Research Proposal Assignment
Length:6–8 pages, excluding attachments
This assignment gives you the opportunity to pull together all
the knowledge that you have acquired in this course. You have to apply relevant
information from Units 1 through 15. Most of the review questions in Units 1
through 15 are designed to help you develop your proposal. You are strongly
encouraged, therefore, to incorporate some of the answers developed from these
units into the proposal.
Note: You may cut and paste
the Literature Review assignment into your proposal. However, if you decide to
change your topic after submitting the Literature Review assignment, then you
must prepare a new literature review.
This assignment is a pilot study; this means that it is a
small-scale version of an ideal study. However, you are required to demonstrate
knowledge of what the ideal study would look like. Consequently, some of the
requirements in the proposal format above have the components of an ideal and a
pilot study.
Also, since the assignment is a pilot study, it will not be
submitted to the Athabasca University Ethics Review Board. Your tutor will
review the proposal to ensure that all relevant ethical issues have been
addressed. Therefore, you must submit your Research Proposal assignment
to your tutor for ethical review and obtain your tutor’s feedback before you
proceed with data collection.
Instructions: Develop a proposal for a research project using one of the
following methods: surveys, experiments, field research, unobtrusive methods,
evaluation research, or mixed methods. Use the format below for your research
proposal.
Introduction/Research
Purpose
·
State the main purpose of
the study.
·
Rephrase the purpose as a
research question.
·
Include an hypothesis for
studies that require testing a proposed causal relationship between variables.
State your hypothesis as a null or as an alternative hypothesis.
·
Conceptualize: define the
main concepts in your research question/hypothesis.
·
Identify the indicators
that will be used to measure the variables being studied. Note that indicators
are not required for qualitative studies.
Literature
Review/Theoretical Framework
The purpose of a literature review is to summarize relevant
scholarly knowledge about the proposed research topic. The review should find
answers to the research question.
·
Identify and critique any
flaws in the literature.
·
Address the following
questions:
·
Will my study address any
gaps in the literature?
·
Am I replicating an
existing study?
·
Use relevant theories if
the study is deductive. Include theories if the proposed study is inductive,
but you plan to use a specific theory to help you make sense of the data.
Context of Study
·
Provide a brief
description of the where the study will be conducted. This should include
information about socio-economic, cultural, and geographical factors that
influence the environment within which the study is being conducted.
Study Population
·
Describe the population
from which observations, subjects or respondents will be selected or recruited.
Sampling
You must address two main issues in this section. First,
describe the ideal sampling technique for your proposal, that is, the technique
that you would use if the research were to be an ideal study. Second, describe
the sampling technique for the “pilot” study.
·
Ideal sampling technique:
Identify and describe the ideal sampling technique. Justify your choice of this
technique. For example, why is this technique appropriate for your study?
Include the ideal sample size.
·
Pilot study: Since this
assignment is a pilot study, you are not required to use the ideal sampling
technique. Instead, provide a description of how you plan to recruit your
sample for the pilot study.
·
The sample size for a
survey should be between 20 and 25 respondents for the pilot study, and about 6
participants if you plan to conduct a qualitative interview.
Method and Data
Collection
·
Indicate the method of
data collection for the proposed study. Justify your choice of the method. If
you plan to conduct a survey, justify your choice of the data collection
instruments as well.
·
Additional requirements
of this section will depend on the method you plan to use. Here are three
examples:
·
Field research: Describe how observations or data will be collected; indicate
the duration of observation, how the data will be recorded, and the role of the
observer.
·
Experiments: Describe and justify
the proposed experimental design. This design will include a description of the
mechanics, including focus on any pre- and posttesting, a description of the experimental
stimulus and how it will be applied, and a discussion of the need for and
nature of debriefing, if relevant.
·
Surveys: Describe how the survey
will be conducted, specifically, the type of questionnaire to be used, and the
distribution, collection, and monitoring of returns.
Ethical Issues
·
Identify some of the
relevant ethical issues and how they will be addressed. For example, how will
you protect the participants from harm? or, how will you obtain an informed
consent? Discuss issues relating to confidentiality and anonymity, etc.
Attachments
·
Include any check list,
interview questions, and questionnaires that will be used in the execution of
the study. If the required attachments are not included, the proposal will be
given a failing grade.
Format:
·
The essay must be
double-spaced, in 12-point font, with standard 1.25-inch margins on the top,
bottom, left and right.
·
The essay must have a
cover page with the title of the assignment, your name, and your student ID.
·
Use APA style for all
in-text citations and references. Visit the Write Site for detailed information
about APA style.
·
Submit your work using
the assignment link in Moodle.
·
Students who do not
follow these guidelines will be penalized.
.
Evaluation Sheet for the Research Proposal Assignment
Students will be awarded full marks if they address all the
requirements in each section of the proposal.
I.
Introduction/research (20
points)
II.
Literature
review/theoretical framework (10 points)
III.
Context of study (5
points)
IV.
Study populations (5
points)
V.
Sampling
·
Ideal (15 points)
·
Pilot (5 points)
VI.
Methods and data
collection (20 points)
VII.
Ethical issues (5 points)
VIII.
Attachments (10 points)
IX.
Format (5 points)
·
In-text citation and
references
·
Structure and
organization
