How to write a research problem that convinces your committee
The research problem is the heart of the thesis. Learn its four elements, common mistakes that weaken it, and a practical model for writing it.
Questions and hypotheses are the bridge between the research problem, the instrument and the analysis. Each question or hypothesis must have a matching part in the instrument, a test in the analysis, and a result in the final chapter.
Questions or hypotheses?
- Questions suit descriptive and exploratory studies, and cases where the literature isn't enough to predict the result.
- Hypotheses suit studies of relationships, effects and differences, when you build an expectation on a theory or previous studies.
- Many theses combine both: a descriptive question about the level of the variables, and hypotheses about the relationship between them.
Null and alternative hypotheses
The null hypothesis (H₀) denies the existence of an effect or difference, and the alternative (H₁) confirms it. In many Arab universities hypotheses are written in null form with the significance level.
H₀: There is no statistically significant effect at the level of (α ≤ 0.05) of transformational leadership and its dimensions on organizational performance in Jordanian banks.
Criteria for a good hypothesis
- Statistically testable.
- Identify the two variables and the direction of the relationship if possible.
- Built on a theoretical framework, not guesswork.
- Short and clear, with no vague terms.
- Consistent with the questions and the instrument.
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