Research Skills and Academic Writing
8. Research Workbook
Copyable templates for the question, search, evidence, design, argument, integrity, and revision decisions.
8. Research Workbook
This studio contains outputs, not extra theory. Complete the templates in order; keep each answer as short as accuracy allows.
Date every version. Never delete an earlier decision: mark it revised, give the reason, and link the replacement.
1. Project canvas
Copyable template
Working title:
Topic in five words:
Puzzle: What cannot yet be explained, estimated, interpreted, or decided?
Research question:
Population / material:
Context and time:
Intervention, phenomenon, or relationship:
Outcome or object of interpretation:
Comparison, if any:
Evidence needed:
Strongest claim the feasible design could support:
Claim the design could not support:
Access constraint:
Ethical constraint:
Deadline:
2. Search plan and log
Copyable template
Concept block A:
Synonyms:
Concept block B:
Synonyms:
Concept block C:
Synonyms:
Inclusion rule:
Exclusion rule:
Stopping rule:
| Date | Database/source | Exact query | Filters | Results | Kept | Reason/change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3. Source card
Copyable template
Full reference and persistent link:
Question:
Design / data / material:
Population and context:
Measure or interpretive approach:
Main observation:
Author's interpretation:
Most important limitation:
Job in my paper: define / pattern / counterevidence / mechanism / context / method
Exact page, table, figure, or section:
Claim this source can support:
Claim this source cannot support:
4. Evidence matrix
Copyable template
| Source | Question/design | Sample/context | Result | Limit | Pattern code | Job |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5. Synthesis map
Copyable template
Pattern that survives across sources:
Strongest disagreement:
Difference in design, measure, population, or context that may explain it:
Most plausible mechanism:
Boundary where the pattern may fail:
What remains uncertain:
One-sentence synthesis:
6. Literature-review question chain
Copyable template
1. Why does this relationship/problem matter?
2. Which construct distinctions affect the study?
3. What pattern does the evidence show?
4. Why does it vary, and where might it fail?
5. What uncertainty can this project resolve?
Gap = known pattern + important boundary + unresolved issue + feasible response:
7. Design-alignment table
Copyable template
| Element | Decision | Why it answers the question | Main threat | Check or consequence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| unit/sample | ||||
| assignment/selection | ||||
| comparison | ||||
| measure/material | ||||
| analysis/interpretation | ||||
| missing data/deviant case | ||||
| transfer boundary |
8. Claim record
Copyable template
Claim:
Claim type: descriptive / comparative / relational / causal / interpretive
Evidence:
Exact source or result location:
Warrant: why the evidence supports the claim:
Limit or rival explanation:
Confidence: high / moderate / low
Verb after calibration:
9. Paragraph test
Copyable template
Claim:
Evidence compared:
Warrant:
Limit:
Link to the next question:
Paragraph draft (maximum 140 words):
10. AI-use and verification log
Copyable template
| Date | Tool/version | Bounded task | Input sensitivity | Output retained | Independent check | Disclosure needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Source claimed by AI:
Publisher/index record found:
Metadata matched:
Exact supporting location:
Population/design boundary checked:
Decision: use / rewrite / reject
11. Revision memo
Copyable template
| Feedback/diagnosis | Decision | Change made | Evidence/reason | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| accept / adapt / decline |
Most important change:
Why it improved the inference rather than only the prose:
Important limitation deliberately retained:
12. Submission gate
Stop submission if any answer is “no.”
- Can I state the question and answer in two sentences?
- Does the design justify the strongest verb in the conclusion?
- Can I trace every important claim to evidence and an exact location?
- Are search, exclusion, coding, and analysis decisions recorded?
- Are uncertainty and transfer limits visible in the abstract and conclusion?
- Have citations, calculations, files, permissions, and disclosures been checked?
Next: build a low-friction research workflow, or inspect the worked project.