The foundation of any doctoral dissertation or project is a well-crafted problem statement. This exercise will allow you to develop and fine-tune a problem statement.
Identify a problem within the literature that needs further examination. Review the white paper on Effective Problem Statements and craft a problem statement for the path you desire to explore. Depending on the direction you head these will look slightly different. Make sure to thoroughly substantiate the problem with scholarly research. Keep in mind that a problem statement should not exceed 250 words.
Applied research problem statements should begin with a general problem. The general problem to be addressed is… Likewise in Applied Research, the specific problem is narrower in scope and labeled similarly: The specific problem to be addressed is… Applied Research Problems include 3 components: A general problem sentence, 3 – 4 supporting sentences showing that the problem exists within the literature, and a specific problem sentence.
All problem statements should include supporting information to assist in explaining the problem and must contain at least three scholarly resources to substantiate the problem. Scholarly resources should be published within the last three to five years. Proper APA formatting should be used, including a title and reference page.
