1)Context of the Problem
This section is the first section to your paper. It should demonstrate your understanding of the history of the problem you are writing about. This section should encompass what the problem is, for whom it is a problem, where it is a problem, and why it is a problem. This information is backed up by literature that you have found about your problem. In this section your intext citations, either direct qutoes or paraphrased information, back up your claims about your problem. The key here is that you are focusing on the problem you have found to write about. Additionally, this section sets up the research statement with background, purpose and some (not to the extent that the review of the literature does) support from the literature. This section needs to be around 4 to 6 pages long.
2)Statement of the Problem
The statement of the problem section comes after the Context of the Problem. This sections should be around 5 or 6 sentences long. It should not have questions in it or direct quotes. It is simply a statement. The last sentence of this section should start with Therefore, this proposal will...... and here you tell the reader what you will be doing about the problem in your paper.
EXAMPLE: Statement of the Problem
As stated in the context of the problem, there is an urgent need for the Earth to be free of fossil fuels in order to save the environment, and America must end its foreign oil dependency to save itself from political and economical turmoil. Finding the correct alternative energy source to invest in that will provide the necessary electricity to sustain the United States energy demands and allow for expansion as the country’s needs increase is imperative so money and time are not wasted. Further research is needed to determine if windmills can handle America’s energy needs by evaluating its cost effectiveness, environmental hazards, energy demand capabilities, and the expandability of future energy demand. This study will examine the viability of wind power as a suitable alternative energy to replace fossil fuels. Therefore, this proposal will demonstrate that the findings will allow for a clearer determination if America should be investing in wind power energy as its future energy source or should it look for a different type of alternative source.
3)Research Questions
The research questions in this section are followed up with literature reviews and statistical analysis in chapters 3, 4, 5, and 6. The variables defined in the context of the problem should be in your research questions. These questions become your hypotheses. Provide a short paragraph on what your research will address, plus 3 to 5 research questions. This section should be 1 page in length double spaced. The fill in the blank template below can be used as a guide.
This research will address ______. The data collected will support (or contradict) ______. The following questions will be used togather information:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Example:
This research will address absenteeism within the entry level manufacturing positions. The data collected will determine if there is support for Heart’s 2007definition; absenteeism means willfully missing work without regard to fellow employees or work production. The following questions will be used to gather information:
1. What is the perception of absenteeism at entry level positions? This research question examines the culture of the organization.
2. Does gender play a role in the perception of absenteeism? Men and women have different strengths and weaknesses. Although the policies and procedures cannot differ within a workplace, it is possible the communication of the polices could be adapted for each gender to decrease absenteeism.
3. Is work production affected by absenteeism? Many companies state that absenteeism reduces their product output, yet they continually downsize their staff.
4. What is the correlation between absenteeism and length of service? As and employee gains years of service, they are more committed to the company’s culture.
Each research question should have a null hypothesis.
null hypotheses (Research and Strategic Communication, pages 270-273).
Causal hypotheses can work singularly. They state if you increase one variable, the dependent variable will change. We do not have the time or resources to test causal hypotheses.
Null hypotheses work in pairs. You accept one and reject the other. You are basically asking, “Do the groups’ responses differ?” If the responses do not differ, then there is no justifiable reason to treat the groups differently.
For numerical data, T Tests in Excel can determine if the mean response of one group is different than the mean response of another group.
For categorical data (i.e. yes/no), Chi squared test in Excel can determine if there is a difference between how the 2 groups respond. For example “Does more of group A respond “yes” than group B”
Fill in the Blank Null Hypotheses:
Option 1 for Null Hypotheses:
Hn1 When comparing ______(levels of independent variables), there is no difference in the ______(dependent variable).
Ha1 When comparing ______(levels of independent variables), there is a difference in the ______(dependent variable).
Option 2 for Null Hypotheses:
Hn1 There will be no change in the ______(dependent variable) if the ______(independent variable) changes.
Ha1 There will be change in the ______(dependent variable) if the ______(independent variable) changes.
Examples of Null hypotheses option 1:
Hypothesis
Research question 1: What is the perception of absenteeism at entry level positions?
Hn1 When comparing employee perceptions, there is no difference in the absentee rate.
Ha1 When comparing employee perceptions, there is a difference in the absentee rate.
Research question 2: Does gender play a role in the perception of absenteeism?
Hn2 When comparing gender, there is no difference in the perception of absenteeism.
Ha2 When comparing gender, there is a difference in the absenteeism.
Research question 3: Is work production affected by absenteeism?
Hn3 When comparing absenteeism, there is no difference in work production.
Ha3 When comparing absenteeism, there is a difference in the work production.
Research question 4: What is the correlation between absenteeism and length of service?
Hn4 When comparing length of service, there is no difference in absenteeism.
Ha4 When comparing length of service, there is a difference in the absenteeism.
Examples of Null hypotheses option 2:
Hypothesis
Research question 1: What is the perception of absenteeism at entry level positions?
Hn1 There will be no change in the absentee rate if employee perception changes
Ha1 There will be change in the absentee rate if employee perception changes
Research question 2: Does gender play a role in the perception of absenteeism?
Hn2 There will be no change in the perception of absenteeism between genders.
Ha2 There will be a change in the perception of absenteeism between genders.
Research question 3: Is work production affected by absenteeism?
Hn3 There will be no change in work production if employee absenteeism changes
Ha3 There will be change in work production if employee absenteeism changes
Research question 4: What is the correlation between absenteeism and length of service?
Hn4 There will be no change in absenteeism if employee length of service changes
Ha4 There will be change in absenteeism if employee length of service changes
4)Significance of the Study
This section explains why the study is so important. Why should people care about this topic? Why should the reader keep on reading it? There is no personal opinion stated here. However, the passion and emphasis of the importance of this study is apparent. Reference 5 or 6 articles in your explanation of why the study will help the reader to understand the need for the research. These articles could be from comparable view points or show the contrasting view points. The articles should discuss variables defined in the context of the problem. This section should be approximately 6 (six) pages in length double spaced. The fill in the blank template below can be used as a guide.
______Variable______has shown to affect, influence, etc ______(reference Author, year). However, Author (year) differs by concluding that ______.
Example:
Absenteeism has shown to affect organizational culture by decreasing employee moral (Scott, 2006). However, Parks (2005) differs by concluding that individuals can distinguish between company mismanagement and individual employee shortcomings. With the rise of global commerce, the manufacturing industry needs to examine all avenues to increase quality production of goods in order to remain competitive. George (2004) indicates that manufacturing companies lose 20% of their manufacturing capacity due to absenteeism. Sands (2007) supports the 20% capacity loss, and states as the length of service increases, absenteeism decreases within the management ranks of the automotive industry.
5)Research Design and Methodology
This is the meat and potatoes, the heart, the main point of why you are here and why you are doing what you are doing. This is the road map, the path you are taking to tell me how you are going to do what you are going to do. You must use secondary sources to use the 5 methodologies in your research design and methodology section. 1. interviews 2. surveys 3. focus groups 4. internal data 5. observations. This means that you are not conducting your own reserach here, you are find research that has already been done that supports your methodology.
You must use all 5 methodologies and discuss how each of these will were conducted, where, how, with whom, and why? Why will it help you answer your research questions and why and how will it help you solve, further educate etc... the world about your problem. This section should be around 5- 6 pages long.
6)Organization of the Study
In this section you will tell the reader what will be coming next in your paper. You only need to say this:
Chapter 2 will be the Literature Review
Chapter 3 will discuss research question number 1 and give a brief synopsis of what question 1 is about.
Chapter 4 will discuss research question number 2 and give a brief synopsis of what question 2 is about.
Chapter 5 will discuss research question number 3 and give a brief synopsis of what question 3 is about.
... and so on. The amount of chapers you have will be dependent on the number of reserach questions you have. These chapters after chapter 2 will be written later on, not during RES 531 or DSP 999. This section is the researcher’s opportunity to present the research chapters and sections in brief, describing how the total research effort will be presented. In particular, it means each research chapter is presented in four to five sentences indicating what actions the researcher will perform in the research process.
7)Sample References
Amey, M. J. & VanDerLinden, K. E. (2002).Career paths for community college leaders.American Association of Community Colleges/ Leadership Series Research Brief no. 2. Retrieved on February 12, 2005, from
Bass, B. M. (1990). Bass and Stogdill’s handbook of leadership. New York: Free Press.
Bennis, W. G. (2004). The seven stages of the leader. Harvard Business Review, 82(1), 46-53. Retrieved January 20, 2005, from EBSCO database.
Burns, J. M. (1978). Leadership. New York: Harper & Row.
Connaughton, S. L., Lawrence, F. L., & Ruben, B. D. (2003).Leadership development as a systematic and multidisciplinary enterprise. Journal of Education for Business, 79(1), 46-51.
Dering, N. A. (1998). Leadership in quality organizations. Journal for Quality & Participation, 21(1), 32-35. Retrieved February 25, 2005, from EBSCO database.
Donohue, K. S. & Wong, L. (1994).Understanding and applying transformational leadership. Military Review, 74(8), 24-31. Retrieved March 2, 2005, from EBSCO database.
Griffin, R. (2002). Management (7th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Kouzes, J.M., & Posner, B. Z. (2002). The leadership challenge (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Leithwood, K. A. (1992). The move toward transformational leadership. Educational Leadership 49(5), 8-12.
Mason, F. M., & Wetherbee, L. V. (2004).Learning to lead: An analysis of current training programs for library leadership. Library Trends, 53(1), 187-217.
Overton, B. J. & Burkhardt, J. C. (1999). Drucker could be right, but …: New leadership models for institutional-community partnerships. Applied Developmental Science, 3(4), 217-227.
Reinhardt, A. C. (2004). Discourse on the transformational leader metanarrative or finding the right person for the job. Advances in Nursing Science, 27(1), 21-31.
Romero, M. (2004). Who will lead our community colleges? Change 36(6) 30-34.
Sosik, J. J., Kahai, S. S., & Avolio, B. J. (1998). Transformational leadership and dimensions of creativity: Motivating idea generation in computer-mediated groups. Creativity Research Journal, 11(2), 111-121.
Shults, C. (2001). The critical impact of impending retirements on community college leadership.American Association of Community Colleges/Leadership Series Research Brief no. 1.Retrieved February 12, 2005, from
Weisman, I. M. & Vaughan, G. B. (2002).The community college presidency 2001.American Association of Community Colleges/Leadership Series Research Brief no. 3.Retrieved February 12, 2005, from
8)Literature Review
In this chapter, the candidate reviews the main bodies of existing knowledge and literature that relate to addressing the research problem. It is during this review that the candidate refinesthe research questions that form the basis for his or her research project. A DRP student is expected to read, evaluate and synthesize at least twenty (20) sources of literature relevant to his/her research problem. While these sources will probably not comprise a comprehensive coverage of the available literature, they should reflect a representative sampling of current and/or classic findings and texts. This literature review is not an annotated bibliography. Rather, the review of the literature is used to examine relevant scholarly sources and connections between these sources with respect to analysis of factors such as the following: comparisons, contrasts,consistencies, inconsistencies, strengths, weaknesses, reliability, validity, significance, limitations,positions (and relation to the student’s perspective), theoretical approaches, and/or research methods.
Writing a review of the related literature takes planning and organization, and the researcher must emphasize the relationship of the literature to his/her research topic. According to the University of Toronto Writing Support website ( the literature review should “be organized around and related directly to the thesis or research question…,synthesize results into a summary of what is and is not known, identify areas of controversy in the literature, and formulate questions that need further research.” Various general approaches can be used to select and organize information for a literature review. One common method is to review the literature historically/chronologically. Through this approach, the DRP student might identify common threads or trends. Another option is to employ an issue oriented approach through exploration of specific themes, conflicts, or debates. Research methods, theories, or content related standards (e.g., legal standards, international regulations, ethical guidelines, etc.) could also be applied as criteria for analysis and organizational frameworks for presentation of the literature.