I can't explain the gap my study fills
Argue for your contribution clearly, in one paragraph you could say to anyone.
In short
Start here, today. Finish this sentence three different ways, without worrying about quality: “Researchers have shown that ... but we still don't know ... and this matters because ...”. Then pick the version you'd most like to defend. This takes about 20 minutes.
After that, work through these steps. Choose one to jump to it.
Step by step
Tick each step as you finish it. Open a step for the how.
0 of 7 steps done
Name your type of contribution
Decide which fits best: known ideas in a new context, a new or better method, new data, resolving a debate, or extending or testing a theory. Most projects lead with one and touch on a second. Naming it tells you which literature has to carry the argument.
Show what is known, then where it stops
Before the gap, the reader needs to see that you know the established work. Summarise it fairly in a few sentences, then say precisely where it ends. “Little research has looked at X” is weak. “Studies of X have focused on large cities, so we don't know whether the pattern holds where services are sparse” is an argument.
Say why it matters
A gap is only worth filling if something depends on it: a theory, a policy, a practice, a group of people, other researchers' next steps. Write one or two sentences on who would think or act differently if your study succeeds.
Write the gap statement in one paragraph
Put it together: what is known, what isn't, why it matters and how your study responds. Keep it under about 200 words. This paragraph will reappear, reworded, in your proposal, your introduction, your abstracts and your defence, so it's worth the effort.
Test it on someone outside your field
Send it to a friend in another discipline and ask them to explain back what your study adds. If they can't, the paragraph is probably leaning on jargon or skipping a step.
Check it against your design
Make sure your questions and methods actually address the gap you've argued. If your thinking has moved, update either the questions or the gap statement, and record the change in your Decision Log.
Practise saying it
Add “What is your contribution?” to your Q&A Practice Bank with an answer you can give in under a minute. You'll be asked it at your proposal defence, at conferences and in your final defence or viva.
Words you can use
Is this you? Signs to look for
- When someone asks what's new about your study, you start describing your methods.
- You've written “there is a gap in the literature” and can't say much more.
- You worry that someone, somewhere, has already done your study.
- Your proposal has a review and a method, but no clear bridge between them.
Why this happens
The phrase “finding a gap” suggests it's out there waiting to be discovered, like a missing tile. In practice a gap is argued. You show what existing work has established, explain what it leaves unresolved and make the case that this matters. Two people reading the same literature could argue for different gaps, and both could be right.
That's why searching harder rarely fixes the problem. What helps is being clear about the kind of contribution you're making. Very few PhDs overturn a field. Most add something specific: a new context, a better method, new data, a way through a disagreement, or a theory tested on a case it wasn't built for.
Underneath, many students fear their gap isn't big enough. Examiners don't expect a revolution. They expect you to know the conversation, add something real to it and be honest about the size of what you added.
Worth a look (5)
- The Craft of Research, by Wayne Booth, Gregory Colomb and Joseph WilliamsIts chapter on moving from questions to a problem shows how to explain why your answer matters to readers.
- Manchester Academic PhrasebankPhrases for establishing what is known and pointing to what earlier research has not addressed.
- Google ScholarA free search engine for scholarly articles, theses, books and court opinions in every field. Set up alerts so new papers on your topic come to you.
- Semantic ScholarA free search engine for research papers from a nonprofit AI institute. One-line summaries and citation links help you see how a topic fits together.
- OpenAlexA free, open index of hundreds of millions of scholarly works, authors and institutions. You can search it directly or use its data for bibliometric research.
More on finding and reading research in the resource library
When to bring someone in
If you and your supervisor describe your contribution differently, settle it before you write the proposal or introduction. Bring your gap paragraph to a meeting and ask them to rewrite any sentence they disagree with. If you're worried your study has already been done, a subject librarian can help you run a careful search and put that worry to rest one way or the other.
Find the right person, or talk to Ify