HS 390W: Current Health Issues for Betty Brown

Choosing a topic:

There are many places to look for information about current health issues, from newspapers and news stories to scholarly articles, as well as government and non-profit organization websites. Try these websites to look at current health trends:

Government Websites

NYTimes

Who?

• Who is writing about this topic?
  • Health professionals, religious organization, news outlets
• Who is the author’s desired audience?
• Is the source credible?
• Does the author have an agenda or is the information biased?

What?

• What is your topic?
• Is it controversial?
• Is it currently in the news?
• Is there federal policy around it?
• Is there professional policy around it?
  • Best practices
• What are the geographic parameters?
• What is the author's desired outcome?

Once you have decided on a topic, think about what questions you want to ask about that topic.  What would you like to know more about?  Thinking about this and reviewing the research on a topic will help you develop a research question. 

Examples of research questions:

Remember that you need to find research that supports at least one side of the issue. You also need to find material (evidence-based or popular literature) that refutes it.

• Does improved nutrition in children impact academic achievement?
• Are teenage drivers more likely to be involved in automobile accidents? 
• Do early intervention programs prevent smoking among teenagers who live in rural areas within the United States?
• Do bicycle seats affect reproductive health in professional cyclists? 
• Are pregnant women from lower socioeconomic backgrounds less likely to use prenatal vitamins?

After you have formulated a research question, search a variety of health and other relevant resources to make sure that there is enough information about your topic for you to complete the assignments.