Essay Justifying A Research Question And Research Approach

Essay justifying a research question and research approach
Length: 3000 words
Brief description: An essay where, for a single research problem, one of two possible research questions is justified and one of two contrasting methodologies/designs is justified as the approach. The assignment aims to develop your understanding of: two contrasting research approaches to a single problem; evaluating of their strengths and limitations, and; constructing an argument that justifies one research approach over the other.
How to write this essay: write in full sentences and well-structured paragraphs; no lists or tables . A well-structured paragraph has a first sentence that introduces the point you are making, body sentences that give the 'evidence' for the point being made and a concluding sentence clarifying that point. Include an overall argument (i.e. a thesis) which is introduced in the Introduction, developed through each paragraph in the body of the essay and logically presented with a recommendation in the Conclusion. Structure the essay using the 4 headings of the 4 sections detailed below;
1. Introduction (approx. 450 words): The Introduction outlines your research topic; it should be a rewritten/refined version of the introduction in Assignment 1. Your introduction includes your quantitative research question and your qualitative question; it should end in the essay's thesis statement. The thesis statement is a single sentence that informs the reader about what you are arguing in this essay. Your thesis statement might take the form: “In this essay I argue that this research problem is best addressed with the question XXX using the XXX paradigm” (OR eg, XXX design, XXX method, XXX approach...].
2. Research justification (approx. 750 words) In this section you will justify your research by critically discussing the most relevant, most current research on your topic. you will not be presenting an individual critique of each of the relevant articles although you will draw from such a critique. Furthermore, the section is not the same as a full critical literature review because you are undertaking the discussion relative to your two different research questions. When drafting the section you should refer to your search strategy, the table of relevant research and your critique in Assignment 1.
• Argue that neither of your research questions have already been investigated in the way you intend using your systematic search (from Assignment 1).
Outline only: search strategy, databases, and number of relevant articles found -no tables please.
• Use the most relevant articles to show how your research questions relate to existing research; show how your questions are potentially useful for researching your problem.
• Include critique in discussion; consider for example, how well the existing research has addressed the combination of key terms that make up your problem statement and/or one or both of your research questions.
• Depending on your topic and the research literature, argue that one of your research questions is superior to the other. Your justification of this argument should be through critique of the existing research relative to your research problem and questions; it should not be relative to methodology.
3. Approach Justification (approx. 1350 words) The focus of this section is the critical discussion of two research approaches. Your aim is to justify that one approach is more appropriate than the other in the context of your research problem. ‘Approach' refers to the whole methodological approach (i.e. paradigm, methodology, design, methods). Justification of this final chosen approach will also help justify your chosen research question as each question is focused on either qualitative or quantitative methods.
• Separately describe the methodological framework for each question; note that at this point you are just describing, not comparing. Specify paradigm, methodology and design; it is not sufficient just to say that the methodology is ‘positivist', ‘non-positivist', ‘qualitative' or ‘quantitative'.
• Critically compare your two approaches in the context of your research problem. Discuss the two overall approaches (i.e. paradigms and methodologies) relative to your research problem and how the problem is expressed quantitatively and qualitatively in each of your two research questions. You should also compare each aspect of the research design (i.e. methods, recruitment) while referring to issues specific to your project plan.
• During your comparison, build an argument for one approach and against the other; discuss the merits of your chosen research approach versus the alternative approach. Appropriately referenced statements should be provided to support each claim for/against the whichever aspect of your methodological framework.
4. Conclusion (approx. 450 words) This section should consist of a single paragraph. You should firstly present a summary of your argument developed through your essay. Include the conclusions that you arrived at as a result of your discussions in the previous sections. Conclude with a recommended research question and research approach for your particular research problem.
Grading criteria ESSENTIAL
A. Evidence of the following:
1. INTRODUCTION, including: a) Problem statement b) Outline of problem context and background c) Definition of key terms 6 d) Research aim and question for non-positivist methodology / qualitative data e) Research aim and question for positivist methodology / quantitative data 4 f) Thesis statement.
2. RESEARCH JUSTIFICATION, including: a) Use of systematic search to justify research relative to number of articles found b) Well supported critical discussion of relevant literature clearly showing: i. how both research questions relate to other research ii. usefulness of both questions to investigate research problem .
3. APPROACH JUSTIFICATION, including: a) Clear description of methodological framework for QUALITATIVE question, specifically: i. Main non-positivist assumptions ii. Research design iii. Sampling & recruitment iv. Methods of data collection v. Methods for data analysis & interpretation
b) Clear description of methodological framework for QUANTITATIVE question, specifically: i. Main positivist assumptions ii. Research design iii. Sampling & recruitment iv. Methods of data collection v. Methods for data analysis (with statistical tests) & interpretation
c) Demonstrated understanding of: i. different paradigms, methodologies and research ii. how different methodological frameworks guide sampling, data collection and interpretation
d) Congruency between each approach and: i. specific research question ii. recruitment and sampling issues iii. data collection methods iv. methods of analysis and interpretation
e) Comparison of methodological frameworks including consideration of: i. site selection issues and access ii. relationships (gatekeeper & researcher/participant) iii. project resources iv. ethical issues v. issues of rigor, reliability and validity
f) Development of clear argument based on sound reasoning
g) Clear justification of decision-making
h) Justification of chosen approach relative to research problem
4. CONCLUSION, including: a) Summary of argument b) Recommendation B. Evidence of presentation skills • Clarity and brevity of expression • logical planning and sequence • no repetition • tables used appropriately, labelled and briefly referred to in-text; appendix not used • supporting documentation for arguments • acknowledgement of documentation using appropriate referencing convention • precise and accurate referencing (in-text, tables & reference list) using correct reference style
THIS MUST BE IN KEEPING WITH THE FIRST ASSIGNMENT AS ATTACHED ALSO USING THE SAME RESEARCH QUESTIONS BUT REFINED