Milestone 6

An abstract is a brief, comprehensive summary of the entire proposal, typically ranging from 150 to 250 words. The APA manual notes the type of information that should be included in abstracts for different types of studies. In general, the abstract outlines the major headings: the research question, theoretical framework, research design, sampling method, instrumentation, and data and analysis procedures. In a final dissertation, the abstract also outlines key findings and interpretations. A reader should gain a high-level understanding of the entire document from its abstract. Do not add any information in the abstract that is not discussed throughout the proposal. Because it highlights the entire proposal, researchers often write the abstract after the remainder of the document. Writing an abstract is an important skill requiring the ability to be concise. In publications, the abstract is often the first thing potential readers review to determine whether to continue reading your work.

( THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL BUS8100 ) ( 2 )

The table of contents outlines your study for the reader. The easiest way to create the table of contents is to use the levels of heading feature in Microsoft Word. For example, this template has already been set up using headings (in Microsoft Word editing utilities) for the major portions of the outline. Subsequently, Microsoft Word will automatically create the table of contents, which has been started below, by using the Table of Contents feature in the references tab of Word (although note, different versions of Word sometimes locate options in different places).

Table of Contents

Abstract 2 Chapter 1 - Introduction 4 Purpose of the Study 5 Statement of the Problem 6 Definition of Terms 6 Theoretical Framework 7 Research Questions and Hypotheses 8 Delimitations and Limitations 9 Assumptions, Risks, and Biases 9 Significance of the Study 9 Summary 9 References 11

When scholars decide to do research, they first develop a proposal. A proposal introduces the problem, purpose, and significance of a study as well as the research questions and hypotheses, depending upon the type of study. The research proposal also gives a brief explanation of the theory guiding the study, a review of relevant literature pertaining to the theory, and the procedure for the research. South University proposals should be written in American Psychological Association (APA) format in the current edition and following this template. This template has a few very minor differences when compared with APA you might have used in an assignment (The APA manual notes that schools may make stylistic adjustments for certain types of works including dissertations). For example, the chapter heading above uses the term, introduction, which is not generally used for APA papers. However, doing so provides nice symmetry to the final dissertation document. You will also notice the title page is unique for the dissertation. Additionally, your final document may have some differences from the template based upon the type of study you are completing. Your chair will guide you regarding any needed variations for your research.

Every APA document includes an introduction in the first paragraphs following the title. An APA introduction briefly answers three key questions: What is the topic? Why is it important? What are the key ideas that will be discussed? After reading the introduction, the reader should understand why the researcher is conducting the study and how this research contributes to the academic community and to professional practice. In summary, the proposal introduction should grab the reader’s attention, introduce the topic at hand, and provide a brief outline of the theory and method of the study. After reading your introduction, your audience should know what you are asking (umbrella research question), why you are asking it (problem, gap, purpose), why it is important (significance), the key theories, the

research questions or hypotheses, and a summary of the method to be used. For a final draft of the dissertation, the introduction may also briefly report key findings of the study.

The abstract and introduction provide summary overviews of the entire proposal (and dissertation). Accordingly, those pieces will be revised continually as you add to and complete your work. In other words, you will need to work on the main pieces of your study before you will be able to finalize the abstract and introduction. The main pieces start with the chapter one, purpose section.

In formal research it is helpful to include a sentence stating “The purpose of this study

is….” Most studies will cover a variety of concepts and points. However, every study must have a clear, central purpose. Without the clear purpose, all of the various concepts will seem disconnected. Worse, it is likely that the researcher will not stay on target. Accordingly, identify the goal of the study in one precise sentence. For example, the purpose of this study is to determine whether employees with greater intrinsic motivation possess higher job satisfaction. This section may also frame the purpose in terms of the umbrella research question guiding the study. In other words, what is the over-arching question you are asking? Then, articulate why the purpose is an important area of study. You might include one or two key citations that help clarify, illustrate, or explain the purpose. You should also summarize the specific inquiry methods used. For example, to make the determination about the intrinsic motivation relationship with job satisfaction, the research will use a cross-sectional, self-report survey of 100 employees in a small, Midwestern manufacturing facility. You won’t include a lot of detail about method in this section. Rather, just enough to provide a glimpse of your research process. For BUS8100, you likely will not have methodology information to provide.

The statement of the problem is an essential part of the proposal. To support the need for a study, one must defend the existence of a problem or gap in the existing literature that has not been previously addressed. For this section of the proposal, the following questions should be answered: Why does this research study need to be conducted? What specific issues does this study raise that have not been observed in other literature pertaining to the topic?

Answering these questions will allow readers to understand why this particular study is important and how the study will attempt to answer new, never-before asked questions.

The statement of the problem actually provides the foundation for the purpose of the study (former section). Using the example purpose statement presented in the previous section, the statement of the problem must demonstrate that the intrinsic motivation-job satisfaction relationship has not been examined in the literature and argue for why it should be studied. Thus, the statement of the problem should be supported with a few pieces of key literature. In business research, the statement of the problem may present the issue faced by the organization. For example, sales are down after introducing a new marketing campaign.

However, for your dissertation, you are engaged in academic research and will need to demonstrate the problem from literature review.

Often, a good research study can build from recommendations for future research in an existing study or from some insightful perspectives in a scholarly article that draws attention to the problem or gap. In other words, what has been stated in the literature that helped you form your umbrella research question or statement of purpose?

In research, it is essential that one defines the central ideas or concepts of the research study. Terminology can be complex and ambiguous. The way a term is used in one discipline

might differ from the way a term is used in a different discipline. If a reader does not understand the precise meaning of the terms you utilize, the reader may not be able to understand the information you present. Therefore, carefully define the important concepts and variables that will be used in the study, citing other research studies as much as needed to clarify meaning. List each term, italicize it, and use a hyphen to define the term as seen below:

1. Intrinsic motivation—behavior that is driven by internal rewards. The motivation originates from within the individual (Black & White, 2016, p. 75).

2. Job satisfaction—a measure of an employee’s contentment with the individual aspects of their work and with the work overall (Red & Green, 2015, p. 90).

As part of your dissertation work to date, you have been reviewing literature to help you refine your research question, discover gaps, look for relationships, and build additional research questions or hypotheses. Although chapter two of your dissertation will provide your exhaustive literature review, chapter one includes the most important literature that helps support the need for your research and creates the theoretical frame for your study. In other words, this portion of your chapter one provides a summary or abridged literature review.

One outcome of a good literature review is a strong theoretical framework for the proposed study. Imagine it this way: a literature review reaches into the existing body of knowledge and pulls out the key theories, concepts, and constructs framing the proposed study. This section of the proposal should state or shape those key theories in a concise way, creating a cohesive theoretical framework for the research. From this theory, the researcher is able to inform the statement of the problem, the purpose of the study, the questions and hypothesis, the choice of instruments, and methodology of the study. In this section of chapter

one, explain the major tenants of the theory as well as how the theory relates to the proposed study. Remember that the eventual findings of the research will be discussed in terms of how they relate to the theoretical framework.

Every study begins with a main research question. This umbrella research question guides the inquiry and keeps it on track. As one reviews the literature and builds a theoretical frame, the umbrella question gets broken down into a set of sub-questions or hypotheses. Research questions tend to ask what relationships exist between the different concepts in the study. Alternatively, research questions might ponder the identity of relevant variables that need to be discovered. In contrast, hypotheses predict the relationship between variables. Whether the theoretical frame leads to research questions or to research hypotheses tends to determine whether the study will adopt a quantitative or qualitative methodology.

This section of your proposal should present the research questions or research hypotheses with brief support from the literature. The questions and hypotheses should flow logically from the theoretical frame of the previous section. Format this section as seen below.

Research questions for this study include:

1. List the research question here. For example, based on motivational theory, will intrinsic motivation create higher job satisfaction in employees?

2. Based on job-satisfaction theory, will employees with lower job-satisfaction possess more extrinsic motivation?

Research hypotheses for this study include:

1. Higher intrinsic motivation will positively relate to higher job satisfaction.

2. Higher extrinsic motivation will positively relate to lower job satisfaction.

Discuss the delimitations and limitations to the study. Delimitations narrow the focus of the study. They are the choices made by the researcher that establish the boundaries for what is being done, what is not being done, what is being studied, what is not being studied, and why. For BUS8100, you should begin thinking about delimitations, but you will expand your thinking as you construct the methodology of your research.

Discuss the assumptions, risks, and biases that might affect the study. An assumption is something that is taken to be true even though direct evidence of it being true is either absent or limited. Risks describe potential, negative impacts that could occur as a result of the research process. Biases reflect perspectives by the researcher or participants that could influence the data and conclusions.

The significance of the study focuses on the implications and outcomes of the proposed study. Write this section with the focus on how the study’s results will benefit others. Discuss the implications of the study affecting practice, policy, and scholarly/future research.

Frequent inclusion of summary sections can help guide the reader through your work. As you close your introductory chapter, what are the most important takeaways of the work? How

do we answer “so what?” Dissertations contain a fair amount of redundancy. Chapter one, in particular, will contain succinctly re-stated material from other sections of the dissertation. However, if you write your chapter one well, you may be able to use it as the basis for a published article in a journal.

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Black, A., & White, B. (2016). Sample document. City, ST: Publisher.