Research Proposal

As part of your degree plan, you were asked to concentrate in several areas. Your research paper must address a profession-related issue from at least two discipline perspectives. These disciplines come from courses youve taken either as electives or concentrations. Examples of disciplines are: Psychology, Sociology, Government, History, Computer Science, Business, Literature, Economics, and Criminal Justice.

In developing your topic, think of something you are passionate about. For example, a nursing student might be interested in work conditions; specifically – why do nurses experience burnout.  The student might interweave Psychology and Business and write a paper about The effects of overtime on nursing burnout (see more examples). Needless to say the critical thinking aspect of this course begins with this assignment. You are tasked with coming up with a topic that creatively intertwines multiple disciplines throughout the course.

For this week, you will prepare your research proposal. The purpose of the research proposal is to demonstrate that you have done enough preliminary reading/research in the topic of interest to develop a plan for your research. (download the proposal template). Your proposal needs to build a convincing case for your research as a viable project to be accomplished within the available time and resources of this course. The proposal becomes the first section of your final research paper.

The proposal is the most important document that you submit as part of the research process. It sets out the central issues or questions that you intend to address. It identifies the two disciplines of study within which your research falls, referring to the current state of knowledge and any recent debates on the topic. It gives you an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to communicate complex ideas clearly, concisely and critically (download an example proposal).

The elements of the research proposal are:

        Title
        Introduction (1-2 paragraphs)
        Statement of the Problem (1 paragraph)
        Purpose of the Study (1 paragraph)
        Research Questions
        Study Significance (1 paragraph)
        Conclusion
        References (3-4)

After your introduction, your work needs to be organized under the headings: Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Research Questions, Study Significance and Conclusion.  Your completed assignment should be written third person and should be 2-3 pages in length (not including title page and references). Your assignment should use APA style formatting.