Produce an extended research proposal outlining a piece of research you plan to conduct.
You may either:
(a) Build on the topic and work already done for Assignment 1 and develop it into an
extended research proposal here;
OR
(b) Write an extended research proposal on an ENTIRELY new topic. You will not be
penalised for doing so, but do bear in mind that you will have no feedback from your
draft work (i.e. Assignment 1) to work with or build upon. You do not need to seek
pre-approval if you take this option.
A research proposal is an “action plan” for your proposed piece of research. It is a concise
and coherent summary of your proposed research. It sets out the central issues or questions
that you intend to address in a study, and demonstrates the originality of your proposed
research. It outlines the research topic you are interested in, referring to the current state of
knowledge and any recent debates on the topic, and describes how you intend to carry out
your research. This proposal is most likely to be a preparatory document for your
dissertation module.
Your proposal should contain the following sections (approximate suggested length in
brackets):
1. Title
2. Abstract (~ 200 words)
3. Introduction/Background statement (approx. 5 – 10% length)
4. Aims and objectives OR research question(s) (approx. 5% length)
5. Literature Review (approx. 30% length)
6. Research Methodology (approx. 20-30% length)
7. Business and/or managerial implications of your research (approx. 5% length)
8. Limitations of the proposed study (approx. 5% length)
9. Ethical issues and considerations (approx. 5% length)
10. Conclusions (approx. 5-10% length)
11. Research timetable/schedule (approx. 5% length)
12. References

Your proposal should be at least 2000 words in length and no more than 2600 words. The
title, abstract, reference list and research timetable/schedule are not included in the word
count but in-text citations are. No appendices should be included.

1. Title
Is your title focused, e.g. in terms of a specific area, literature, timespan?
Does your title point your study at specific bodies of academic literature that already
exist – e.g. consumer behaviour, strategy, digital consumerism, tourism development,
financial derivatives etc?
2. Abstract (approx. 200 words)
Remember – an abstract is not an introduction.
Does your abstract provide a self-contained overview of your entire proposed work?
(Look at examples in journal articles)
3. Introduction/Background statement (approx. 5 – 10% length)
The introduction sets the context for your proposed research study and should aim to
capture the reader’s interest. It introduces the topic and presents an overview of why
the topic is interesting, relevant and worth exploring.
Does your introduction open ‘a window’ on your work? Does it ‘set the scene’?
Does it start with a broad statement…. and lead to the focal problem/ research
question?
Think about the role of an introduction… does it entice, stimulate interest, inform?
What literatures you are planning to use?
Are there terms or concepts that need defining? This is where you might include
them.
4. Aims and objectives OR research question(s) (approx. 5% length)
You may state research aims and objectives, or research questions.
What is your overarching research question?
Do your aims connect to your objectives?
Remember – one or two aims only – ideally one for clarity.
Remember – employ a couple of objectives – ideally up to three; you do not want too
many avenues to pursue.
Do your aims and objectives ‘unpack’ and explain your title?
5. Literature Review (approx. 30% length)
The literature review develops broad ideas of what is already known in a field, and
what questions are still unanswered. It will highlight any theories that may exist to
support developing hypotheses and can help narrow the problem for investigation.
This process also helps you to be sure that your investigation is not just “reinventing
the wheel.” A discussion of the present understanding and/or state of knowledge
concerning the problem or issue sets the context for your investigation. At Masters
level, the literature review should be analytical and summative, covering topics,
methodological issues and research techniques.
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Are you clear what you understand by ‘a literature’?
In relation to which specific ‘literatures’ or subject/topic areas is your work
positioned?
Does your work use one or a number of literatures?
Does your work fall between literatures? … (And therefore must draw on a number
of literatures in order to make sense of your chosen area?)
Is there apparently no literature on your chosen topic? …perhaps rephrase/rethink
your topic?
Does what you have written respond to your Title, RQs and aims and objectives? Is
there something you have under-worked or overlooked?
6. Research Methodology (approx. 20-30% length)
The Research Methodology section should contain the following sub-headings:
– Research approach
– Research design and strategy
– Approach to data collection and analysis of findings
A research proposal’s methodology outlines the strategy for conducting an
investigation in order to answer a research question. In this section you will briefly
review different approaches, designs, procedures, and methods for investigating your
area of research. You will describe your research design and the specific tools that
will be used to help you to meet your research goals. Regardless of research design
and choice of research methods chosen, it should be realistic and feasible, and be
formulated with time and resource constraints in mind.
What is your overall methodology?
Are you using an inductive or deductive approach? Have you discussed the strengths
and weaknesses of your chosen method and how you will work with them?
What will be the role of quantitative and/or qualitative data in your work?
What methods have you chosen within your methodology?
Why have you chosen it? Why is it appropriate for your study?
How will you go about collecting your data? Who? How many? How and Why? When
and Where?
How will you go about analysing your findings? Are there any specific techniques or
software that you might use?
7. Business and/or managerial implications of your research (approx. 5% length)
What are the business and/or managerial implications of your proposed research?
Why would businesses/ managers/ society find your research interesting/
worthwhile?
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8. Limitations of the proposed study (approx. 5% length)
Are there any limits with regards to your proposed instruments, sample, time and
resource constraints?
Are there any issues with regards to access that you need to consider/ acknowledge?
9. Ethical issues and considerations (approx. 5% length)
What are the ethical issues that arise with your proposal in relation to you, your
respondents and others? What measures will you take to deal with them? Have you
identified an appropriate code of ethics that you will adhere to?
10. Conclusions (approx. 5-10% length)
Your conclusion should not include the introduction of any new material or ideas.
Does your conclusion….
– Summarise the argument and key points you have made?
– Present its points in a punchy manner using the technical terms and concepts
you have discussed in your argument?
Remember – your conclusion is about the proposal!!
11. Research timetable/schedule (approx. 5% length)
You should provide a realistic timetable/ schedule outlining all the key stages in the
dissertation process and the time you would allocate to each task. This can be
presented in the form of a Gantt chart or table.
Have you identified all the key tasks that you will need to undertake in your
dissertation?
Is a realistic amount of time allocated to each phase of your work?
To what extent will various stages of the work overlap with each other?
12. References
A reference list should be provided at the end of your proposal and should include all
the material cited in the main text. It should be presented using the Harvard System
of referencing.