Writing a research paper or project is not what is done for the sake of doing it. A researcher does not just see a topic that looks captivating and jumps into it. There are several things to consider in writing a research paper or project. I have previously written an article on that and hence, I would not dwell much on it.
For the sake of this article, we will consider one of such factors that must be considered before writing a research paper. Hence, this article focuses on how to find a good research gap for your research work. Before now, I have written a step-by-step guide on how to write a find a good research gap. This is a more updated version of that piece.
What is a research gap?
The concept of a research gap is a very important one that having a thorough understanding of it will determine the extent to which your research work will be successful. When you hear the word gap, the first thing that comes to mind is space or vacuum that needs to be filled. Therefore, we could define research gap as a space or vacuum which a particular research work seeks to fill. Research gap appears to be the bedrock for a successful research work, which if the researcher does not carefully and correctly identify, the chances of having a good research work will be limited.
A research gap occurs when any of the following happens; a question hasn’t been fully answered, a topic is under-researched or overlooked, there’s controversy or disagreement in findings and when an old data or theories need re-examination in new contexts. Therefore, developing research gaps is a crucial step in formulating a strong research question and ultimately, a successful research project. It’s about identifying what’s missing, unclear, or under-explored in the existing literature.
Before we delve into getting research gaps, ensure you start by classifying and categorizing your gaps into the following headings
Evidence Gap: This is a kind of research gap that arises when there is a lack of evidence to support or refute a hypothesis or theory a researcher used.
Methodology Gap: This occurs when an existing research lacks a particular research design, data collection method, or analytical approach that would be beneficial.
Empirical Gap: Empirical gap is when there is a lack of empirical studies on a specific topic or in a particular context. It also occurs when the literature reviewed are not sufficient enough. Hence, it will lead to knowledge deficit.
Theoretical Gap: This is when existing theories are insufficient to explain a phenomenon, or there’s a need to develop a new theoretical framework.
Population Gap: This occurs when the research has not adequately addressed a specific population group.
Contextual Gap: Research has not been conducted in a specific geographical, cultural, or temporal context.
Knowledge Gap: A lack of comprehensive understanding of a topic.
Practical Gap: A disconnect between what research shows and what is needed or practiced in the real world.
How to develop good research gaps
Having done a brief explanation of the concept of research gap, here are few tips to correctly develop meaningful and researchable research gaps.
#1 Have a clear understanding of the Literature Review
On this website, we have written several articles about the literature review section of a research work. We observed that the literature review section is made up basically of 4 sections which are; conceptual framework, theoretical framework, empirical framework and the summary of the literature review. Having a clear understanding of these 4 sections will serve as a guide and accurate roadmap for a successful research work.
With this, it becomes very important for the researcher to have a clear understanding of the literature reviewed in his work. This will help develop the research gaps in the authors’ work. Ensure that literature been reviewed are not older than 10yrs, although some institutions and journals emphasize on 5yrs. When you do a thorough review of someone else’ work, you will clearly understand the objectives, research questions, scope, limitations and more. With the outcome of the work, you will know if or not the objectives were achieved and research questions answered. Also you will be able to know if the scope was accurate or could be extended and you will also understand the limitations faced during the work and how it can be improved upon. When reviewing people work, pay attention to the following areas to find out gaps in their work;
Findings: The findings of a particular study can help you discover more research gaps for subsequent studies
Limitation: What are the limitations the researcher discovered? These limitations could be the bedrock of your own study if you carefully understand them.
Future suggestions: In most researches, there is always provision for future work. Those future works are research gaps that the study could not fill, hence you can explore them
Identify Key Themes and Concepts: In every literature you seek to review, find out the recurring ideas, theories, and debates in your area of interest? Mapping these out can help you see where the knowledge landscape is well-covered and where it’s sparse.
Check for Contradicting ideologies and all sorts of Inconsistencies: Sometimes, there could be conflict in the results and findings of two or more literature you are reviewing. These contradictions and discrepancies often point to areas where further research is needed to reconcile the findings or explore the underlying reasons for the differences.
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#2 Look for Gaps in Methodology
With the methodology adopted, you are most likely to discover some research gaps to explore more, especially in trying to adopt a different methodology for same study. Here are things to check out for in the methodology section.
Sample Size/Diversity: The sample size for a particular research could form a strong research gap for your studies. As such, you can start a new study/research by just working on the sample size of the literature you are reviewing.
Research Design: Are there gaps in the types of research designs used (e.g., mostly qualitative, but a quantitative approach is needed to measure impact)? There will definitely be. Hence, this too can compose a strong research gap for your study.
Measurement Tools: Are the existing measurement tools adequate, or do they have limitations that could be addressed?
Context: Has the research been primarily conducted in a specific geographical, cultural, or socio-economic context, and your context is different? This implies that you can conduct same research but on a different location (scope) and still make progress.
Identify Unexplored Variables/Relationships: If the researchers in the literature you are reviewing focused on certain variables but neglected others that might be important, then you can choose to focus on those ones that were neglected and then build a strong research work on those variables. Also, try to find out if there are relationships between variables that haven’t been thoroughly investigated
With this, you are closer to getting an awesome gap for your research work. If the objectives were not achieved and the research questions not answered, it can then become a gap for subsequent research work. Also, from the scope and delimitations of the said research work, several research gaps can be developed, hence become prospective matters for subsequent research work.
#3 Think Critically and Ask Probing Questions
A way forward in getting/developing research gaps for a worthy research work is in asking probing questions that will lead you into getting answers for yourself. Ask the what, why and how questions so as to come up with meaningful resolutions and findings the topic been primarily viewed from one angle? What about other stakeholders, theories, or disciplines?
#4 Talk to Experts
Discuss your ideas with professors, researchers, or professionals in your field. They can offer valuable insights, point you to relevant literature you might have missed, or suggest areas ripe for investigation.
Having found several research gap, the next thing is to consider the following or ask the following questions;
Is it significant enough to study? Not all research gaps are significant enough to research so that you won’t waste your time doing a research that does not make any atom of sense.
Can it be researched realistically within your time/resources? Every research is time bound. Therefore, the research gap you discovered, can it be discussed within the specified time frame for the work.
Will it contribute something new? What value will the research gap add to the body of knowledge? This is one other important thing to consider before starting a research after you have observed the gap to be researched on.
Conclusion
Writing a research or project work is not as easy as many people think. There is need to be very thorough in order to ensure accuracy and produce a very good work. Therefore, when you identify the research gap you wish to fill, it will aid the entire process. This is especially if you find the research gap before delving into the work. Hopefully, this article, together with the first one will help you find research gaps with ease and accuracy.
