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    Qualitative Doctoral Research

    This guide will help direct you on how to use the library during your doctoral journey.

    InterLibrary Loan (ILL)

    If you have the citation information for an article or book but can't find the full text, you can submit an InterLibrary Loan (ILL) request.

    Interlibrary loan service is for current students, faculty, and staff.  For alumni resources, visit: Alumni Resources

    What is the Problem Space?

    The topic, the problem statements that other researchers have defined, and the approaches that other researchers have taken, all constitute the “problem space” for a study. The problem space is a way to help you establish some boundaries for the literature review, so that you have a clear idea of what to include and what to exclude. What needs to be understood is the result of the analysis of the literature review within the problem space, and the problem statement expresses how the proposed study will address what needs to be understood. The problem space is thus comprised of identifying what is known about a topic, understanding how it has come to be known (the theories, designs, methods, instruments) and then figuring out what is not yet known. 

    The problem space, also called the research 'gap', looks for the place where research is lacking, so a planned study can fill it. This may be topical, or an element of methodology through which a topic has yet to be explored, such as with a particular population. Problem spaces are built from multiple articles. You will need to piece together the elements of your research problem.

    The best way to build evidence for your problem space is by taking note of the limitations and recommendations discussed in the empirical research articles you gather as you build your literature review.

    Examples From Empirical Articles

    There are many ways to word discussion of research that has yet to be done. These are examples of the types of passages to look for.

    Example of a Limitations Section

    From the article:

    Spanhove, V., De Wandele, I., Kjær, B. H., Malfait, F., Vanderstukken, F., & Cools, A. (2020). The effect of five isometric exercises on glenohumeral translations in healthy subjects and patients with the hypermobility type of the ehlers-danlos syndrome (heds) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (hsd) with multidirectional shoulder instability: an observational study.  Physiotherapy ,  107 , 11–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physio.2019.06.010

    "Limitations and strengths
    In addition to limitations and strengths already mentioned in light of the discussion, other aspects of our study should be considered. First, the sample size is rather small since EDS is a rare disease and strict inclusion criteria for MDI were applied to avoid selection bias. Therefore, findings should be interpreted with some caution. Second, evaluation of scapular 3D kinematics or muscle electromyography were not incorporated in this study. Patients with MDI may experience a decreased scapular upward rotation during elevation, possibly due to aberrant muscle recruitment. We therefore recommend that scapular 3D analysis and electromyography are integrated into future research. Third, performing our own reliability study was not possible in view of the required number of exercise repetitions, possibly harmful in this fragile population."

    From this passage, an argument could be made for performing a similar study, but with 3D analysis.

    Example of a Recommendation for Further Research

    Some articles will go beyond discussing their limitations and describe further research that should be done. 

    For example, this article:

    Carey, J., Pathak, A., & Johnson, S. C. (2020). Use, Perceptions, and Awareness of LibGuides among Undergraduate and Graduate Health Professions Students.  Evidence Based Library and Information Practice ,  15 (3), 157-172. https://doi.org/10.18438/eblip29653

    Suggests several different avenues of further research:

    "While LibGuides will naturally vary by institution, further study of their usage at other locales by health sciences students could reveal more about the information needs and behaviors of health sciences students in general. In addition, investigators could design a similar study to explore the use, perceptions, and awareness of research guides by students majoring in other subjects. They could conduct a comparative study to examine responses of students enrolled in online and hybrid courses versus those of traditional students on campus. Finally, a study utilizing focus groups could provide qualitative insights about health sciences and other students’ LibGuides usage and information behaviors."

    How to Use Review Articles

    Review articles can help formulate a gap, or at least point out a direction to look for one. Since they provide an overview of the published literature, they can give you a head start on what kinds of research are lacking.

    How to Locate Review Articles: Systematic Reviews, Literature Reviews, and Meta-Analyses

    • Start with your general topic area. For example:
      • handwashing or hand washing or hand hygiene or hand sanitation
      • AND nurs*
    • Add a search field for review type articles:
      • systematic review or meta-analysis or literature review or scoping review
    • Adjust dates to be within 2 years. 
    • Most reviews will also include their search strings. This can add to your own keywords to expand your searches.
      • For instance the above search was used to locate this article:

    Seo, H.-J., Sohng, K.-Y., Chang, S. O., Chaung, S. K., Won, J. S., & Choi, M.-J. (2019). Interventions to improve hand hygiene compliance in emergency departments: a systematic review. The Journal of Hospital Infection , 102(4), 394–406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2019.03.013

    • Within this article, their search includes the following string:
      • (hand antisepsis or handwash* or hand wash* or hand disinfection or hand hygiene or surgical scrub*)
      • With terms that should be included when searching on this topic.
    • This article states a gap in the conclusion:
      • "Further well-designed controlled studies are necessary to examine the true effects and identify which intervention modalities are more effective than others for HHC improvement in EDs."
      • Reviewing the articles this article studied would then provide support for this gap.

    Pursuing a health care topic? Search Cochrane Reviews or Joanna Biggs EBP as well as the more general databases.

    Example of a Review Article

    Review articles can clarify where a lack of research exists. To then establish the problem space fully, you will need to track down the articles cited in the review.

    For instance, consider the following passage from this review article:

    Martin, A. (2019). An acquired or heritable connective tissue disorder? A review of hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. European Journal of Medical Genetics, 62(7), 103672. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejmg.2019.103672

    "The gap in longitudinal studies identifies the quality of evidence generated from cross sectional observations of clinical features that develop with age (Forghani, 2019). For example, Scheper et al. (2017) reported inconsistent results from a cross sectional study of the influence of proprioception on muscle strength and activity limitations. Muscle weakness and poor resistance affect movement and posture but the lack of strength in the muscles is due to anomalies instead of muscle waste (Proske and Gandevia, 2012). A statistical control for physical activity in a study examining lower extremity muscle mass, muscle strength, functional performance and physical impairment indicated very low muscle strength in hEDS (Rombaut et al., 2012). Nonetheless, subsequent research still involves associations of muscle weakness with muscle waste linked to pain and fatigue in hEDS (Scheper et al., 2017)."

    This is indicating a need for longitudinal studies for this condition to better understand the relationship between muscle strength and muscle waste. Further examining the cited articles would establish this avenue for a study.

    Searching Article Full Text

    Search box to enter search terms into

    It can be helpful to search for articles that specifically mention limitations or further research. However, these terms will usually not appear in the abstract. By default, most databases search only the metadata for an article: the title, authors, keywords, subject terms, and abstract. They do not search the full text of the article. You can switch a search to the full text by changing the search field. Keep in mind that many articles will not use these terms but still may support a gap, so the best way to find your articles is as you read through the original research for your literature review.

    How to Search Full Text for Further Research

    • The keywords used to search for further research recommendations are:
      • "further research" or "further study" or "future research" or "future study" or limitations or recommendations
    • In the LopeSearch (EBSCO), the search fields are labelled as "All fields."
    • Change this option to "All Text - TX" to search the full text of the article. 

    • Do this only for the keywords about research and limitations. If you try and search full text for all your keywords, you will get many irrelevant results.

    To Search for Recommendations for Further Research in Google Scholar

    • For Google Scholar: 
      • Google Scholar searches full text by default.
      • Click the menu in the upper left (the three bars) and choose " Advanced Search".
      • Enter your topic keywords in the box for "with all of the words."
      • In the box for "with at least one of the words,"enter all these words:
      • "further research" or "further study" or "future research" or "future study" or limitations or recommendations

    • Last Updated: Mar 27, 2026 8:06 AM
    • URL: https://libguides.gcu.edu/QualitativeDoctoralResearch
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