RESEARCH

Research requires a great deal of abstraction of ideas in your mind. Research is a process of
systematic inquiry that comprises collection of data; information, analysis and interpretation of data.
Writing research proposal is a challenging kind of writing among students which communicates facts
or ideas. The goal of a research proposal is twofold: to present and justify the need to study a research
problem and to present the practical ways in which the proposed study should be conducted.
Writing a research proposal for the following reasons:
• Develop your skills in thinking about and designing comprehensive research study;

• Learn how to conduct a comprehensive review of the literature to determine that a research problem
has not been adequately addressed or has been answered ineffectively and, in so doing, become better
at locating pertinent scholarship related to your topic;
• Improve your general research and writing skills;
• Practice identifying the logical steps that must be taken to accomplish one's research goals;
• Critically review, examine, and consider the use of different methods for gathering and analyzing data
related to the research problem; and,
• Nurture a sense of inquisitiveness within yourself and to help see yourself as an active participant in
the process of doing scholarly research. 

THE ELEMENTS OF A PROPOSAL

I. Introduction and Theoretical Framework

“The introduction is the part of the paper that provides readers with the background information for
the research reported in the paper. Its purpose is to establish a framework for the research, so that
readers can understand how it is related to other research” (Wilkinson, 1991, p. 96).
In an introduction, the writer should; create reader interest in the topic, lay the broad foundation
for the problem that leads to the study, place the study within the larger context of the scholarly
literature, and reach out to a specific audience. (Creswell, 1994, p. 42)
Theories, theoretical frameworks, and lines of inquiry may be differently handled in quantitative and
qualitative endeavors.
1. “In quantitative studies, one uses theory deductively and places it toward the beginning of the plan
for a study. The objective is to test or verify theory. One thus begins the study advancing a theory,
collects data to test it, and reflects on whether the theory was confirmed or disconfirmed by the results in
the study. The theory becomes a framework for the entire study, an organizing model for the research
questions or hypotheses for the data collection procedure” (Creswell, 1994, pp. 87-88).
2. In qualitative inquiry, the use of theory and of a line of inquiry depends on the nature of the
investigation. In studies aiming at “grounded theory,” for example, theory and theoretical tenets emerge
from findings. Much qualitative inquiry, however, also aims to test or verify theory, hence in these cases
the theoretical framework, as in quantitative efforts, should be identified and discussed early on.

II. Statement of the Problem

A problem statement should be presented within a context, and that context should be provided and
briefly explained, including a discussion of the conceptual or theoretical framework in which it is
embedded. Clearly and succinctly identify and explain the problem within the framework of the theory or
line of inquiry that undergirds the study. This is of major importance in nearly all proposals and requires
careful attention. It is a key element that associations such as AERA and APA look for in proposals. It is
essential in all quantitative research and much qualitative research.
III. Purpose of the Study
“The purpose statement should provide a specific and accurate synopsis of the overall purpose of the
study” (Locke, Spirduso, & Silverman, 1987, p. 5). If the purpose is not clear to the writer, it cannot be
clear to the reader.
The purpose statement can also incorporate the rationale for the study. Some committees prefer that
the purpose and rationale be provided in separate sections, however.

IV. Review of the Literature

“The review of the literature provides the background and context for the research problem. It should
establish the need for the research and indicate that the writer is knowledgeable about the area”
(Wiersma, 1995, p. 406).
In a proposal, the literature review is generally brief and to the point. Be judicious in your choice of
exemplars—the literature selected should be pertinent and relevant (APA, 2001). Select and reference
only the more appropriate citations. Make key points clearly and succinctly.

V. Questions and/or Hypotheses

Questions are relevant to normative or census type research (How many of them are there? Is there
a relationship between them?). They are most often used in qualitative inquiry, although their use in
quantitative inquiry is becoming more prominent.
Hypotheses are relevant to theoretical research and are typically used only in quantitative inquiry.
When a writer states hypotheses, the reader is entitled to have an exposition of the theory that led to
them (and of the assumptions underlying the theory). Just as conclusions must be grounded in the data,
hypotheses must be grounded in the theoretical framework.
A research question poses a relationship between two or more variables but phrases the relationship
as a question; a hypothesis represents a declarative statement of the relations between two or more
variables (Kerlinger, 1979; Krathwohl, 1988).
Hypotheses can be couched in four kinds of statements.
1. Literary null—a “no difference” form in terms of theoretical constructs. For example, “There
is no relationship between support services and academic persistence of nontraditional-aged college
women.” Or, “There is no difference in school achievement for high and low self-regulated students.”
2. Operational null—a “no difference” form in terms of the operation required to test the
hypothesis. For example, “There is no relationship between the number of hours nontraditional-aged
college women use the student union and their persistence at the college after their freshman year.” Or,
“There is no difference between the mean grade point averages achieved by students in the upper and
lower quartiles of the distribution of the Self-regulated Inventory.” The operational null is generally the
preferred form of hypothesis-writing.
3. Literary alternative—a form that states the hypothesis you will accept if the null hypothesis
is rejected, stated in terms of theoretical constructs. In other words, this is usually what you hope the
results will show. For example, “The more that nontraditional-aged women use support services, the
more they will persist academically.” Or, “High self-regulated students will achieve more in their classes
than low self-regulated students.”
4. Operational alternative— similar to the literary alternative except that the operations are
specified. For example, “The more that nontraditional-aged college women use the student union, the
more they will persist at the college after their freshman year.” Or, “Students in the upper quartile of the
Selfregulated Inventory distribution achieve significantly higher grade point averages than do students in
the lower quartile.”

VI. The Design--Methods and Procedures

“The methods or procedures section is really the heart of the research proposal. The activities should
be described with as much detail as possible, and the continuity between them should be apparent”
(Wiersma, 1995, p. 409).
1. the variables you propose to control and how you propose to control them, experimentally or
statistically, and
 2. the variables you propose to randomize, and the nature of the randomizing unit (students, grades,
schools, etc.).

Sampling
1. The key reason for being concerned with sampling is that of validity—the extent to which the
interpretations of the results of the study follow from the study itself and the extent to which results may
be generalized to other situations with other people (Shavelson, 1988).
2. Sampling is critical to external validity—the extent to which findings of a study can be generalized
to people or situations other than those observed in the study. To generalize validly the findings from a
sample to some defined population requires that the sample has been drawn from that population
according to one of several probability sampling plans. By a probability sample is meant that the
probability of inclusion in the sample of any element in the population must be given a priori. All
probability samples involve the idea of random sampling at some stage (Shavelson, 1988). In
experimentation, two distinct steps are involved.
a. Random selection—participants to be included in the sample have been chosen at
random from the same population. Define the population and indicate the sampling plan
in detail.
b. Random assignment—participants for the sample have been assigned at random to one
of the experimental conditions.
3. Another reason for being concerned with sampling is that of internal validity—the extent to which
the outcomes of a study result from the variables that were manipulated, measured, or selected rather
than from other variables not systematically treated. Without probability sampling, error estimates
cannot be constructed (Shavelson, 1988).
Instrumentation
1. Outline the instruments you propose to use (surveys, scales, interview protocols, observation
grids). If instruments have previously been used, identify previous studies and findings related to
reliability and validity. If instruments have not previously been used, outline procedures you will follow to
develop and test their reliability and validity. In the latter case, a pilot study is nearly essential.
2. Because selection of instruments in most cases provides the operational definition of constructs,
this is a crucial step in the proposal. For example, it is at this step that a literary conception such as
“self-efficacy is related to school achievement” becomes “scores on the Mathematics Self-Efficacy Scale
are related to Grade Point Average.” Strictly speaking, results of your study will be directly relevant only
to the instrumental or operational statements (Guba, 1961).
3. Include an appendix with a copy of the instruments to be used or the interview protocol to be
followed. Also include sample items in the description of the instrument.
4. For a mailed survey, identify steps to be taken in administering and following up the survey to
obtain a high response rate.

Data Collection
1. Outline the general plan for collecting the data. This may include survey administration
procedures, interview or observation procedures. Include an explicit statement covering the field
controls to be employed. If appropriate, discuss how you obtained entré.
2. Provide a general outline of the time schedule you expect to follow.

Data Analysis
1. Specify the procedures you will use, and label them accurately (e.g., ANOVA, MANCOVA,
HLM, ethnography, case study, grounded theory). If coding procedures are to be used, describe in
reasonable detail. If you triangulated, carefully explain how you went about it. Communicate your precise
intentions and reasons for these intentions to the reader. This helps you and the reader evaluate the
choices you made and procedures you followed.
2. Indicate briefly any analytic tools you will have available and expect to use (e.g.,
Ethnograph, NUDIST, AQUAD, SAS, SPSS, SYSTAT).
 3. Provide a well thought-out rationale for your decision to use the design, methodology, and
analyses you have selected.

VII. Limitations and Delimitations

A. A limitation identifies potential weaknesses of the study. Think about your analysis, the
nature of self-report, your instruments, the sample. Think about threats to internal validity that may
have been impossible to avoid or minimize—explain.
B. A delimitation addresses how a study will be narrowed in scope, that is, how it is bounded.
This is the place to explain the things that you are not doing and why you have chosen not to do them—
the literature you will not review (and why not), the population you are not studying (and why not), the
methodological procedures you will not use (and why you will not use them). Limit your delimitations to
the things that a reader might reasonably expect you to do but that you, for clearly explained reasons,
have decided not to do.

VIII. Significance of the Study

Indicate how your research will refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the area under
investigation. Note that such refinements, revisions, or extensions may have either substantive,
theoretical, or methodological significance. Think pragmatically (i.e., cash value).
Most studies have two potential audiences: practitioners and professional peers. Statements relating
the research to both groups are in order.

IX. References
Follow APA guidelines regarding use of references in text and in the reference list. Of course, your
committee or discipline may require Chicago or MLA.
Only references cited in the text are included in the reference list; however, exceptions can be found
to this rule. For example, committees may require evidence that you are familiar with a broader spectrum
of literature than that immediately relevant to your research. In such instances, the reference list may be
called a bibliography.
Some committees require that reference lists and/or bibliographies be “annotated,” which is to say
that each entry be accompanied by a brief description, or an abstract. Check with your committee Chair
before the fact. Appendixes
The need for complete documentation generally dictates the inclusion of appropriate appendixes in
proposals (although this is generally not the case as regards conference proposals).
The following materials are appropriate for an appendix. Consult with your committee Chair.
4. Verbatim instructions to participants.
5. Original scales or questionnaires. If an instrument is copyrighted, permission in writing to
reproduce the instrument from the copyright holder or proof of purchase of the instrument.
6. Interview protocols.
7. Sample of informed consent forms.
8. Cover letters sent to appropriate stakeholders.
9. Official letters of permission to conduct research.