Relevance trees
Relevance trees may also prove useful in generating research topics. In this instance, their use is similar to that of mind mapping (Buzan 2006), in which you start with a broad con- cept from which you generate further (usually more specific) topics. Each of these topics forms a separate branch from which you can generate further, more detailed sub- branches. As you proceed down the sub-branches more ideas are generated and recorded. These can then be examined and a number selected and combined to provide a research idea (Sharp et al. 2002). This technique is discussed in more detail in Section 3.4, which also includes a worked example of a relevance tree.