SPEAKER: Now that you've done a lot of your research, it's time to figure out how to combine all of your sources to support your argument. This process is called synthesis. 

One way to think of synthesis is kind of like a puzzle. It requires you to put together different pieces of research from multiple sources to form a new picture. But be careful, your audience will be able to tell if you try to force a piece into a spot where it doesn't fit. 

Depending on how you organize the pieces, the story you tell will look a little different. The process of synthesis goes farther than just summarizing sources or even comparing and contrasting multiple sources and beyond mere critiques of sources. 

Also, when synthesizing, you are not just direct quoting other authors without using your own voice. Ultimately, you engage in synthesis to make your own point and add to the conversation. Make sure your voice is the strongest voice in the paper. 

Before you can effectively synthesize your research, you will need to identify the main conversations taking place on your topic. Synthesis requires you to think critically about your research and identify major themes, strengths, weaknesses, and critical gaps in the research. 

As you read article after article for your research paper, you should begin to notice significant conversations surrounding your topic. Ask yourself, what are some of the common themes or subtopics that keep appearing in the articles you're reading? Make note of these conversations or main ideas because this will help you organize your research paper. 

Many students fail to synthesize their research because they organize their paper source by source. Synthesis requires you to organize idea by idea, not source by source. Use common themes in your research to help you decide what your main ideas will be. What is the conversation surrounding a main idea? To really know that conversation, you need to have looked at it from multiple perspectives or sources. 

The sources you choose to include your analysis and how you organize them in a meaningful way make your research paper unique. This means you are developing your own understanding of the conversations surrounding your topic and explicitly stating how they connect to your own argument. 

A helpful tool you can use to engage in synthesis is a research matrix, which helps you begin to organize by idea while also adding your own analysis alongside your sources. The matrix shows you natural connections between your sources and allows you to visualize the conversations surrounding your topic. 

The research matrix helps you see strengths and weaknesses in your own argument. You do not need every single source to address every main idea. In fact, there's a high likelihood that you will have empty spaces on your research matrix. And that's OK. It shows that there is room for your own voice to join the conversation. 

However, if you only have one source discussing one of your main ideas, that is often a sign that you need to do more research to fill that gap on your matrix. As a rule of thumb, you should have at least two sources for each main idea in order to create a meaningful dialogue. If you need help with synthesis, you can always ask a librarian.