaps feel sorry for me.
Things do get a bit dark towards the end of the book, but even there, through her friend, kindness prevails. It made me realize that we definitely need more kindness in this world. I really want to be more kind, since I read this book.

I think the author meant for this book to be about a woman embracing her fears and getting out of a rut through the kindness of friends and, in some instances, strangers. Based on my understanding, however, in spite of the agony, Eleanor is a role model for a busy person like me. It might be unkind of me to say it, because one may say that I am ignoring her problems. But hey, she's a fictional character. So, maybe I can be a bit unkind. Also, it's high time we stopped looking at people with certain behaviours as needing kindness. Everyone needs kindness. 
Eleanor Oliphant is quite fine, if you ask me. She actually is.