Research method and literature review

Literature Review

The purpose of literature review is to develop skills in finding valid literary resources for your research proposal. You will develop an annotated bibliography by doing searches of the literature on your chosen topic of interest. You will also design a literature map of the sources you have found for your Research Proposal.

This part of your research proposal should be written in paragraphs, report format. All citations and references for this course are to be done in the APA style.

Please note: Cite with in text citations all ideas, concepts, text, and data that are not your own. If you make a statement, back it up with a reference!

• Research a minimum of 15 relevant literature sources (focus on material available in digital format only for this course). Carefully choose your 15 “keepers” that are clearly related to your study. (Note: you might need to find 30 to “keep” only 15).
• Write a literature review section that summarizes what you found and evaluate the literature. State how the reviewed research results connected to your proposed study.
• Critique and analyze the similarities and differences among the articles (e.g. different or the same point of views? different or the same research methods? why? etc.). Identify the gaps in the literature and provide recommendations for what needs to be done to move forward in your research. You will be using the information in this section in the final research proposal as well.
• Design a literature map of the sources you have found for your Research Proposal. This map should help you organize your source materials in a way that will facilitate the organization and writing of your Literature Review.

Note: For the final research proposal, you need to review more than 15 literature sources. Aim for at least 30.

Note: Part 1 should be about 7-9 pages Maximum in length – excluding title page, literature mapping table, list of references and appendix. 5% deduction would be applied in case of excessive length. Late submission would result in 10% marks being deducted.

Research Project Presentation: RESEARCH METHODS – INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATIONS

From Week 11

In the presentation you are required to explain how you have selected the appropriate methods for your research, and present draft of a work plan that will enable you to complete the research project successfully — and on time!

This part of your Term Paper is to be presented using power point slides. Your presentation should be at least 10 minutes in duration. Deductions are applicable in case of short or extremely lengthy presentations. Time it well. Late/delayed presentations would result in 10% marks being deducted.

The key components and questions you need to cover in the presentation are:

• What philosophical lens are you using to design your methodology framework (i.e, Constructivisim, Critical Realism, Positivism)?
• What methods do you plan to use to answer your research question? Why? What kinds of instruments, variables, materials, or sources will you use (i.e. will you use observations, surveys, interviews, case studies, focus groups, experiments, documents, media, data base searches, etc.)? If you plan to use mixed methods, will they be sequential, concurrent or transformative? Why?
• List the kinds of data/information that you plan to collect (e.g. testimonials, statistics, business/government reports, other research data, audio/video recordings, etc.). Also, consider two or three alternative ways you could gather data/information for this research.
• If you plan to use research participants, where will they come from? How will they be sampled? How many participants will you require? Who would most benefit from your research, and why?
• How will you analyze the data/information you collect? How will you validate your findings/conclusions?
• What ethical issues will your research project present? What biases might you bring to the research and how will you address that bias?

Note: Do adequate research on your selected methods as you will be using this part of Research project to write the final report.

Research Project PART 3: RESEARCH PROPOSAL Part two

Due on last day of class – week 10 (Sunday- Midnight)

The final part of your Term Paper is your Research Proposal. It contains the first THREE parts of your Research Project.

Your final research proposal should include the following sections:

Title Page – The title page includes the title of the proposed project, your name, institution, and the date of submission. This is the entire first page.

Abstract – A brief summary of your proposed project, not to exceed 200 words. Present a brief introduction to the issue, make the key statement of your research question, and give a brief summary of how you want to address the research question with the possible implications of your work.

The abstract needs to be on a separate page.

Introduction – This section sets the context for your proposed project and must capture the reader’s interest. Remember to start with a broad picture that eventually narrows in on your research question. You should briefly describe what the proposed project is about and how you became interested in the topic. State clearly the central issue or theme being addressed.

PART 1: PROBLEM STATEMENT: Include here part 1 of your Research Project.

Discuss the significant problems, opportunities and context that frame the research question. Explain what new knowledge the proposed project will produce that is not already known. Why is it worth knowing and what are the major implications? Describe who exactly will benefit from the knowledge. This section should conclude with the research question, purpose statement, and the research objectives.

PART 2: LITERATURE REVIEW: Include here part 2 of your Research Project.

This section identifies the main concepts related to your research question. In this section you summarize what has been found in the past in your area of proposed study and evaluate the literature. Please state how the reviewed research results connected to your proposed study.

PART 3: RESEARCH METHODS: Include here part 3 of your Research Project

This section defines the planned study methods, and their rationale, in answering your research question. Begin this section by providing an overview your approach, materials, and procedures you are planning to use during the study. Be clear as to your choice of qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods. Explain how and why your mode of analysis will enable you to accomplish your objectives and/or answer your research question. If you plan to use subjects, state how many will you use, why, and how they will be recruited. You need to describe how the data will be collected, interpreted, evaluated and analyzed. Also address any foreseeable challenges, obstacles, or difficulties, and how you are prepared to address them. Also, outline the type of literature sources you will need to provide sufficient background to your research, with at least 5 examples of actual sources. Explain exactly how these literary sources will help you in answering your research question. Describe any ethical issues you need to consider and how you will address them. If you need prior approval to gain access to your research site and its sources, describe how and when you will obtain written permission. If your project involves participants, how will you go about getting informed consent? What specific role will you play in the data collection and what potential conflicts of interest may there be? Please use the following subheadings to frame this section: Participants, Methodology, and Ethical Issues. This section should be about 5 pages in length.

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PART 4: PROPOSAL COMPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

Project Work Plan and Deliverables – This section should describe time allotted to each portion of your project (e.g., week by week, or stage by stage), with as much detail as possible. It should provide a brief explanation of research activities and timetable for your entire project and the major milestones or deliverables at each stage. Any resources, facilities, or budget should be listed here as well.

References [FOR ALL SECTIONS] – Confirm to APA formatting guidelines (http://www.apastyle.org/). All references cited in the text must be listed alphabetically, by the surname of the author(s) followed by date of the publication in parenthesis. This section begins on a new page. No limit.

Appendices – [FOR ALL SECTIONS] Provide a questionnaire contains some survey questions, draft some interview questions, and consent forms. Also, provide any relevant attachments such as relevant illustrations