You will write (or complete) an original research proposal addressing a topic of personal interest related to Public Relations
This assignment has three goals:
1. To help you develop an effective research plan for your capstone project, consider context, theories, research questions, research methods, timeline, and more significant implications.
2. To give you practice working with the research proposal as an academic genre.
3. To provide you with experience designing a research study and writing a proposal.
Generally, a research proposal is not an essay or a project proposal. A research proposal explains why and how a study WILL be conducted. It shows and justifies the need to investigate a research problem, and, second, it presents a set of workable strategies for conducting the proposed research (Miner & Miner, 2005). A research proposal discusses background information of issues (problem statement), the significance of the research, one’s argument based on credible facts such as past research findings, suggests research questions or hypotheses, and provides a specific plan of research methods.
Format
It should run between 4-5 pages in length (not counting a cover, abstract, references, or any appendixes you might include) and should be double spaced. 12 font size, Time New Roman, Arial, or Georgia font. The proposal should be written in APA format. The file should be a Word document or .pdf format.
Deadline
The deadline is December 9 at 8a.m. Submissions must be made before the deadline to be accepted.
Proposal requirements and structure
The proposal should be divided into at least seven sections; title, abstract, introduction (including problem statement and objectives), literature review, research questions (or hypotheses), methodology, and references. It must be divided into sections with the following subheaders.
1. Title
The title should capture the essence of the study in a concise, meaningful, and clear manner. The title generally abstracts and indexes the purpose of the study.
2. Abstract
The abstract is a concise summary of the key points. It should be at most 200 words. It generally contains the research topic, purpose, theory, research questions or hypotheses, and research plan (because this is a proposal). It also contains the most significant value of the study. For example, why this study is worth proceeding with or reading it.
3. Introduction
The introduction should introduce 1) the topic, issue, case, phenomena, and the statement of the problem, 2) the purpose of the study, and 3) the value and contributions of the study (research significance). You may develop or edit exercise 2 when writing the introduction.
1) Background and problem statement: it should provide a clear and concise descriiption of the issue that needs to be explored. What specific problem in that research area will you address (e.g., lack of understanding of a subject)?
2) Purpose of the study: it provides a list of goals that will be achieved through the proposed research. What exactly do you want to study? Explain the benefits/impact that can be generated if the research problem is answered. It could be better understanding, filling between theory and practice gaps.
3) Value of the study: this section answers the following questions: What was your motivation for the research? Why is it worth studying? Does the proposed study have theoretical and/or practical significance for the industry practice/knowledge advancement? Does it contribute to a new understanding of a phenomenon (e.g., does it address new or little-known material, does it treat familiar material in a new way, or does it challenge an existing understanding or extend existing knowledge)?
4. Literature review
The research problem or purpose needs to be accounted for within related research. It should be relevant, current, and accurate. The literature review should provide a summary of previous related research on the research problem, its strengths and weaknesses, and a justification of your research. By exploring how the study evolved out of past efforts, you could address why your research is important and should be conducted now. You may answer the following questions: what is known/ what has been done by others? What theories address it, and what do these say? Are there flaws or discrepancies in the previous research? And why is your research still necessary?
Having conducted a three annotated bibliography, you should find three more credible journal articles and complete the literature review. In total, a literature review must include at least six citations from reputable journals.
5. Research questions
You should state at least two research questions (RQs) or hypotheses (Hs). You have already written RQs and Hs with exercise 2. But based on the feedback, you can craft or revise your RQs and Hs.
6. Research method
This section describes how you will conduct your study. It should define the research methods and logical steps.
1) Research methods: which research methods will be used? Having worked with your research question(s) several weeks ago, you may have an idea of how you want to study that question(s), such as a survey, experiment, content analysis, interview, or focus group. You should describe what you plan to actually do. What are the subjects (e.g., people, text, images)? How will you actually collect the data for your study? If your subjects are people, how will you reach them? How large samples will you collect? How will you do that? When will you collect the data?
2) Measurement: it should describe variables and operational definition. What are the key variables in your study (it should be mentioned in your RQs and/or Hs)? How will you define and measure them? (you can surely use definitions and measurements from previous research. If then, you should describe why you draw on or differ from those of previous research)
7. References
Please follow the APA format.
The grading scheme includes the following:
The paper should be as complete as possible. At a minimum, there needs to be some content for each of the sections listed above. Students who submit a paper that represent very little effort and is pronouncedly incomplete will receive at least ½ grade (A to A- or B+) deduction from their overall grade from this assignment.
An exceptional research proposal will contain
• Introduction: An interesting, focused introduction that captures the reader’s attention, clearly identifies the topic, and concludes with either a hypothesis or a research question (using the first person – “In this proposal, I will”) that provides a strong guiding principle for the rest of the proposal
• Introduction: An introduction thoughtfully addressing the value of the research and broader implications (the “So What?” of the research)
• Organization: Clear articulation of topic; a move toward sophistication and complexity of approach to the topic, one which narrows a broad topic to a manageable scope
• Writing: Strong transitions between sentences and ideas, producing prose that is fluid and organic, with clear and logical structure, producing an overall sense of coherence in the proposal
• Writing: Use of clear, concrete language and examples to develop ideas; attention to detail. No spelling and grammar errors.
• Content knowledge: Strong sense of audience, including an understanding of the readers’ values, assumptions, expectations, and level of expertise in the topic under discussion
• Quality of Research: Paper is exceptionally researched and contains 6 sources total (6 peer-reviewed articles); the sources support the thesis argument in a logical manner. References are correctly cited. Research sources are highly relevant, accurate, and reliable and add to the strength of the paper, and are effectively referenced and cited throughout the paper.
• Writing: Strong control of style, language, word choice, diction, syntax, sentence structure, and consistent and authoritative voice in writing
• Organization: A strategic, powerful, and appropriate use of rhetoric appeals
• Evidence: Effective use of source material (textual and visual as appropriate), which is integrated into the author’s prose and argument and is meticulously documented in proper APA citation form
• Structure: At least 7 well-developed sections, creating a strong underlying structure for the proposal: title, abstract, introduction (including problem statement and objectives), literature review, research questions (or hypotheses), methodology, and references
• Research methods: A research method section that includes specific steps of selected methodology and its details, such as types of subjects and search strategies with rationales. It also exceptionally explained the variable and its operational definition.
• Reference: A works cited and/or references are appropriate, correct APA form with notation as to
• Format: At least 5 pages double-spaced, concise, clear, and powerful writing