Information Literacy Toolkit

Questions to guide the information seeking process

Context	What is the subject content of my topic: sociology, literature, philosophy? What are the historical trends, or time periods, related to this topic? Do I need historical or current information? Are there geographic limitations?
Details	What are the parts of my topic? What examples and evidence do I need? What are the terms that are used, and what do they mean?
Causes	What and how has this situation developed?
Results	What are the results of this situation?
Alternatives	What are the different or conflicting points of view on my topic? What position do I want to take?
Comparisons	How does my topic compare with other places, times, or groups of people?
Warnings	Do I see any negative outcomes or effects?
Opportunities	How can I contribute something meaningful and new?

Bodi, S. (2002). 'How do we bridge the gap between what we teach and what they do? Some thoughts on the place of questions in the process of research.' Journal of Academic Librarianship , 28 (3), 109-114.