RESEARCH PROPOSALS

Writing Your Research Proposal

A research proposal will clarify your thoughts and help you organise your ideas into a
coherent statement of your research intent.

The proposal is your chance to satisfy your supervisor that the intended line of
research is both viable and achievable. It provides an informal contract between
you and your supervisor and is evidence that you have started your research journey
with an appropriate journey plan and destination. It will enable them to provide you
with early feedback and guidance.

The content of your proposal is as follows:

1. Title
This title may change slightly as your work progresses. However, it should mirror
closely the content of your proposal.

2. Background
This is an important part of your proposal. It should explain why you feel the
research that you are planning is worth the effort. This may be expressed in the form
of a problem that needs solving or something that has aroused your curiosity.

This is also the section where you will demonstrate your knowledge of relevant
literature. Moreover, it will clarify where your proposal fits into the debate in literature.
You will be expected to show a clear line between the previous work that has been
done in your field of research interest and the content of your proposal.

This is not the same as the critical literature review you will present in your final
submission. It will provide a simple overview of the key literature sources on which
you intend to draw and summarises the evidence which you will use to then develop
your proposal.

The literature overview should therefore form the point of your departure from
existing knowledge. At this point you will demonstrate what your research will do that
is new and has not been done before.

If you find that your research question does not fit into existing theory, or you cannot
find any material on it, you will have to modify your question until it fits with existing
theory.

3. Research Aim and Objectives
The Background section should lead smoothly into the statement of your research
aims and objectives. These should leave the reader in no doubt as to precisely what
it is that your research seeks to achieve. Be careful here to ensure your objectives
are precisely written and lead to observable outcomes. Do not fall into the trap of
stating general research aims that are little more than statements of intent (e.g. to
discover the level of effectiveness of partnership on construction projects). Try to be
specific. Select an aim which is feasible within the time frames of your dissertation.

The aim should ideally be summarised in one sentence and highlights your ultimate
goal.

The objectives can be stated in bullet form (between 3-8 bullets). They should be set
out as simple phrases using terms such as to investigate, to assess, to examine,
to analyse, to critically examine etc.
Each objective should define the individual elements or issues that need to be
explored in order to achieve your aim.


4. Research Approach and Methodology

This is probably the longest section of the proposal. It has two main purposes:

It will detail precisely how you intend to go about investigating your objectives.
It will justify your choice of methodology in the light of those objectives.

These two aims may be met by dividing your method section into two parts: research
design and data collection.

In the part on research design you should explain where you intend to carry out the
research. If your research is a single organisation issue, it is self-evident. If your
topic is more generic you will need to explain, for example, which sectors of the
industry you have chosen to research and why. You will also need to identify your
research population (for example project managers, H&S officers, etc.) and why you
chose this population.

The research design section should include an explanation of the general way in
which you intend to carry out the research. Will it be based on a survey, interviews,
examination of secondary data or a combination of methods?

Remember that you will need to consider each research objective individually and
explain how you will investigate this objective and why you have chosen this method
of investigation.

The data collection section specifies in more detail how the information is to be
collected. For example, if you are using a survey approach you should specify your
population and sample size. You should also clarify how the questionnaires will be
distributed and how they will be analysed. If you are using interviews you should
explain how many interviews will be conducted, their intended duration, whether they
will be recorded, and how they will be analysed.
In short, you should demonstrate to your supervisor that you have thought carefully
about all the issues regarding your methods and their relationship to your research
objectives.

It is surprising how many research proposals have ambitious plans for large-scale
surveys with no thought given to how the data will be analysed. You should consider
whether computer software or hardware packages such as SPSS or Nvivo are
appropriate tools for analysing your data and, if so, that you have access to the
software.

It is not necessary at this stage to go into precise detail of your method, for example
the questionnaire questions, or the scope of questions in a semi-structured interview.

5. Proposed Plan of Work

This will help your supervisor decide on the viability of your research proposal.

A Gantt chart, with specific milestones, is one means of setting out your proposed
plan of work. A simple time-line or Word table will also suffice.

The milestones you specify on your chart or time-line will be used by your supervisor
to monitor the progress of your project.

Experience has shown that however well the researchers time is organised the
whole process seems to take longer than initially anticipated

6. References

List here the references used in your research proposal. These must be in Harvard
format. There will be a document on Blackboard explaining this format. Your
literature is expected to be a combination of academic journals, books, web sites,
press articles, etc.

The absence of academic journals will usually indicate that you have not sufficiently
linked your research question and objectives to academic theory.

Note:
Make sure that your literature search is not predominantly reliant on web sites. The
quality of information on many web sites is poor.




Evaluating Research Proposals

Your research proposal will be reviewed by your supervisor.

The criteria for evaluation include the following:

The Extent to Which the Components of the Proposal Fit Together

Your rationale for conducting the research should include a study of the previous
published research, including relevant theories in the topic area. This study should
inform your research question and objectives.
Your proposed methodology should flow directly from each element of your research
objectives. The time you have allocated should be in line with your methodology, the
number of stakeholders and the availability of data from relevant organisations.

The Viability of the Proposal
Can the research be carried out satisfactorily within the timescales and with available
resources.

The Absence of Preconceived Ideas
Your research should be a journey of discovery. Do not presume the answers.