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At the beginning of my research process, this is how I expected things to go:
I used lots of feedback to get these right.
I had to change my research question once and my working thesis three times.
What were the effects of the 9/11 attacks?
How did 9/11 affect the United States?
My peers helped me make it more specific and phrase it as a question that elicits explanation:
How did the September 11, 2001, terror attacks affect the United States?
The September 11, 2001, terror attacks created anti-Muslim crime in the United States.
The September 11, 2001, terror attacks exacerbated anti-Muslim crime in the United States.
The September 11, 2001, terror attacks exacerbated anti-Muslim sterotypes in American culture.
(x) progress (y) days of work
I fell into research rabbit holes and dead ends. It felt like I was getting nowhere, but this work actually helped me refine my ideas.
I found this data from 2017. I realized I could probably find it for 2001.
Talking through my difficulties with friends helped me refine my own ideas and recognize the ideas I had stumbled on during the dead ends.
After clarifying my ideas, I went to see a librarian. She helped me use focused search terms and directed me toward helpful databases and resources.
Things really took off when I started following leads. Paying more attention to the "further reading," "see also," and footnotes from resources helped me find the detailed information I needed.
At a certain point, it started to feel like I had too much information. I used post it notes to represent my sources and then sorted them by subtopic. I saw three good subtopics that helped me refine my thesis and shape my outline. I discarded some loose threads and one subtopic that would take me too far off track.
The September 11, 2001, terror attacks exacerbated anti-Muslim sterotypes in American culture; these stereotypes degraded the safety, rights, and well-being of Muslim Americans in the years after the attacks.