So far, you have completed the following:
Chose a sociological topic
Developed a research question and thesis
Created a References page with 5 peer-reviewed, scholarly journal articles (including empirical articles) related to your thesis
Now you will use this to write your research paper proposal…
RESEARCH PROPOSAL
What is the purpose of the proposal?
The purpose of a proposal is to give your instructor a basic idea of what will be discussed in your research paper. However, a proposal is not a mini-research paper.
Introduction and your research question
Introduce your research topic and describe what you think, at this point, the main focus of the paper might be.
Academic justification for studying this topic
Why does this interest other researchers?
Does it provide an opportunity to illustrate, test, or compare, one or more sociological theories?
Does the topic have meaningful, practical, or policy implications?
Your thesis statement
A specific statement that says where you stand on the topic you are discussing.
Your research strategy
Where are you finding your information, and how are you going to use it? What are you finding, and, conversely, what are you not? Where else are you going to look?
Reference other studies when discussing your research strategy, more specifically, what you are finding so far.
YOU MUST REFER TO AT LEAST TWO SCHOLARLY JOURNAL ARTICLES THAT SUPPORT YOUR THESIS STATEMENT, USING IN-TEXT CITATIONS.
Be sure to SYNTHESIZE these sources, NOT just summarize
Approach to the subject of you paper
Envision a logical way in which to present your material. In what order will you present your material to best address the issues?
Will you have to define any terms? If so, which ones?
Will you show opposing viewpoints?
Will you be comparing and contrasting?
Will you be categorizing some information?
Are there examples you can use from your sources to make the paper more interesting?
Click here for information on Organizing Sources for more ideas.
References
The last page of your proposal should be the bibliography. This is set up much like the “References” page of a research paper.
It should be doubled-spaced and alphabetized by the first author’s last name.
ASA style with hanging indent
The bibliography page should include every source that you have consulted, including sources that are not necessarily mentioned in your proposal.
YOU MUST LIST AT LEAST FIVE (5) SOURCES (SCHOLARLY JOURNAL ARTICLES)
FORMAT GUIDELINES (ASA Style)
Title Page (centered)
Title of Paper
Name
Institution
Course Name and No.
Instructor’s Name
Date
Running Head (abbreviated title) – top left of all pages
Pages numbered (page one is the title page)
Typed
Double-spaced
1.25″ margins all around
12 font
Times New Roman
3-5 pages
