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3.1. Meaning of Research Proposal

Research Proposal • Research Proposal is an overall plan, scheme,

structure and strategy designed to obtain answers
for the standard pleas see Addis College to the research problems or questions.
Proposal writing guideline • It outlines the various tasks you plan to
undertake.

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3.3. Basic Components of a Research

3.2. Importance of Research Proposal
Proposal
a) It serves as a basis for determining the • It is helpful to decide the topics that will go into a
feasibility of the research project. proposal.
b) It provides a systematic plan of procedures for • All the topics need to be interrelated so that they
the researcher to follow. provide cohesive picture of the entire proposed
c) It gives the research supervisor a basis for project.
guiding the researcher while conducting the • An outline of topics will be helpful, but the topics
study. will differ depending on whether the proposal is
d) It reduces the possibility of costly mistakes. for a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods
study.

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Format for a Quantitative proposal Format for a Quantitative proposal

• For a quantitative study, the format conforms to 1. Title page 13. Research methods, materials and
standards easily identified in journal articles and 2. Abstract (optional) procedures
• o Study area
research studies. 3. Introduction/Background • o Study design
• The form generally follow the model of an 4. Statement of the problem • o Study subjects

introduction, a literature review, methods, results, 5. Objective of the study • o Eligibility Criteria (if any)
• o Sample size
and discussion. 6. Literature review • o Sampling Methods
7. Hypotheses/Questions • o Method of data collection
• In designing proposals in a quantitative a 8. Conceptual framework • o Description of variables
construction/engineering studies, the following 9. Scope of the Study • o Data quality assurance
format may be considered although the order of the 10.Significance of the study
• o Operational definitions
• o Plan of data analysis
sections, especially in the introduction, may vary 11.Problems and limitations 14. Work plan
from study to study. (optional) 15. Budget
16. References
12.Structure/organization of 17. Appendices/Annexes
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the report
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Components… cont’d Components…cont’d

2. Abstract

a. Prefatory parts • At the top of the page, centered, you should have the word
“Abstract.”
1. Title Page • It is a concise summary of the entire paper, including the
• On separate lines and centered, the title page has problem, major hypotheses, sample and population, a brief
description of the measures, and the name of the design or
the title of the study, the author‟s name, the a short description
institutional affiliation, and date. • Fits to one page, one paragraph, sometimes not more than
• Particularly, put your name, the name of your 300 words (in italic font).
department/faculty/college, the name of your • Not more than one side of double spaced A4 paper.
advisor(s) and date of delivery under the title. • It should be placed before table of content.
• Key words 3-5 at the end ( not italic)
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Cont’d 1. Introduction

• Do not put information in the abstract that is 1.1 Background of the Problem/study
not in the main text of your research proposal. • Generally introduce the problem to the readers.
• Do not put references, figures, or tables in the • The introduction is the part of the proposal
abstract. that provides readers with the background
information for the research proposal.

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Cont’d… Issues to remember:

• The introduction should address the following points:
• In summary, the introduction/background section
1. Sufficient background information to allow the reader to should contain a rationale for your research.
understand the context and significance of the question • Why are you undertaking the project?
you are trying to address. • Why is the research needed?
• This rationale should be placed within the context of
2. Proper acknowledgement of the previous work on which existing research or within your own experience and/or
you are building. observation.
• You need to demonstrate that you know what you‟re
3. The introduction should be focused on the research talking about and that you have knowledge of the
question(s). literature surrounding this topic.
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1.2. Statement of the Problem

• If you‟re unable to find any other research that deals
• Having provided a broad introduction to the area under
specifically with your proposed project, you need to say study, now focus on issues relating to the central
so, illustrating how your proposed research will fill this theme, identify some of the gaps in the existing
gap. body of knowledge.
• If there is other work that has covered this area, you • Identify some of the main unanswered questions.
need to show how your work will build on and add to • Elaborate about the problem.
the existing knowledge. • Effective problem statements answer the question “Why
• Basically, you have to convince people that you know does this research need to be conducted.”
what you‟re talking about and that the research is • Statement of the problem encapsulates the question you
important. are trying to answer.

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1.3. Objective of the study General Objective of the Study

• The objectives of a research delineate the ends or aim
which the inquirer seeks to bring about as a result of • The main/general objective indicates the central
completing the research undertaken. thrust of your study.
• The objectives of a research project summarize what is to • Is very similar to the title of your research.
be achieved by the study. • What exactly will be studied?
• Objectives should be closely related to the statement of • General statements specifying the desired outcomes of
the problem.
• After statement of the general objective, specific the proposed project.
objectives may be mentioned.
• 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.
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General Objective of the Study Specific Objectives

• While Writing General Objective of the Study: • The specific objectives identify the specific issues you
Use a single sentence. propose to examine.
Use wording such as “The General Objective of this • Specific statements summarizing the proposed activities
study….” and including description of the outcomes and their
Use quantitative words (e.g., “relate,” “compare,” assessment in measurable terms
“describe”) to describe the relationships between • It identifies in greater detail the specific aims of the
variables. research project, often breaking down what is to be
accomplished into smaller logical components

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Specific Objectives 1.4. Hypotheses and/or Questions

• Specific objectives should systematically address the various
aspects of the problem as defined under „Statement of the Problem‟ • Hypotheses and questions are linked to the speculative
and the key factors that are assumed to influence or cause the proposition of the problem statement.
problem. • Hypotheses are tentative statements/solutions or
• Each specific objective should delineate only one issue. explanations of the formulated problem
• In formulating specific objectives, use action oriented verbs such • If you are going to test hypotheses, list them in this
as: section.
to determine • In a study you may have as many hypotheses as you
to find out want to test.
to ascertain
• Specific objectives should be numerically listed/or in bulletin.

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1.5. The scope of the study 1.6. Significance of the Study

• Justifies the need, importance and urgency of the study;
• Depth and as to how the results of his/her study will be useful to
• Detailness the beneficiaries.
• Ask the following question: Who will profit from
• E.g. Determine the conceptual, methodological reading our study?
and geographic scope  Other researchers
 Practitioners
 Policy makers
 Special populations (e.g., parents)
• Then discuss how does your investigation benefits them
separately, preferably in one paragraph each.

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1.7. Definition of terms and

1.8. Problems and Limitations
concepts/operational definition
• The technical terms or words and phrases • Problems refer to difficulties relating to
having special meaning need to be defined logistical details, whereas limitations designate
operationally (from other works). structural problems relating to methodological
• Operational definition- researcher‟s own aspects of the study (optional).
definition

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1.8. Problems and Limitations Cont…

• For example, problems may be related to • At the proposal stage, it is often difficult to
the availability of data.
identify weaknesses in the study before it has
securing permission from the agency/ organization
to carry out the study.
begun.
obtaining the sample. • However, advisers like students to anticipate the
• In your opinion the study design you chose may not be potential weaknesses in their studies, and
the best but you might have had to adopt it for a number student can identify limitations related to the
of reasons. research methods of data collection and analysis.
• This is classified as limitation of the study.
• Such limitations should be communicated to readers.
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1.9 The Structure of the

Report/organization of the research report
2. Literature Review
• As clearly as possible, state how you intend to • A literature review is a description of the literature
organize the final report. relevant to a particular field or topic.
• Plan to develop your chapters round the main • The literature review asks how similar and related
themes or your study. questions have been answered before.
• The title of each chapter should around the main • It gives an overview of what has been said, who the key
writers are, what are the prevailing theories and
themes of your study.
hypotheses, what questions are being asked, and what
• The title of each chapter should clearly methods and methodologies are appropriate and useful.
communicate the main thrust of its contents.

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Cont… Conceptual Framework

• Your literature might include Books, Journal Articles, • A conceptual framework is described as a set of broad
Magazines and Newspapers, and sometimes other media ideas and principles taken from relevant fields of enquiry
such as Television and Radio depending on the nature of and used to structure a subsequent presentation.
data your research demands. • Such a framework should be intended as a starting point
• Bear in mind that Books and Text-Books are different. for reflection about the research and its context.
• Usually, Text-Books are not preferred sources of • The framework is a research tool intended to assist a
literature for your research because they are “tertiary” researcher to develop awareness and understanding of
sources of data. the situation under scrutiny and to communicate this.
• In other words, Text-Books are neither primary nor
secondary sources of data collection.

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3. Methodology
• What belongs in the "methods" section of a research
• The methods section is really the heart of the proposal?
research proposal. Information to allow the reader to assess the
• You must decide exactly how you are going to believability of your approach.
achieve your stated objectives Information needed by another researcher to replicate
your experiment.
Description of your materials, procedure, theory.
Calculations, technique, procedure, equipment, and
calibration plots.
Limitations, assumptions, and range of validity.
Description of your analytical methods, including
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3.1. The setting /Study Area

• Generally, methods should describe the following issues
in detail: • Briefly describe the organization, agency or community in
Description of study area which you will conduct your study.
Description of study design • If your research concerns an agency, office or
Description of study participants/population of the study organization, include the following in your description:
Eligibility criteria ( if any)
 The main services provided by the agency, office or
Sampling Design and determination of sample size (if
any) organization;
Methods of data collection  Its administrative structure;
Description of variables  The type of clients served; and
Instrumentation and how data quality is ensured  Information about the issues that are central to your
Planned Data analysis methods research.
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3.2. The study design

• The study type may dictate certain research designs.
• If you are studying a community, briefly describe • More commonly, the study objectives can be achieved
some of the main characteristics, such as: through a number of alternative designs.
 The size of the community; • The type of research design chosen depends on:
 A brief social profile of the community (i.e., the • Describe the study design you plan to use.
composition of the various groups within it); and • For example, say whether it is a cross sectional‟,
 Issues of relevance to the central theme of your study. „before-and-after‟, experimental‟ or non-experimental‟
design, ….
• Justify why you have selected the design by briefly
explaining the strength and weaknesses of the selected
design.
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3.3. Sample, population and participants 3.4. Variables in the study

• Under this section of the proposal:

 Identify the population in the study. Also state the size of this
• Identify the dependent and independent
population, if size can be determined, and variables.
 The means of identifying individuals in the population. That
means where (sample frame) and how this information • Define the variables.
will be obtained;
 The size of the sample you are planning to select, and
how have you determined this size; and
 An explanation of the sampling technique you are
planning to use in the selection of the sample (simple
random sampling, stratified random sampling, quota
sampling etc.).
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3.5. Instrumentation and measurement

Examples procedures
Variable Attribute • This section should contain a discussion of your
instrument and the details of how you plan to
satisfaction 1 = very satisfied operationalise your major variables
2 = satisfied • Justify your choice of research tool, highlighting its
strength and pointing out its weaknesses, then
3= somewhat satisfied outline the major segments of your research tool and
their relevance to the main objectives of the study.
4 = not satisfied

5 = not satisfied at all

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Cont… 3.6. Sources of Data

• Primary sources
• If you are using a standard instrument, briefly
discuss the availability of evidence on its • Secondary sources
reliability and validity.
• If you adapt or modify the standardized
instrument in any way, describe and explain the
changes you have made.
• Ideally you should attach a copy of the research
instrument to your proposal.

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3.8. Work schedule and Financial

3.7. Data Analysis Plan
Budget
• In general terms, describe the strategy you intend to • You must set yourself dates as you need to complete
use for data analysis . the research within a certain time- frame.
• Specify whether the data will be analysed manually or • List the various operational steps you need to
by computer. undertake and indicate against each the date by which
• For computer analysis, identify the program and the you aim to complete that task.
statistical procedures you plan to perform on the data.
• Keep some time towards the end as a „cushion‟ in case
• The details of the statistical techniques and the
rationales for using such techniques should be the research process does not go as smoothly as
described. planned.
• Develop a chart (Gantt Chart).

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4.References or Bibliography 5. Appendix

• Attach list of references and bibilography before appendix. • As an appendix, attach your research instrument
• Your bibliography might include Books, Journal Articles, and other bulky information, if any.
Magazines and Newspapers, and sometimes other media such
as Television and Radio depending on the nature of data your
• For a material to be attached as an appendix it
research demands. should be very important to the research
• Bear in mind that Books and Text-Books are different. proposal.
Usually, Text-Books are not preferred sources of literature for
your research because they are “tertiary” sources of data.
• In other words, Text-Books are neither primary nor secondary
sources of data collection.

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Assignments (I)
Assignment 1: Review three scientific papers
Read three published scientific papers (of varying quality) and write a

Go to chapter 4!!
short report for each of them.
Individual work.
NOTE: successful completion of this assignment is mandatory in order
to be allowed to do the rest of the assignments.

Assignment 2: Demarcation: Pseudoscience vs Science

Read selected texts, write a summary and answers to questions.
Work preferably in groups of two.
The assignment 2 will be followed by in-class discussion.
If you miss the discussion, you will have to do both assignment 2 and
an additional assignment 2-extra.

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