Introduction^[1]

At some point during your college career, and likely also in your professional career, you will be asked to conduct research and then use that research to support your ideas. While this may seem intimidating, remember that engaging in research is basically just using a systematic process to find out more information about your topic. Nicholas Walliman, in his handbook Research Methods: The Basics, defines research methods as “the tools and techniques for doing research.” These techniques include collecting, sorting, and analyzing the information and data you find. The better the tools and more comprehensive the techniques you employ, the more effective your research will be. By extension, the more effective your research is, the more credible and persuasive your argument will be.

Here are some basic terms and definitions you should be familiar with:

Research: the systematic process of finding out more about something than you already know, ideally so that you can prove a hypothesis, produce new knowledge and understanding, and make evidence-based decisions.

Research Methods: techniques of collecting, sorting, and analyzing information/data.

Data: pieces of information gathered in the process of research.

Data can be categorized in several ways, detailed in the table below (Table 8.1):

Table 8.1: Types of research data.

In other words, you may encounter a wide variety of data during research for a technical writing project. You will likely need to combine (or synthesize) your understanding of academic and trade publications, quantitative data you have collected, and information about stakeholder needs, goals, and constraints. You’ll need to think about how to do this in a way that combines accountable information gathering with honest and above-board information sharing.

For a brief overview of this process, please watch the video below, “Research in Technical Writing,” by William Smith:

Technical Writing Research Methods^[2]

Research is not just collecting facts for a technical writing document; it is a process in which information is uncovered and expressed in meaningful ways to the audience. Before you begin creating any documents, you need to gather all the required information. In technical writing, you will use a variety of different research methods to do this work.

Primary Research

Primary research comes from studies you conduct and from published records and documents. Primary research methods allow you to gather first-hand information from data, users, stakeholders, and subject matter experts (SMEs). This information helps technical writers understand the problems they hope to solve and the solutions they might implement in greater depth.

Examples: lab experiments, product testing, surveys, observations, measurements, interviews, site visits, prototype testing, beta testing library databases, print media, websites, published raw statistical data, historical records, legal documents, firsthand historical accounts, discussions with subject matter experts (SMEs) like engineers, developers, or project managers.

Secondary Research

Secondary research comes from studies that others (usually researchers, academics, or SMEs) conduct. Secondary research provides the backing of professional researchers who are researching similar problems to your own. This information helps technical writers broaden their understanding of the problems and solutions they are researching. For example, seeing how a traffic congestion problem was solved in a city of a similar size to Fayetteville might help you understand how to write about the likely results of such a project here in town.

Examples: research papers, studies, white papers, reviews, analyses, critiques.

Tertiary Research

Finally, tertiary research involves using general information sources – such sources consolidate primary and secondary information into compressed, brief formats. They are, in other words, often summaries of the knowledge on a topic. They help technical writers to corroborate facts and to gain a general understanding of both your topic and major concepts, lines of inquiry, or schools of thought in a particular field (like architecture, engineering, or chemistry).

Examples: dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, bibliographies.

Using Reliable Sources

Whether you are writing for class, colleagues within a workplace, or outside vendors, customers, or stakeholders, you will want to utilize your writing as an opportunity to build a positive, ethical reputation with your audience. Your goal is to maintain and enhance your credibility, and that of your organization, at all times.

Credibility can be established through many means: citing respected sources, providing reliable evidence, using sound logic, and writing with clear, concise language. Make sure as you start your research that you always question the credibility of the sources you find. You should know the answers to the following questions:

• Are the sources popular or scholarly?
• Are they peer reviewed by experts in the field?
• Can the information be verified by other sources?
• Are the methods and arguments based on solid reasoning and sound evidence?
• Is the author identifiable and do they have appropriate credentials?

You can also learn more about evaluating sources in the “Note-Taking for Research Projects” section, below.

Be cautious about using sources that are not reviewed by peers or editors, or in which the information cannot be verified, or seems misleading, biased, or even false. Be a wise information consumer in your own reading and research in order to build your reputation as an honest, ethical writer.

Quoting the work of others in your writing is fine, provided that you credit the source fully enough that your readers can find it on their own. If you fail to take careful notes, or the sentence is present in your writing but later fails to get accurate attribution, it can have a negative impact on you and your organization. That is why it is important that when you find an element you would like to incorporate in your document, in the same moment as you copy and paste or make a note of it in your research file you need to note the source in a complete enough form to find it again.

Giving credit where credit is due will build your credibility and enhance your document. Moreover, when your writing is authentically yours, your audience will catch your enthusiasm, and you will feel more confident in the material you produce. Just as you have a responsibility in business to be honest in selling your product or service and avoid cheating your customers, so you have a responsibility in professional writing to be honest in presenting your ideas, and the ideas of others, and to avoid cheating your readers with plagiarized material.

Information Literacy and the Research Process^[3]

Regardless of the type of information you need for a technical writing project, you will need a careful plan (a research process) to help you gather information before you begin writing a document. In this section, you will learn about the concept of information literacy – a particular framework for thinking about the information we gather – as a precursor to understanding how to think about the research process. Further, you will learn practical tips that will help you practice your information literacy skills when you do research, no matter why you need the information.

What is Information Literacy?

Information literacy can be defined as a critical perspective, point of view, or framework that guides how people consume, evaluate, produce, use, and archive information. In fact, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization wrote that “[i]nformation literacy empowers people in all walks of life to seek, evaluate, use and create information effectively to achieve their personal, social, occupational and educational goals” (“Information Literacy,” 2023). It is a cluster of core, interconnected competencies people possess to identify, find, evaluate, apply, and acknowledge information.

For more information on what it means to be information literate, watch the video “The Five Components of Information Literacy” from Seminole State Library:

Through information literacy, we learn to recognize that not all information is created equal. For instance, content on the internet is easy to access, and there’s a lot of it – but it doesn’t always come from credible sources, as anyone can publish content for others to access. This means that there is a lot of bad or useless information to sort through when performing research. In an age of misinformation and disinformation, it’s not always easy to determine which are credible sources and which are not, which makes becoming an information literate researcher all the more crucial. Information literacy helps us to recognize misleading, out-of-date, or false information. It also helps us sort through the data and interpret it intelligently.

Being information literate means we’re able to:

• Recognize problems and create questions
• Make a plan for finding information and solutions
• Formulate hypotheses and make predictions
• Find information and data from libraries and the Internet
• Evaluate the credibility of the sources (i.e. is the material peer-reviewed or held to an ethical standard?)
• Organize and synthesize all gathered information
• Make conclusions and process understanding

Developing your information literacy skills pays off. You won’t just use these skills in a college classroom – you might use information literacy skills to help you make a decision about which car to buy, to decide how to vote in your next local election, or to inform your decision to evacuate (or not) in front of an incoming hurricane. There are many times in our lives, in fact, when we need to use information literacy skills to make the best decision possible for our situations. Further, if the goal of an ethical technical writer is to honestly and clearly communicate information to an audience, that commitment must begin with finding the best information you can to support the content you create.

Using Information Literacy for Research

Implementing information literacy practices in your research process takes careful planning before you start. In particular, you will want to go into a research session with a clear list of questions to answer. The questions you ask are likely to change depending on where you are in the research process. Earlier in the process, it’s important to confirm and extend your understanding of your topic, while in the later parts of the research process, you will probably be looking for information that helps you to refine the details of your document. It’s also important to plan for effective research sessions before you begin your search. You will want to create a list of keywords to use in your searches, and you will also want to have a good understanding of what kinds of sources you need, which will subsequently affect where you look for information.

Have Clear Research Questions

By the time you are ready to start working on your problem primer, you should have a basic understanding of what problem you are investigating, who is affected by the problem, and why it is important to find a solution. To do that, you need to create a list of research questions you need to answer. You might ask research questions that help you…

• Understand the problem
• Understand stakeholders
• Investigate causes
• Investigate solutions
• Evaluate solutions
• Understand the audience, purpose, and context for the document

Plan for Effective Research Sessions

Once you develop a list of research questions, you’re almost ready to start searching for information. Before you can do that, however, you will want to create a plan. Planning your research sessions helps you to work more effectively. Having a clear list of questions is a part of that plan. However, you will also need to think about how to create keywords, what types of sources you’ll need, and where to look for them.

Effective research sessions necessitate that you…

1. Know your goals: Why are you undertaking this project? Why are you creating this document? The answers to these questions will help you center your research process on finding the information you need.
2. Double-check information: Even if you are certain you know a fact, double-checking your information for accuracy lets you catch problems or mistakes before the document goes out to your audience.
3. Verify information using multiple sources: Whenever possible, verify your information is correct by cross-checking it using multiple sources. If you find the same estimated percentage of food insecurity in NWA in three different sources, odds are, that number is probably correct.
4. Talk with experts in the field: Another option for verifying your information, talking with experts in the field can help you to ensure that the information you are communicating with your audience is both accurate and precise.

Keyword Searches

Once you know the questions you need to answer, you will need to determine keywords that you can use to search different resources. That is, instead of putting your research questions directly into the search bar, you need to develop short phrases that represent the most important themes represented in your questions. For example, if you wanted to research how much it would cost to build a community garden in the common area of your apartment complex, you might try search terms like community garden, community garden program, sustainable gardening, and community garden planning.

Developing keywords by looking through your research questions. You should be able to pick out the most important words and phrases from those questions; then, you can attempt to use those phrases to find more information that will help you build your project. It is important to have a wide range of keywords because not all search terms will return the same information. You might also use a keyword search to find out what terms other people use to talk about the topic or to learn about related terms and concepts.

You should have a basic understanding of how you can use Boolean operators, which allow you to combine keywords or exclude information from searches. These words refine your search results to be more relevant to your needs. Below (Table 8.2), you can find a brief explanation of how these terms work, based on this resource from the University of Minnesota.

Table 8.2: Boolean operators for research.

For more specific help searching for and evaluating sources and deciding which types of sources are best suited for your project, consult with your instructor.

Note-Taking for Research Projects^[4]

Research in technical writing involves finding information that will help you create a correct, clear, ethical document that accomplishes both your goals and the audience’s goals. Research for such projects takes a lot of time, and researchers can’t memorize all the information they find – that’s why it’s important to have some idea of how to take notes on your sources. To further complicate this process, as the section on information literacy above suggests, you must also make space in your notes to evaluate your sources. The information below will help you ensure that you work with your sources in a way that promotes deep understanding of both the problem you are investigating and the work you are producing.

Basic Source Information

To begin with, make sure that you document all the information that you will need to correctly cite each source you find. Having this information in your notes will not only help you to cite ethically – you will also be able to find the source again if you need to access it a second time. This includes:

• Title
• Author’s name
• Publication date
• Associated organizations (publishing house, website, university, etc.)
• Type of media (journal article, book, newspaper, video, social media post, etc.)
• Digital location (if you accessed your source digitally, save either the web URL or the Digital Object Identifier [DOI] number)

Next, you will want to take notes that help you remember the contents of each source. You’ll also want to jot down any ideas you have about how you might use this source in your current project. Consider adding the following elements to your research notes:

• A brief source summary so you can easily remember a source’s contents when you need to reference your notes later.
• Memorable quotes you may want to use in your own project. Remember to always put quotes around other people’s words in your notes. This will help you to make sure you don’t accidentally present their words as your own.
• Further questions you have about either the source itself or the topic after you have read and understood the source.
• Connections between this source and the other sources you’ve investigated. What ideas link these sources together? How do the sources differ?

Evaluating Sources

Once you comprehend a source’s message, you can evaluate that source. When you evaluate sources, you are looking for credible sources that can provide reliable and useful data to support your ideas. Using credible sources also improves your relationship with your readers, who will feel more confident in your findings if they know you did your due diligence.

Scholarly articles published in academic journals are usually required sources in academic research essays; they are also an integral part of engineering projects and technical reports. Many projects require a literature review, which collects, summarizes and sometimes evaluates the work of researchers in this field whose work has been recognized as a valuable contribution to the “state of the art.” However, they are not the only kind of research you will find useful. Since you are researching in a professional field and preparing for the workplace, there are many credible kinds of sources you will draw on in a professional context. Table 8.3 lists several types of sources you may find useful in researching your projects.

The importance of critically evaluating your sources for authority, relevance, timeliness, and credibility cannot be overstated. Anyone can put anything on the internet; and people with strong web and document design skills can make this information look very professional and credible—even if it isn’t. Since much research is currently done online, and many sources are available electronically, developing your information literacy skills is crucial to finding valid, credible evidence to support and develop your ideas.  In fact, this has become such a challenging issue that there are sites like Beall’s List of Predatory Journals that regularly update its online list of journals that subvert the peer review process and simply publish for profit.

When evaluating research sources and presenting your own research, be careful to critically evaluate the authority, content, and purpose of the material, using questions in Table 8.4.

We all have biases when we write or argue; however, when evaluating sources, you want to be on the look out for bias that is unfair, one-sided, or slanted. Consider whether the author has acknowledged and addressed opposing ideas, potential gaps in the research, or limitations of the data. Look at the kind of language the author uses: is it slanted, strongly connotative, or emotionally manipulative? Is the supporting evidence presented logically, credibly, and ethically? Has the author cherry-picked or misrepresented sources or ideas? Does the author rely heavily on emotional appeal?

Creating a Project Pitch

A pitch is a short speech (75-100 words) typically delivered in around 30-60 seconds. Jennifer Herrity (2015) explained the genre as a “concise introduction” to both yourself and something you are trying to promote – a project or a relationship (a collaboration or mentorship, for example).

Pitches are a common technical writing genre. You may have also heard the term elevator pitch, which helps to explain how such genres are meant to be used: to introduce yourself to someone you don’t know but are hoping to network with. Though a pitch is short and may be used in a relatively casual setting (like an elevator ride, or introducing yourself to someone at a conference), the genre still takes thought and practice.

A good pitch will accomplish two key goals. First, a pitch seeks to make a good impression on the listener. Second, a pitch makes clear your strengths and values as a professional. The pitch should give your audience a good idea of who you are, what matters to you, and why it’s worth it for the audience to develop or continue a relationship with you.

You are being asked to create an individual project pitch for project 3. This assignment should:

• Identify a research method for your pilot study
• Clearly state your research questions
• Cite one local media source

Four Steps to Create a Pitch^[5]

Since pitches are a compact genre, it’s important to be clear and concise. This means you will want to carefully compose your pitch to communicate information in words that are both accurate and interesting. The four steps below, derived from Indeed.com’s “How to Craft and Deliver an Effective Elevator Pitch” can serve as a guide for your work.

1. Introduce yourself. Make sure to give your name and organizational affiliation, if you have one. Follow with a polite greeting like “It’s nice to meet you.”
2. Summarize what you do. What is your specialty, educational background, or field? Tailor this information towards which parts of your professional background are most relevant to your audience.
3. Explain what you want. Why did you start this conversation? Clarify your goals, whether that is to seek a job opportunity, collaboration, mentorship, or to give a project overview. Emphasize your professional values.
4. Finish with a call to action. What are the next steps? You might ask for a call or meeting with your audience, or exchange contact information.

As you prepare to deliver your pitch, remember that you will need to practice. In a professional situation, you’ll want to be able to deliver the pitch without notes, which you can only do by practicing. Practice also helps you to understand whether your wording is going to work – sometimes trying to read our words aloud calls our attention to revisions that help us communicate more clearly. Further, you should always think about tailoring your pitch towards your audience. What information will help your audience not only to understand your message but also to want to follow up on your proposal?

Conclusion

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References

Beall’s list of potential predatory journals and publishers. (2024). Retrieved 15 July 2025, from http://beallslist.net.

“Boolean Operators: A Cheat Sheet.” (2024). University of Minnesota Libraries. Retrieved 3 July 2025, from https://libguides.umn.edu/BooleanOperators.

Engineering Communication Program. (n.d.). Literature reviews. University of Toronto Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering. Retrieved 15 July 2025, from https://ecp.engineering.utoronto.ca/resources/online-handbook/components-of-documents/literature-reviews/.

Herrity, Jennifer. (2025, March 21, updated). How to craft and deliver an effective elevator pitch (with examples). Indeed. Retrieved 15 July 2025, from https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/interviewing/how-to-give-an-elevator-pitch-examples.

Seminole State Library. (2014, Jan. 29). “5 Components of Information Literacy.”  YouTube. Retrieved 30 June 2025, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ronp6Iue9w.

Smith, William. (2020). “Research in Technical Writing.” YouTube. Retrieved 30 June 2025, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5WJQzeDpjc.

UMA Writing Center. (2016, Oct. 16). “Writing is a Recursive Process.” YouTube. Retrieved 30 June 2025, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n94KtBoWaU0&t=2s.

UNESCO. (2023). “Information Literacy.” Retrieved 30 June 2025, from https://www.unesco.org/en/ifap/information-literacy.

Walliman, Nicholas. (2011). Research Methods: The Basics. Routledge: New York.