Have you ever been asked to explain how to write a research proposal or even write an actual project proposal? Writing a research proposal is a requirement prior to engaging in the actual research process. A research proposal provides a guidelines on how to execute the whole research activity. There are three main sections that any research proposal should have. These include introduction, literature review and methodology.
Introduction
The introduction of a research proposal provides a background to the study and identifies the problem that is being investigated. Background to the study is actually an historical context of the study. It places the phenomenon being investigated in the current state of affairs. A complete research proposal should identify what has been happening and what is currently happening with the topic that the researcher is interested in. the introduction also identifies the problem that is being studied. The problem is the actual issue or concern that is necessitating a study. Other areas of consideration when writing the introduction include research objectives/questions/hypotheses, justification of the study, scope of the study, and limitations. The final section of the research proposal should also identify how the final project will be logically organized. This section explains basically what will be included in each of the five chapters of the final project.
Literature Review
The role of a literature review in a proposal for research is to place the study in the context of other scholars. It identifies what has been studied and the findings from previous studies. By identifying what has been done by others, a researcher may refine the research questions and even the problem statement to ensure that the study is focused. Literature review chapter discusses literature in three parts; these are:
Conceptual literature review-Identifies and defines the concepts used in the study in the light of literature.
Theoretical literature review-Identifies theories that underpin the current study and explains their relevance to the investigation under investigation.
Empirical literature review-Critiques previous research and identifies gaps as well as consistencies and inconsistencies in previous research findings.
It is crucial to read and re-read the previous research articles in order to identify gaps. These gaps are presented in form a table at the end of your literature review. Without gaps, there is no need for a research that is being proposed by the project or thesis proposal. There are many sources of literature; you can check our website and use a variety of literature sources in our journals.
Methodology
This chapter identifies the road map towards data collection, analysis and presentation. The chapter starts by identifying a research philosophy that a given study will adopt. Then it identifies a research design, instruments of data collection, sampling techniques, data collection and analysis procedures, and ethical considerations. When writing the methodology section, it is critical to ensure that all details about access to data are clear; lest you may fail in your defense of the research proposal.