There are many types of research questions, and determining what kind you might use depends on the discipline and the assignment.
| Name | Description | Typical words | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Descriptive | Questions about facts or the state of things | What | What are barriers to effective fishing regulation in the United States? |
| Explanatory | Questions about causes of or relationships between concepts or phenomena | How, why, effect, impact, relate, cause |
Why does the fishing industry respond negatively to geographic limits in fishing regulation? How do fishing regulations impact commercial fishing in the United States? |
| Prescriptive | Provides solutions to a problem | Should | What should the United States do to prevent overfishing in the Gulf of Mexico? |
| Normative | Questions that are answered based on opinions, values, and subjective preferences | Should | Should economic concerns outweigh environmental ones in regulating the fishing industry? |
| Predictive | Predicts outcomes | What will, How will | How will the fishing industry respond to new regulations that increase geographical limits to fishing areas? |
| Conceptual or theoretical | How broad concepts are defined or understood | No typical words | How are different types of regulation distinguished and defined? |