Types of Research Gaps

A good research gap is the foundation for the research value of a study and therefore, is fundamental to the success of any research project. You will find that the need for a strong research paper, without identifying a research gap, can make your work seem weak or unnecessary. 

Determining your research gap may present a challenge to students and some experienced researchers alike. In numerous examples of literature reviewed, even though there are hundreds of other researchers reviewing the same literature, there remains the. "I don’t know what is missing," many researchers feel while trying to determine if they have sufficient evidence to fill in a research gap.

In the following sections of this blog, we shall outline some of the main types of research gaps, define them in sample language, and provide you with ideas on how you can find and define your research gap more effectively by using modern tools like AnswerThis.

What is a research gap?

Research gaps are aspects of a study that require additional exploration and follow-up. These could include missing data, questions that can't be answered yet, outdated research results, and conflicting results with one another.

Think of research as a big puzzle. Many pieces are in place, but there is a missing piece, hence, an open space is created (the research gap).

1. Knowledge Gap

A knowledge gap can occur when you have very little or no research available, which is an easy example of a knowledge gap. For example, if an emerging technology (artificial intelligence) has recently appeared in a particular area, there may not be enough research available to determine how it will affect that specific area. This would again translate into a clear area of research opportunity. Knowledge gaps in this area will become increasingly rare in established fields as research is undertaken but the true skill lies in determining what exactly is missing from the research that has been performed.

Tools such as AnswerThis allow researchers to quickly search and identify large amounts of information, allowing them to see where studies conducted on similar topics are lacking or missing completely. This saves the researcher weeks of searching manually through an enormous volume of material.

2. Methodological Gap

A methodological gap occurs when past research has used untested methods or poor research designs. For instance (i) Only qualitative studies have been published, but no quantitative validations have been performed (ii) Low sample sizes were used (iii) There were few experimental or longitudinal studies conducted.

If any of these apply to current research, then using a more rigorous or distinct methodology can help fill the methodological gap. Methodological gaps are frequent throughout the social sciences and emerging interdisciplinary areas. AnswerThis can help to identify common patterns of methodology in different articles by examining several study papers together; thus, identifying areas of concern across studies will be simplified.

3. Empirical Gap

An empirical gap is when there is a lack of evidence or data available.  Theories can sometimes exist without being tested in the real world. Evidence can also come from small sample sizes and from old datasets that are no longer relevant. Examples include: (i) A theory that exists but has no proof in the real world (ii) Data exists from only one country rather than having been collected from around the world (iii) Old datasets are being used and not the current. Research can help fill empirical gaps by providing new data through experimentation and/or case studies.

AnswerThis can show you what empirical gaps you may have missed by showing you multiple research studies from different data sources. This allows for quick reference to see where gaps exist.

4. Theoretical Gap

A theoretical gap arises when existing theory does not satisfactorily describe a phenomenon. 

The following are examples of circumstances that can create theoretical gaps: (i) The emergence of new technologies/trends (ii) A lack of consistency between the current theory and the new context in which it is being used (iii) The emergence of new models that challenge traditional paradigms of thought. For example, traditional business models may not be adequate in explaining platform economies, such as Uber or Airbnb. As researchers fill these theoretical gaps, they typically do one of the following (i) Create a new model (ii) Extend or refine an existing model (iii) Combine various models.

With AnswerThis, researchers can compare how other scholars have approached the same theoretical gaps and analyze how authors use different theories to illustrate their problems in academic or professional contexts.

5. Population Gap

A population gap happens when someone studies one group but fails to research any other groups. For example (i) Successful research intended for use by adults may not be useful for children, both in development and current use (ii) Research completed solely within western society and not considering developing areas (iii) Data collected only from a particular industry or segment of the economy. Population gaps are important because they limit the researcher’s ability to generalize their findings to different types of populations outside of what was studied. Your research may help fill this gap by completing the data on populations that have not been well-studied or not previously studied at all.

AnswerThis provides information about the populations used for the various types of research conducted so that you can quickly reference what has been done previously and what has not.

6. Contextual Gap

When research evidence is restricted to some or all given place's space, a contextual gap exists in that particular place being studied. For instance, in the following examples: (i) Findings from one country may not apply to another country (ii) One kind of industry will not always apply to another industry (iii) Findings obtained from experimental or controlled conditions will not always apply in actual or real-life settings. This type of gap would be very significant in the fields of education, business or healthcare. Filling this gap requires the application of existing research results and/or theories in new environments and/or locations.

7. Contradictory Evidence Gap

At times, research is available, but the conclusions vary.  Take, for example: (i) One study may indicate a method is effective (ii) Another study may find it ineffective (iii) This leads to confusion about what remains to be investigated. You can then conduct your research to: (i) Compare inconsistent studies (ii) Identify causal factors for the differences (iii) Reach sounder conclusions about the two research projects. You can also compare results from multiple articles which aids in determining differences across studies.

How to identify research gaps faster

Historically, the process of identifying research gaps involved reading through dozens/hundreds of papers by hand and this was time consuming and often tedious.

Now, technologies like AnswerThis, allow users to do the following:

• Find papers easily, quickly and efficiently

• Extract critical information from papers

• Correlate findings from studies

• Identify missing elements of research/ discrepancies

Instead of spending weeks identifying gaps where users can now find gaps in hours or even minutes, concentrating rather on doing research. 

Final thoughts

Academic researchers must develop the skill of finding and identifying gaps within their topic area; this is a major component of turning a broad abstract concept into a full-scale publishable journal article. Some gaps represent missing knowledge, while others represent studies that used substandard methodology, sample size, or external factors. By more clearly defining your gap within the literature, you will be in a stronger position to conduct your research. However, researchers no longer must do this alone! Research tools such as AnswerThis allow researchers to quickly identify research gaps; clear up any confusion; write literature reviews that are clearly defined and solidify their research argument with confidence.

If you are looking for key takeaways on identifying gaps that researchers are coming up with, or seeking further research opportunities, consider exploring recent articles and utilizing tools like AnswerThis to ensure further research is needed and that you have a clear summary of the essential concepts discussed.