Nursing Graduate Student Library Research Guide - RUL

Using a concept map to develop your research question can make the transition from research question to search strategy an easy one.  Concept maps are visual tools that will stimulate your thinking as you identify specific ideas and indicate how they relate to one another.  The maps are adaptable so you can make them as simple or as complex as you want.  You can also modify them as you delve further into your subject.

Concept maps have one basic principle – general to specific.

To develop a concept map,

• Use boxes or circles for each concept or idea,
• Use lines to link related ideas,
• Add phrases on the lines to indicate the nature of the relationship.