Paralegal Research Guide

Pre-research is the process of exploring and learning about your topic before you dive into in-depth research or start searching databases. It involves getting background information, understanding the basics, and refining your topic or research question. This step is essential for any research project—whether for a Paralegal course or any other subject—because it lays the foundation for effective, focused research.

Why is Pre-Research Useful?

• Builds Background Knowledge: Pre-research helps you understand the key facts, context, and main issues related to your topic, answering basic questions like who, what, when, and where.
• Refines Your Topic: By learning more, you can narrow or adjust your topic, making it more manageable and relevant to your assignment.
• Saves Time: Early exploration ensures your topic is viable and enough sources are available, helping you avoid last-minute changes.
• Guides Your Research: Pre-research helps you develop a focused research question, which is crucial for finding relevant sources later.

How to Do Pre-Research:

1. Choose a Topic: Start with a general area of interest.
2. Gather Background Information: To learn the basics, use encyclopedias, Wikipedia (for an overview, not as a final source), or introductory books and articles.
3. Ask Questions: What are the main issues? Who are the key people or groups? What events or debates are important?
4. Refine Your Focus: Narrow your topic and create a research question based on what you learn.

Check for Sources: Make sure enough academic sources are available on your topic.

Online reference books (eBooks) are helpful for finding background information because they contain a lot of information about your topic all in one place. eBooks can be found in our library databases and are available at any time without a library card. Here are just a few of our eBook databases to get you started.

For more eBooks, please visit our A to Z Databases and sort the database Types by eBooks.