Writing Assignment
For your research proposals, you are to select a research question related to the broader criminal justice discipline, identify, collect and synthesize relevant literature pertaining to this question, and then propose a methodologically rigorous study designed to explore your particular topic. You could, for instance, propose to investigate why certain youth become members of gangs, and research this by sampling gang members, interviewing them and forming a generalizable theory as to their motivations for gang membership. You would be required to specify the questions you would ask, whether these questions are valid or have been used in the past, how you would recruit participants, where you would interview them, for how long, what compensation you would offer them, etc.
Please refer to the Research Proposal Guidelines pdf document provided for the necessary components of your proposal. Below you will find a detailed grading rubric that should guide you as you compose your proposal. Remember that your final product should be 7-8 pages (exclusive of references, title pages and abstracts) double-spaced and typed in Times New Roman font with 1'' margins. Your final papers should also include appropriate in-text citations and a references page that each conform to APA regulations. You are to have between 5 and 6 peer-reviewed and published sources cited within your final research proposal. This assignment is due by 11:59 P.M. (central) on Friday December 2, 2016. Please be attentive to proper punctuation, grammar, spelling and syntax as these elements will be graded.