proposal

1

Research Proposal

Student Name

Institution Affiliation

Research Proposal

Female “biological” clock

The ability of women to get pregnant changes with time. The female biological clock looks into the fact that it is difficult to get pregnant later in life since the number and quality of fertile sperm and ovum reduce with an increase in age (Verma et al., 2021). This proposal uses a qualitative study based on three life story interviews to analyze the social and subjective aspects of the biological clock and its consequences for reproductive time.

Statement of a research question

When discussing reproduction time in the context of delayed motherhood, age-related fertility problems, and the use of artificial insemination, the biological clock has become a popular framework. Numerous studies demonstrate an increase in the proportion of women who delay childbearing and have their first child at 35 or later during the previous few decades (Verma et al., 2021). Because the time needed to reach personal and social milestones clashes with the window of opportunity for pregnancy established by female fertility, delaying the transition to parenthood places restrictions on reproductive time, which has been a significant problem in the past few and recent decades.

Statement of research reflexivity

Being a career woman of 27 years and seeing a challenge faced by other women between balancing their career life and having families, I can sincerely say that I understand their struggle while the clock is ticking. Many activities require their attention and other challenges that make it difficult to bear a child at their fertile window. This proposal will conduct its research by interviewing three people, where two of them are friends who follow the biological clock and are my longtime friends as well in junior studies, and one is a parent who lets her daughter follow the biological clock, the parent is my workmate in a women's organization charter where I am the chairperson. I also believe that the clock is ticking for a career woman who has focused first on her career and postponing her motherhood, which results in low productivity. The data from the interview will help view life from other people’s description and their way of thinking and how to encourage the observance of the female "biological" clock to balance between being a mother and career life.

Self-Assessment and Data Collection Planning

The participants are subjected to an interview where an interviewee is present for the physical discussions. Some participants would opt for online data collection; this is where the self-assessment comes about. Self-assessment works best in research, especially in understanding about the follow-up questions that ensure that the feedback is of value for planning purposes (Staller, 2022). Planning is done after knowing the participants for self-assessment to ensure the process is successful.

Statement on an assessment of research participant

Qualitative research involves participants who play a significant role in offering the information necessary for the study. The participants' involvement is voluntary since the information collected is more about their personal life. There is a need to focus on seeking consent from the participants to ensure legal compliance. The focus is directed towards giving the confidence to the participants that their contribution is valued and their data protected after collecting them (Staller, 2022). The assessment of the research participant is conducted following the qualitative research processes, especially in the interview process.

The participants' interviews demand following the qualitative approach, which involves developing open questions that result in more detailed feedback. The research participants are engaged in the process where it is made sure that their interests are considered in the process of data collection for them to be confident enough for the process. The participants are women because the topic of concern is more about women and their biological clocks. The participants that are best for the research are the ones that have passed the menopause stage and can give experience about their decisions and consequences of giving birth within the right time. The research project will interview three people, two of whom are friends who follow the biological clock to get a baby now in china, and one interviewee is a parent who lets her daughter follow the biological clock. The participants are given appointments for the interview where they are more comfortable showing up and ensuring the successful process. The intention is to have 3 participants for the study and ensure that all 100% engage in the study.

Interview Guide

The term "intense" or "in-depth" is occasionally used to describe the length and intensity of a qualitative interview. The researcher has a predetermined topic in mind for the respondent, but the questions are more free-form. They may not be asked in the same order or fashion among participants in a semi-structured interview (Kross & Giust, 2019). In their own words, listening to interviewees' thoughts on the matter at hand is the fundamental purpose of an in-depth interview. Here, we'll examine qualitative interviews, how to interpret interview data and the benefits and drawbacks of using this approach. The questions were developed to follow the structure of opening, intermediate, and closing questions.

The Research Questions

Opening question: What do you understand about the biological clock? Intermediate question: Are you interested in following your biological clock? Closing question: What are your expectations?

What are the worrying trends of the female biological clock? What do you intend to do to be on the best side of the female biological clock? Is it possible to strategize and meet the women's desires in the biological clock?

What are the challenges of female failure to give birth? What are the social contributing factors? What are the economic contributing factors?

The questions are designed so that the participants can give their feedback more detailedly and ensure that they tackle each question in-depth (Kross & Giust, 2019). The focus is on interest and ensuring that the participant gets a follow-up question that promotes detailed discussion during the interview taking the research to the next level. The research questions above are open-ended and encourage significant feedback that can take the research to the next level.

Conclusion

The research follows the qualitative approach where the three interviewees are involved in the process and protected by offering them the consent form to sign and assure them of the security of their collected data. In this scenario, the research considers the safety of the data that is stored in the physical and online servers for security purposes. The research questions follow a guide that ensures the participants give detailed feedback. The consideration is valuable in ensuring that the participants experience the open, intermediate, and closing questions that better explain the female biological clock.

References

Kross, J., & Giust, A. (2019). Elements of Research Questions in Relation to Qualitative Inquiry.  The Qualitative Report. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2019.3426

Staller, K. (2022). Confusing questions in qualitative inquiry: Research, interview, and analysis.  Qualitative Social Work,  21(2), 227-234. https://doi.org/10.1177/14733250221080533

Verma, P., Yadav, A., Rani, S., & Malik, S. (2021). Biological clock vs Social clock conflict in Adolescents.  Journal of Applied and Natural Science,  13(1), 327-342. https://doi.org/10.31018/jans.v13i1.2571