The Research Process - Essay Example

?I was pleased with the research topic and I was excited to explore it and be enriched by it. Once I started with the research process, I found out that it was indeed a very complicated and controversial topic. The controversy stemming from the topic was also an accumulation of conflicts and unresolved issues between the US and the Middle Eastern region. During my initial search for research materials and background information, I was able to retrieve historical information which helped me understand the current situation between the US and the Middle East. At the beginning of the week, I did not have much information about the different elements of the issue topic – the foreign policy of the United States in the Middle East during and after the 9/11 attacks. However, as I went on to review the research, I was able to establish the highlights and the major aspects of the issue which were meant to make me understand the events as they unfolded. I was able to learn the extent of the animosity felt by terrorist groups against the US and how these feelings stemmed mostly from the US foreign policies in the Middle East and in developing nations. I was also able to learn how these US foreign policies have been viewed by many Middle Eastern nations as purely economically based and more to the point – oil-based. In the first few days of the research process, I was able to enhance my organizational research skills. Before the research, I did not have an organized way of carrying out research or in carrying out any of my academic tasks. I actually often ended up repeating myself or doing things twice because I did not have good organizational skills. However, as I was going through the process of research, I was forced to come up with a logical and orderly system in gathering data and in sorting out the data that I was able to gather. In so doing, I knew where to get the information I needed and which part of the research they would be placed. I was also able to establish the information I still needed to research and what type of information I needed. I believe that the part of the research which was well organized and well done for me was the third chapter because the materials and information were well organized and logically flowed from one idea to the next. I believe that that part of the research process was able to highlight my strengths as a researcher and as a student. However, there were also some challenging and difficult parts of the research process for me. It was very challenging for me to gain an objective and well-rounded information about the topic. There are different sources of information about the topic and I tried my best to sift through these in order to come up with the best and the most objective sources of data. When I was about to finish the research and data gathering process, I was more or less ready to plan and to write the initial chapters of the paper. In order for me to make a good start however on the paper, I was planning to read the “Unholy wars: Afghanistan, America and international terrorism” by Cooley and “Fighting suicide bombing: a worldwide campaign for life” by Cherny. In order to successfully write the first chapter, I was called on to spend much time in researching about the 9/11 attacks itself. The areas of my research for this week included the assessment of the different events leading up to the 9/11 attacks and the immediate aftermath thereof. I found out that there were possible signs which indicated a possible attack on US soil, however no definitive threat was seen and was considered an immediate threat to the US and its inhabitants and territories. In order to ensure a good understanding of the subject matter, I highlighted the importance of gaining balanced and objective research materials. I used both library searches through books and journals in order to facilitate data gathering. I also used the internet to search for possible recommended materials relevant to my research. Before I started with the research process, I had a vague knowledge about the US-Middle East conflict and the US foreign policies in the Middle East. During my week’s research and related processes, I was able to find out about the political undertones which were manifest in the US-Middle East crisis. I saw that there were deep-seated conflicts between these two countries and these conflicts as they remained unresolved culminated in the 9/11 attacks. I developed different research skills during this week. I was able to slowly refine my research skills and retrieval of specific information relevant to my research. Aside from learning about the conflicts which gave rise to the 9/11 attacks, I was also able to find out about the actions of the US immediately after the attacks and how these actions affected the relations with the Middle East and the terrorist groups which inhabited the area. The part of the research which was quite easy for me was the part about searching for historical background on the issue. I found that part enjoyable and I was able to sift through numerous data in order to get to the core information needed for the research. However, I was also encountered much difficulty in the research process, especially on the analysis part where I had to choose the best information and analysis from different authors. After I completed Chapter 1, I was planning to finish with a plan for the next chapter of the research in order to ensure that the data gathered and the research writing process would smoothly flow from one chapter to the next. For this chapter, I was planning to read Brzezinski, and Scowcroft book on ‘Conversations on the Future of American Foreign Policy’ in order to gain a casual picture of the second chapter. I was also planning to read ‘The Case for Goliath: How American acts as the World’s Government in the Twenty-First Century’ in order to gain a deeper perspective on the topic. These books gave me enough perspective on the second chapter in order to evaluate a direction for the discussion. During the third month of the research process, I began writing and researching for Chapter Two. This topic focused on the foreign policy of the US before and after the 9/11 attacks. The second chapter went deeper into the core of the topic discussion. It became more than informative, it was also very analytical in terms of evaluating the data gathered and the key players in the US foreign policy implementation. It analyzed the actions of the US when it was attacked and how long it was sustained soon after. This chapter has assisted me in becoming more analytical and reflective in the research process. It has made me more discerning of the research materials I was able to gather and ensure that these are academic and reliable sources. It also made me more critical of the author’s discussions and to evaluate whether or not their line of discussion was well supported and logical. The most challenging part for me was on how on how to evaluate the politics involved in the discussion – how to sift through the data and decide which discussion was presenting the objective details about the attacks and the US foreign policies. It was easy enough for the authors to come up with their own analysis of the topic; however such discussion had to be based on objective data. Moreover, such discussion needed to be more analytical by featuring all sides of the issue and ensuring that the data gathered and used was based on facts and not based on mere speculation and opinions about the subject matter. As the second chapter came to an end, the focus of my discussion was now turned to Chapter 3 and all the details which were important in that chapter. The focus of the chapter was US foreign policy and infinite world domination. It was a topic which was more encompassing as it covered not just the Middle East, but also the rest of the world in terms of the US gaining more power in the world and in the realm of international politics. I was bracing myself for a more difficult and analytical research process. I read the book ‘American unilateralism, foreign economic policy and the 'securitisation' of globalization 'securitisation' of globalization’ in order to prepare for the topic. It was difficult for me to gain perspective on the US oil policies because there was a wealth of material on the topic. I had to sift through many reading materials in order to gain the best and most accurate data for the discussion. Nevertheless, I knew that I was able to carry out my best analysis and conceptualization in this chapter. I was able to be gritty in my analysis and this paid off in the research because I was able to gain objective and purposeful processes in my research and writing. As the third chapter came to an end, the focus of my discussion was now turned to Chapter 4 and all the details which were important in that chapter. The focus of the chapter was US current stand in the war against terrorism and how this stand is currently floundering. It was a topic which was more analytical than any other chapter. It contained more critical highlights in the US war against terrorism. I was preparing to be even more discerning in my research in order to evaluate the data I was gathering. In preparation, I read the analysis by Plesch, ‘View Abroad: Bush's War on Terrorism Is Floundering, Foreign Policy in Focus’ where the author was able to give me a critical overview of the topic. I also read ‘Assessing U.S. Strategy in the War on Terror’ by Van Evera. These reading materials gave me a general idea of the topic and of the discussion which should follow. As the 4th chapter was wrapping up, the emphasis of the paper was to layout the final chapter of the paper. The final chapter was based on evaluating the US policies and how America’s war on terrorism was actually both gaining and failing in so many regards. During the month, in order for me to have a focused research, the research process became more focused on evaluating the foreign policies and how they were effective or ineffective in resolving issues and conflicts with the Middle East. When I was starting with my research, I was very unsure about the direction of my topic. I was also not confident enough about the data that I knew about US foreign policies. I did not trust the information I knew and I did not feel that I had the right information with me. However, as I went into deeper analysis and wider research about the topic, I was slowly able to gain much needed data and I was able to gain confidence in such data. Towards the end, I was confident to say that the US needs to reconsider its foreign policies in the US because these are not favorable to the welfare of the people. As I was reaching the end of my research, I was confident in claiming that this research topic enhanced my research and academic skills. Initially, I did not know enough about research and on how to analyse the data I was able to gather. I had fears about organizing data and placing them together in a logical order. But through the research, I became more confident and felt better about the knowledge I gained through the research. I was also able to gain confidence in sharing my knowledge of US foreign policies before, during, and after the 9/11 attacks. As I was reaching the last part of the research and writing process, the activities that followed were already manageable for me. And I was more confident about undertaking other future researches. In the last few days of this research, I am planning to write down my last thoughts on this paper. I plan to assess all the materials again in order to use these for future research and in order to provide an even better introduction and conclusion for this research paper. I am also planning to carry out this analysis in terms of the logical considerations for future recommendations and improvements in policies. Introduction – in order to conceptualize a good introduction, this section must provide an accurate factual and background information on the topic. The section was able to layout the major event which triggered the closer analysis of US foreign policy. It retraced the Middle East and US conflict as well as the other issues related to the subject matter. The last part of the introduction presented the readers with an outline of the discussion and the chapters which would follow. Conclusion – an effective conclusion is inclusive of a summary of the subject matter and of the chapters in this research. It also provides an overall analysis and discussion of the previous chapters. The conclusion also provides answers to the issues raised during the research. It also includes the gaps in the research as well as other pertinent recommendations for future research. The conclusion helps provide a critical assessment of the entire research process based on my logical evaluation of the data. Questions – The dissertation presents the US foreign policies in the Middle East following the September 11 attacks. It basically asks how these foreign policies were changed after the attacks and how effective these policies were in resolving issues in the Middle East. Read More