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CHAPTER 1 - THE

INTRODUCTION
The Organization of the Research
Proposal

INTRODUCTION
..leads the reader from a general subject
area to a particular field of research.
Think

of the introduction as a mental road


map that must answer for the reader these
four questions:

What was I studying?


Why was this topic important to investigate?
What did we know about this topic before I did this study?
How will this study advance new knowledge or new ways
of understanding?

INTRODUCTION Structure and


Approach

The introduction is the broad beginning of the


paper that answers three important questions for
the reader:
What is this?
Why should I read it?
What do you want me to think about / consider doing /
react to?

General phases associated with writing an


introduction
Establish an area to research
Identify a research niche
Place your research within the research niche

INTRODUCTION Delimitations
of the Study

refer to those characteristics that limit the


scope and define the conceptual boundaries of
your research.

Examples of delimitating choices would be:


The key aims and objectives of your study,
The research questions that you address,
The variables of interest [i.e., the various factors and
features of the phenomenon being studied],
The method(s) of investigation,
The time period your study covers, and
Any relevant alternative theoretical frameworks that could
have been adopted.

INTRODUCTION Narrative Flow

Issues to keep in mind that will help


the narrative flow in your introduction:
Your introduction should clearly identify the
subject area of interest
Establish context by providing a brief and
balanced review of the pertinent published
literaturethat is available on the subject.
Clearly state the hypothesis that you
investigated
Why did you choose this kind of research
study or design?

INTRODUCTION Engaging the


Reader

The overarching goal of your


introduction is to make your readers
want to read your paper
Open with a compelling story,
Include a strong quotation or a vivid, perhaps
unexpected anecdote,
Pose a provocative or thought-provoking
question,
Describe a puzzling scenario or incongruity, or
Cite a stirring example or case study that
illustrates why the research problem is important.

Background of the Study


..Background information identifies and describes the history and
nature of a well-defined research problem with reference to the
existing literature.
Depending on the problem being studied, forms of contextualization
may include one or more of the following:
Cultural
Economic
Gender
Interdisciplinary
Philosophical
Physical/Spatial
Political
Social
Temporal

The Statement of the Research


Problem
. a research problem is a statement about an area of
concern, a condition to be improved upon, a difficulty to
be eliminated, or a troubling question that exists in
scholarly literature, in theory, or in practice that points
to the need for meaningful understanding and
deliberate investigation
Purpose of a problem statement
Introduce the reader to the importance of the
topic being studied
Place the problem into a particular context
Provide the framework for reporting the results

The Statement of the Research


Problem Types and Content

There are four general conceptualizations of a


research problem in the social sciences:
Casuist Research Problem
Difference Research Problem
Descriptive Research Problem
Relational Research ProblemRelational Research Problem
A problem statement in the social sciences should contain
o A lead-in that helps ensure the reader will maintain interest over the
study
o A declaration of originality
o An indication of the central focus of the study
o An explanation of the study's significance or the benefits to be
derived from investigating the research problem

The Statement of the Research Problem


Sources of Problems for Investigation

Deductions from Theory


Interdisciplinary Perspectives
Interviewing Practitioners
Personal Experience
Relevant Literature

The Statement of the Research


Problem
What Makes a Good Research Statement?
A good problem statement begins by introducing
the broad area in which your research is centered,
gradually leading the reader to the more specific
issues you are investigating
Compelling Topic
Supports Multiple Perspectives
Researchability

Objectives of the Study


Aims:
Are broad statements of desired outcomes,
or the general intentions of the research,
which 'paint a picture' of your research
project
Emphasize what is to be accomplished (not
how it is to be accomplished)
Address the long-term project
outcomes,i.e.they should reflect the
aspirations and expectations of the research
topic.

Objectives of the Study


Objectivesare subsidiary to aims and:
Are the steps you are going to take to answer
your research questions or a specific list of tasks
needed to accomplish the goals of the project
Emphasize how aims are to be accomplished
Must be highly focused and feasible
Address the more immediate project outcomes
Make accurate use of concepts
Must be sensible and precisely described
Should read as an 'individual' statement to
convey your intentions

Objectives of the Study


Aims and Objectives should:
Be concise and brief.
Be interrelated; the aim is what you want to achieve, and
the objective describes how you are going to achieve that
aim.
Be realistic about what you can accomplish in the duration
of the project and the other commitments you have
Aims and Objectives should not:
Be too vague, ambitious or broad in scope.
Just repeat each other in different terms.
Just be a list of things related to your research topic.
Contradict your methods

Significance of the Study


.significance
of
the
study
provides
information to the reader on how the study
will contribute. It must be specifically stated,
however, what the study will contribute and
who will benefit from it
2 Tips in Writing the Significance of the
Study
Refer to the statement of the problem
Write from general to specific contribution

Significance of the Study


Guidance in explaining the importance of the study
The rationale, timeliness, and/or relevance of the study
to existing conditions must contain explanations or
discussions of any or all of the following:
The rationale, timeliness and/or relevance of the study
Possible solutions to existing problems or
improvement to unsatisfactory conditions
Who are to be benefited and how they are going to be
benefited.
Possible contribution to the fund of knowledge
Possible implications

Significance of the Study


Answers several questions:
. Why is this work important?
What are the implications of doing it?
How does it link to other knowledge?
How does it stand to inform policy making?
Why is it important to our understanding of the world?
What new perspective will you bring to the topic?
What use might your final research paper have for
others in this field or in the general public?
Who might you decide to share your findings with
once the projectis complete?

Sources:
http://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide
http://www.erm.ecs.soton.ac.uk/theme4/aim
s_and_objectives.html
http://simplyeducate.me/2015/02/09/two-tips
-on-how-to-write-the-significance-of-the-st
udy/
https://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/researchcou
rse/develop_significance.html
http://thesisadviser.blogspot.com/2013/02/t
hesis-writing-importance-or.html

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