Unit Three
Process in Research Proposal
Development

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 intent of written proposal is to present a focused and
scholarly presentation of a research problem and plan.
 Describes what you will do, why it should be done, how you
will do it, and what you expect will result.

Defining Research problem
• Problem – Difficulty which a researcher experiences in
the context of either a theoretical or practical situation
• Proper definition of research problem sets the researcher
on the track
where as an ill-defined problem will create hurdles
“If I had an hour to solve a problem I would spend the first 55 minutes thinking about
the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions” Albert Einstein

Sources of research ideas
 Previous research works (Literature review)
 Past experience
 Industry/Company/Stakeholders challenges
 Development agenda
 National research agenda
 International agenda
 Community problems
 Priority areas
 Future research areas

Don’t Forget your:
• Specialty/expertise
• Personal Interest and motivation
• Resources at your disposal
• Time available for this particular research

Selecting from potential ideas
• Evaluating alternative ideas for selecting more appropriate
topic to a researcher is critical
• Criteria: -
1. Contribution
• After finishing the research, what will be its original
contribution to the scientific community?
• It should have either theoretical or practical implication or
both

Criteria
2. Suitability
• Clear understanding of the theoretical, conceptual and practical
aspects of research area
• Assure suitability to scientific community
3. Originality
• Provide perspective of contribution
• Identify unique contribution and avoiding duplicity
4. Feasibility and practicality
• Ascertain data availability or will be available
• Outputs must be used directly by stakeholders and provide
practical application

Criteria
5. Resources Availability
• It is good to know in advance what kind of research facilities
you require for this specific research
• Knowing what the research needs and the resource available at
the researcher’s disposal
6. Scope of the research
• The problem must be one that is investigated and completed
within the allocated time limit.
7. Commercialization of research outputs
• Research for marketable concepts not for shelving

• Other criteria for selecting research ideas :
 Relevance/significance
 Avoidance of duplication
 Applicability of results
 Your Interest and knowledge to the area
 Ethical acceptability
 Urgency of data needed
 Feasibility of study
Research Proposal

Individual Assignment
• Using the sources indicated and criteria discussed,
Identify two research topics and provide appropriate
justifications
 The ideas and justification must be completed within one
page for each topic

Components of a proposal
• Literature review – a description of the literature very relevant
to your study.
 Gives an overview of what has been said, who the key authors in
the area are, what are the prevailing theories and hypothesis,
etc.
 Relevant materials could be from books, journal articles, theses
and dissertations, government reports, etc.
• Be very careful to check your sources when doing your
literature review.

• Identify key terms
• Locate literature
• Critically evaluate and select the literature
• Organize the literature
• Write a review - not copy paste!
• Write what you have learned from the literature in your
own words
What is the Process of Conducting a
Literature Review?

Purposes of the Literature Review
• Its central purpose is to provide the researcher (and the
reader) with an understanding of literature about the
proposed topic.
• This includes the strengths and weaknesses!
• Focus - the research problem identified
• But the literature may be related to the research project in
several ways – the problem, the objectives, the conceptual
framework, and methods and procedures.

• Prior researches that addressed a similar problem or had
similar objectives is relevant
• Enables the researcher to know how others approached
similar problem and objectives
• Insight into what is likely to work for you!
Purposes of LR

A. Prevents duplication of what has already been done (Some
duplication or confirmation of research is necessary, but excessive
duplication is wasteful)
B. Help to identify new areas where research is needed (and how new
research can contribute)
C. Provides ideas and direction for:
 How to handle problems encountered, techniques to be used, potential sources
of data and novel approaches for the research
Specific Purposes …

D. Helps develop insights on design of your own study by showing
what has (and has not) been previously successful
E. May reveal conceptual insights into the problem and/or suggest
possible hypotheses for your own study
Research should never be undertaken without a literature review (as it
helps avoid risks, unneeded duplication, repeating mistakes and
inefficient research)

The Literature Review Process
• Not all literature should be included in the review – only peer
reviewed scientific literature
• Scientific literatures - professional journals, formal research
reports, university-affiliated papers, monographs, publications by
research foundations and international organizations.
• This doesn’t insure that these are infallible – but they have been
through independent checks of accuracy and correctness

• Newspapers, news magazines, or industry or popular
publications are generally not considered scientific
• Even well respected publications, such as the Wall Street
Journal, or The Economist are not appropriate sources for
scientific literature review.
 However, these sources may be useful to the researcher as
background information during problem formulation
• LR is intended to provide an overview and summary of reliable
prior knowledge

Literature Search
• Standard search aids include indexes, abstracts, and
bibliographies.
• These search tools are located in the research library and many
now are computerized.
• Local researches outputs may require search through hard
copies
• Need to check current issues of major journals for relevant
literature
• Dissertations/thesis abstracts should not be overlooked

Keywords
• Individual words and phrases which describe the topic you are
studying
• Selecting good key words is very important
 Too narrow – overlooks relevant literature;
 Too broad – spends time locating and reviewing
literature with little relation to the topic.
• The best advise is to start with broad key words, then
narrow to a more confined list.

• Difficult as there are no specific guidelines
• Focus on key words and phrases which define the topic. This
includes words relevant to :
• The problem,
• Objectives,
• Conceptual framework and
• Methods or procedures
• Review prior researches that identified relevant/appropriate
keywords in the areas
• Use Boolean operators AND, OR and NOT to search
databases
Defining Keywords

Searching the Web
• Google scholar
http://scholar.google.com
• Journals and publisher’s indexes
– IEEE Xplore digital library http://ieeexplore.ieee.org
– Elsevier http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journal
– JSTOR
– ScienceDirect
– Scopus
– Web of Science
– Applied Science and Technology
– (Why not wikipedia?)

Reading
• It is often useful to start reading with the most recent publications
1) Focusing more quickly on current knowledge,
2) Recent research often includes references to relevant earlier
research
• First read the abstract or summary to determine relevance and
whether to review the article or reject
• As you read, keep in mind that the central purpose is to identify and
describe its relevance to your research

Note
• Be sure you have a complete citation of each source
• Keep written notes – don’t rely on memory
• Be thorough and systematic in keeping notes; note problem,
objectives, methods, findings and conclusions
• Remark on questions, shortcomings or problems with the
study
• Develop your own database as your read relevant literature
(recommended in excel)

Writing the Literature Review
• Needs to be systematically organized (smooth and clear)
• It should not be a series of unconnected summaries of studies, but
rather a synthesis of previous literature
• Develop an outline of the literature review, before you start to write
• Start with an introduction section, and end with a short summary that
pulls all the main points together

• Use subheadings to organize the literature review and direct the
reader’s attention
• These are usually subject-matter headings, which logically group
studies with a similar focus
• The literature review should summarize, but not repeat information
(analyze, compare and contrast the literature reviewed)
• Direct quotations can be useful, but use sparingly.
• Be reluctant to reproduce graphs or tables.

• An overview of conceptual thinking, analytical procedures,
and the progression of research can put your work in
perspective.
• Do not reference a source of an idea without actually having
read it.
• Be cautious, another person’s summary and interpretation
may differ from your own

How to write LR content
Quoting
When you want to borrow an idea or definition of text directly
from another author. For example
• Citing at the beginning:
Abera, S. et al. (2018) states that "…insert text borrowed …”
• Citing at the end:
It is indicated that “… insert borrowed text …” (Abera, S. et al.,
2018)

Paraphrasing
When you want to take someone else idea but want to indicate it
in your own words to align in to your argument. For example
• Disadvantage of simulation from the process perspective has been argued
by some authors as becomes challenging in validating it to capture all
details as in reality (Duzevik, 2017). Or
• Duzevik (2017) indicates one of the disadvantages of simulation process is
its challenge in establishing validity that considers all details included in
the real system.
How to write LR content

How to write LR content
Summarizing
After reading a relevant literature and find the argument
important in general, one needs to discuss, in brief, what has been
done, how it is done and its underlying argument
Comparison
When the review targets comparing similar issues and how the
concepts have evolved through the years

Referencing
• Referencing previous literature occurs throughout research
proposal and research reports, but is used most in the literature
review.
• We reference other literature to:
 Provide supporting (or contrary) evidence for the views we
write about
 Assign credit for an idea, concept or result
 Add information and details on matters discussed

• Give credit for thoughts, ideas, efforts and contributions of
others (ethical issue)
• Plagiarism is the failure to give credit for an idea or research
result to it’s originator.
• Presenting someone else’s words or ideas as your own is not
only wrong but can hurt your professional standing
• By properly referencing and giving credit for other’s work,
you show that you are aware of the state of knowledge in
your subject and are familiar with the work of leaders in the
field.

• The style used in referencing may vary with the type of
publication, as well as your personal preference (APA, Harvard,
Numbered, etc.)
• Footnotes (notes at the bottom of the page) or Endnotes (similar
notes placed at the end of the paper) can be used, if needed
• References used should be properly cited in the main body and
listed under reference list at the end of the research proposal
• Referencing of internet sources is not uniformly accepted.
Generally, include the full web address and date of access of the
website

Research Proposal
• In what area are you working on and how important is it? –
Introduction
• What is the particular problem and its symptoms? –
Problem Statement
• What do you want to do? – Research question
• Who has done similar work? – Literature Review
• How are you going to do it? -Methodology
• How long will it take? – Work Plan
What a proposal should contain?

Components of a Research proposal
• Logical order of a research proposal development is:
 Title/research topic
 Summary/Abstract
 Introduction/background (Questions or Hypothesis – optional)
 Objectives
 Literature review
 Methodology - Materials, Methods and procedures
 Scope and Limitations
 Work plan
 Budget and funding
 References
 Appendices/Annexes

• Front page: Title, name of the researcher, department.
• Second page: content (optional)
• Third page: Abstract – between 200 – 300 words.
• Fourth onwards (with bold headings): Introduction
with (question/hypothesis) Objectives, Methodology,
Scope and limitation, Literature review, Schedule
• Last page: References used in proposal development
The Format

Components of a proposal
• Title – the fewest possible words that adequately
describe contents of the study.
It is a label; not a sentence
It shouldn’t contain any abbreviations
The title page has no page number and is not
counted.

Components of a proposal
• Summary/Abstract – a one page brief summary of the thesis
proposal.
 It show that your work fits within the topic
 It show what contribution your work will make.
 It should specify the research question and how it is going
to be answered.
 Do not put any information not stated in the main proposal
body
 Never contain references, figures and tables.
 It comes first but written last.

The Abstract – an example
• High speed electronic beam switching is a desirable feature of
smart antennas.

The Abstract – an example
• High speed electronic beam switching is a desirable feature of
smart antennas. Most smart antennas are too large for most
applications and require significant power during normal
operations.

The Abstract – an example
• High speed electronic beam switching is a desirable feature of
smart antennas. Most smart antennas are too large for most
applications and require significant power during normal
operations. A thirteen element switched parasitic antenna will
be optimised for gain, speed and beam coverage.

The Abstract – an example
• High speed electronic beam switching is a desirable feature of
smart antennas. Most smart antennas are too large for most
applications and require significant power during normal
operations. A thirteen element switched parasitic antenna will
be optimised for gain, speed and beam coverage. Antenna
characteristics will be determined at 1.8 GHz by finite element
modelling and measurements on a prototype.

The Abstract – an example
• High speed electronic beam switching is a desirable feature of
smart antennas. Most smart antennas are too large for most
applications and require significant power during normal
operations. A thirteen element switched parasitic antenna will
be optimised for gain, speed and beam coverage. Antenna
characteristics will be determined at 1.8 GHz by finite element
modelling and measurements on a prototype. This is
anticipated to have better performance compared to previous
antennas.

Components of a proposal
• Introduction/Background – background information of
the research proposal.
 It establishes a framework for the research
 Shows area of the contribution your work will be
 It should motivate the reader to reader the whole paper
 Should cite the most recent and relevant works, and
should explain why work is required.

Components of a proposal
• Statement of the problem or Rationale – the issue that
leads to a need for the study.
 It answer the question ‘Why does this research need be
conducted?’
 Presents the foundation for everything to follow in the
proposal
 Should provide solid justification

Components of a proposal
• Objective (aim of the study) – aim which the enquirer seeks to
bring about as a result of completing the research.
Objectives should be simple, specific, stated in advance, stated using
action verbs
 Objectives can be classified into:
 General objective – showing what exactly is to be studied,
and the desired outcomes from the study.
 Specific objectives – shows in greater detail the specific aims
of the research project.

Differences among Topic, Problem, Purpose and
Questions
General
Specific
Topic
Research
Problem
Statement of
the problem
Research
Question/
Hypothesis
Distance Learning
Lack of students in distance
classes
To study why students do not attend
distance education classes at a
community college.
Does the use of web site technology in
the classroom deter students from
enrolling in a distance education class?

Components of a proposal
• 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.
 Question is an interrogative statement that can be answered by
subsequent data analysis and discussions
Does the use of web site technology in the classroom deter students from
enrolling in a distance education class?
The use of web site technology in the classroom deter students from
enrolling in a distance education class.
Hypothesis
Question

Components of a proposal
• Materials and methods, and procedures – a detailed
description of the activities and the methodological steps
you will take to achieve your objectives.
• 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, etc.

Components of a proposal
• Study design:
Depending upon the type of study, it could be:
 Observational studies – the researchers stand apart
from events taking place in the study
 Experimental/intervention studies – the investigator
tests the effect of an intervention on the events taking
place in the study.

Components of a proposal
• Scope and Limitations
 Scope – indicates what will be covered by the study and
what will be excluded
 Limitations – indicates those important considerations
that were supposed to be addressed but not considered
due to justifiable reasons

• Work plan – a schedule that summarizes the
different components of a research proposal and how
they will be implemented. Here,
 States different phase/components of the study
 Describe the activities in each phase
 Indicate time frame to accomplish the various
aspects of the study
 Could be presented in table, chart or graph
Components of a proposal

Components of a 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,
equipment, travel, publication, etc.
 Indirect costs – overhead and administrative costs.

Components of a proposal
• References – list of all the sources of information that
you obtained while conducting research (preparing
the proposal)
 The style of writing list of references various from one
discipline to another E.g. APA, Harvard, Numbered
etc…

Components of a proposal
• Appendices/annexes – additional information
provided for the reader. These include, for
example,
 Dummy tables
 Biographical data
 Questionnaire, forms, etc.

 Do you have the a clear research question?
 Have you read broadly and deeply in that area?
 Have you discussed the topic with peers?
 Do you have enough time and fund to start?
Before you start writing, ask these questions
yourself …

 To make mistakes and to learn
 To write and rewrite many times
 To spend many hours looking for information
 To have your writing criticized
 May sometimes feel confused and hopeless
In proposal writing, be prepared for

• Make it simple
– Avoid showy language, unnecessary jargon, and double speak by cutting down
every unnecessary word.
• Read your work loud
– A sentence that is difficult to say will be difficult to read.
– Each sentence must follow logically from the before: chain of ideas.
– Every sentence must contain one idea only.
• Revise , revise, revise.
– Check spelling and grammar.
– Each sentence must follow logically from the before: chain of ideas.
– Every sentence must contain one idea only.
• Put an end to it
– The faster you finish the proposal and submit it the less time you have wasted
thinking about writing it.
Tips for successful proposal writing

End of Unit Three

Assignment
• Select one of the topics which you have identified for problem
and justification assignment;
• Read to a minimum 5 articles and prepare well written and
organized literature review
• The review must not exceed two (2) pages with New Times
Roman font, 12 point size and 1.5 spacing and reference list
on the third page
• Be well prepared to present your review in Power-point for 10
minutes.