Chapter 3 Z

Chapter Three
Research Proposal
By: Zinashbizu Lemma (PhD)
Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

Expected outcome
2
 Up on the completion of this chapter the

students will be able to:
 Define research proposal
 Explain objective, function and importance
of research proposal
 Describe types of research proposal
 Discuss the general components/ elements
of research proposal
 Explain criteria used to evaluate research
proposal
 Write a research proposal
Brainstorming question
3
 What is a research proposal?

What is Research Proposal?
4
 Research proposal is a planning document that

outlines your thinking about a research problem
and describes what is to be studied and how.
 The research proposal is a detailed plan of a study.
 It is a document which shows researchers’ ideas in

an easily accessible way.

What is Research Proposal? …
5
 It is a plan of future research and an explanation

of how it will be achieved
 A written document requesting both authorization

and funds to undertake a specific research project
 The intent of the written research proposal is to

provide a focused and scholarly presentation of a
research problem and plan.

What is Research Proposal? …
6
 The research proposal is a way of thinking clearly

about
 the destination you want to get to,
 the means of getting there and the arrangements

you have to make in order to undertake the
research.

Think –pair-share
7
 Why research proposal is important?
 Think of it independently
 Discuss on it with your colleague,
 Share your discussion point to the
class.

Objective of the research proposal
8
 The objective in writing a proposal is to describe:
what you will do objective

why it should be done justification/ significance
When to do it time table
how you will do it methods and materials
what you expect will result Hypotheses

Importance of the research proposal
9
 It serves as a basis for determining the

feasibility of the research project.
 It provides a systematic plan of procedure for

the researcher to follow.
 It gives the research supervisor a basis for

guiding the researcher while conducting the
study.
 It reduces the probability of costly mistake.

Importance of the research proposal….
10
 Without proper planning, it is very likely that

 your reading will lack direction,
 your writing will lack focus and
 your data collection will run into major

problems

Functions of Research Proposal
11
For For funder

supervisor
For the rest

For of the
researcher academic
Functions community
of research
proposal

Functions of Research Proposal:
i. For researcher /the student/
12
 it outlines researchers' thinking about what

he/she will be investigating –
 the focus,
 the limits,
 the logical development of his/her
investigation and
 the methods he/she will be using to
investigate the topic.

ii. For supervisor
13
 a proposal is an indication of whether the researcher

/student/ have done adequate thinking about the
topic and sufficient preparation for the study.
 an indication of researcher‟s /student‟s/ ability to
put his/her ideas into clear and logical
writing.
 contract between researcher and supervisor - it
effectively says what you wish to study and how.
 It gives researcher and his/her supervisor a plan

of action to follow in order to reach completion of
the thesis (the ultimate aim!).

iii. For funders
14
The proposal gives a clear indication of:

whether the researcher have thought
clearly about the topic,
whether it is something feasible and

worth supporting.

iv. For the rest of the academic community
15
It is an indication of the focus of researcher‟s

investigation and how it links to the ongoing
debates in the literature.
The research proposal is researcher’s

opportunity to persuade the academic
community

iv. For the rest of the academic community…
16
A good research proposal will help researcher:

define and formulate his/her research
question;
narrow down the study to a manageable
form within the prescribed time limits;
structure the development of his/her
writing;
Avoid wasting time in the literature search
and data collection stages of the project.

Criteria used to evaluate research proposal
17
 A well-thought and written proposal can be

judged according to three main criteria.
 Is it adequate to answer the research question(s),
and achieve the study objective?
 Is it feasible in the particular set-up for the study?
 Does it provide enough detail that can allow

another investigator to do the study and arrive at
comparable results?

Types Of Research Proposal
18
Student
• MSc thesis and PhD dissertation that are
research most complex.
proposals
Internal • if they target an entity or organization and are

Research prepared by individual or a team of
Proposal researchers who are part of the entity or
organization.
External • Are either solicited or unsolicited.

research • Solicited research proposals are when the
proposals customer asks for a proposal.

Discussion question
19
 What could be the components of a

research proposal?
 Organize in group of 5 and

discuss about it.

Sections or Elements of a Research Proposal
20
 Section of a research proposal varies from one type

of research proposal to the other.
 There is no a hard and a fast format in scientific

research proposal writing.
 Though the format varies, the essence expressed in

different proposal remains the same.

Sections or Elements of a Research Proposal…
21
 The major components/elements of a scientific research

proposal:
1. Title 9. Significance of the study
2. Summary/Abstract 10. Scope of the study
3. Acknowledgement 11. Literature review
4. Table of contents 12. Research Methodology
5. Introduction/Background 13. Time plan
6. Statement of the problem 14. Cost budget
7. Hypotheses/Questions 15. Reference
8. Objective/Aim of the study 16. Appendix

Preliminary pages of research Proposal:
1. The title/ cover page
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12/13/2022
o The title should be concise, descriptive,
informative, and if possible a little catchy – one
that will prick the interest of the reader.
o Avoid words that add nothing to the meaning,
such as “Research on…..”, “Studies on…..”
assessment of…” etc.
o Put your name, department/faculty/college, the
name of your advisor(s) and date of delivery under
the title.
o The title/cover page has no page number and it
is not counted in any page numbering.

2. ABSTRACT
21
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 Abstract should be brief, clear and
informative, giving a clear indication of
what is intended and why.
 The abstract of a proposal should contain:
 Information only included in the text
 Title or topic of the research
 Statement of the problem and objective
 Methods of investigation
 Expected result

2. ABSTRACT…..
22
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12/13/2022
The abstract SHOULD NOT contain:
 Lengthy background information,
 Acronyms or abbreviations,
 References/ Citations to other literature (Like

"current research shows that..." or "studies
have indicated...“) and
 Any sort of image, illustration, figure, or table,

or references to them.
Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD)

2. ABSTRACT…..
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Importance of abstract
 Allows readers to quickly decide whether it
is relevant to their purposes and need to
read the whole paper.
 To communicate your key findings to those

who don’t have time to read the whole
paper.

3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
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 It is reserved for the researcher to extend
his/her own huge vote of thanks to those who
have played significant contribution in the
preparation of the research proposal.
4. TABLE OF CONTENTS:
 Consists of the main headings and
subheadings of the research proposal and the
page numbers in which the headings and
subheadings are found

MAIN PART OF A RESEARCH PROPOSAL:
5. BACKGROUND
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 The context that gives rise to your research
 What conditions have led you to propose your
research project?
 Your motivation for the research project-
 What is your interest in the research?
 What motivates you to do the research?
 Why is it worthy of academic investigation?

5. BACKGROUND…
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12/13/2022
The importance of the proposed research-
 What do you consider to be the
significance of the research project?
 What contribution will the research

project make in terms of current
knowledge around the issue or problem
that is being researched?

6 . Statement of the problem
27
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 This part captures the essential focus of your
study and it is therefore important that you
spend time on formulating a clear, focused
and interesting problem that is
researchable
 It should focus on, for example, a gap in the

debates, an ambiguity, or a paradox.

7. Questions and/or Hypotheses
28
⚫ Hypotheses and questions can be inferred from

the overall conceptual framework of a study,
and are of critical importance to data
analysis and interpretation.
⚫ The hypothesis is subject to test, i.e., to
confirmation or rejection on empirical
grounds.
⚫ The questions will be answered by data, which
is logically related to the same conceptual
framework.
8. Objectives of the study
31
⚫ What is to be achieved by the proposed

investigation has to be stated clearly and
concisely
⚫ Should be to the point and logically arranged
⚫ Should be stated in a form which shows the

relations between variables
⚫ Must clearly state the target of the research
activity, i.e., what kind of results are expected or
sought from conducting research.

8. Objectives of the study
32
General objective:
 What exactly will be studied?
 General statements specifying the desired outcomes of
the proposed project directly related with the title
of the study.
Specific objectives
It identifies in greater detail the specific aims of the
research project, and
it inline with basic research questions or
hypotheses
9. Significance of the study
33
 The researcher should get clear answers for

the following questions:
Why you consider it to be important?
For whom it is important?
-To theoreticians
-To practitioners
-To policy makers
How it could be important?

10. Delimitation of study area
34
 All research projects must have starting

point and an end point.
 A study must have very clearly defined
limits.
 We cannot tackle everything; thus we
have to set clear boundaries.
 This will serve to orient our reader and

to make our study a manageable one.
10. Delimitation of study area….
12/13/2022
 It covers
◦ Geographical scope: which defines the
location of the study;
◦ Theoretical scope: by defining issues to be

covered; and
◦ Time scope: stating the period coverage of the

research
Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 35

11. Limitations of a study
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 Limitation, by definition, are factors affecting
research findings substantially and lies beyond
the control of the researcher.
 It could be concerned to chosen research method,

o research technique
o sampling method
o sampling size, etc

11. Limitations of a study…..
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 It‟s important to give an explanation of
how your research limitations can affect
the conclusions and thoughts drawn from
your research.
 Including limitations in your study can

make your paper strengthen because you
show all the problems before your
readers will discover them by themselves.

12. Literature review
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 It means locating literature in a variety of
sources reading it carefully and thoroughly
organizing it into themes along with the line of
investigation
Objective of the literature review
 To integrate and summarize what is known in
the area; know (the research gap): unaddressed
aspects, issues, factors; methodological
limitations, etc
 To show the path of prior research and how a

current project is linked to it –Development of
knowledge

12. Literature review……
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– To learn from others and stimulate new ideas
– To give your readers an overview of the sources you

have explored
– Demonstrate how your research fits into the

larger field of study
– To outline the key ideas and theories that help us

to understand the research problem; To establish a
familiarity with a body of knowledge

12. Literature review……
40
12/13/2022
– It shares with the reader the results of other studies
that are closely related to the one being undertaken;
– It relates a study to the larger, ongoing dialogue

in the literature;
– It provides a framework for establishing the

importance of the study as well as a benchmark for
comparing the results with other findings;

41
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Conducting Literature Review

A general guideline for conducting literature review
42
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 Choose a variety of resources that relate to
your topic.
 Journal Articles: by reading their titles
and the abstract
 Books: from the library through the library
computer-based catalogue.
 Thesis/ dissertation
 Documents (e.g., those published by

government, international organizations,
etc)
A general guideline for conducting literature
review….
43
12/14/2022
 Then select the relevant materials in light
of your research problem/objective(s).
 You may again have a look at the abstract
of articles or table of contents of books
Use software such as Mendeley and EndNote
to keep a record of your references.
Select the most relevant information from

the references – in light of the topic/research
objective.
review….
44
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– Skim the paper or the chapter of the book.
– Identify the relevant parts of the article or

the book chapter.
– You can highlight the important sentences

or paragraphs – use highlighter on hard
copy, word file, PDF, etc). Even PDF & MS
Word software have in-built highlighters.

review….
45
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 Critically examine the parts you have
highlighted. Make sure you have done more than
simply summarize your sources. Look at:
 Objective, context, methodology, statistics, results,
etc
 Theoretical framework, the author's purpose, etc.
 Include controversies/debatable issues when
they appear.

review….
46
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 Organize the information obtained form the
literature review in the way that makes most
sense (in your MS word file).
 Make sure the information relates to your
research question/objectives of the thesis
 Avoid information that does not relate with your
research objectives.
 Ask your self, why do I need this information in my
literature review section?
 Develop questions for further research
Literature can be reviewed from two sources
47
12/14/2022
Literature
sources
Primary source/ Secondary source/

primary referencing secondary referencing
Review of several
Report of an studies on the same
original study topic

Types of reviewed literature for thesis
12/14/2022
Theoretical
review
Empirical
review

Types of reviewed literature for thesis….
12/14/2022
1. Theoretical literature review focuses on a
pool of theory that has accumulated in
regard to an issue, concept, phenomena.
 Theoretical literature reviews play an

instrumental role in establishing:
 what theories already exist,
 the relationships between them,
 to what degree existing theories have been
investigated, and
 to develop new hypotheses to be tested.

Types of reviewed literature for thesis….
12/14/2022
2. An empirical literature review is more commonly
called a systematic literature review and it examines
past empirical studies to answer a particular research
question.
 It is a summary of research that has been conducted

in the past on a certain subject of interest.
 The purpose is to discover the gaps in literature.

13. Research Methods and Methodology
51
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 The function of this section is:
to give your reader a clear indication of the
means by which you hope to achieve your
research aims,
to outline a procedure which, if

necessary, can be repeated by others, and

13. Research Methods and Methodology….
52
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 In this section you need to tell your reader
about:
 Your data sources
 Data collection tools
 The plan for data analysis
 how you intend to verify the reliability and
validity of data you collect
 Your justification for your choice of method/s
and technique/s
 Method of presenting the outcome

14. Time and Budget Plan…..
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i. Time Plan
 A work schedule couples the various
research activities you will be involved in
with a time- frame.
 It includes the major phases of the project,

their timetables and the milestones that
signify completion of a phase.

54
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 A timetable explaining how the researcher
expects to carry out the project and when
each of the important phases will be
completed
 It is a plan in terms of numbers of weeks

or months and expected completion dates.

55
12/14/2022
 A timetable explaining how the researcher
expects to carry out the project and when each of
the important phases will be completed
 Itis a plan in terms of numbers of weeks or
months and expected completion dates.
 Eg.

56
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ii. Cost Budget
 Funding will be necessary and an itemized list of
items needed to carry out the study is listed in some
detail with the required budget.
 There are items like:

 Field expenses for data collection
 Pay for consultants where they are necessary
 Travel and all such items needed to be detailed
 A sum of money for contingencies.

15. Reference (Bibliography/ Literature Cited)
57
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 The term „reference’ refers to those consulted
materials that are actually cited in-text, that is,
 when your research includes paraphrased
empirical and theoretical quotations from
published papers of other writers.
 All works cited in the proposal are listed either

alphabetically or numerically at the end of the
document usually under the heading of “References
or Bibliography”

15. Reference (Bibliography/ Literature Cited)….
58
12/14/2022
 References: are lists of literature, which have been
cited in the text of a document
 Bibliography: includes also items, which were not

cited but are relevant to the document.
What is plagiarism?
 Plagiarism is wrongful appropriation of others’ idea, thoughts,
expression, close imitation etc as if it were your own original
work.
 presentation of others’ idea as once own.

Systems of referring
59
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 The Three main systems of referring are:
1. Harvard
Referencing
2. American
Psychological
2. Vancouver Association
System (APA)
system

Systems of referring…..
57
1. Harvard System: This system uses author‟s

name, date, and page reference
 Each reference to a periodical publication must
include, in order,
 the name(s) of the author(s),
 the year of publication,
 the full title of the article,
 the publication in which it appears, and
 the volume and inclusive page number

57
 Reference to a book must give:

 the author or authors‟ name(s),
 the year,
 the title,
 the edition, if other than the first;
 the publisher,
 the city of publication, and
 the number of the volume (if two or more).

57
2. Vancouver System: uses in-text number

instead of an author, date, and page
reference.
oThe same superscript or bracketed
text number is given in the text each
time the source is sited.

57
3. American Psychological Association

(APA) system:
 APA Referencing is very similar to that of

Harvard Referencing Style
oWhere Harvard is most commonly used in U.K.
and Australia, APA is more popular in USA.

16. Appendix (Annex)
64
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⚫ Information types provided in this section
are those additional details, which are
difficult to accommodate within the
standard headings:
Detail Questionnaires and interview
schedules
Detailed experimental design
Detailed statistical procedures

Common Mistakes in Proposal Writing
65
 Failure to provide the proper context to frame the research

question.
 Failure to delimit the boundary conditions for your research.
 Failure to accurately present the theoretical and empirical

contributions by other researchers.
 Failure to stay focused on the research question.
 Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for

the proposed research.

Common Mistakes in Proposal Writing….
66
 Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail

on major issues.
 Too much rambling -- going "all over the map" without a

clear sense of direction. (The best proposals move
forward with ease and grace like a seamless river.)
 Too many citation lapses and incorrect references;

Failing to follow the proper citation style.
 Too long or too short.
 Slopping writing.

67
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Chapter Three

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 Up on the completion of this chapter the

 What is a research proposal?

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 Research proposal is a planning document that

 The research proposal is a detailed plan of a study.

 It is a document which shows researchers’ ideas in

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 It is a plan of future research and an explanation

 A written document requesting both authorization

 The intent of the written research proposal is to

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 The research proposal is a way of thinking clearly

 the means of getting there and the arrangements

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/14/2022

 Why research proposal is important?

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/14/2022

 The objective in writing a proposal is to describe:

what you will do objective

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 It serves as a basis for determining the

 It provides a systematic plan of procedure for

 It gives the research supervisor a basis for

 It reduces the probability of costly mistake.

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 Without proper planning, it is very likely that

 your writing will lack focus and

 your data collection will run into major

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

For For funder

For the rest

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/14/2022

 it outlines researchers' thinking about what

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 a proposal is an indication of whether the researcher

 It gives researcher and his/her supervisor a plan

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

The proposal gives a clear indication of:

whether it is something feasible and

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

It is an indication of the focus of researcher‟s

The research proposal is researcher’s

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

A good research proposal will help researcher:

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 A well-thought and written proposal can be

 Is it feasible in the particular set-up for the study?

 Does it provide enough detail that can allow

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

Internal • if they target an entity or organization and are

External • Are either solicited or unsolicited.

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/14/2022

 What could be the components of a

 Organize in group of 5 and

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/14/2022

 Section of a research proposal varies from one type

 There is no a hard and a fast format in scientific

 Though the format varies, the essence expressed in

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

 The major components/elements of a scientific research

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022

Compiled by: Zinashbizu L. (PhD) 12/13/2022