4.
Research Proposal
After identifying and defining the problem, the researcher must arrange his ideas in order and
write them in the form of an experimental plan or what can be described as a research
proposal. A research proposal is also known as a work plan, prospectus, outline, statement of
intent, or draft plan. A research proposal is essentially a road map, showing clearly the
location from which a journey begins, the destination to be reached, and the method of
getting there.
A research proposal is a document that outlines a proposed research project, including its
research question, goals, significance, methodology and expected outcomes, essentially
asking for approval to conduct the study. Research project is the actual execution of that
research plan, involving data collection, analysis, and drawing conclusions based on the
proposed methodology outlined in the proposal. A project is defined as a sequence of tasks
that must be completed to attain a certain outcome.
4.1 Importance of Research Proposal
The main purpose of a research proposal is to show that the problem you propose to
investigate is significant enough to warrant the investigation. Proposals are useful for
sponsors, supervisors and researchers.
The research proposal discloses
1. What will be done?
2. Why it will be done?
3. How it will be done?
4. Where it will be done?
5. To whom it will be done?
6. What is the benefit of doing it?
7. What type of data is necessary for solving the problem and how the data will be
gathered, treated, and interpreted?
8. your ability to conduct the research
4.2 Elements of a Research Proposal
There is no single way of writing research proposals. There can be different formats for
research proposals depending on the funding organizations. Various organizations have their
own styles and formats of writing a proposal. However, the following proposal components
are usually important.
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Cover page: The cover page contains introductory information for the proposal: the name of
the proposed project (title), the author of the proposal or principal investigator, and the name
of the institution where the study will be performed. Some funding agencies have
standardized cover pages that may contain additional information.
Title: It is one of the most important parts of a proposal. It will immediately attract or loss the
interest of any potential donor. The title should use the fewest possible words that adequately
describe the content of the paper. In titles a researcher has to use specific, familiar, and short
words. Use of ‘waste words’ like ‘A study on …’, ‘An investigation on…’, ‘An observation
on…’ should be avoided.
Abstract (optional): It is a short summary of the research proposal. This allows a busy
manager or sponsor to understand quickly the thrust of the proposal. It should be informative,
giving readers the chance to grasp the essentials of the proposal without having to read the
details. It should include a brief statement of the problem, the research objectives, and the
benefits of the research.
Background of the study: The background of the problem section provides the context of
the study and explains the research topic. This part of the research provides some general
theoretical basis or justifications for conducting research. The background may also include
historical data, a discussion of the social, economic, political, and cultural context, and the
target group of the study.
Statement of the problem: A brief explanation of the specific issue that the research will
address. It identifies the gap between the current problem and the desired goal, and explains
why it is important to bridge that gap. The problem statement should be clear, concise, and to
the point. It is important that the problem is distinct from related problems and that the
sponsor can see the delimitations clearly. It may focus on literature-based disagreements
concerning the issue under investigation. Research objectives, research questions and
hypotheses emerge from the problem statement and operationalize it in terms of specific
variables and relationships to be examined and reported. Hypotheses and research questions
also suggest methodology for the study and serve as the basis for drawing conclusions. While
hypotheses and research questions may be included under their own subheading, they are
often added on to the Statement of the Problem. Whenever possible, avoid the use of "Yes-
No" research questions which tend to limit the scope of your responses. Frequently, "Yes-
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No" type research questions can be reworded to a more useful form that results in the
collection of more useful data.
Research objectives: This part addresses the purpose of the investigation. It is here that the
researchers lay out exactly what is being planned by the proposed research. The objectives
flow naturally from the problem statement, giving the sponsor specific, concrete, and
achievable goals. Objectives should be listed under two headings: general objectives and
specific objectives.
It is best to list the specific objectives either in order of importance or in general terms first,
moving to specific terms. The research objectives section is the basis for judging the
remainder of the proposal and, ultimately, the final report. Verify the consistency of the
proposal by checking to see that each objective is discussed in the research design, data
analysis and result sections. They also help maintain focus, avoid collecting unnecessary data
and evaluate the success of the research.
Significance of the research: It is a statement that explains the importance of the research
findings and its contribution to the field or different bodies. It is written to persuade readers,
reviewers, and funders that your research is worth pursuing and supporting. The importance
could be to create awareness about the problem, solve the problem, to provide basis for other
researchers, or to extend the scope of knowledge. Usually, this section is not more than a few
paragraphs.
Delimitations (Scope) of the study: It defines the boundaries of the research project and the
specific aspects to be focused on and it helps to ensure the study is focused, manageable and
relevant. This should be done in relation to the area coverage as well as to the treatment of
the variables in the study. In stating the scope, clearly show what is going to be investigated
and what not.
Limitations of the study (optional): This is a part that you will include some constraints or
difficulties you think that they have influence on the results of your study. This may be in
relation to the weaknesses in the methodology, lack of access to data, faulty instruments,
sampling restrictions, lack of recent literature in the area, etc. Any restrictions or areas of the
problem that will not be addressed must be indicated.
Literature review: A section in our research that explains, interprets and discusses what has
been researched and documented previously is known as review of related literature. The
literature review section examines recent research studies, company data, or industry reports
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that act as a basis for the proposed study. Begin your discussion of the related literature and
relevant secondary data from a comprehensive perspective, moving to more specific studies
that are associated with your problem. Avoid the extraneous details of the literature; do a
brief review of the information, not a comprehensive report. Emphasize the important results
and conclusions of other studies, the relevant data and trends from previous research, and
particular methods or designs that could be duplicated or should be avoided. Discuss how the
literature applies to the study you are proposing; show the weaknesses and faults in the
design, discussing how you would avoid similar problems. Always refer to the original
source to avoid any errors of interpretation or transcription. Close the literature review
section by summarizing the important aspects of the literature and interpreting them in terms
of your problem.
Research methodology: Here, the researcher is expected to clearly state what he is going to
do in technical terms. In this part we will indicate the variables that we will treat in our study,
the subjects of our study, the sampling technique we will use, our method of data collection,
the procedures we will follow for collecting the data and our method of data analysis. As
such, this section should include as many subsections as needed to show the phases of the
project. Some of these subsections can be sampling techniques and sample size, types and
sources of data, methods of data collection, and methods of analysis.
Budget/logistics and Work plan
Budget requirement: In order to carry out given research you need to have money. The
sources may be from government budget or from supporting agencies. Whatever the source
may be, we are expected to assign a reasonable amount of money for the study in a form the
sponsor requests. In addition, the money we have, need to be planned on how to spend it.
Budget breakdown has to be prepared for all activities. It may include the details of travel
expenses, per diems, and capital equipment purchase, and other costs together with allowance
for contingencies. When the time comes to do the work, the researcher should know exactly
how much money is budgeted for each particular task.
Work plan (Time Schedule): We should also prepare a realistic time schedule for
completing the study within the time available by dividing a study into phases and assigning
dates for the completion of each phase. The work plan (schedule) should include the major
phases of the project together with their timetables. Major phases may be questionnaire
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preparation, pre-testing, field interviews, editing and coding, data analysis, and report
generation.
References: In a research proposal we should give a list of books, journals, and other
documents that we have used in selecting the problem and which we may use while we
conduct the study. For all projects that require literature review, a reference and/or
bibliography is necessary. Use the referencing format required by the sponsor. If none is
specified, a standard style manual will provide the details necessary to prepare the reference.
Qualification of researchers: This consists of summaries of the experience, education,
publications, and research activities of individuals who will work on the proposed project. It
is customary to begin with the principal investigator and then to the co-investigators.
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