General and specific objectives: what they are and their differences

General and specific objectives are fundamental elements for the realization of academic works, such as, for example, a degree thesis.

The general objective is a statement that summarizes the central idea and purpose. of a work.

The specific objectives detail the necessary processes for the complete realization of the work.

	General Objectives.	Specific objectives
Function	Summarize and present the main idea of an academic paper.	To present in detail the results that are intended to be achieved through the research.
Sense	Broader.	More detailed.
Elements	It must contain the hypothesis or the problem that will be investigated in the work, as well as the delimitation of the topic.	It should describe the stages of the research in the sequence of the execution. It should also relate the object of the work with its particularities, with further delimitation.

General objective

The general objective should present the central idea of a scholarly work, stating succinctly and objectively the purpose of the study and the goal to be achieved.

In other words, the general objective synthesizes the hypothesis or problem to be investigated, specifies the purpose of the study and delimits the topic.

Example of general objective

“To verify if there is a relationship between the increase in Internet access and the decrease in television use in the southwestern region of Mexico”.

The purpose of the work is expressed as “to verify if there is a relationship between the increase in Internet access and the decrease in television use”. The delimitation is expressed as “in the southwestern region of Mexico”.

Specific objectives

The specific objectives are directly related to the general objectives, detailing the processes necessary for their realization. In this way, the specific objectives serve as a guide as to how the work will be approached.

The specific objectives should present in detail the goals of the project. This relates the object under study to its particularities and identifies the steps to be followed to fulfill the general objective….

Example of specific objectives

Continuing with the previous example, specific objectives could be:

To analyze the increase in Internet access in the last year;
Analyze the number of televisions in households in the southwest region of Mexico;
To verify the use of television in households in the Southwest Mexican region;
Compare the standard of increased Internet access with a decrease in the use of televisions.