SBLC5003- Business Research Methodologies Assignment: Business Research Proposal- Prifysgol Cymru Y Drindod Dewi Sant University of Wales.
Length: 2500 words.
TASK DESCRIPTION - ASSIGNMENT
BACKGROUND / INTRODUCTION
Select a research topic of your choice based on a business issue and design a research proposal for this topic. The topic should be agreed with your Lecturer at least 4 weeks before submission date. This proposal should not exceed 2500words. (+/- 10%)
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Learning Outcomes tested
(from module syllabus)
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Assessment Criteria. To achieve each outcome a student must demonstrate the ability to:
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1. Understand the scientific process, its application in economics and business, and its utilisation in the problem-solving approach to business and management challenges
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• Construct a research proposal rooted in the disciplines of research development.
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2. Demonstrate the skills necessary to assess and interpret existing research as a prelude to carrying out further investigation
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• Review the existing literature pertaining to the topic selected for research.
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3. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a range of research designs and their appropriate utilisation in business and economics
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• Generate and justify a design for the research question selected - to include the method(s) and its/their implementation.
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4. Conceptualise a problem; formulate hypotheses and objectives; design a research strategy, collecting, analysing, and interpreting both quantitative and qualitative data, including commonly encountered statistical procedures
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• Generate research objectives and develop a research strategy encompassing the methods, data collection, analysis and interpretation.
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5. Understand the theoretical principles underlyinginferential and descriptive statistics and choose the most appropriate statistical analyses, interpret the results, and write up the results accurately and completely
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• Demonstrate an understanding of both descriptive and inferential statistics within the data analysis procedures.
• Explain and justify the likely means of analysis to be used in the upcoming research.
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TASK
Based on the selected topic, you are required to:
• Develop a research question and an appropriate set of research objectives
• Justify the choice of research topic including the background and context of the research
• Develop a critical literature review of the research topic
• Design a research methodology based on the topic selected. This would require you to develop a research design and justify your choice as appropriate. Your research design should include the following:
Research Philosophy (e.g., positivism, interpretivism, realism and/or pragmatism)
Research Approach (inductive or deductive)
Research strategy
• Discuss and justify the data collection methods - type of data, sampling method and target group
• Discuss the data analysis procedure to be adopted
• Discuss the possible ethical issues that need to be considered in this research
• Discuss the methods by which you would ensure that the research was both valid and reliable
• Discuss any possible limitations to this research
• Provide a research plan (timescale)
• Support with relevant references (Harvard format)
In your data collection and data analysis section, discuss how you would collect primary data through the use of one or a combination of methods of data collection methods e.g. questionnaire, interview, focus groups, observation, etc., and how you would analyse this data.
The above requirements are indicated as the required areas of focus for you to articulate your individual responses. The submission of your work for assessment should be organised and clearly structured in the order outlined below.
Suggested Structure - Research Proposal
1. Research Proposal Title - Reflect as accurately as possible the content of your chosen topic.
2. Abstract - This is a brief statement of what you are intending to research. It should be no more than 150 words. This also needs, in brief, to describe the proposal content.
3. Introduction
• Relevance of the proposed research to Business research
• Place the proposed study in context
• Justification of the chosen topic
• Value of this research
• Research Question and Research Objectives
(The research question would normally be one overall question, but, exceptionally, a small number (up to 3) question(s) that the research process will address.
Research objectives (usually 4-5 different research objectives) must be clear statements that identify what the research process seeks to achieve.
Both the research question(s) and research objectives must relate to the literature review)
4. Literature Review
• Clear and precise knowledge that relates to the research topic.
• Explains how the proposal relates to the academic debate which has been identified as part of the literature review.
• Demonstrates a link between previous work and current work that has been done in your field of research interest.
• Highlights in the literature review where your research question(s)/objectives came from.
• Concludes with a Conceptual (or Theoretical) Framework.
5. Method.
This has to relate to the research questions and research objectives and shows how they will be achieved.
Your method consists of the following parts:
(1) Research design - relates to the research onion (philosophies, approaches, strategies, choices, time horizon). You are expected to make strong justifications in support of your chosen research design.
(2) Data collection - relates to the last phase of the research - the techniques and procedures. Identify how specifically the data will be collected (i.e. questionnaire, focus group, etc...). You are expected to provide the advantages and disadvantages of the various data collection methods and select the most appropriate data collection method(s).
(3) Data analysis - although no data is collected, an indication of the types of analysis to be conducted and how it might be presented is expected.
(Your chosen method (1) Research design and (2) Data collection must relate to the purpose of your study.)
(3) Ethics considerations
(4) Validity and Reliability issues
(5) Resource Requirements and
(6) A Time plan - perhaps in the form of a Gantt chart
6. References
7. Appendix (if required)
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.