Why brainstorming may be bad idea for choosing new project topics.
Choosing new project topics as final year undergraduates is really critical to the beginning of your research. It doesn’t matter if your are documenting the research or exhibiting it ( as in the case of fine arts, theatre arts and other depts. in that category), what matters most is giving your research a direction, first by choosing a project topic. However, brainstorming sounds like it’s the best approach to doing so whereas there are better approaches to achieving a better topic outcome.
That brings us to our basic discussion as to why brainstorming may not be the best idea for choosing a project topic. To be clear enough, brainstorming could be an individual affair or group based. According to a popular dictionary, Merriam Webster precisely, brainstorming describes “engaging in exchange of information and ideas”, “mulling over of ideas by one or more individuals in an attempt to devise or find a solution to a problem”.
Recall that final year projects are 97% individualistic. Everyone with their own topics and issue-laden research aims to find solutions. How then does brainstorming work since it points majorly to collaborative effort.
Still not a good idea because it results to;
Clash of interest
If there are three course mates in the same level brainstorming together on new project topics, chances are that their research interest will clash thereby limiting the uniqueness of each other’s project topics especially if they have always been study-mates all along.
Limits research to personal interest
Mulling over of research ideas by an individual reduces your research ideas to your personal interest rather than finding solutions to societal issues which is of public interest. However cleaving to other alternatives as we will outline will raise already existing issues and bring it to limelight in your research.
Delays research progress
Comparably to other alternatives, brainstorming for a project topic is time consuming except you have to work ahead to beat time and stress. No matter how fresh a topic seems when brainstormed, someone might have thought and done something related. Reason being that whatever we think about are influenced by what we see, hear, feel, experience, talk about, do, where we go and many others including what we learn. Whoever is exposed to what you’re exposed to is most likely to think the way you do.
Alternative to brainstorming for new project topics
Analyse previous research topics
It is advisable to go through previous research topics in your field of knowledge and analysis them. The essence doing this is to find out recommendations for further research indicated in those documented research.
Because undergraduate projects are not broad, its uniqueness is often locked in its continuity. Where one’s research ends, the others begins.
If you have done an analysis with an array of topics, you may then validate and choose a project topic.