A statement of the problem is a short passage, usually half a page to two pages, that tells the reader what is going wrong or what cannot yet be explained, who it affects, what evidence shows it is real, and what your study will do about it. In a PhD synopsis it comes right after the background. In a thesis it sits in chapter 1, before the objectives.
Below are its parts, its length, weak and strong examples from three fields, and how it differs from the gap, the objectives and the hypothesis. A research proposal needs the same thing, only shorter. Last reviewed September 2026.
What is the statement of the problem in research?
It is the part of your synopsis or chapter 1 that justifies the whole study. The objectives, the design and the sample all exist to deal with the problem you name here.
Two terms get used loosely, and it helps to separate them. Timothy Ellis and Yair Levy, in a 2008 paper in Informing Science written for new researchers, call the statement of the problem the one or two sentences that say what problem the study addresses. The problem statement is that core plus the argument for why it deserves research. Indian universities use the two names interchangeably. Your passage needs both the core and the argument.
The USC Libraries writing guide adds that the problem statement anchors the research questions and hypotheses, and frames how you report results. That is why examiners return to it at the viva.
It is not a topic. “Microfinance in Odisha” is a topic. “Women who repay microfinance loans on time are still refused larger loans, and nobody knows why” is the start of a problem.
What should a problem statement include?
A complete statement of the problem has six parts. In a short proposal several will share a sentence, but a reader should be able to find all six.
- Context. A few sentences placing the reader in a specific setting. Not the history of the sector.
- The specific problem. What is going wrong, or what cannot currently be explained. Ellis and Levy put it bluntly: a problem is “something that is ‘going wrong’”.
- Evidence that it is real. Citations, official reports or published data showing the problem exists outside your own head.
- Who is affected, and how. The cost of leaving it alone, to people, a policy or a theory that currently gives the wrong answer.
- What is not known. A sentence or two on why existing research has not settled it.
- What this study will do. One sentence that becomes your aim, with no promised findings.
Ellis and Levy frame the same thing as six questions (what, how, where, when, why and who) and their template asks for no more than two sentences on each of three points: what the problem is, what its impact is, and what the literature gives as its cause. Each point needs current, peer-reviewed references, and that is where Indian synopses most often fall short. “During my teaching career I observed that…” is a hunch. Ellis and Levy say a research-worthy problem should not rest on personal observation alone, and I agree.
The full argument about the literature (the fifth part, expanded) belongs in the gap statement that closes your review of literature. See writing a research gap statement.
How long is a statement of the problem, and where does it go?
Shorter than most scholars think. There is no UGC rule on length, and university formats rarely fix one, so what follows is typical practice rather than regulation:
- Admission research proposal: one or two paragraphs. The research proposal guide shows how it fits into a four-page proposal.
- Registration synopsis for the DC or RAC: half a page to one page, under a heading such as “Statement of the problem” or “Research problem”. See the PhD synopsis format for where it sits among the other sections.
- Thesis chapter 1: one to two pages, after the background and before the significance of the study, objectives and hypotheses. The thesis structure guide gives the usual order of chapter 1.
The USC guide calls it typically a short paragraph. Many Indian theses stretch it to five pages of national statistics, and committees then say they “could not find the problem”.
Tense changes too. The synopsis says “This study will examine…”; the thesis usually says “This study examined…” or “This thesis examines…”. Departments differ, so ask.
Problem statement examples: weak and strong
These are illustrative. Square brackets mark where a real statement needs a real source.
Agricultural economics: crop insurance claims
Weak: “Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy. Farmers face many risks. Crop insurance is very important for farmers but they face many problems. Hence the researcher wants to study the problems of farmers regarding crop insurance in Vidarbha region.”
Strong: “The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana sets timelines for settling claims after crop losses are assessed [cite the scheme’s operational guidelines]. Reports from Maharashtra describe long delays and rejected claims among small and tenant farmers [cite], who must then repay crop loans from other sources after a failed season [cite]. Studies of the scheme mostly measure enrolment and premiums at district level, so it is not known where in the claim process these claims stall. This study traces the claim process for small and tenant farmers in two districts of Vidarbha to identify where claims are delayed or lost.”
The weak version never says what is wrong, and “the researcher wants to study” is a wish, not a purpose. The strong one names a group, a process and a consequence.
Nursing: pain assessment after surgery
Weak: “Pain is a universal human experience. Pain management is an important responsibility of the nurse. During my clinical posting I observed that nurses do not assess pain properly. Therefore a study is needed to assess the knowledge of staff nurses regarding pain management.”
Strong: “Clinical guidelines recommend assessing post-operative pain regularly with a validated scale [cite guideline]. Studies from Indian surgical wards report that pain is recorded irregularly and seldom with a scale [cite], and poorly assessed pain is linked to delayed mobilisation [cite]. Most Indian studies measure nurses’ knowledge by questionnaire, which says little about bedside practice. This study observes how post-operative pain is assessed and documented in three district hospitals, and examines the ward-level factors associated with scale use.”
Published evidence replaces the personal observation. And the study now follows the actual problem, which is bedside practice, instead of defaulting to a knowledge questionnaire.
English literature: a regional novelist in translation
Weak: “Women writers have always been neglected in Indian literature. [Author] is one of the most important Kannada writers. This study will analyse her novels from a feminist perspective.”
Strong: “[Author]’s novels have reached English readers mainly through translations published in the last two decades [cite]. Criticism in English reads them largely as protest fiction [cite], while Kannada criticism places them in a tradition of [cite]. The translations often shorten dialect-heavy passages [cite, or show it with your own comparison of two chapters]. Her place in English-language courses on Indian women’s writing may therefore rest on texts that differ from the originals. This study compares the Kannada originals with their English translations to examine how translation choices have shaped her critical reception.”
Humanities problems are interpretive, but something still has to be going wrong: here, a mismatch between the criticism and the texts it rests on. “Analyse from a feminist perspective” is a method with no problem attached.
How is the problem statement different from the research gap, objectives and hypothesis?
These four sit close together in chapter 1. Follow one topic through all four:
| What it says | Usual form | Example (crop insurance topic) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statement of the problem | What is going wrong, for whom, and why it matters | A few declarative sentences with citations; not a question | Small tenant farmers in Vidarbha report long delays and rejections in crop insurance claims, leaving them to repay crop loans after a failed season |
| Research gap | What the literature has not established | A short argument built from the literature review | Studies of the scheme measure enrolment and premiums at district level, so nobody has traced where individual claims stall |
| Aim and objectives | What the study will do to address the problem | One aim, then objectives starting with a verb | To trace the claim process for small and tenant farmers in two districts and identify the stages where claims are delayed or lost |
| Hypothesis | A testable prediction, only where the design is confirmatory | A statement that data can support or contradict | Tenant farmers are less likely than owner-cultivators to have claims settled within the scheme’s timeline |
The problem is about the world (or a theory that gives a wrong answer). The gap is about the literature, the objectives about your study. If your “statement of the problem” paragraph mainly cites what earlier researchers did not do, you have written a gap. If it lists what you will do, you have written objectives.
Ellis and Levy add two points. First, the statement of the problem should not be phrased as a question; the research questions come later and are narrower, naming the variables or constructs. Second, comparing two groups is not a problem. Their example is comparing productivity before and after ERP training: a valid study, but the problem behind it is low productivity after the new system arrived. Many synopses announce “a comparative study of X and Y” without saying what is wrong.
For writing the next pieces, see research objectives and questions and the guide to writing a research hypothesis. Once the problem and objectives are fixed, the design follows from them; types of research design explains the choices.
How to write a statement of the problem, step by step
Expect to rewrite it at least twice.
Write the bare problem in two sentences
Before any background, write what is going wrong and for whom. If you need a paragraph to say it, the topic is still a field and not a problem.
Collect the evidence for each claim
Next to every sentence, note its source: a paper, a government report, audit data, a published dataset. A sentence with no source either gets one or goes.
Add the consequence and the unknown
Say who loses what if the problem stays unsolved, then in a sentence say why existing studies do not answer it.
End with the purpose sentence
Finish with one sentence beginning “This study” that says what the study will examine, test or develop. It should mean the same as your aim.
What DC and RAC members push back on
The same objections come up in meeting after meeting:
- The first page is about the importance of the sector to the nation.
- The problem is so broad that no PhD could address it (“unemployment among youth in India”).
- The problem and the objectives don’t match. The statement talks about claim delays, and the objectives are about farmers’ awareness of the scheme.
- The purpose sentence promises a result (“This study will prove that…”) before any data exist.
If your supervisor wants the synopsis by Monday and this half page is still weak, fix it first. A tidy literature review cannot rescue a synopsis whose problem the committee can’t find.
Sources
FAQ
Questions scholars ask
Can I write the problem statement as a question?
Better not. Write the problem as statements with evidence, and keep questions for the research questions that follow. Some supervisors accept one broad question at the end. The objectives and questions guide covers how to phrase the questions.
How many references should a problem statement have?
No rule fixes a number. Every factual claim needs a source, which in practice means several recent references for a synopsis. Ellis and Levy’s template asks for three peer-reviewed references for each of its three points, which is a reasonable target for a thesis chapter.
Do qualitative and humanities theses need a statement of the problem?
Yes, though it may carry another heading. A literature or history thesis still needs to say what is unexplained, misread or contested, with critical or archival evidence.
Should the problem statement in the thesis be the same as in the synopsis?
The core problem should be the same, because the committee approved the synopsis on that basis. Update the evidence and the tense. If the problem shifted during the study, agree the change with your supervisor and record it through your university’s procedure.
