1 What is a deep dive?

A deep dive is often called research (which I refer to as research with a little r, as it is not the formal type of research that involves working with primary sources or data collected yourself, which is the kind of research most of your professors do). It is the attempt to gain knowledge or create answers to important questions.

Sometimes in a deep dive, we want to know more. Sometimes we need to. Sometimes, topics are assigned. And other times, we have a deep need that affects ourselves and those around us. The steps of a deep dive are similar regardless of need. The goal of this is for you to dive deeply into a topic.  But before you can,  you may need to widen your knowledge base. A wide knowledge base means you know the vocabulary, basic ideas, and key theories in whatever the deep dive area is. But to complete the deep dive, you need specific, reliable sources that go deeper than the general ideas you have or can easily add to your knowledge base.

We all are faced with questions and problems that require careful, critical thought based on reliable evidence.

• In your personal life, you may find that you have questions related to health, finances, and family matters.
• In your career, you will be faced with tough decisions.
• In dealing with the world around you, you will be asked or called to take action.

All of these require careful consideration. To be prepared to answer complex questions and make tough decisions, you’ll need to take a deep dive into specific topics- not based on what the latest celebrity or newscast has to say, but on reliable evidence that you evaluate yourself.

In a deep dive, you work to:

Understand

Gain a general understanding of the topic or idea, including vocabulary, theories, and ideas

Source

Determine sources to help you understand the issues and answers the parts of the question

Read

Read sources carefully, closely, and critically. Take notes so that you can work without rereading unless absolutely necessary.

Synthesize

Synthesize the sources so you can answer your question (and identify more to dive into).

Evaluate

Evaluate how the information answers your question or informs your decision and actions

Assess

Determine if your answers, decisions, or actions are accurate, practical, and consistent with what you know