Research Proposal

1

Title of Paper

In this section, include a problem statement, purpose of study, and the philosophical and

theoretical perspectives you will use. Describe how the philosophical and theoretical

perspectives you chose inform your research. Provide citations where necessary, such as when

describing the theory used. End with clearly stated research questions (remember that qualitative

research does not have specific hypotheses, unlike quantitative). Research questions should be

related to the purpose of your study. Research questions are answered with the data you collect

and analyze.

Review

In total, provide a few paragraphs describing the relevant literature and background of

your study. This covers your overall topic and the specific phenomena you are investigating. The

focus is on what existing research has explored related to your topic, particularly research using

your same type of design (e.g., qualitative). Use this main section to summarize literature on

your broad topic. Use the subheadings to identify and discuss each specific component of your

study in more detail. If you were studying whether nursing home residents view certain aspects

of aging more positively that others, you might first summarize the general research on aging

here. Then you would use the subheadings below to drill down into the specific components you

chose, for instance physical, mental, and social aspects of aging.

Insert Topic One

Short summary of literature on this aspect of the topic.

Insert Topic Two

Short summary of literature on this aspect of the topic.

2

Methodology

Provide a general overview of qualitative research, your selected worldview, and the

approach you chose (ex. narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography, case

study; see Ch 1 Qualitative Designs). Discuss why this approach was used. You can include

information about the researcher’s role and reflexivity, but that is optional for the final.

Method

Location

Provide enough detail about the location that a reader could judge whether the findings

might be applicable to their own location and situation. However, do not identify organizations

by name. Note why you chose this site/ group of sites.

Participants

Include desired participant demographics, desired number of participants, recruitment

strategies, sampling techniques, and details about the criteria for which participants will be

included in or excluded from the study.

Data Collection Procedures

Describe how data will be gathered, including a general overview of why you chose the

data sources you did. Provide a rough timeline of the collection procedures. This is different

from the later timeline, which covers the steps of the entire project.

Qualitative Observations

If using observations, explain what type of observations, how many, for how long,

observing whom, and anything else that might be relevant. Only keep this section if using

observations. (See Chapter 9 Data Collection Procedures)

3

Qualitative Interviews

If using interviews, explain what type of interviews, how many, for how long, with whom

and anything else that might be relevant. Only keep this section if using interviews. (See Chapter

9 Data Collection Procedures)

Qualitative Documents

If collecting documents, explain what type, how many, from whom, and anything else

that might be relevant. This often includes records, narratives, journals, and other text-based

documents. Only keep this section if using documents. (See Chapter 9 Data Collection

Procedures)

Qualitative Audiovisual and Digital Materials

If using audiovisual or other digital materials, explain what type, how many, of or from

whom, and anything else that might be relevant. This often includes photographs, videos, social

media posts/content, physical objects, and other such materials. If you are videotaping or

recording an interview or observation, that would go in the data recording section below, not

here. Only keep this section if using audiovisual/digital materials. (See Chapter 9 Data

Collection Procedures)

Data Recording Procedures

How will the data be recorded, particularly observational and interview data?

Data Analyses

Include a step-by-step breakdown of how you will organize and analyze the data you

collect. See Ch 9 under Data Analysis Procedures. This might include a description of coding

and how themes will be generated. You can also discuss how the data will be represented.

4

Interpretation

Discuss how you will interpret the data after you have analyzed it. Use the Interpretation

section of Ch. 9 for guidance.

Validity and Reliability

Discuss strategies you will use to support the qualitative validity of the findings and

qualitative reliability of your approach (See the Validity and Reliability section of Ch. 9 for

examples of both). Note that this is different from how we discuss quantitative validity and

reliability; it is not based off of statistics.

Ethical Considerations

What ethical considerations might you encounter? Use the text as a guide, especially

Table 4.1 (Creswell & Creswell, 2018, p. 88-89). How will you ensure there are no ethical

issues?

Timeline

List each component of the research process, in order, describing how long you anticipate

each step will take. To be safe, factor in more time than you think you need, since difficulties

will inevitably arise.

Budget and Resources

How much, if any, money or other resources will be required to complete this study?

How will you obtain the necessary resources?

5

References

Creswell, J. W. & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed

methods approaches (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.

6

Appendix

Include any self-developed material, such as your interview questions, observation protocols, etc.