Once you have read a variety of sources and considered your issue from different perspectives, you are ready to form a working thesis: a one-sentence (or occasionally a two-sentence) statement of your central idea (see also C2-a). Because it is a working, or tentative, thesis, you can remain flexible and revise it as your ideas develop. In a research paper, your thesis will answer the central research question you pose (see R1-a). Here, for example, are Anna Orlov’s research question and working thesis.
research question
Should employers monitor their employees’ online activities in the workplace?
working thesis
Employers should not monitor their employees’ online activities because electronic surveillance can compromise workers’ privacy.
After you have written a rough draft and perhaps done more reading, you may decide to revise your thesis, as Orlov did.
revised thesis
Although companies often have legitimate concerns that lead them to monitor employees’ Internet usage—from expensive security breaches to reduced productivity—the benefits of electronic surveillance are outweighed by its costs to employees’ privacy and autonomy.
The thesis usually appears at the end of the introductory paragraph. Read Anna Orlov’s thesis in the context of her introduction.
PRACTICE hackerhandbooks.com/writersref
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