Statement of the Problem (2 pages): Students should build on their work from Assignment Two (do not just copy from previous assignment).

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Description

In the final assignment you will design a research proposal. The proposal should be 15-20 pages maximum. The topic area should be the same as your practice need from assignment 2, however no copying from previous assignment. The proposal must include one of the following research designs:

  • experimental/quasi-experimental
  • quantitative, qualitative or mixed method design
  • program evaluation
  • secondary data analysis (survey design)

The following headings will be included in the proposal: (double-spaced, 12-point Times Roman font, no justification of the text, 1-inch margins) (5 marks for grammar/APA)

  1. Statement of the Problem (2 pages): Students should build on their work from Assignment Two (do not just copy from previous assignment). Be sure to include any suggested changes from the instructor. State the problem and its significance? How does it affect society or particular individuals? Convince the reader of the importance of the proposed study and its broad utility for the profession.
  2. Literature Review (3 – 5 pages): What does the literature say about your chosen area of focus? What previous research has been conducted related to this area? Provide opposing views (for and against). Students should include a minimum of 8 different peer reviewed articles to discuss the problem. Students may use the articles from assignment 2 (if appropriate). The literature review should provide the reader with an overview of the area you have explored and demonstrate how your research would fit into the larger field of social work study.
  3. Briefly describe a potential conceptual/theoretical framework that you might employ in your proposed study (1-2 paragraphs). Write the research question(s) to be investigated in the proposed study. The research question is more general and the hypothesis is more specific. Write the hypothesis or hypotheses if you have more than one for the study. What are the experiential, empirical, or theoretical bases for these hypotheses? Provide operational definitions of variables. (1-2 pages)
  4. Measurement (1-2 pages): The measurement section of this assignment should flow smoothly from the operational definitions and should not be repetitive of them. Go into detail about the nature of any scales to be employed, how these would be scored. Discuss the reliability/validity of your measures. Are your measures culturally sensitive? You will need to refer back to your literature review.
  5. Describe the research design (2-3 pages): What is the general strategy that you will employ in your proposed research, describe? If the research design is experimental, how will experimental/control groups be determined and describe? If it is a survey design, how will the data be collected? If using a mixed-methods design, describe your plan for collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. Be sure to explicitly discuss how your research plan is capable of answering your research questions.
  6. Sampling (1 – 2 pages): What is your sampling plan? Describe your sample population. What will you do to maximize participation/response rate? How will the sample affect external validity? Discuss the generalizability of your sample.
  7. Protection of Research Participants (1-2 pages): What are the risks, if any, to study participants? What are the benefits, if any, to study participants, if not explain? How will informed consent be obtained? How will you protect participant confidentiality?


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