Chapter 3

 Process
in Research Proposal
Development
 What is the Research Proposal?
Introduction
 Before an attempt is made to start with a

research project, a research proposal should be

compiled.
 For beginner researcher, this is usually among

the most difficult parts.

 Proposal development is important aspect of

research project so as to give logic and structure

to the research Envisaged.
 Cont,…(7)
Identifying a Research Topic
 Defining the problem is the first step and one of the most
difficult in research undertaking.
 There is a tendency for the beginner in research to ask

questions that are usually diffuse or vague.

 Criteria for selecting a research topic:

 Relevance/Significance
 Avoidance of duplication
 Urgency of data needed (timeliness)
 Feasibility of study
 Applicability of results
 Interest to the researcher
 Ethical acceptability
What is a Research Proposal? (8)
 After proper and complete planning of a
research, the plan should be written down. The
research proposal is the detailed plan of study.
 The intent of the written research proposal is to

present a focused and scholarly presentation of a

research problem and plan.
 The objective in writing a proposal is to describe

what you will do, why it should be done, how you

will do it and what you expect will result.
Components of a Research Proposal
 The basic components of a research proposal are the
same in many fields.
 Components of a research proposal:

1. Title page
2. Summary/Abstract
3. Introduction/Background
4. Statement of the problem
5. Literature review
6. Hypotheses /Questions (Optional)
7. Conceptual framework (Optional)
8. Objective/Aim of the study
9. Research methods, Materials and Procedures
o Study area
o Study design
o Study subjects
o Eligibility Criteria (if any)
o Sample size
o Sampling methods
o Method of data collection
o Description of variables
o Data quality assurance
o Operational definitions
o Plan of data analysis
10. Work plan
11. Budget
12. References
13. Appendices/Annexes (optional)
 1. Title Page
 A title ought to be well studied and should present a definite and
concise indication of what is to come.
 The title of your research proposal should state the topic exactly
in the smallest possible number of words.
 Put your name, the name of your department, the name of your
advisor(s) and date of delivery under the title.
 All words in the title should be chosen with great care, and
association with one another must be carefully managed.
 The title page identifies the proposal and provides the
endorsement of appropriate body (advisor).
 Title is a label: it is not a sentence. Titles should almost never
contain abbreviations.
 The title page has no page number and it is not counted in any
page numbering.
 2.Summary/Abstract
 The abstract is a one page brief summary of the study
proposal.
 It needs to show a reasonably informed reader why a
particular topic is important to address and how you will
do it.
 Do not put information in the abstract that is not in the
main text of your research proposal.
 Do not put references, Figures, or Tables in the abstract.
 The abstract is a concise summary of the material
presented in the proposal.
 Tt appears at the front of the proposal, it is written last.
3. Introduction/Background
 The introduction is the part of the proposal that provides
readers with the background information for the research
proposal.
 Its purpose is to establish a framework for the research, so that
readers can understand how it is related to other research.
 Be sure to include a hook at the beginning of the introduction.
 This is a statement of something sufficiently interesting to
motivate your reader to read the rest of the proposal, it is an
important/interesting scientific problem that your study either
solves or addresses.
 The introduction should cite those who had the idea or ideas
first, and should also cite those who have done the most recent
and relevant work.
 4. Statement of the Problem
 Most research proposals may be considered as
response to a certain problem.
 A problem might be defined as the issue that

exists in the literature, theory, or practice that

leads to a need for the study.
 Statement of the problem encapsulates the

question you are trying to answer.

 Effective problem statements answer the
question “Why does this research need to be
conducted.”
 5. Literature Review
 To conduct research regarding a topic, by implication, means
that the researcher has obtained sound knowledge with regard
to the research topic.
 Literature review is not a compilation of every work written
about a topic.
 It is not simply a list of sources reviewed separately for their
own merit.
 A literature review is a description of the literature relevant to a
particular field or topic.
 It gives an overview of what has been said, who the key writers
are, what are the prevailing theories and hypotheses, what
questions are being asked, and what methods and
methodologies are appropriate and useful.
 The Stages of a Literature Review
Define the Problem
 It is important to define the problem or area which you wish to

address. (it will narrow scope of the search)

Carry out a search for relevant materials
Relevant materials will probably comprise a range of media:
Books (monographs, text books, reference books)
Articles from journals, whether print or electronic
Newspaper articles
Historical records
Commercial reports and statistical information
Government reports and statistical information
Theses and dissertations
Other types of information which may be relevant to your

particular discipline.
 Initial Appraisal from Raw Bibliographical Data:
 What are the authors’ credentials? are they

experts in the field? are they affiliated with a

reputable organization?
 What is the date of publication, is it
sufficiently current or will knowledge have
moved on?
 If a book, is it the latest edition?

 Is the publisher a reputable, scholarly

publisher?
 If it is a journal, is it a scholarly journal peer

reviewed?
How to organize a literature review
A) Introduction
 Define the topic, together with your reason for

selecting the topic.

B) Body
 This is where literature sources are discussed.

C) Conclusion
 Summarize the major contributions, evaluating

the current position, and pointing out flaws in

methodology, gaps in the research,
contradictions, and areas for further study.
 6. Questions and/or Hypotheses
 Hypotheses and questions are linked to the speculative
proposition of the problem statement, 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 term question implies an interrogative statement that
can be answered by data, which is logically related to the
same conceptual framework.
 Hypotheses are thus tentative statements that should either
be acknowledged or rejected by means of research.
 7. Conceptual Framework
 Every research activity is conceptualized and will be
carried out within some contextual framework.
 This contextual framework is in part conceptual, in
part valuation, and in part practical.
 A conceptual framework is described as a set of broad
ideas and principles taken from relevant fields of
enquiry and used to structure a subsequent
presentation.
 The framework is a research tool intended to assist a
researcher to develop awareness and understanding of
the situation under scrutiny and to communicate this.
 8. Objective/Aim of the Study
 The objectives of a research describe the ends or
aim which the inquirer seeks to bring about as a
result of completing the research undertaken.
 An objective may be thought of as either a
solution to a problem.
 The objectives of a research project summarize
what is to be achieved by the study.
 Objectives should be closely related to the
statement of the problem.
Objectives should be
Simple (not complex)

 Specific (not vague)
 Stated in advance (not after the research is done)
 Stated using “action verbs” that are specific enough to be
measured.
Commonly, research objectives are classified into:

 General Objectives

Specific Objectives.

 It is important to ascertain that the general objective is closely

related to the statement of the problem.
 Objectives … Cont’d

General Objective
 What exactly will be studied?
 General statements specifying the desired outcomes of the proposed project

 Specific Objectives ;should originate from the general

objective and may be stated in action-oriented such as:
 to determine
 to find out
 to assess
 to measure
 to express
Objectives … Cont’d

 The wording of objective determines the

type of research design you need to
adopt to achieve them.
 Make sure that the objectives are SMART.
Objectives … Cont’d
 9. Methods, Material and Procedures
 Methods show how you will achieve the objectives,
answer the questions.
 The methods or procedures section is really the heart
of the research proposal.
 It must be decided on how we going to achieve the
stated objectives i.e., what new data is needed and
how to collect and process this data.
 The methodological steps that must be taken to
answer every question, to test every hypothesis
illustrated in the Questions/Hypotheses section or
address the objectives set should be described.
What belongs in methods section of the proposal?:
 Information to allow the reader to assess the

believability of your approach.

 Information needed by another researcher to

replicate your experiment.

 Description of your materials, procedure, theory.
 Calculations, technique, procedure, equipment,

and calibration plots.

 Limitations, assumptions, and range of validity.
 Description of your analytical methods, including

reference to any specialized statistical software.

 Materials and Methods …cont’d
 Materials and methods normally include:
 Site/location characterization
 Equipment and tools
 Procedure of investigation
 Data to be collected
 methods of data collection and analysis
 Design to be used
 Replication number over sites and years
 Meteorological data
 Number of people participating
 Duration of the study
 10. Work Plan
 The work plan is the timeline that shows when
specific tasks will have been accomplished.
 A work plan informs the reader how long it will

take to achieve the objectives/answer the

questions.
 Work plan is a schedule, chart or graph that

summarizes the different components of a

research proposal.
 How they will be implemented in a coherent way

within a specific time-span.

Workplan may Include:
 The tasks to be performed

 When and where the tasks will be performed

 Who will perform the tasks and the time each person

will spend on them

 It describes the plan of assessing the ongoing progress

toward achieving the research objectives

 The plan specifies how each project activity is to be

measured in terms of completion, the time line for its

completion
 A good work time plan enables both the investigators

and the advisors to monitor project progress and

provide timely feedback for research modification or
adjustments.
 . The Gantt Chart indicates: the tasks to be
performed, who is responsible for each task and
the time each task is expected to take.
 A sample to synthesis a 12-month research project plan

Activity Months
Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun
Literature search x x x x x x x x x x x x

Develop proposal x

Research designing x x

Pilot study x

Field work data x x x

collection
Data analysis x

Report write up x x

Report circulation x x
for comments

Dissemination x x x
workshop
11. Logistics/Budget Requirement
 The Budget section will show how much it will cost to
answer the question.
 When drawing up a budget, be realistic.
 Do no attempt to be too frugal to demonstrate how
cheaply you can run the project.
 At the same time, do not be too expensive so as not to
deter the fund providers.
 Budget items need to be explicitly stated
 Cost for every budget item should be quantitatively
shown
 Their might be a need for budget justification of
certain costs whose requirement is not obvious.
 Logistics/Budget Requirement
 Thesteps in presentation of budget should
proceed in the following manner.
 Study the sequences of research activities or work
plan.
 Estimate the cost of each activity.
 Group similar expenditure items together.
 Allow for inflation.
 Present a detailed periodic budget.
 Present a budget summary covering all years of the
project.
Direct costs: Indirect costs:
 Personnel • Overhead costs for
 Consumable institutions or
supplies associations
 Equipments • General administrative

 Travel cost
• Operational and
 Communication
 Publication maintenance
• Depreciation and use
 Other direct costs
allowance
12.References (bibliography/literature cited)
 Cite references for individuals who carried out the
researches.
 It is to acknowledge individuals, give responsibility for
individuals in reference section.

 Two points are important to consider in reference section.

◦ List only significant and published references - not write
unpublished materials, need to be published in journals, sometimes
we use unpublished materials, short note is not used in scientific
paper, handout also not used in scientific paper.

◦ Check all parts of every reference against the original publication

before the manuscript is submitted.
 References … Cont’d
 There are generally three types of reference
styles.
◦ Name and Year System (Harvard system) - is very
popular & used in many journals and books.
 E.g. Young, S.K. 2000. How to write and publish a
scientific paper. 4th ed. Phoenix: Oryx Press.
◦ Alphabet (Number system) - is citation by number
from an alphabetized list of references in the main
text, modification of name & year system,
alphabetized list of reference & the author name.
 E.g. 1. Abebe, 2000, 2. Bekele, 2004
◦ Citation Ordered System - is the system of citing
 References … Cont’d
 Journal article:
◦ Author (s)
◦ Year
◦ Title of journal article
◦ Name of journal (italics)
◦ Volume number of the journal
◦ Pages range in journal article

 E.g. Vadivel, V., and Janardhanan, K. (2000). Nutritional and

anti-nutritional composition of velvet bean: an under-
utilized food legume in South India. International Journal of
Food Sciences and Nutrition, 51, 279-287.
For a book give:
 The author
 The year of publication

 The title, and the edition number if there is one

 The name of the publisher

 The page numbers for your reference

E.g. Cristofaro, E., Mattu, G., and Wuhrmann, J. J. (1974). Sugars in

Nutrition, Academic Press, New York, pp. 313.

Classen, H. L., and Bedford, M. R. (1991). The use of enzymes to

improve the nutritive value of poultry feeds. In: Recent Advances
in Animal Nutrition, W. Horesign and D.J.A. Cole (eds).
Butterworth Heinemann Ltd. Publishers, Oxford, U.K., pp.95-116.
 References … Cont’d
 Conference report:
◦ It is used for local & domestic publisher
◦ Editors (eds.)
◦ Name of proceeding
◦ Volume number
◦ Pages
◦ At the end: in the proceeding-----------------

E.g.
Atelay Alem and Dereje Kebede. 2005. Gender and health in
Ethiopia. pp. 196-216. In: Yemane Berhane, Damen Haile
Mariam and Kloos, H. (eds.), Epidemiology and Ecology of
Health and Disease in Ethiopia. Addis Ababa,
◦ Ethiopia: Shama Books.
 References … Cont’d

 Electronic sources/internet sources:

◦ Start using website- http//www.------
acceded date & year
 Citation in the text:

◦ At the beginning. E.g. Author (2000)

stated that---------.
◦ At the middle. E.g. ------ (Kebede, 2005)
----.
◦ At the end. E.g. ----------- (Kebede,
2005).
 Technical Reports

 Costar, W., Deeney, T., Haltiwanger, J. and Haley,
S. 2008. School Function Assessment Technical
Report. Pearson Education, Inc., Boston, MA, USA.

 HAPCO (HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office).
2007. Accelerated Access to HIV/AIDS Prevention,
Care and Treatment in Ethiopia: A Road Map for
 2007-2008. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Ministry of Health.

39
 13. Appendices/Annexes
 Include in the appendices of your proposal any additional
information you think might be helpful to a proposal
reviewer. For example, include:
Questionnaire & other data collection forms
Dummy tables
Biographical data on the principal investigator
The consent form (if any)

Every reference in your main text must appear in the list at

the end of your proposal, and every reference in the list
must be mentioned in your main text.