research proposal
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ResearchProposalforResearchMethods1.pptxResearch Proposal
What is a Research Proposal?
A research proposal is a detailed plan or ‘blueprint’ for the intended study
Research proposal forms the backbone for the research and is the most important step in the process of conducting research
Research Proposal describe planned activities and include a time line
Research Proposal describes what you intend to accomplish and how
Elements of a Research proposal
Identify a research problem or research topic
Introduction
Problem and objectives
Literature Review
Research Methods and Design
Subjects for Study – population and sampling
Research Instrument – surveys (questionnaire), interviews,
Data Collection Methods
Data Analysis
References
Identify research topic
A problem is something to solve or framed as a question that must be answered
You can identify a research topic/problem by reading recent research to find a gap in what is currently known about it or identify community problems or through personal experiences.
You might look for:
A phenomenon or research area that has not been thoroughly studied
A situation or relationship that is not well explained
A disturbing question that has not been resolved through research
Introduction
Introduction is termed as the need for the study.
It introduces the idea and sets the scene for the research
It drives the research
The introduction should be designed to create interest in the reader about the topic and proposal.
It should convey to the reader, what you want to do, what necessitates the study and your passion for the topic (Sandelowski & Barroso, 2003).
Statement of Problem and Objective
What exactly do you want to study?
Does the proposed study contribute to our general understanding of crime, criminal behavior, the criminal justice system or policy responses to crime?
Specify Research problem or objective
Indicate what you intend to achieve in the Research
Literature Review
Review what others have written about your research topic
Literature review tells you what is already known and not known.
Your literature search must be organized around the key concepts you wish to study
You can access academic journals, reports by government agencies, institutional databases, libraries online
Summarize each article in a paragraph, highlighting the details relevant to your research interest.
Literature review should include supporting data, disagreements and analytical .
Research Questions
What specific questions will your research try to answer?
It’s useful to view research questions as a more specific version of the problem or objective described earlier
Your specific questions should be framed so as to address the research objective
Your study’s research question/questions is not the same as your survey questions
Hypothesis
You only need to state Hypothesis if you are going to conduct a hypothesis testing, in that case a quantitative analysis.
A hypothesis is a specific, clear, and testable proposition or predictive statement or possible outcome of a scientific research that must be tested
Two types of Hypothesis –
Null Hypothesis is the starting point of your measurement and represents equality eg there is no difference between variable A and variable B
Research Hypothesis represents inequality eg. there is a difference b/w two variables or there is a relationship between rehabilitation and recidivism
Research Methods and Design
Subjects for Study – population and sampling
Whom or what will you study in order to collect data?
Identify who are available for study and how you will reach them.
Is it appropriate to select a sample? If so, how will you do that?
If there is any possibility that your research will have an impact on those you study, how will you ensure that they are not harmed by the research?
If you intend to interact with human subjects in the course of your research, you may have to include a consent form.
Data Collection Method
How will you actually collect the data for your study?
Will you observe behavior directly or conduct a survey? Surveys are used to study attitudes, perceptions and opinions
Will you undertake field research, or will you focus on reanalysis of data already collected by others?
You may include more than one research method.
Data Analysis
What are the key variables in your study?
Briefly describe the kind of analysis you plan to conduct.
Are you interested in precise description of your data?
Do you intend to explain why things are the way they are?
What possible explanatory variables will your analysis consider?
Will you conduct qualitative analysis or quantitative analysis?
References
Ensure to reference and include a list of all materials you consulted and cited in your proposal.
Reference your materials according to APA format.
References
Sandelowski M, Barroso J. (2003). Writing the proposal for a qualitative research methodology project. Quality Health Research. 13, 781–820.
