140 Controversial Research Topics and Ideas to Focus On

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Everything on this earth is not either right or wrong. Some topics that are related to subjects such as science, religion, ethics, society, and the environment are debatable and have multiple contrasting perspectives. So, when it comes to preparing research papers, the majority of the students will not consider such controversial topics because of the challenges involved in it. However, at times, some professors will ask students to submit high-quality papers on controversial research topics. In such a case, you can compose your research paper on any of the controversial topics that are listed in this blog. Moreover, from here, you can also learn how to find a perfect topic and craft a detailed controversial research paper with valid evidence. Continue reading to update your knowledge of controversial research paper writing.

How to Select an Ideal Controversial Research Topic

All controversial research topics seem to have equal importance. Hence, choosing the right subject often becomes tricky. To make it easy, take the following steps:

Step 1: Find Something Inspirational

Choose a topic that inspires you and you have enough knowledge on the subject. It will reduce the time for researching and completing the assignment quickly.

Step 2: Narrow Down Your Ideas

While you choose controversial topics, narrow down your ideas. However, if the theme is quite broad, see if you can add your opinion on the subject.

Step 3: Explore The Counter Arguments

Ensure that you can add a high level of counterarguments to justify the controversial nature of the topic.

Step 4: Find Unusual Facts

Research the unusual facts that can strengthen your paper.

Choose the topic that meets all these criteria.

However, choosing the right topic is useless unless you know how to write about it.

Controversial Research Topics

Tips for Writing a Controversial Research Paper

Now, that you have clear ideas on how to choose the right controversial topics. Next, let us learn the tips to make your writing stand out:

1.  Research Your Topic from Different Perspectives

Look at the topic from varied perspectives and research it. It will help readers to engage on the subject and question various morals and ideas. Moreover, examine the counterviews of the subject and add sufficient facts to prove it.

2.  Use Your Language Tactfully

Your readers may take statements personally if you write uncensored brutal facts. Hence, avoid it. For example, saying that smoking is a harmful act may make your reader defensive if he is a chain smoker. In place of that, you can state that smoking may block in smooth functioning of the lungs.

3.  Allow readers to think

Explore the entire controversy in your assignment and allow your readers to take their side and form their opinion on the subject.

List of the Best Controversial Research Topics

Are you looking for some controversial topics to make your assignment interesting? Then, look at the 140 controversial research topics listed below. You will surely have an interesting idea that will help you score high grades.

Controversial Research Topics for College Students

Are you a college student seeking to explore the most sensitive and debated issues in your research paper? Take a look at the list published below. In the list, particularly, for college students, we have provided some thought-provoking controversial research topics.

  1. Patients admitted without insurance and their safety.
  2. Video games and the aggression that it induces.
  3. How does a nurse impact a patient’s behavior?
  4. All vegetarians lead a healthy life – What is your viewpoint on the subject?
  5. Covid-19 and the debate surrounding it.
  6. Individual medical data and its revelation.
  7. Disabilities among the learners- How to take care of it.
  8. Religious disagreement and their genesis.
  9. Feminine versus masculine parenting.
  10. Examine the moral character of beauty salons.
  11. Analyzing the disadvantage of the fashion industry.
  12. The United States and its peripheral politics.
  13. The entitlement of criminals to vote.
  14. Consent for using smartphones in academic institutions.
  15. Social media and harmful body image.

Controversial Research Topics For High School Students

If you are a high school student, then in your controversial research paper, you may focus on any of the topics suggested here. By studying the complex topics we have recommended, you can improve your critical thinking and make informed views on serious global problems.

  1. Expression of slavery in the television media.
  2. Examine the issues of vaccine allocation.
  3. Medical tourism and its issues.
  4. The downbeat effects of nightclubs.
  5. Reasons for global warming- Who is to be held liable?
  6. Poland and its law for abortion.
  7. Describe the ethical characteristics of decriminalizing abortion in the United States of America.
  8. Weapon laws and its present scenario: An American perspective.
  9. Describe the limited nature of Catholicism.
  10. What are the primary limits and bans in Middle-east countries?
  11. Alcohol intake and its relation to rape.
  12. Alcohol intake and its relation with household violence.
  13. Gender Prejudice on the Ground of educational science and medicine.
  14. Juvenile criminal behavior and fairness in the United States.
  15. Discuss the reasons behind juvenile delinquency.

Controversial Topics For Research Scholars

In this section, we have suggested a list of provocative study topics that challenge existing paradigms and spark innovative inquiry for research scholars. From the list, select any topic that is convenient for you to analyze and write about.

  1. Children looking after their young siblings- What are your viewpoints?
  2. Luxury parties and their ban.
  3. Authorization of smartphones in junior schools.
  4. Males versus Females – their excellence in Science.
  5. Religion must be an obligatory subject in schools.
  6. The unfavorable effect of nightclubs.
  7. Indication of slavery in the print media.
  8. Examining the unclear view of humanity in the USA.
  9. Ban social media platforms used by children.
  10. Municipal Education versus Montessori Education- Explore the danger of Montessori education.
  11. Unequal allocation of medical services across the globe.
  12. How is opium used for painkilling purposes?
  13. Close down the tax scheme for the poor population.
  14. Sportsperson and morality.
  15. Significance of coaching martial arts in schools.

Top Controversial Research Topics

If you want to create a premium-quality controversial research paper, then work on any of the intriguing topics suggested here. Writing on top controversial study topics will help you involved in meaningful discussion and develop expertise and credibility in your research and argumentation.

  1. How to deal with the death penalty differently.
  2. Approach towards Aids patients.
  3. Why to excuse student loan amount overdue- Examine from the college viewpoint.
  4. Ban on addictive drug manufacture
  5. Ban on alcohol procure and use among young adults
  6. Should extravagance parties and congregation be forbidden?
  7. The negative side of the glamour and amusement industry
  8. Should you restrict nightlife from adolescents?
  9. Allotment of the COVID-19 vaccine at academic institutions for free
  10. Significance of martial arts for girls.
  11. Should women have reserved seats at workplaces?
  12. Enclosure and anti-favoritism policies in academic institutions and workplaces.
  13. The public college controversies open Pandora’s box in North Carolina.
  14. Should nurses and healthcare experts be permitted to look after criminals by keeping their personal information from the police?
  15. Should student credits be permitted for every student?

Captivating Controversial Research Ideas

To prepare your controversial research paper, take into account any of the captivating topics recommended here. Focusing on engaging controversial research questions will improve your innovative thinking, creativity, resilience, and expertise in handling complex issues.

  1. Should college lecturers and school teachers be allowed to offer private tuition?
  2. The security of uninsured patients.
  3. The ethical aspect of marijuana legalization.
  4. Should the government allow elder children to watch over their younger siblings?
  5. The aggression in video games among adults.
  6. Is being a non-vegetarian healthy?
  7. The effect of cell phones on health.
  8. The function of a nurse is to maintain the confidentiality of crime information.
  9. Community colleges and their unenthusiastic outlook.
  10. Tobacco posters and their effects.
  11. Cocaine legalization and its moral aspects.
  12. Keeping out the admission of minors in beauty salons.
  13. Capital punishment and its profit for the media.
  14. Explain the significance of school uniforms or should be brought to an end.
  15. Free college education– What is your point of view?
  16. Rock musicians and their substance promotion.
  17. Forbidding animals in diverse research work.
  18. Social media dependence and its impact on human life.
  19. Civil Rights and its Effect on people from Low-income background.
  20. Liberty to Speak and restriction.

Impactful Controversial Research Questions

When you develop a controversial research paper, choose any impactful topics from the list published here. You can challenge prevailing narratives and inspire transformative change through informed and evidence-based perspectives while studying impactful and controversial ideas.

  1. Weather Change.
  2. Death Penalty vs. Capital Punishment – Which one is appropriate?
  3. Abortion of fetus.
  4. Social Security and its relation to immigrants in America.
  5. Artificial Intelligence and dependency of humans on it.
  6. Health Insurance – whether it is useful?
  7. Addictive drug legalization.
  8. Obligatory vaccination for Covid-19.
  9. Rights of women in every sphere of life.
  10. Religious freedom and how it impacts people.
  11. Ethical hacking – should it be allowed?
  12. Authority of labor union – Can it bring an organization down?
  13. Growth of extremism in the 21st
  14. Outsourcing by administration organizations.
  15. Rifle control.

Unique Controversial Research Topics

If you want your controversial research paper to stand out, then deal with any of the below-listed unique topics. When you analyze original ideas, you will also get a chance to fill the knowledge gaps, generate fresh perspectives, and contribute to the advancement of the field.

  1. Police cruelty.
  2. Cyber safety.
  3. Relocation Act of the United States.
  4. Cybercrime: occurrence, confrontations, and authorized response.
  5. Right to bereavement.
  6. Montessori Schools: A danger to the community education system.
  7. Should sacred studies be incorporated into schools mandatorily?
  8. Life captivity and treatment home: Which is best on the moral ground?
  9. Biggest terrorization for sustainable tourism.
  10. Should kids be allowed access to beauty salons?
  11. Vaccine distribution is an issue.
  12. Worldwide uneven access to healthcare.
  13. The management of AIDS patients.
  14. Analyze the impact of universal basic income on economic growth.
  15. Debate the ethical implications of creating human-animal hybrid embryos for scientific research.

Read more: Top Controversial Research Topics for College Students

Find here, the most debated or examined controversial research topics. All these study topics will help you engage in intense discussion, enhance critical thinking, and promote innovative inquiry across various disciplines and industries.

  1. What health risks are associated with using a cell phone?
  2. Should we prohibit using flora and fauna in a diversity of research projects?
  3. Do human activities add to global warming?
  4. Why does human take varied stances on the death penalty?
  5. Should those with good wealth be charged more taxes?
  6. The corporate industry’s dark side.
  7. The unenthusiastic aspect of clubs.
  8. Private colleges and their high reputation.
  9. How far should the government permit psychological studies on obedience and conscience to be carried out?
  10. Should nurses and physicians be allowed to wear religious attire?
  11. Examine privacy concerns and potential biases in facial recognition software.
  12. Explore the feasibility and potential consequences of large-scale technological interventions in the climate system.
  13. Assess the environmental risks and benefits of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas extraction.
  14. Analyze the impact of drug decriminalization policies on crime rates, public health, and social outcomes.
  15. Examine the environmental effects of animal agriculture and propose sustainable alternatives.

Latest Controversial Research Ideas

Listed below are a few latest topics you may explore in your controversial research paper. By addressing the trending controversial topics, you can shape public opinion, influence policy decisions, and help your readers to stay informed.

  1. Are too many immigrants a threat to a nation’s culture?
  2. Discuss the benefits of mandatory military service.
  3. Analyze the pros and cons of cremation vs. traditional burial.
  4. Discuss problems that occur with charity work and donations.
  5. Multiculturalism as a feminist concept.
  6. Discuss the potential success rate of a global diet.
  7. Does marriage have to be religious?
  8. Discuss how polyamorous relationships can work.
  9. Discuss the efficacy of prison rehabilitation.
  10. Is sport more than merely physical exercise?
  11. What are the ethical implications of gene editing and human enhancement?
  12. Explore the ethical and legal debates surrounding pregnancy termination.
  13. What are the economic and social consequences of open borders versus restrictive immigration policies?
  14. Analyze the effectiveness of firearms regulations in reducing violence.
  15. Investigate the correlation between social media usage and increased rates of depression, anxiety, and loneliness.

The Bottom Line

Exploring controversial research topics can be challenging, yet transformative. However, by examining any controversial study topics or issues from the list we have suggested in this blog, you can engage in meaningful discussions, challenge prevailing narratives, and drive societal progress. In particular, while you deal with a controversial topic in your research paper, it is crucial to approach the topic with sensitivity, rigor, and objectivity. Through a thoughtful examination of a controversial topic, you can very well uncover new perspectives, foster critical thinking, and inspire meaningful conversations that widen your understanding of the world around you. In case, you struggle to handle a controversial topic in your research paper, get assistance from the scholarly writers on our team and complete your task as per your needs.

Research topics Reading Time: 11 minutes

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