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How to Find and Choose the Best Images for Your Project

To spot high-quality images, you’ll need to draw on your basic visual literacy skills.

As we’ve been learning in this visual literacy column , images tell stories. From photographs to illustrations to maps, they offer glimpses into moments beyond our reach and help us better understand our world. Delving into a variety of visual materials, we’ve learned to recognize the elements that make up an image—such as composition , color , and symbolism —and understand how each contributes to an image’s overall interpretation or significance. Developing visual literacy skills such as these enhances our understanding and appreciation of all images—those we seek out intentionally and those we encounter by chance: a billboard passed during a commute, an image in a newspaper article, a photo shared on social media. It also helps us sort through and evaluate the quality of the images we see and make choices about which images are relevant for our specific purpose.

To take the next step in our journey towards visual literacy, we need to know where to find high-quality images that meet our research needs and what questions to ask about the images we decide to use.

Why Do You Need the Image?

When beginning to look for images or other visual material, it’s important to first understand the nature of your need, to ask yourself why you’re seeking out images in the first place. You might be using them to learn more about a current topic or to research different perspectives on a topic. Alternatively, you might simply be looking for something visually appealing or interesting to inspire you. Depending on your end goal, the types of images and places you’ll look are different.

What is the Topic You are Exploring?

When it comes to recognizing what kind of visual information you need to better understand a topic, it’s important to consider contextual factors such as the age and material of the image. A painting of a king in regalia from a historical period might offer valuable insights into the culture and customs around royalty of that time. Conversely, a more recent image of the same garments on display provides access to greater detail about the king’s clothing but loses some of the historical context and emphasis provided by the artist.

Age also affects the kind of information you can glean from an image. Are you attempting to understand a historical moment? Images produced at that time will provide something closer to a firsthand account, influenced by contemporaneous beliefs and contexts, while an image created much later will be interpreting and reflecting that moment with the benefit of hindsight.

Consider also the genre or format of image you are seeking. Different media types , such as photographs, illustrations, or infographics, can offer different information about a topic. For example, an infographic might provide a succinct summary of complex data while a photograph might offer a window into a specific event or moment. A work of art may provide a more emotional or visceral connection to a particular topic.

Who Made the Image?

It’s crucial to build an understanding of authorship and different perspectives. Think about who is creating and sharing the images and what their goals and motivations might be. We may also consider the creator’s personal beliefs, the context in which the image was created, and other factors that may shape an image.

We’ve discussed authorship in the context of bias and seeking multiple viewpoints , but it’s also beneficial to consider when you’re determining where to look for images. When seeking visual information, we often need a particular perspective.

Where Should You Look for Quality Images?

Just like finding images from various types of creators yields distinct results, you get different kinds of images depending on where you look for them. Although there are innumerable image resources available and easily accessible online, it’s important to seek out reliable and high-quality sources. These aren’t necessarily difficult to find and are usually free to use. Depending on your need, resources might include stock photo websites, public domain image collections, institutional archives—like museums or universities —and more. It’s also important to consider the context in which the image will be used, as certain sources might not allow for commercial use or might require attribution.

There are many resources available that provide access to high-quality images online, including:

• The Library of Congress has a vast collection of digitized images—including photographs, maps, and prints—from its own collections as well as other institutions. The images cover a wide range of topics, including American history, world cultures, and science and technology.
• AP Newsroom offers a vast archive of contemporary and historical news photos, covering a wide range of events and subjects from around the world. With a focus on journalism, this resource provides a window into the major news events of the past and present.
• Europeana is a digital library of cultural heritage collections from across Europe, including images, videos, and audio recordings.
• Getty Images is a commercial stock image company that also offers a large selection of historical images, including photographs, illustrations, and artwork. While not all images are free, Getty Images offers a substantial selection of images that can be licensed for use in research and educational settings.
• Digital Public Library of America provides access to millions of digitized materials from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. It includes a collection of historical images, including photographs, maps, and documents.
• Asia Art Archive collects and provides access to materials related to contemporary art and visual culture in Asia, including photographs, documents, and artworks.
• Digital South Asia Library , from the University of Chicago, provides access to digital materials related to South Asia, including historical photographs, manuscripts, and books from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In addition, the South Asia Open Archives (SAOA) is a collaborative, open-access resource for research, teaching, and learning about South Asia.
• Trove , provided by the National Library of Australia, includes a large collection of digitized historical images, including photographs, artworks, and maps, from Australia and the Pacific region covering a wide range of topics, including Australian history, culture, and society.
• Openverse is a Creative Commons search engine that allows users to find and use openly licensed images and other media for a variety of uses.

These are just a few examples of online resources that provide access to historical and contemporary images from across the world. Some of these and many other historical collections are also part of JSTOR Collections , providing an access point to explore a wide variety of visual material that you likely won’t find through Google. Exploring these and other sources can broaden your perspective on historical topics and discover unique images that can enhance your research.

By forming a clearer understanding of your initial needs as well as the likely context and sources in which relevant images may be found and used, you can better identify and locate the types of images that will best serve you. Actively seeking out reliable and high-quality sources will ensure that the images you use are accurate, ethical, and effective in enhancing your understanding of a topic.

In the next article, we’ll dive deeper into strategies for effectively finding the best images. In the meantime, try exploring JSTOR Collections and considering which of the images you find there might meet your research needs.

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Research Question 101 📖

Everything you need to know to write a high-quality research question

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) | Reviewed By: Dr. Eunice Rautenbach | October 2023

If you’ve landed on this page, you’re probably asking yourself, “ What is a research question? ”. Well, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, we’ll explain what a research question is , how it’s differen t from a research aim, and how to craft a high-quality research question that sets you up for success.

Research Question 101

What is a research question.

• Research questions vs research aims
• The 4 types of research questions
• How to write a research question
• Frequently asked questions
• Examples of research questions

As the name suggests, the research question is the core question (or set of questions) that your study will (attempt to) answer .

In many ways, a research question is akin to a target in archery . Without a clear target, you won’t know where to concentrate your efforts and focus. Essentially, your research question acts as the guiding light throughout your project and informs every choice you make along the way.

Let’s look at some examples:

What impact does social media usage have on the mental health of teenagers in New York?

How does the introduction of a minimum wage affect employment levels in small businesses in outer London?

How does the portrayal of women in 19th-century American literature reflect the societal attitudes of the time?

What are the long-term effects of intermittent fasting on heart health in adults?

As you can see in these examples, research questions are clear, specific questions that can be feasibly answered within a study. These are important attributes and we’ll discuss each of them in more detail a little later . If you’d like to see more examples of research questions, you can find our RQ mega-list here .

Research Questions vs Research Aims

At this point, you might be asking yourself, “ How is a research question different from a research aim? ”. Within any given study, the research aim and research question (or questions) are tightly intertwined , but they are separate things . Let’s unpack that a little.

A research aim is typically broader in nature and outlines what you hope to achieve with your research. It doesn’t ask a specific question but rather gives a summary of what you intend to explore.

The research question, on the other hand, is much more focused . It’s the specific query you’re setting out to answer. It narrows down the research aim into a detailed, researchable question that will guide your study’s methods and analysis.

Let’s look at an example:

Research Aim: To explore the effects of climate change on marine life in Southern Africa.

Research Question: How does ocean acidification caused by climate change affect the reproduction rates of coral reefs?

As you can see, the research aim gives you a general focus , while the research question details exactly what you want to find out.

Need a helping hand?

Types of research questions

Now that we’ve defined what a research question is, let’s look at the different types of research questions that you might come across. Broadly speaking, there are (at least) four different types of research questions – descriptive , comparative , relational , and explanatory . 

Descriptive questions ask what is happening. In other words, they seek to describe a phenomena or situation . An example of a descriptive research question could be something like “What types of exercise do high-performing UK executives engage in?”. This would likely be a bit too basic to form an interesting study, but as you can see, the research question is just focused on the what – in other words, it just describes the situation.

Comparative research questions , on the other hand, look to understand the way in which two or more things differ , or how they’re similar. An example of a comparative research question might be something like “How do exercise preferences vary between middle-aged men across three American cities?”. As you can see, this question seeks to compare the differences (or similarities) in behaviour between different groups.

Next up, we’ve got exploratory research questions , which ask why or how is something happening. While the other types of questions we looked at focused on the what, exploratory research questions are interested in the why and how . As an example, an exploratory research question might ask something like “Why have bee populations declined in Germany over the last 5 years?”. As you can, this question is aimed squarely at the why, rather than the what.

Last but not least, we have relational research questions . As the name suggests, these types of research questions seek to explore the relationships between variables . Here, an example could be something like “What is the relationship between X and Y” or “Does A have an impact on B”. As you can see, these types of research questions are interested in understanding how constructs or variables are connected , and perhaps, whether one thing causes another.

Of course, depending on how fine-grained you want to get, you can argue that there are many more types of research questions , but these four categories give you a broad idea of the different flavours that exist out there. It’s also worth pointing out that a research question doesn’t need to fit perfectly into one category – in many cases, a research question might overlap into more than just one category and that’s okay.

The key takeaway here is that research questions can take many different forms , and it’s useful to understand the nature of your research question so that you can align your research methodology accordingly.

How To Write A Research Question

As we alluded earlier, a well-crafted research question needs to possess very specific attributes, including focus , clarity and feasibility . But that’s not all – a rock-solid research question also needs to be rooted and aligned . Let’s look at each of these.

A strong research question typically has a single focus. So, don’t try to cram multiple questions into one research question; rather split them up into separate questions (or even subquestions), each with their own specific focus. As a rule of thumb, narrow beats broad when it comes to research questions.

Clear and specific

A good research question is clear and specific, not vague and broad. State clearly exactly what you want to find out so that any reader can quickly understand what you’re looking to achieve with your study. Along the same vein, try to avoid using bulky language and jargon – aim for clarity.

Unfortunately, even a super tantalising and thought-provoking research question has little value if you cannot feasibly answer it. So, think about the methodological implications of your research question while you’re crafting it. Most importantly, make sure that you know exactly what data you’ll need (primary or secondary) and how you’ll analyse that data.

A good research question (and a research topic, more broadly) should be rooted in a clear research gap and research problem . Without a well-defined research gap, you risk wasting your effort pursuing a question that’s already been adequately answered (and agreed upon) by the research community. A well-argued research gap lays at the heart of a valuable study, so make sure you have your gap clearly articulated and that your research question directly links to it.

As we mentioned earlier, your research aim and research question are (or at least, should be) tightly linked. So, make sure that your research question (or set of questions) aligns with your research aim . If not, you’ll need to revise one of the two to achieve this.

FAQ: Research Questions

Research question faqs, how many research questions should i have, what should i avoid when writing a research question, can a research question be a statement.

Typically, a research question is phrased as a question, not a statement. A question clearly indicates what you’re setting out to discover.

Can a research question be too broad or too narrow?

Yes. A question that’s too broad makes your research unfocused, while a question that’s too narrow limits the scope of your study.

Here’s an example of a research question that’s too broad:

“Why is mental health important?”

Conversely, here’s an example of a research question that’s likely too narrow:

“What is the impact of sleep deprivation on the exam scores of 19-year-old males in London studying maths at The Open University?”

Can I change my research question during the research process?

How do i know if my research question is good.

A good research question is focused, specific, practical, rooted in a research gap, and aligned with the research aim. If your question meets these criteria, it’s likely a strong question.

Is a research question similar to a hypothesis?

Not quite. A hypothesis is a testable statement that predicts an outcome, while a research question is a query that you’re trying to answer through your study. Naturally, there can be linkages between a study’s research questions and hypothesis, but they serve different functions.

How are research questions and research objectives related?

The research question is a focused and specific query that your study aims to answer. It’s the central issue you’re investigating. The research objective, on the other hand, outlines the steps you’ll take to answer your research question. Research objectives are often more action-oriented and can be broken down into smaller tasks that guide your research process. In a sense, they’re something of a roadmap that helps you answer your research question.

Need some inspiration?

If you’d like to see more examples of research questions, check out our research question mega list here .  Alternatively, if you’d like 1-on-1 help developing a high-quality research question, consider our private coaching service .

Psst... there’s more!

This post was based on one of our popular Research Bootcamps . If you're working on a research project, you'll definitely want to check this out ...

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• Writing Strong Research Questions | Criteria & Examples

Writing Strong Research Questions | Criteria & Examples

Published on October 26, 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on November 21, 2023.

A research question pinpoints exactly what you want to find out in your work. A good research question is essential to guide your research paper , dissertation , or thesis .

All research questions should be:

• Focused on a single problem or issue
• Researchable using primary and/or secondary sources
• Feasible to answer within the timeframe and practical constraints
• Specific enough to answer thoroughly
• Complex enough to develop the answer over the space of a paper or thesis
• Relevant to your field of study and/or society more broadly

Table of contents

How to write a research question, what makes a strong research question, using sub-questions to strengthen your main research question, research questions quiz, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about research questions.

You can follow these steps to develop a strong research question:

• Choose your topic
• Do some preliminary reading about the current state of the field
• Narrow your focus to a specific niche
• Identify the research problem that you will address

The way you frame your question depends on what your research aims to achieve. The table below shows some examples of how you might formulate questions for different purposes.

Using your research problem to develop your research question

Note that while most research questions can be answered with various types of research , the way you frame your question should help determine your choices.

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Research questions anchor your whole project, so it’s important to spend some time refining them. The criteria below can help you evaluate the strength of your research question.

Focused and researchable

Feasible and specific

Complex and arguable

Relevant and original

Chances are that your main research question likely can’t be answered all at once. That’s why sub-questions are important: they allow you to answer your main question in a step-by-step manner.

Good sub-questions should be:

• Less complex than the main question
• Focused only on 1 type of research
• Presented in a logical order

Here are a few examples of descriptive and framing questions:

• Descriptive: According to current government arguments, how should a European bank tax be implemented?
• Descriptive: Which countries have a bank tax/levy on financial transactions?
• Framing: How should a bank tax/levy on financial transactions look at a European level?

Keep in mind that sub-questions are by no means mandatory. They should only be asked if you need the findings to answer your main question. If your main question is simple enough to stand on its own, it’s okay to skip the sub-question part. As a rule of thumb, the more complex your subject, the more sub-questions you’ll need.

Try to limit yourself to 4 or 5 sub-questions, maximum. If you feel you need more than this, it may be indication that your main research question is not sufficiently specific. In this case, it’s is better to revisit your problem statement and try to tighten your main question up.

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If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Methodology

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

The way you present your research problem in your introduction varies depending on the nature of your research paper . A research paper that presents a sustained argument will usually encapsulate this argument in a thesis statement .

A research paper designed to present the results of empirical research tends to present a research question that it seeks to answer. It may also include a hypothesis —a prediction that will be confirmed or disproved by your research.

As you cannot possibly read every source related to your topic, it’s important to evaluate sources to assess their relevance. Use preliminary evaluation to determine whether a source is worth examining in more depth.

This involves:

• Reading abstracts , prefaces, introductions , and conclusions
• Looking at the table of contents to determine the scope of the work
• Consulting the index for key terms or the names of important scholars

A research hypothesis is your proposed answer to your research question. The research hypothesis usually includes an explanation (“ x affects y because …”).

A statistical hypothesis, on the other hand, is a mathematical statement about a population parameter. Statistical hypotheses always come in pairs: the null and alternative hypotheses . In a well-designed study , the statistical hypotheses correspond logically to the research hypothesis.

Formulating a main research question can be a difficult task. Overall, your question should contribute to solving the problem that you have defined in your problem statement .

However, it should also fulfill criteria in three main areas:

• Researchability
• Feasibility and specificity
• Relevance and originality

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McCombes, S. (2023, November 21). Writing Strong Research Questions | Criteria & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 21, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/research-process/research-questions/

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