Research Merhods and designs

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BQ 570: Research Methods and Design

Field Project

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is to complete a small-scale research analysis project. The project will consist of

developing a purpose statement, research question, hypotheses, and then analyzing a set of data using

descriptive and inferential statistics. First, you will provide an analysis, using MS Excel and statistical

functions, on the data collected. Then, you will provide a write up to report your results, and give an

interpretation of the results. Finally, you will provide conclusions and recommendations for further action based

upon your findings.

This will be divided into 3 parts: Part I due in Week 2; Part 2 due in Week 5; and Part III due in Week 7.

Reference the Course Schedule for the exact due dates.

The objective of the Field Project is to provide students with experiment in applying the concepts and methods

learned in class to a real-world problem. Students may choose any problem of their own.

For example, students may conduct a field study to test a new product/service concept, or they may conduct a

research study to offer recommendations to existing product and services.

Either way, the problem should be relevant to a business or governmental organization.

The project proposal must be discussed and approved by the instructor in its early stage (see course schedule for

exact dates

Objectives:

1. Apply research design concepts used in the class.

2. Demonstrate capability to identify and analyze a problem.

3. Conduct analysis on data collected to arrive at conclusions.

4. Demonstrate appropriate presentation skills.

PART I

Part I Preparation Instructions:

1. Compose your Research Proposal in Microsoft Word or a compatible word processing application.

2. The paper should be formatted and typed using Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced, and

one-inch margins (no exceptions).

3. The length of the paper should be at least 1 to 2 pages (page number does not include the title page or

references pages).

4. Use APA 6th edition formatting.

Part I Content Instructions:

1. Select a problem a problem to address for the field project. When selecting a project, make sure you

have a clear understanding of the research problem(s) at hand, a realization of the organizational

constraints for dealing with such a problem (including time and budgetary restrictions), and an

understanding of how the information provided by your research will facilitate decision making. In your

research proposal, provide an identification of the problem, justification for why this problem is

important to address, what the expected benefits of addressing the problem will be to key stakeholders,

what method of design you plan to use, where you will collect data (if using primary data) or where the

data will be found (if using secondary data).

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Part I Submission Instructions:

1. Save this assignment as “fname_lname_field_project1.doc.” (i.e., john_smith_field_project1.doc)

2. Access the Assignments link located on the Course Menu to upload the final document as an attachment

to the Field Project 1 drop box by the due date listed on the Course Schedule.

3. Refer to the grading rubric in the drop box for specifics on grading criteria.

PART II

Part II Preparation Instructions:

1. Compose your Data Analysis and Results in Microsoft Word or a compatible word processing

application.

2. The paper should be formatted and typed using Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced, and

one-inch margins (no exceptions).

3. The length of the paper should be at least 3 to 5 pages (page number does not include the title page or

references pages).

4. Use APA 6th edition formatting.

Part II Content Instructions:

1. You should collect data (either primary or secondary). For this course, you are required to collect at least

25 completed responses (See the instructor if your research design does not permit this). Analyze your

data using appropriate statistical techniques (for our class, you will use Descriptive Statistics only). In

your submission, you should include the data set, and a write-up of your analysis and findings/results.

Part II Submission Instructions:

1. Save this assignment as “fname_lname_field_project2.doc.” (i.e., john_smith_field_project2.doc)

2. Access the Assignments link located on the Course Menu to upload the final document as an attachment

to the Field Project 2 drop box by the due date listed on the Course Schedule.

3. Refer to the grading rubric in the drop box for specifics on grading criteria.

PART III

Part III Preparation Instructions:

1. Compose your final Field Project 3 in Microsoft Word or a compatible word processing application.

2. The paper should be formatted and typed using Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced, and

one-inch margins (no exceptions).

3. The length of the paper should be at least 8-10 pages (page number does not include the title page or

references pages).

4. Use APA 6th edition formatting.

Part III Content Instructions:

Prepare your final report. In your report, be sure to address:

1. Identify the information needed to address the research problem.

2. Choose a research design and justify its choice (e.g. survey, experiment, focus group, or combination of

methods).

3. Develop the data collection method(s). This should include a sampling plan and instrument design (e.g.,

questionnaire).

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4. Collect data. For the purpose of this course, you are required to collect at least 25 completed responses

(See the instructor if your research design does not permit this).

5. Analyze your data using appropriate statistical techniques (for the purpose of our class, you will use

Descriptive Statistics only).

6. Present your recommendations based on your findings and discuss the limitations of your research.

Part III Submission Instructions:

1. Save this assignment as “fname_lname_field_project3.doc.” (i.e., john_smith_field_project3.doc)

2. Access the Assignments link located on the Course Menu to upload the final document as an attachment

to the Field Project 3 drop box by the due date listed on the Course Schedule.

3. Refer to the grading rubric in the drop box for specifics on grading criteria.