Students are asked to compose an introduction to their research proposal and a literature review on their selected topic. Please keep in mind, there is no “one-size fits all” introduction and literature review.
When writing the introduction, students will identify the topic they are examining and explain why it is important by providing relevant background information, statistics, or other information.
Here are some questions you will want to answer when writing your introduction (2-3 paragraphs):
What is the topic under investigation?
Briefly, and broadly, what do we know about this topic?
Provide relevant background information
Why is this topic important to study?
Who/what is affected by this topic?
How serious or prevalent is the topic being studied? (Relevant Statistics?)
What are the implications for individuals, groups, families, organizations, communities, etc.?
Why should we care about this topic?
What is your proposed study about? What is its purpose?
Who/what are you examining – specifically? What is your research question?
Briefly, what are the key concepts/variables involved in the study?
Briefly, what research methods will you employ?
What do you hope to gain from completing this study?
How is the proposal organized?
When writing the literature review, students will identify key themes within the research literature and synthesize these ideas in order to provide a clear and concise overview of the topic. Students will also identify their research hypotheses and describe why their proposed study is important and relevant given what is already known.
Here are some questions you will want to address when writing your literature review (2-4 pages):
Synthesize the key themes in the literature related to your topic.
What is the topic being studied? How is it currently defined?
How is the topic understood currently? What do we already know about this topic?
Is this a new phenomenon? Might literature on a related topic help us to understand it?
Is the experience different for diverse social groups? Different stages of development?
Are there key areas of concern/interest related to this topic?
How does your proposed study fit with the existing literature?
What are the open questions related to this topic?
Are there particular gaps in our understanding of your topic? Places of disagreement?
Does your study address these gaps? Add to the existing literature? If yes, how so?
Identify the research question(s) and/or hypotheses you will examine in this study.
Describe your anticipated results. What do you expect to see?
What is the basis for your anticipated results?
Why is your proposed study important? Relevant?
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