Research Proposal
Research Proposal
Research Proposal
The written research proposal will be created based on a narrowly defined aspect of the topic selected in Week One. A research proposal is a detailed plan for a specific study to be conducted at a future time. It is the document which potential researchers typically submit to an institutional review board (IRB) for ethical review and approval, and/or to funding agencies to secure financial support for a research effort. Because it is a plan for research which has not yet been conducted, the Methods section should be written in the future tense and should not contain any hypothetical results. The paper must address all of the components required in the Methods section of a research proposal. The following actions must be completed.
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- State the research question and/or hypothesis.
- Briefly compare the characteristics of the major research paradigms used in previous studies on the chosen topic. Introduce the specific approach (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods), research design, sampling strategy, data collection procedures, and data analysis techniques to be used in this study. Provide a short explanation as to why the selected procedures are more feasible than other alternatives for the research topic.
- Describe any relevant variables, measures, and statistical tests.
- Apply ethical principles and professional standards to the proposed psychological research. Provide an analysis of any ethical issues that may arise and explain how these issues will be resolved.
The following headings for the required sections and subsections must appear in the paper. In accordance with APA style, all references listed must be cited in the text of the paper.
- Introduction
- Introduce the research topic, explain why it is important, and present an appropriately and narrowly defined research question and/or hypothesis.
- Literature Review
- Evaluate the published research on the chosen topic including a minimum of three peer-reviewed articles. Summarize the current state of knowledge on the topic, making reference to the findings of previous research studies. Briefly mention the research methods that have previously been used to study the topic. State whether the proposed study is a replication of a previous study or a new approach employing methods that have not been used before. Be sure to properly cite all sources in APA style.
- Methods
- Design – Create a feasible research design that incorporates appropriate methods to address the topic. Indicate whether the approach of the proposed study is qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods. Identify the specific research design, and indicate whether it is experimental or non-experimental. Evaluate the chosen design and explain why this design is feasible and appropriate for the topic and how it will provide the information needed to answer the research question. Cite sources on research methodology to support these choices. Include a minimum of two peer-reviewed sources.
- Participants – Identify and describe the sampling strategy to be used to recruit participants for the study. Estimate the number of participants needed, and explain why this sampling method is appropriate for the research design and approach.
- Procedure/Measures – Apply the scientific method by describing the steps to be taken in carrying out the study. Identify any test, questionnaire, or measurement instrument to be utilized. If an existing published instrument will be employed, briefly describe it and cite the source. If an original questionnaire, survey, or test will be created for the project, describe the types of information that will be collected with it and explain how the validity and reliability of the instrument will be established. If such an instrument will not be used, describe how the data will be collected for the study.
- Data Analysis – Describe the statistical techniques (if quantitative) or the analysis procedure (if qualitative) to be used to analyze the data. Cite at least one peer-reviewed source on the chosen analysis technique.
- Ethical Issues – Analyze the impact of ethical concerns on the proposed study, such as confidentiality, deception, informed consent, potential harm to participants, conflict of interest, IRB approval, etc. After analyzing the ethical issues that apply to the project, indicate what will be done to handle these concerns.
- Conclusion
- Briefly summarize the major points of the paper and reiterate why the proposed study is needed.
Attention Students: The Masters of Arts in Psychology program is utilizing the Pathbrite portfolio tool as a repository for student scholarly work in the form of signature assignments completed within the program. After receiving feedback for this Research Proposal, please implement any changes recommended by the instructor, go to Pathbrite, and upload the revised Research Proposal to the portfolio. Use the Pathbrite Quick-Start Guide to create an account if you do not already have one. The upload of signature assignments will take place after completing each course. Be certain to upload revised signature assignments throughout the program as the portfolio and its contents will be used in other courses and may be used by individual students as a professional resource tool. See the Pathbrite website for information and further instructions on using this portfolio tool.
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The Research Proposal
- Must be five double-spaced pages (excluding title page and references page) in length and formatted according to APA style
- Must include a title page with the following:
- Title of paper
- Student’s name
- Course name and number
- Instructor’s name
- Date submitted
- Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought and provide a thorough explanation of all required issues.
- Must utilize a minimum of six peer-reviewed sources from the Ashford University Library.
- Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
- Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA style asADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS
Discussion Questions (DQ)
- Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
- Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
- One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
- I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.
Weekly Participation
- Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
- In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
- Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
- Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.
APA Format and Writing Quality
- Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
- Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
- I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.
Use of Direct Quotes
- I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
- As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
- It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.
LopesWrite Policy
- For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
- Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
- Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
- Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.
Late Policy
- The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
- Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
- If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
- I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
- As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.
Communication
- Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
- Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
- Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.
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