RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
How to write a research
proposal?
WHY
DO YOU NEED A RESEARCH PROPOSAL?
To give a concise and clear outline of the objectives
that you want to achieve through your project.
Your proposal needs to show why the intended
research is important and justifies the search effort.
 To serve as a planning tool
 To present it to Educational institutions
 To apply for funding

HOW TO WRITE A RESEARCH PROPOSAL
THE PROPOSAL USUALLY INCLUDES
TITLE.
 INTRODUCTION.
 JUSTIFICATION.
 OBJECTIVES.
 METHODOLOGY
 WORKPLAN.
 BUDGET.
REFERENCES
 Appendices.
HOW TO WRITE A RESEARCH PROPOSAL
THE METHODOLOGY SHOULD INCLUDE THE
FOLLOWING:
1.THE STUDY DESIGN.
2.THE STUDY AREA.
3.THE STUDY POPULATION.
4.THE DATA COLLECTION METHODS
5.THE SAMPLE SIZE & THE SAMPLING TECHNIQUE.
6.THE DATA ANALYSIS PLAN.
7. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
TITLE
OF THE
RESEARCH PROJECT
A good title should be short, accurate, and concise.
 Indicate the type of study you will conduct.
 Address the main problem you are planning to
investigate.
 Is expected to be informative showing what, where
and when the research has been conducted
 It is important to specify the population which is to
be investigated.

TITLE
OF THE
RESEARCH PROJECT
Examples:
-Incidence of TB in HIV- infected children in North Uganda
2007-2008“
-Effects of a programme for nutritional supplementation on
malaria morbidity in children under five years in hyperendemic area for malaria in Sudan (2000-2002).
INTRODUCTION
In an introduction, you should:
 Provide the necessary background for your
research problem.
 A brief summary of the literature
 A brief description of the gap in the literature
 Problem statement
 It should not exceed two pages
STATEMENT
 What
OF THE PROBLEM
…is the research problem?
Logical flow of statements:
Magnitude, frequency, and distribution: Affected geographical areas
and population groups. Ethnic and gender considerations.
Probable causes of the problem: What is the current knowledge of the
problem and its causes? Is there consensus? Is there controversy? Is
there conclusive evidence?
Possible solutions: In what ways have solutions to the problem been
attempted? What has been proposed? What are the results?
Unanswered questions: What remains to be answered? What areas
have not been possible to understand, determine, verify, or test?
JUSTIFICATION
WHY SHOULD THIS RESEARCH BE DONE?
The justification should answer the following:
 How does the research relate to the national or regional
priorities?
 What knowledge and information will be obtained?
 Will this study generate new knowledge?
 What is the ultimate purpose that the knowledge obtained
from the study will serve?
 Will the study benefit patients, advance understanding or
influence policy?
 Will the study fill gaps in existing knowledge or resolve
current controversies
 How will the results be disseminated?
 How will the results be used and who will be the
beneficiaries?
RESEARCH
OBJECTIVES

The objective of the research are the goals to be achieved
by the research project

Research objectives should be closely related to the
statement of the problem

They are activities that the investigator will perform
throughout the research process
RESEARCH
OBJECTIVES
Writing your research objectives clearly helps to:
 Define the focus of your study
 Clearly identify variables to be measured
 Indicate the various steps to be involved
 Establish the limits of the study
 Avoid collection of any data that is not strictly
necessary.
RESEARCH

1.
2.
3.
OBJECTIVES
THE RESEARCH OBJECTIVES MAY TAKE
SEVERAL FORMS:
QUESTIONS: answers are to be found from the
research.
2.HYPOTHESIS: The formulated hypothesis is to
be proved or disproved.
3. POSITIVE SENTENCES: to measure, calculate.
RESEARCH
OBJECTIVES
The research objectives can be subdivided :
1-General objective: describe in general terms what will
be achieve y research and why.
2-Specific objectives: break down the general objective
into smaller, logically connected parts that
systematically address the various aspects of the
problem.
GENERAL OBJECTIVE:
Example:
-If the problem identified is low utilisation of
antenatal care services, the general objective of
the study could be to identify the reasons for
this low uptake, in order to find ways of
improving it.
-To verify the differences in the malaria morbidity in
children under five when they participate in the
nutritional supplementation programme as compared to
those who do not participate.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
These disaggregate and follow logically from the
general objective.
 They provide a preliminary view of the research design.
Example:


To estimate the incidence of malaria in children covered
by the nutritional supplementation programme and the
incidence of malaria in children who receive standard
nutrition.

To identify the protective factors that help to explain the
differences in the incidence of malaria according to the
type of supplementation received.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
The specific objective can be subdivided into three main
types:
1. ESTIMATION OBJECTIVES: THESE ESTIMATE CERTAIN
FEATURES SUCH AS INCIDENCE RATE, PREVALENCE.
2. ASSOCIATION OBJECTIVES: TEST THE ASSOCIATION
BETWEEN CERTAIN FACTORS & DISEASE.
3. EVALUATION OBJECTIVES: ASSESS THE IMPACT OF AN
INTERVENTION ON THE SEVERITY OF A DISEASE.
THE CRITERIA OF A GOOD RESEARCH
OBJECTIVE
Objectives should be:
 Specific – states exactly what you need to achieve
 Logical and coherent
 Feasible
 Realistic, considering local conditions
 Defined in operational terms that can be measured
THE CRITERIA OF A GOOD
RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
Objectives should be stated using action verbs that
are specific enough to be measured,
for example:
to compare, to calculate, to identify, to determine, to
calculate, to describe, to measure, etc.

Avoid the use of vague non-active verbs such as:
to appreciate, to understand, to believe, to notice, etc.,
because it is difficult to evaluate whether they have
been achieved.

THE METHODOLOGY
The methodology section describes the procedures that
will be used to achieve the objectives, and includes the
following:
1.THE STUDY DESIGN.
2.THE STUDY AREA.
3.THE STUDY POPULATION.
3.THE SAMPLE SIZE & THE SAMPLING TECHNIQUE.
4.THE DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES
5.THE DATA ANALYSIS PLAN.
6. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
THE METHODOLOGY
Determine the Research Design
 Such as descriptive, analytic and experimental
designs.
Study area

The geographical location

A map of Study area in the appendices.
Study population with inclusion and exclusion
criteria



The general characteristics study population .
The health status.
Social and cultural data.
THE METHODOLOGY
Determine the Sample Size and Sample technique
 In this section, you will describe the sample size
 Describe how you determined how many people to
include in the study.
Determine the Data Collection method
In this section you will describe how you propose to
collect your data e.g. through a questionnaire, chick list
Also it includes list of study variables.
Determine the Data Analysis Procedures
 You also need to follow a scheme as how to analyze the
data and report the results. For example, you might run
the data through Excel or SPSS
ETHICAL
CONSIDERATIONS
Ethical Approval
 Any research involving interaction with human
participants should get approval from ethical
committees or boards.
 This ethical approval is sought to ensure that the
researcher conducts research in a manner that is
respectful to the participants and other human
beings that may be influenced by the research
process.
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
INFORMED CONSENT
Outline how, when and where the patient will be
consented!
Information form should contain:
 Justification for research
 Responsibilities (Who)
 Outline of study
 Any possibly harm Confidentiality
 Volontary particpation
 Right of discontinuation at any time
 Simple language-Patients mother tongue
 A separate consent form is required
WORKPLAN
Timetable for your research proposal
 You need to be able to demonstrate that your
research is possible within a given timeframe
 what would be the main stages of your project?
 what would you be expecting to do in each month
or year of your research
EXAMPLE: WORK PLAN
BUDGET
The budget must be itemized .
 Examples of the budget items :
1. Personnel costs,
2. Operating expenses
3. Supplies
4. Equipment
5. Local travel
6. Data processing

REFERENCES
 Use

of standard referencing system:
Harvard style
Name and publication year in text
 Alphabetical bibliography


Vancouver style
Numbered references
 Continous referencing in text

The recommended style of reference citation is Vancouver
style.
APPENDICES

The appendices should include all the relevant
materials such as mapping of the study area, Arabic
and English versions of the data collection
instruments, photographs etc.
THANK YOU