course material

1. I have included the assignments that were required in preparation
I have included the assignments that were required in preparation for the final research
proposal. Please let me know if you have any questions. Assignment Instruction for
Research Proposal Research Methods and Designs (previous assignment) Literature Review
(previous assignment) Article Analysis (previous assignment) Instructions This assignment
is something that you will be able to draw upon moving forward in the program. A research
proposal is a very common start to a research project as it helps to frame out the
importance of the project itself and show the knowledge gaps that currently exist in the
literature. Typically after a solid research proposal is written, the paper unfolds from there
as you have a clear framework to follow moving forward. This assignment requires you to
write a proposal that states your research question and your research strategy for
addressing it. As mentioned throughout your previous assignments you may draw upon
each one to help you build your proposal. Research Proposal: The research proposal must
be between 8-10 pages in length not including title page or references. Your title page
should include the working title of your research project, your name, date, and course title.
You should also have an abstract on your title page. Your proposal should have the
following sections: Introduction: The introduction is where you identify your specific
research question and where you set the general context for the study. In this section you
need to include: a statement of the problem or general research question and context
leading to a clear statement of the specific research question; background and contextual
material justifying why this case or topic should be studied; and a purpose statement.
Literature Review: This short preliminary literature review section reviews the literature
important to your specific research question. The literature review focuses on discussing
how other researchers have addressed the same or similar research questions. It introduces
the study and places it in a larger context that includes a discussion of why it is important to
study this case. It provides the current state of accumulated knowledge as it relates to your
specific research question. In this section you should: Summarize the general state of the
literature (cumulative knowledge base) on the specific research question. For example, if
you discuss other studies that have been conducted you would summarize the researcher’s
findings, how those findings were obtained, and conduct an evaluation of biases in the
findings. This section should provide a broad overview of the primary arguments to the
topic and organizes the general views on the main aspects of the topic by theme, which
could be the prevailing arguments or schools of thought, or commonly held beliefs that your
particular topic may challenge. Include a short conclusion and transition to the next section.

2. In your literature review, you should also discuss the theoretical framework to be used in
the study. You should ensure you cover the following in your discussion: a summary of the
theory or model to be used in the study, including a diagram of the model if appropriate;
comment on the kinds of questions this theory has been used to answer in the past and why
it is appropriate to use in this proposed study. To really drive this home you want to end
your literature review with a discussion of the current knowledge gaps. This is an
opportunity to once again promote the importance of your own research. How will your
research fit within this larger body of knowledge? What are you doing differently? What
gaps will your research fill? For some additional information on how to organize your
theoretical framework into your paper, check out this USC Library guide on Theoretical
Frameworks. From here you would then include a transition into your methodology section.
NOTE: Literature reviews can be a bit tricky to write. Think back to how you wrote your
short theory lit review in week 4. Chances are you already started to write in a style similar
to what one does when completing a literature review. Check out this video (the same one
you were guided to in week 4) to help you further prepare to write this section of your
proposal. This will not be the last time that you are asked to write a literature review in
your academic career so it is important to master this skill. Research Design and Methods:
Describes how you will answer your research question or test the hypothesis. This section
describes your overall research design and how you plan to collect, synthesize, and
interpret your data. It should include: identification and operationalization (measurement)
of variables; a sampling plan (i.e., study population and sampling procedures, if
appropriate); justification of case studies used; data collection/sources (secondary
literature, archives, interviews, surveys, etc.); a summary of analysis procedures (pattern-
matching, etc.); and the limitations of the study and bias discussion. Conclusion:
Reemphasizes the importance of your study and ties the proposal together. Reference List:
As with all academic papers you need to references the works that you have cited (direct
quotes or paraphrases) in the text of your document and incorporate a complete reference
list or bibliography at the end. This list needs to be in the style used within your field. APA=
Criminal Justice, Turabian for all others in this course. Remember that the references you
use demonstrate your knowledge of the topic area. This research proposal is meant to
convince your professor that you not only have identified a worthy question in need of
investigation but that you are also capable of carrying out the research involved to
successfully answer that question. At the very least you should have referenced 12-15 peer-
reviewed sources in this proposal. Since multiple writing styles are in use within this
course, on your title page, please note which style you are using within your assignment.
This will help me cater my comments to the style you are using. The style you use needs to
be the one that is used within your program of study. Format: Standard academic format
will suffice: 1-inch borders on all four sides, double spaced, with times new roman 12-point
font. As you proof read your assignment I encourage you to work with Belcher, Wendy
Laura. 2009. “Editing Your Sentences” In Writing Your Journal Article in 12 Weeks: A Guide
to Academic Publishing Success. Sage. This resource has a nice step by step process for
enhancing your writing.