Unit 2.

Research Proposal
Development
 Unit Objectives

• Understand the processes involved in research

proposal development
• Know the basic components of a research
proposal
• Know do and don’t activities in research
proposal development
 Definition
• What is a research proposal?
 It is a detailed plan of your study.
 It is a document which sets out your ideas in an
easily accessible way.
 The term "research proposal" indicates that a
specific course of action will be followed .

• Objective of writing a research proposal:

 to present a focused and scholarly presentation of a
research problem and plan.
 to describe what you will do, why it should be done,
how you will do it and what result you will expect.
 What a research proposal should answer?

What questions a research proposal should

answer?
• What do you want to do? – research question
• Why do you want to do it? – Any information gap
• Why is it important? – any practical importance or
knowledge advancement
• Who has done similar work? - background
• How are you going to do it? -methodology
• How long will it take? – plan of work
• How much it costs? - Budget
 Components of a Research Proposal Document
• The basic components of a research proposal are the same in
many fields. However, how they are phrased and staged may
vary by discipline.
• The most logical order of a research proposal development
(writing) is:
 Title/Research topic
 Abstract/Summary/Synopsis
 Introduction/Background
 Statement of the problem
 Objectives
 Literature review
 Questions or Hypothesis (optional)
 Materials and Methods/ Methodology
 Work plan
 Budget and funding
 References
 Your proposal Format - Recommendation

In no more than 10 pages,

• Front page: Title, University/College/Department
Name, Your full Name, Name Of Advisor, Academic
Year.
• Second page: content
• Third page: Summary/Abstract: Not more than 400
words.
• Fourth–seventh page: with bold headings: Introduction,
objectives, hypothesis, Literature review, materials and
methods
• Eighth page: Work plan
• Ninth page: Budget
• Last page: References:
 Components – one by one
• Identifying a research topic/title – the first step for
proposal development - Defining the problem is the first
step and one of the most difficult in research undertaking.
• There may be several ideas to choose from.
• Before deciding on a research topic, each proposed topic
must be compared with all other options
• The criteria for selecting a research topic is:
 Relevance/significance
 Avoidance of duplication
 Feasibility of study (in terms of time, budget, resources)
 Applicability of results
 Your Interest and knowledge to the area
 Urgency of data needed (timeliness)
 Components – one by one

• Issues to Remember !!!!!

• Know your area of expertise: what are your
strengths and what are your weaknesses? Play to your
strengths, not to your weaknesses
• Do not assume that, because you do not understand an
area, no one understands it or that there has been no
previous research conducted in the area
• If you want to get into a new area of research, learn
something about the area before you write a proposal
Research previous work.
 What your topic should be?
• Title /Topic – the fewest possible words that adequately
describe the contents of the study.
 It is a label; not a sentence
 It shouldn’t contain any abbreviations
 It appears on the title page and on top of the abstract
 The title of research proposal should state the topic
exactly in the smallest possible number of words.

Note: The title page has no page number and is not counted.

E.g.
• Quality assessment of low cost houses in Addis Ababa
• Production of microbial antibiotics from cactus in Adigrat
town
 Components of a Research proposal
• Summary/Abstract– is a concise summary of the material
presented in the proposal (background-objective-
methodology-expected results).
• Though it appears at the front of the proposal, it is
written last
• A well-prepared summary enables the reader to
 Identify the basic content of a document quickly and
accurately
 Determine its relevance to their interests, and
 Decide whether they need to read the document in its
entirely
 Components of a Research proposal
• Summary/Abstract– a one page brief summary of the
research proposal.

 Do not put any information not stated in the main

text.
 Never contain references, figures and tables.
 It comes first but written last.
 Should be written in future tense.
 Components of a Research proposal
• Introduction /Background - is the part of the proposal
that 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 other
research
• This is a statement of something sufficiently interesting
to motivate your reader to read the rest of the proposal,
• it is an important/interesting scientific problem that your
study either solves or addresses
• The introduction should cite those who had the idea or
ideas first, and should also cite those who have done the
most recent and relevant work.
• You should then go on to explain why more work is
necessary (your work, of course)
 Components of a Research proposal
• Introduction /Background- Introduce the problem, moving
from the broader issues to specific problems, finishing the
section with the precise aims of the paper.

 have sufficient background information to allow the

reader to understand the context and significance of the
question you are trying to address
 Proper acknowledgement of the previous work on which
you are building
 Explain the scope of your work, what will and will not
be included
 Components of a Research proposal

• Statement of the problem –

• The problem statement describes the context for the study and
it also identifies the general analysis approach
• Effective problem statements answer the question “Why does
this research need to be conducted
• A problem might be defined as the issue that exists in the
literature, theory, or practice that leads to a need for the
study.
• Are there questions about this problem to which answers have
not been found up to the present?
• The research problem should be stated in such a way that it
would lead to analytical thinking on the part of the researcher
with the aim of possibly concluding solutions to the stated
problem.
 Components of a Research proposal

• Statement of the problem –

• Quite often we all hear that ‘’a problem clearly stated is
a problem half solved’’.
• This statement signifies the need for defining a research
problem
• Well defined problem helps to answer the following
questions
 What data are to be collected?
 What characteristics of data are relevant and need to be
studied?
 What relations are to be explored.
 What techniques are to be used for the purpose?
 Components of a Research proposal

• Objective of the study – aim which the researcher seeks to

achieve as a result of completing the research.
 Objectives should be simple, stated in advance, stated using
action verbs.
 Objectives can be classified into:
 General objective – showing what exactly to be studied, and
states the desired outcomes from the study.
 Specific objectives – shows in greater detail the specific aims
of the research project.

 The general and specific objectives are logically connected to

each other and the specific objectives are commonly considered as
smaller portions of the general objectives.
 It is important to ascertain that the general objective is closely
related to the statement of the problem
 Components of a Research proposal

• Objective of the study –

• The objectives of a research project summarise what is to
be achieved by the study
• Objectives should be closely related to the statement of
the problem.
• Objectives should be
 simple (not complex)
 specific (not vague)
 stated in advance (not after the research is done), and
 stated using “action verbs” that are specific enough to be
measured
 Components of a Research proposal
• Literature review – a description of the literature very
relevant to your study.
• To conduct research regarding a topic, by implication,
means that the researcher has obtained sound knowledge
with regard to the research topic.
• A literature review seeks to describe, summarize,
evaluate, clarify and/or integrate the content of primary
or original reports.
 Gives an overview of what has been said, who the key
authors in the area are, what the prevailing theories
and hypothesis are, what methods and methodologies
are appropriate and useful etc.
 Relevant materials could be from books, journal
articles, theses and dissertations, government reports,
etc.
 How do you collect a Literature Review?

 Stages of a literature review

1.Define the problem
 It is important to define the problem or area which you wish to
address
2. Carry out a search for relevant materials
 Relevant materials will probably comprise a range of media:
 books (monographs, text books, reference books)
 articles from journals, whether print or electronic (but make sure
electronic journals have been subject to the peer review process)
 newspaper articles
 historical records
 commercial reports and statistical information
 government reports and statistical information;
 theses and dissertations
 other types of information which may be relevant to your particular
discipline
 How do you collect a Literature Review?

 Stages of a literature review

 3. Organizing the literatures
 Introduction: define the topic, together with your reason for selecting the
topic. You could also point out overall trends, gaps, particular themes that
emerge, etc.
 Body: this is where you discuss your sources. Here are some ways in which
you could organize your discussion:
 1. chronologically: for example, if writers' views have tended to change over
time. There is little point in doing the review by order of publication unless
this shows a clear trend
 2. thematically: take particular themes in the literature
 3. methodologically: here, the focus is on the methods of the researcher,
for example, qualitative versus quantitative approaches
 Conclusion: summarize the major contributions, evaluating the current
position, and pointing out flaws in methodology, gaps in the research,
contradictions, and areas for further study
 How do you collect a Literature Review?

• Identify key terms from your research problem

• Locate literature
• Critically evaluate and select the literature
• Organize the literature
• Write a review

Effect of web-site
technology on web-site technology,
distance education distance education
class attendance
 Components of a Research proposal

• Research Questions and/or Hypothesis – the

speculative proposition of the problem statement.
• Hypothesis is a derivation of a particular assertion or
prediction. It is subject to test for confirmation or reject.
• Hypotheses are thus tentative statements that should
either be acknowledged or rejected by means of research.
• Question is an interrogative statement that can be
answered by data.
Differences among Topic, Statement of the Problem and
Research Questions

Topic selection Distance Learning

General
Students do not attend distance
Statement of education classes at a community
The problem college. The reasons given for this
include use of internet, …..

Does the use of web site technology

Research
in the classroom deter students from
Question/ enrolling in a distance education
Hypothesis class?
To study the impact of the use of web
site technology on distance education
Specific Objective class attendance in a community
college

Specific Title: Effect of web-site technology on distance education class

attendance
 Components of a Research proposal
• Materials and Methods/Methodology - a detail description
of the materials, activities and the methodological steps
you will take to achieve your objectives.
• 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.
• Depending upon the type of study, it includes:
 Description of study area, study design and study
participants
 Sampling technique and sample size used
 Methods of data collection
 Method (s) of data analysis,
 Expected outcomes etc.
 Components of a Research proposal

• Study design:
Depending upon the type of study, it could be:
 Survey :
 Observational studies – the researchers stand apart from
events taking place in the study
 researchers simply observe and record
 An observational study may be cross-sectional or
longitudinal
 In cross-sectional study, measurements are made on a single
occasion while In a longitudinal study, measurements are
made over a period of time
 Experimental/intervention studies – the investigator tests the
effect of an intervention on the events taking place in the study.
 the researches introduce an intervention and observe the events
which take place in the study.
• The type of research design chosen depends on:
• the type of problem
• the knowledge already available about the problem; and
 Components of a Research proposal

Sampling for quantitative studies

• Sampling is the process of selecting a number of study
units from a defined study population
• Often research focuses on a large population that, for
practical reasons, it is only possible to include some of its
members in the investigation
• You then have to draw a sample from the total population.
In such cases you must consider the following questions:
 Components of a Research proposal

• Work plan – a schedule, chart or graph that summarizes

the different components of a research proposal and how
they will be implemented. Here,

 Different phase/components of the study should be

stated
 Describe the activities in each phase (when and where
the tasks will be performed)
 Indicate time frame to accomplish the various aspects
of the study.
 Could be presented in table, chart (Gantt chart) or
graph.
 Components of a Research proposal

• Budget and funding – the cost of conducting research.

 Budget items need to be explicitly stated with
justification

 Costs are typically:

 Direct costs – personnel, consumable supplies,
equipments, travel, publication, etc.
 Indirect costs – overhead and administrative costs.
 Components of a Research proposal

• References – citation of all the information that you

obtain as a support for conducting your research.

 Be careful, the style of writing list of references

varies from one discipline to another.
 Group Assignment (20%)
 Identify a research topic (title) in your
field of study and develop a research
proposal (with all its components).

 Submission Date: E.C.