CHAPTER THREE

Research Proposal
 Contents
3.1 What is research proposal?

3.2 Elements of research proposal

2
 3.1.What is a research proposal?
• A research proposal is a written description of a research plan that has not been
undertaken. It is an overall plan, scheme, structure, and strategy designed to
obtain answers to the research questions or problems that make up your research
project.

• Writing a formal research proposal should be started by the time one has
decided on the topic for the study.
• Writing a research proposal is both science and art

❖ A good research proposal is based on scientific facts and on the art of clear
communication
❖ It is like a blueprint of a building plan before the construction starts

3
 Functions of a research proposal
• Proposals are generally required by all entities that support or encourage research. They can seek
financial support or simply serve as a guide for the research.
• Proposal generally serves three main functions
• A. Description => The objective in writing a proposal is to describe what you will do, why it should be
done, how you will do it and what you expect will result. For evaluators (including graduate
committees) a proposal clarifies the intent of the research and allows decisions on approval or
disapproval.

• B. Blueprint => The quality of a final report is based on a systematic, consistent, unbiased, judicious
and objective observation or measurement, and more importantly on a pre-planned procedure. Provides
an operational plan for the researcher. This forces clear understanding of the intent of the research and
anticipation of potential problems.

• C. Bond or contract => A completed proposal approved for execution and signed constitutes a bond
of agreement between the parties (e.g., student and the advisors).

• Some funding sources (e.g., industry groups), may prefer short, concise plans without “academic”
aspects. Rarely a proposal may be delivered orally (but these are usually backed by a written
proposal).

4
 3.2 Elements of research proposal
* Although varying in complexity and form, there are common elements to all proposals.

1. Title page 9. Research methods, materials 10.Organization of the study/

2. Introduction/Background and procedures The structure of the report
3. Statement of the problem • Study area 11.Work plan
4. Literature review • Study design
• Study subjects 12.Budget
5. Hypotheses /Research Questions
• Sample size
6. Objective/Aim of the study • Sampling methods 13.References
7. Significance of the study • Method of data collection
• Plan of data analysis 14.Appendices/Annexes
8. Scope and limitation of the Study

5
 1. Title/Title page
• Title page should state your topic exactly in the smallest possible number of words. A
good title is defined as the fewest possible words that adequately describe the contents of
the study.
• Title is a label: it is not a sentence. The title should be descriptive of the main focus, but
no longer than necessary. NOT a detailed description – but still provide an accurate
impression of the central focus.
• Titles should almost never contain abbreviations. The title page has no page number
and it is not counted in any page numbering.
E.g.,

“An Economic Study of the Impacts of Lowering Import Tariffs on Textiles on

Consumers, Textile Manufacturers, and Fiber Producers in the U.S.”

BETTER:

“Lowering Import Tariffs on U.S. Textiles: Effects on Consumers and Industries”

6
 2. Introduction/Background
• Introduction provides readers with the background information for the research
proposal. Its purpose is to establish a framework for the research, so that readers can
understand how it is related to another researches.

• Introduction should cite those who have done the most recent and relevant work and
then go on to explain why more work is necessary (your work, of course.).

• It starts with a very broad perspective of the main subject area, before gradually
narrowing the focus to the central problem under investigation.
•

7
 Introduction….
The introduction also should address the following points:
 Sufficient background information to allow the reader to understand the context and significance
of the question you are trying to address. It should help the reader to acquaint with the topic.

 The introduction should be focused on the research question(s). The problem proposed to be
studied is introduced in this section.

 Explain the scope of your work, what will and will not be included.

 Proper acknowledgement of the previous work on which you are building. All cited work should
be directly relevant to the goals of the research.

The problem should be stated in such a way that it’s importance and
relevance is realized by anyone who reads it. Introduction should be short
about one or two pages.

8
 3. Statement of the Problem
• After a problem has been “discovered”, it must be “defined” so that the objectives of
the research are clear and realizable.

• A well-articulated statement of the problem establishes the foundation for

everything to follow in the proposal and will render less problematic most of the
conceptual, rhetorical and methodological obstacles typically encountered during the
process of proposal development.

• Description of the problem being addressed by the research and the rationale for the
proposed objectives. Often, a two-step procedure:
– Develop a general perspective of the broad problem area
– Focus on the part of the problem area to be studied, within resource constraints of the project.
This is the reason (justification) for the research.

9
 4. Objective/Aim of the study
• A research objective is a statement that clearly depicts (describes) the goal to be achieved by a research
project. A research objective summarizes what is to be achieved by the study (the precise goal of the
study) help guide the development of the research methodology, and orient the collection, analysis and
interpretation of data.

• Objectives specify precisely what the proposed research will discover or accomplish – identifying the
goals of the research, not the means. Universally required in research proposals. This is a very
important and pivotal section and everything else in the study is centered around it.

• Objectives are justified by the problem statement and provide direction to the methods and procedures.
The objective of the proposed study should be stated very clearly & stated in specific, achievable and
measurable terms.

• Usually best stated as a one-sentence general objective (or goal) and a list of specific objectives. Too
many objectives to be avoided. Even just one clearly stated relevant objective for a study would be good
enough. If there is more than one objective the objectives can be presented in the appropriate order of
importance.

10
 5. Hypotheses /Research Questions
• Hypotheses are tentative statements/solutions or explanations of the formulated problem.
Hypotheses are tentative statements that should either be acknowledged / accepted or rejected
by means of research on empirical grounds because it must be tested.
– It is the necessary link between theory and the investigation, which leads to the discovery of additional
knowledge. It is also an indicator of the type of data needed for the study.

• Research question is an interrogative statement that can be answered by data, which is

logically related to the same conceptual framework, but which does not necessarily stem from
that framework through logical deduction. Research question is a statement which depicts the
relationship between two or more variables of interest to the researcher in question form.

• Example:
– What is the top management’s attitude towards social responsibility?
– What is the relationship between formulation of code of ethics and customer satisfaction?

• Deciding whether to use research questions or hypotheses depends on factors such as the
purpose of the study, the nature of the design and methodology of the research.
11
 6. Significance of the Study
• This section allows you to describe explicit benefits that will accrue from your
study.
• The importance of “doing the study now” should be emphasized. Usually, this
section is not more than a few paragraphs.
• If you find it difficult to write, then you have probably not understood the problem
adequately.
• Return to the analysis of the problem and ensure, through additional discussions
with your sponsor or your research team, or by a reexamination of the literature, that
you have captured the essence of the problem.

12
 7. Scope and limitation of the Study
• Scope and limitations are parameters in research which establish the
boundary, exceptions, reservations, and qualifications inherent in the
study. Scope is used to address how the study will be narrowed in
coverage/ span/ extent.
• Example:
– Research Topic: “The impact of high school result on the university GPA.”

– Scope: The study will focus on second year Management students in DU.

– Limitations are used to identify potential weaknesses of the study mainly related
to the study design, sampling or measurement procedures, time, budget, data and
knowledge constraints.

13
 8. Review of Literature
• A literature review is the documentation of a comprehensive review of the published and unpublished
work in the areas of specific interest to the researcher. A literature review is a description of the literature
relevant to a particular field or topic.
– It is NOT just a summary of a series of research papers, you must evaluate the research papers and show the
relationships between different work

• Generally, a literature review must do the following things:

― Be organized around and related directly to the research question you are developing
― Helps to know whether the problem is studied or not or new and avoid intentional duplication of well investigated problems
― Synthesize results into a summary of what is and is not known (Research gap)
― Formulate questions that need further research
― To get basis for formulating hypothesis
― To select appropriate methods of data collection
― To identify the tools or instruments of data collection
― To know about the recommendations of the previous researches for further study
― Identify areas of controversy in the literature
•

• Sources of Review of literature

– Books, Journals, Theses/Dissertations, unpublished work like technical reports, Conference papers, Monographs,
Grant proposals, etc., and the electronic media (www) could be the sources of literature to be reviewed.

14
 Review of literature ….
• This section reflects extensive review of literature done by the
investigator.

• Provides the base of knowledge on what is known about the problem to

be studied. Just quoting the literature verbatim will not serve the purpose.
It is important to make it coherent, relevant and easily readable
knowledge.

• It helps the investigator to gain good knowledge in that field of inquiry.

It also helps the investigator to have insight on different methodologies
that could be applied

• It may be a separate section, or may be incorporated into other sections

(problems, methods, or conceptual framework). It should be confined to
only scientific (not popular) literature.

• Must be done (although perhaps not written up) before developing

problem and objectives.
15
 Conceptual framework
• A conceptual framework illustrates the expected relationship between your
variables. It defines the relevant objectives for your research process and maps out
how they come together to draw coherent conclusions.

• Not a universal requirement of research proposals, but helps to reduce serious

logical errors in research

• It is a conceptual analysis of the research problem & helps to assure that researchers
are examining the problem with appropriate concepts.

• The primary purpose of some disciplinary research may be to develop a conceptual

framework.

16
 9. Research Methods, Materials and Procedures
• The methods or procedures section is really the heart of the research proposal.
You must decide exactly how you are going to achieve your stated objectives: i.e.,
what new data you need to shed light on the problem you have selected and how
you are going to collect and process this data.

• The activities should be described with as much detail as possible, and the
continuity between them should be apparent.

• Indicate the methodological steps you will take to answer every question, to test
every hypothesis illustrated in the Questions/Hypotheses section or address the
objectives you set.
o Study area o Sampling methods
o Study design o Method of data collection
o Study subjects o Plan of data analysis
o Sample size

17
 Research methodology …,
• Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It
may be understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically

• It is necessary for the researcher to know not only the research

methods/techniques but also the methodology.

• Researchers not only need to know how to develop certain indices or tests and
how to calculate the mean, the mode, the median or the standard deviation or chi-
square etc.,
• It is essential to discuss procedures clearly and completely with considerable
number of details .

18
 Contd.,
Study design Study population / Sample size
Sample specifications • It is important to mention
• A study design is a specific
in the protocol what would
plan or protocol for • It is important to be the minimum sample
conducting the study, describe which would
which allows the required and how it is
investigator to translate the be the study population. arrived
conceptual hypothesis into
an operational one.
• How study subjects
• The study design should be would be selected,
clearly stated. The study randomization process • Determination of sample
design to be used should be and other details should size is a bargain between
appropriate for achieving be given. precision and the price
the objective of the study (Resources & expenses
involved)

19
 Methods of Data Collection & Analysis
• These describe how the objectives will be achieved – flow directly from objectives.
• They address:
– how will data be generated or collected
– analytical techniques to be used
– sequence of procedures
• Methods and procedures in student research proposals should be very detailed. Proposal
should include the details of all process to be adopted in the study.

• How exposures, outcome variables and other variables are going to be measured should
be described in detail.

• A brief description of how the data will be processed and use of statistical package if any
should be given

• What statistical tests of significance would be used?

20
 10. Organization of the study/ The structure of the report

✓ Organization of the study states how you intend to organize the final report.
✓ It is a plan to develop your chapters around the main themes of your study.
✓ The title of each chapter should clearly communicate the main trust of its contents.

11. Work Plan

✓ Work plan is a schedule, chart or graph that summarizes the different components of a
research proposal and how they will be implemented in a coherent way within a specific
time-span.
✓ In the work plan different components/phases/stages of the study should be stated,
description of activities in each phase and time required to accomplish the various aspects
of the study should also be indicated.

21
 Work Plan …,

Time Frame & Work Schedule Facilities

✓ The proposal should include the
• The proposal should also include the
sequence of tasks to be performed, the
important facilities required / available
anticipated length of time required for
for the study namely computers,
its completion and the personnel
laboratories, special equipment etc.,
required.

✓ It can be presented in tabular or Personnel

graphic form (Gantt chart)
• Proposal should include who are the primary
✓ Flow charts and other diagrams are investigators and co- investigators, their
often useful for highlighting the qualifications, research experience etc.,
sequencing and interrelationship of • The proposal may also include the Major roles
different activities in the study to be taken up by different investigators

22
 12. Budget
Major items
• A budget section of a proposal shows the costs required
for the research. A budget proposal involves estimating
◼ Salary for staff
the funds required for travel expenses, typing, printing,
purchase of equipment, tools, books, etc.
◼ Travel

◼ Purchase of equipment
• The budget translates project activities into monetary
terms
◼ Printing / Xeroxing

◼ Consultancy charges
• It is a statement of how much money will be required to
accomplish the various tasks.
◼ Institutional overheads

23
 13. References
• Documentation of the sources of literature in the proposal. Includes all
sources used to explain, define or document the problem.

14. Appendices/Annexes
• Include in the appendices of your proposal any additional information you
think might be helpful to a proposal reviewer. For example, include
Questionnaire & other collection forms, Biographical data on the principal
investigator and the consent form (if any).

24
 Evaluating Research Proposals
• Planning the research and writing the proposal is often the most difficult part of the research process.

• Evaluation involves assessing the soundness and merit of the research plan. The evaluators look for evidence of clarity and
quality of thought – which reflects on the likely quality of the research to be conducted.

• Typical Criteria for Evaluation

A. Is the investigator interested in the problem?
B. Is there a genuine lack of knowledge related to the problem?
C. Is the research needed by other people?
D. Are the objectives:
 Appropriate to the problem?
 Attainable?
 Observable or measurable?
 Sufficiently specific?
E. Does the investigator have sufficient resources?
F. Does the proposal recognize appropriate constraints?
G. Is the research likely to be productive?
H.
I.
Is the expected value of the research greater than its cost?
Are results likely to be widely applicable?
The End
25