Research Proposals

1
Research Proposals

• Nouhad Hammad
• September 2006

2
Grant Writing Seminar

• Proposals
• (Maxwell, 2005)
• The purpose of a proposal is to
• - explain and
• - justify
• - your proposed study
• - to an audience of non-experts on your topic

3
Grant Writing Seminar

• Assessing the quality of qualitative research
• (Merriam, 2002)
• Problem
• Methods
• Findings
• Discussion

4
Grant Writing Seminar

• Problem
• Is the problem appropriate for qualitative
  inquiry?
• Is the question one of meaning, understanding, or
  process?
• Is the problem situated in the literature?
• Is the relationship of the problem to previous
  research made clear?
• Is the researchers perspective and relationship
  to the problem discussed?
• Is a convincing argument made for the
  significance of this research?

5
Grant Writing Seminar

• Methods
• Is the particular qualitative research design
  identified and described (grounded theory,
  phenomenology)?
• Is sample selection described including rationale
  for criteria used in the selection?
• Are data collection methods described?
• How were the data managed and analyzed?
• What strategies were used to ensure for validity
  and reliability?
• What ethical considerations are discussed?

6
Grant Writing Seminar

• Findings
• Are the participants of the study described?
• Are the findings clearly organized and easy to
  follow?
• Are the findings directly responsive to the
  problem (do they answer the research questions)?
• Do the data presented in support of the findings
  provide adequate and convincing evidence for the
  findings?

7
Grant Writing Seminar

• Discussion
• Are the findings positioned and discussed in
  terms of the literature and previous research?
• Are the studys insights and contributions to
  knowledge clearly stated and discussed?
• Are implications for practice discussed?
• Do the studys implications follow from the data?
• Are there suggestions for future research?