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MHP112 Research Skills Guide: Keywords (Topic Analysis)

Topic analysis

A topic analysis will help you to clarify and understand what your assessment question is asking you to do.

You will generally be given three key pieces of information:

  1. The key topic or concept words direct you in what to research.
  2. The limits or qualifiers tell you the specific focus of the topic or concept.
  3. The task or instruction terms tell how you are to deal with the content.CSU has a list of explanations for common instruction words.

For your MHP112 Assessment item 3, you are required to reflect on the statement below and answer the three questions:

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet (2019) identifies "the term social and emotional wellbeing is used by many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to describe the social, emotional, spiritual, and cultural wellbeing of a person. The term recognises that connection to land, culture, spirituality, family, and community are important to people and can impact on their wellbeing. It also recognises that a person’s social and emotional wellbeing is influenced by policies and past events" (para. 1).

 

  1. Define social and emotional wellbeing and provide an example (150 words)
  2. Define and explain the term Holistic Health (150 words)
  3. Define and explain what cultural wellbeing means (150 words)

 

Instruction words Reflect, define, explain
Key concepts Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; social and emotional wellbeing; holistic health; cultural wellbeing

 

Keyword activity

Write down the key concepts from your topic and have a go at brainstorming as many alternative keywords and phrases as possible.

Thinking about your topic in this way forces you to describe your topic in "other words", which will provide you with some useful keyword alternatives as well as help you to cement your understanding of the topic.

Topic analysis

Find additional keywords

Dictionaries and encyclopaedias can help you to find additional keywords and get an overview of the concept.

Oxford Reference Online is a huge repository of subject-specific dictionaries, encyclopaedias, and other reference-type material.

Charles Sturt University acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands on which its campuses are located, paying respect to Elders, both past and present, and extend that respect to all First Nations Peoples.Acknowledgement of Country

Charles Sturt University is an Australian University, TEQSA Provider Identification: PRV12018. CRICOS Provider: 00005F.