Soc 3322a: Research Proposal
and Presentation (30% of final mark)
The proposal uses a "modified portfolio model." That means that
most of the proposal comes from the assignments that you
did during the semester. You should revise these assignments based on
the comments you received on them and your own
developing understanding of research methods. There are a few sections
where you will have to do original work. The completed proposal should be
approximately 6 – 8 pages in length (not including title page, abstract, index,
bibliography or appendices.) You will also give a brief presentation to the
class, based on your proposal.
For future reference, you should know that in addition to the proposal sections
below you would usually have to include a budget section and a section of the coding
or statistical techniques to be used in a proposal to a funding agency. In addition,
you would have to fill out a complete set of REB forms.
A. The Presentation
Proposal presentations will be held during the last week of classes. A
schedule will be posted shortly on the webpage.
The presentation itself should be a brief presentation (approximately 5
- 8 minutes) of your proposed research, based on your completed proposal. It should be well organized and professional, as
if you were presenting your proposal to a funding agency or community
organization. You may use powerpoint slides or overheads to illustrate your
ideas if you wish. Please allow a few minutes for questions and/or feedback
from the class at the end of your presentation. Please note: Entire time
allowed for the presentation and questions is 10 minutes. The
presentation is worth 10% of the total mark of this assignment
B. Basic Outline for the Proposal
1. Front matter
title page
abstract (1-2 paragraph
summary)
table of contents
2. Introduction
What is the proposal about
and why is it interesting and/or important?
3. Literature Review
What do we know about this
topic already (based on the scholarly literature)
Research questions*(could go
in next section)
4. Study Description
Research questions*(could go
in previous section)
How would the study actually
be done? Why have you made the choices you have? Method, sampling, measurement
of
key themes or concepts.
Other study information such
as ethical issues and expected problems.
Limitations
5. Conclusion
Summary and restatement of
why the study is important.
6. Bibliography and appendices
For example, interview
schedule, possible survey questions if doing a survey also, map or description
of the study location if applicable.
C. Detailed Proposal Outline
1.Title Page: The title page should include the title of the study;
the names, titles and affiliations of the principal investigator
(you); and the date of
submission of the proposal.
2.Abstract: The abstract
should express the goals, methodology, anticipated results and significance of
the proposed
research. It should be no
more than 400 words (about two-thirds of a page, single spaced). Much of the
abstract can be
drawn from the text of the
proposal. I recommend writing the abstract last.
3.Table of Contents: The table
of contents should list all of the major subheadings of the proposal and note
the page
numbers on which they first
appear.
4.Introduction:
This section will be largely based on the problem statement and the follow up
work you do on it.
Purpose:
This should be a brief statement answering the following questions: What
research question are you
attempting to answer? Why is this
research needed? How does it contribute to the field of sociology, commmunity
development, criminal justice, and/or social work? This should draw the reader
into the rest of the proposal and give him or her a sense of the project as a
whole. You will cover some of the same items in more detail in other sections.
Goal:
State the overall general aims or long term goals of the proposed research.
Describe the general nature of
the
problem to be addressed. This should be a more detailed and specific explanation
of what the study will
contribute.
5.
Literature review: This section will be based in part on the annotated
bibliography assignment. Follow the guidelines suggested in the powerpoint on Designing
Qualitative Research and those given in Berg and by Leedy and Ormrod.
Briefly review the most significant previous work in
this area (generally, the most frequently cited
work) and describe the
current status of work in this field. What have others said about this topic?
What theories
address it and what do
they say? Are past findings consistent or do they disagree? Are there problems
with the
body of existing
research that you feel that you can remedy? The work cited should come from the
SCHOLARLY literature,
either peer-reviewed journal articles or serious books. Five to ten of such works would be the
bare minimum for an
acceptable proposal. In addition you may cite statistical reports, especially
from the
government but also
from other reliable sources, if they help to provide the reader with necessary
background
information. Document your statements
with references. The more citations, the better, because they indicate that you
have looked seriously at the existing literture. In a proposal by a
professional researcher almost every statement in this section
would have a citation
given.
State the guiding questions to be explored. Generally,
proposals of this length will have between 1 and 3 questions. Make it clear
whether your questions or ideas are derived from someone else's work.
6.Description
of the Proposed Study: This
will be a revision of the methodological assignment that incorporates ideas and
suggestions given by me. Describe how the research is going to be conducted.
What research design is to be employed?
Present concisely your
reasons for the proposed method of studying the problem.
Explain in detail how the data are to be
collected – interviews, participant or non-participant observation, case study,
or through unobtrusive measures such as the use of existing data. Say why you chose
this method.
Describe the key concepts
or themes to be studied. These should correspond to those in your research questions.
If you borrow measurement
instruments from somewhere else (that is, if you copy questions), make sure to
give that source credit.
If necessary, refer the
questionnaire or interview guide which should be included as an appendix.
7.Sample
or Subjects of the Study:
Describe the population and/or the sampling frame from
which specific subjects will be drawn.
Describe the sampling procedure to be used.
8.Discuss
any problems you might
encounter.
9.Point
out the limitations of
your study.
10.Ethical
considerations:
Identify any
procedures or situations that may be hazardous and discuss the precautions to
be taken. If the
research
utilizes surveys or interviews, describe the steps the researcher will take to
protect the privacy,
confidentiality
and personal security of the human subjects.
11.Facilities and Special Resources
(Optional):
Describe the
facilities available or needed for the project.
Describe any
special resources you would need to carry out the project or any special
expenses you would have
(not including paying yourself, but, for
example, you could include any payments you would make to interview
subjects).
12.Collaborative arrangements (Optional):
If the
proposed project requires collaboration with other institutions, describe it
and indicate how you expect it
could be
obtained.
13.Significance:
What is the potential importance of the proposed research? Is it
important for theory, practice or policy? Does it
offer new ideas or contribute to the bulk of knowledge in this area?
Does it open doors for new research? How
does it improve studies within this particular field?
This section is the conclusion so it is the final chance for you to
convince the reader that this is a project that
should be done. You should reiterate the main points and emphasize the
contribution of the project.
14.Appendices
Include a rough copy of interview schedule, your questionnaire or other
research instrument.
15.Bibliography
Include all
works cited in the text of the proposal, including the sources of any existing
statistics. Each citation should
include the
name of the author(s), the date of publication, the title of the article or
book, the name of the journal and the
volume,
number and page numbers of the article (if the source is an article) or the
name and location of the publisher (if
the source
is a book) using the ASA Style. Make sure that your bibliography is in alphabetical
order.