Learning Outcomes
This is an individual project weighted 50% of your final mark for this course.
Demonstrate that you are able to formulate one (!) clear research question —
phrased as a question
Evidence that you are able to write a structured literature review that builds a
theoretical framework, defines crucial concepts, and outlines how these are related
Show that you have a sound understanding of research methods and are able to
defend why the proposed method is appropriate to answer your research question
Illustrates that you understood the idea of transparent and replicable research and
how you aim to collect the data and / or conduct the analysis
Assessment Guidelines
You are asked to write a individual research proposal of max. 2,500 words 10%.
1. Brief introduction outlining the core research question and justifying why it is
relevant to study this topic — don’t forget to restate you research question
2. Structured literature review that outlines the theoretical framework you aim to apply
/ test <— see guidance on how to structure a literature review on MyAberdeen
3. Research Design
Describe the research method you think is appropriate to study your research
question and defend why it is appropriate — note that statements such as "I
use qualitative or quantitative methods" is not sufficient
Anticipated sampling strategy or case selection, as appropriate
Anticipated analysis strategy including an draft coding table, as appropriate
Consideration of ethical concerns. Note that if you propose any research that
directly relates to collecting data involving humans, e.g., conducting qualitative
interviews, focus groups, experiments, surveys, you have to submit an
ethics application with your research proposal including a draft participant
1
information sheet and a draft participant consent form. The ethics application
is not included in the final word count. You can find the ethics forms
on MyAberdeen / Assessment Instructions / Assessment 3 (individual). Also
note that you do not have to propose to collect your own data, the use of
qualitative or quantitative secondary data is appropriate and valid too, but be
precise where you find these data.
4. Final paragraph reflecting on the proposed design, its appropriateness, and potential
challenges / caveats
