Quantitative Research Survey Proposal Guidelines

TOPIC: Quantitative Analysis of the perceptions of college student athletes- academically, athletically, and socially

The finished project will be a quantitative research proposal and should include each of the following sections:

1) Abstract

The abstract should briefly state the goals of your research, methodological choices, and the significance of your intended research. It should be no more than 200-300 words (about half a page, single spaced). Much of the abstract can be drawn from the paper. You may want to write the abstract last.

2) Introduction (1-2 paragraphs):

Briefly introduce the general area you are researching as well as your own specific research problem.

3) Literature review (4-5 pages)

The literature review should discuss existing scholarly research published on your topic and should rely on recent academic journal articles (possibly less so for historians). The utility of the literature review is that it situates your intended current research within the context of prior academic research. You should summarize and discuss the research and findings described in the articles you have chosen to include.

You will need at least 5-7 relevant articles from topical journals and/or books/book chapters that are directly related to topic or themes that you plan to study. These can be accessed in the CCU Kimbel library databases.

The section’s goal is to relate your topic to a range of research that has been previously published, showing what is known and not known about the topic. The literature review provides both the background and the rationale for your study and should focus on studies that have direct relevance to your study.

*You can expand/build on the literature review you compiled for the qualitative research project. You must add at least two additional sources that utilize quantitative methods.

A literature review should do the following:

· Concentrate on the research/theory in your particular area

· Summarize and evaluate the studies included in your literature review

· Create a context for your research and,

· Justify the purpose of your study- why does it matter?

Your literature review should not simply summarize studies that you have found (i.e. it is NOT an annotated bibliography.) Write clearly and concisely and avoid unnecessary repetition. Make sure that you properly cite all of your sources in-text and be sure to include them in the reference list at the end of your paper (APA, MLA or Chicago are acceptable as long as they are in the proper formal style).

4) Methodology (4-5 pages, plus your fully developed survey)

This should be a full description of specific procedures you would use to complete your research. Use (and cite) the textbook as well as the scholarly studies within your literature review to provide a detailed overview of your specific methodology.

· This section should include subheadings: population selection and justification, intended sample and sampling procedures, variable measurement and survey instrument development, discussion of reliability and validity, as well as proposed hypotheses/research questions and justifications for each based on prior research cited in your literature review

5) Discussion (2 pages)

If you were to conduct your study down the road, how would your research contribute to existing research? Why would your research matter to your topic area and field of study? What are the implications related to your research? What academic discipline(s) would it contribute to?

6) Reference List

Your list of sources and your in-text citations should be in the format appropriate to your primary field of study. Double-check for formatting accuracy.