Why a column on research techniques?

This column begins a series on topics in research methodology, statistics and data analysis techniques for the library and information sciences. The process of research is described, and a sample research question is proposed and discussed, emphasizing the importance of definitions is crafting a productive research question. A set of graphical techniques for analyzing data, called exploratory data analysis, is discussed, with special attention given to two particular examples ‐ the stem and leaf diagram and the scatterplot.