研究計劃-Research-Proposal-模板.docx

每個學術(shù)研究者必須經(jīng)歷的一道關(guān)卡，就是Research Proposal的寫作。它大致對應中文里的“開題報告”、“選題報告”、“研究報告”，是一項研究開始之前的提綱、規(guī)劃和陳述；既是為了幫助自己梳理文獻、整理思路、廓清方向，也常常是寫給相關(guān)他人的說明：研究動機和意義何在？可能有何成果？為什么它值得你的資助/認可/支持/批準？不知道是否可以說，好的proposal是研究成功的一半。但實際而功利的說，如果你的proposal很爛，可能根本就不會有開始研究的機會。How to write a research proposal?能否寫出漂亮的proposal，本質(zhì)上取決于你對研究的思考深度和專業(yè)水準。但形式也很重要。英文的Research Proposal自有一套“八股”。程式化和結(jié)構(gòu)化的好處就在于，可以讓讀者直接集中注意到最本質(zhì)的內(nèi)容上，而不是為形式分神。對于非英語native speaker的我們，如何理解英文學術(shù)世界的規(guī)范或曰思維定勢，也是寫作proposal之前必備的背景知識。下面這篇流傳甚廣的Research Proposal寫作指南，言簡意賅，頗具啟發(fā)，對我自己的寫作有所幫助，也希望能給更多的學界同仁帶來便利。點擊這里，查看更多關(guān)于RESEARCH PROPOSAL以及GRANT PROPOSAL、PROJECT PROPOSAL寫作的網(wǎng)上資源文章作者Paul T. P. Wong, Ph.D., C.Psych. (Research Director, Graduate Program in Counselling Psychology. Trinity Western University Langley, BC, Canada). 題為：How to Write a Research Proposal. 全文轉(zhuǎn)載如下：Most students and beginning researchers do not fully understand what a research proposal means, nor do they understand its importance. To put it bluntly, ones research is only as a good as ones proposal. An ill-conceived proposal dooms the project even if it somehow gets through the Thesis Supervisory Committee. A high quality proposal, on the other hand, not only promises success for the project, but also impresses your Thesis Committee about your potential as a researcher.A research proposal is intended to convince others that you have a worthwhile research project and that you have the competence and the work-plan to complete it. Generally, a research proposal should contain all the key elements involved in the research process and include sufficient information for the readers to evaluate the proposed study.Regardless of your research area and the methodology you choose, all research proposals must address the following questions: What you plan to accomplish, why you want to do it and how you are going to do it.The proposal should have sufficient information to convince your readers that you have an important research idea, that you have a good grasp of the relevant literature and the major issues, and that your methodology is sound.The quality of your research proposal depends not only on the quality of your proposed project, but also on the quality of your proposal writing. A good research project may run the risk of rejection simply because the proposal is poorly written. Therefore, it pays if your writing is coherent, clear and compelling.This paper focuses on proposal writing rather than on the development of research ideas.TITLE:It should be concise and descriptive. For example, the phrase, “An investigation of . . .” could be omitted. Often titles are stated in terms of a functional relationship, because such titles clearly indicate the independent and dependent variables. However, if possible, think of an informative but catchy title. An effective title not only pricks the readers interest, but also predisposes him/her favourably towards the proposal.ABSTRACT:It is a brief summary of approximately 300 words. It should include the research question, the rationale for the study, the hypothesis (if any), the method and the main findings. Descriptions of the method may include the design, procedures, the sample and any instruments that will be used.INTRODUCTION:The main purpose of the introduction is to provide the necessary background or context for your research problem. How to frame the research problem is perhaps the biggest problem in proposal writing.If the research problem is framed in the context of a general, rambling literature review, then the research question may appear trivial and uninteresting. However, if the same question is placed in the context of a very focused and current research area, its significance will become evident.Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules on how to frame your research question just as there is no prescription on how to write an interesting and informative opening paragraph. A lot depends on your creativity, your ability to think clearly and the depth of your understanding of problem areas.However, try to place your research question in the context of either a current “hot” area, or an older area that remains viable. Secondly, you need to provide a brief but appropriate historical backdrop. Thirdly, provide the contemporary context in which your proposed research question occupies the central stage. Finally, identify “key players” and refer to the most relevant and representative publications. In short, try to paint your research question in broad brushes and at the same time bring out its significance.The introduction typically begins with a general statement of the problem area, with a focus on a specific research problem, to be followed by the rational or justification for the proposed study. The introduction generally covers the following elements:1. State the research problem, which is often referred to as the purpose of the study.2. Provide the context and set the stage for your research question in such a way as to show its necessity and importance.3. Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing.4. Briefly describe the major issues and sub-problems to be addressed by your research.5. Identify the key independent and dependent variables of your experiment. Alternatively, specify the phenomenon you want to study.6. State your hypothesis or theory, if any. For exploratory or phenomenological research, you may not have any hypotheses. (Please do not confuse the hypothesis with the statistical null hypothesis.)7. Set the delimitation or boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus.8. Provide definitions of key concepts. (This is optional.)LITERATURE REVIEW:Sometimes the literature review is incorporated into the introduction section. However, most professors prefer a separate section, which allows a more thorough review of the literature.The literature review serves several important functions:1. Ensures that you are not “reinventing the wheel”.2. Gives credits to those who have laid the groundwork for your research.3. Demonstrates your knowledge of the research problem.4. Demonstrates your understanding of the theoretical and research issues related to your research question.5. Shows your ability to critically evaluate relevant literature information.6. Indicates your ability to integrate and synthesize the existing literature.7. Provides new theoretical insights or develops a new model as the conceptual framework for your research.8. Convinces your reader that your proposed research will make a significant and substantial contribution to the literature (i.e., resolving an important theoretical issue or filling a major gap in the literature).Most students literature reviews suffer from the following problems:* Lacking organization and structure* Lacking focus, unity and coherence* Being repetitive and verbose* Failing to cite influential papers* Failing to keep up with recent developments* Failing to critically evaluate cited papers* Citing irrelevant or trivial references* Depending too much on secondary sourcesYour scholarship and research competence will be questioned if any of the above applies to your proposal.There are different ways to organize your literature review. Make use of subheadings to bring order and coherence to your review. For example, having established the importance of your research area and its current state of development, you may devote several subsections on related issues as: theoretical models, measuring instruments, cross-cultural and gender differences, etc.It is also helpful to keep in mind that you are telling a story to an audience. Try to tell it in a stimulating and engaging manner. Do not bore them, because it may lead to rejection of your worthy proposal. (Remember: Professors and scientists are human beings too.)METHODS:The Method section is very important because it tells your Research Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. It will provide your work plan and describe the activities necessary for the completion of your project.The guiding principle for writing the Method section is that it should contain sufficient information for the reader to determine whether methodology is sound. Some even argue that a good proposal should contain sufficient details for another qualified researcher to implement the study.You need to demonstrate your knowledge of alternative methods and make the case that your approach is the most appropriate and most valid way to address your research question.Please note that your research question may be best answered by qualitative research. However, since most mainstream psychologists are still biased against qualitative research, especially the phenomenological variety, you may need to justify your qualitative method.Furthermore, since there are no well-established and widely accepted canons in qualitative analysis, your method section needs to be more elaborate than what is required for traditional quantitative research. More importantly, the data collection process in qualitative research has a far greater impact on the results as compared to quantitative research. That is another reason for greater care in describing how you will collect and analyze your data. (How to write the Method section for qualitative research is a topic for another paper.)For quantitative studies, the method section typically consists of the following sections:1. Design -Is it a questionnaire study or a laboratory experiment? What kind of design do you choose?2. Subjects or participants Who will take part in your study ? What kind of sampling procedure do you use?3. Instruments What kind of measuring instruments or questionnaires do you use? Why do you choose them? Are they valid and reliable?4. Procedure How do you plan to carry out your study? What activities are involved? How long does it take?RESULTS:Obviously you do not have results at the proposal stage. However, you need to have some idea about what kind of data you will be collecting, and what statistical procedures will be used in order to answer your research question or test you hypothesis.DISCUSSION:It is important to convince your reader of the potential impact of your proposed research. You need to communicate a sense of enthusiasm and confidence without exaggerating the merits of your proposal. That is why you also need to mention the limitations and weaknesses of the proposed research, which may be justified by time and financial constraints as well as by the early developmental stage of your research area.Common Mistakes in Proposal Writing1. Failure to provide the proper context to frame the research question.2. Failure to delimit the boundary conditions for your research.3. Failure to cite landmark studies.4. Failure to accurately present the theoretical and empirical contributions by other researchers.5. Failure to stay focused on the research question.6. Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for the proposed research.7. Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail on major issues.8. Too much rambling going “all over the map” without a clear sense of direction. (The best proposals move forward with ease and grace like a seamless river.)9. Too many citation lapses and incorrect references.10. Too long or too short.11. Failing to follow the APA style.12. Slopping writing./2008/02/25/762/大多數(shù)學生和剛起步的研究者都不了解什么是研究計劃，也不知道其重要性。簡單的說，一個人研究計劃的好壞決定了其研究的好壞。一個構(gòu)思欠佳的研究計劃會毀了整個項目，即使它勉強通過了論文答辯委員會。另一方面，一個高質(zhì)量的研究計劃，不僅確保了研究項目的成功，你作為一個研究者的潛力也會給論文委員會留下一個好印象。一個研究計劃是為了說服別人你有一個有價值的研究計劃，同時你有這個能力和相應的工作計劃來完成它。總之，一個研究計劃應包含所有研究過程中的關(guān)鍵步驟，同時也會給讀者足夠的信息來評估這個擬定的研究。不論你的研究領(lǐng)域是什么，你選擇了什么樣的方法，所有的研究計劃必須解決以下問題：你打算完成什么，為什么你要做這件事，以及你打算怎樣去完成它。研究計劃應該有足夠的信息來向你的讀者證明你有一個重要的研究想法，你對相關(guān)文獻和主要問題有很好的把握，同時你的方法是切實可行的。研究計劃的質(zhì)量不僅取決于研究項目本身，同時也取決于你的計劃書寫作。一個好的研究項目也可能會有僅僅因為不好的寫作而被否決的風險。因此，非常值得你去寫得連貫，清晰并且令人信服。這篇文章強調(diào)的是計劃書的寫作，而非研究思路的開展。標題：標題應該簡明扼要。比如，“一個關(guān)于的研究”，這樣的句子就應該避免。通常，標題是表達功能關(guān)系，因為這樣的標題清晰的表達了獨立和相關(guān)的變量。然而，應盡可能，想一個內(nèi)容翔實又吸引人的標題。一個有效的標題不僅會激發(fā)讀者的興趣，也預示了他們會喜歡這個計劃。摘要：摘要是一個300字左右的簡要歸納。它應該包括研究問題，研究的理論基礎(chǔ)，假說（如有的話），方法以及主要發(fā)現(xiàn)。對方法的描述可能包括試驗設(shè)計，步驟，樣本，還有任何將被用到的手段。引言：引言的主要目的是為你的研究問題提供必要的背景。如何設(shè)定研究問題可能是計劃書寫作最難的部分。如果研究問題被限定在一個概括的，不著邊際的文獻回顧里，研究問題就會顯得瑣碎和無趣。然而，如果同樣的問題被設(shè)定在一個當前非常被關(guān)注的研究領(lǐng)域里，它的重要性就變得不言而喻了。不幸的是，對如何設(shè)定你的研究問題并沒有任何硬性規(guī)定，正如沒有對如何寫出有趣和翔實的開頭段的規(guī)定一樣。很大程度上要靠你自己的創(chuàng)造力，要取決于你清晰思維的能力和你對問題領(lǐng)域理解的深度。首先，嘗試著把你的研究問題放到當前的熱門領(lǐng)域，或是一個陳舊但依然可行的領(lǐng)域；其次，你需要提供一個簡要而適當?shù)臍v史背景；再者，提供該問題的當下背景，在這里，你提出的研究問題應該是關(guān)注的焦點。最后，確定“關(guān)鍵角色”（key players），參考最相關(guān)和最有代表性的論文?？傊?，把你的研究問題放到一個大的背景下，但同時體現(xiàn)出他的重要性。引言一般以對該領(lǐng)域的簡單描述開始，同時關(guān)注某一特定的研究問題，接下來是擬定研究的基本原理。引言部分通常包含以下內(nèi)容：1. 描述該研究問題，一般也叫研究目的；2. 為你的研究問題提供背景，設(shè)定其范圍，以體現(xiàn)出它的必要性和重要性；3. 說明你研究問題的理論依據(jù)，要清楚的指出為什么該研究是值得去做的；4. 簡要描述該研究要解決的主要及次要問題；5. 確定你試驗中關(guān)鍵的獨立或相關(guān)變量?；蛘?，明確說明你想要研究的現(xiàn)象；6. 闡述你的假說或理論，如有的話。對于探索性或現(xiàn)象解釋型的研究，你可能不會有任何假說。（請不要混淆假說和統(tǒng)計學上的零假設(shè)）；7.設(shè)定你研究計劃的局限或邊界，以提供一個清晰的研究重點；8. 給關(guān)鍵概念下定義 （此項為可選）；文獻綜述：文獻綜述有時也包括到簡介部分。然而，大多數(shù)教授更喜歡一個單獨的部分，這樣可以更全面地回顧相關(guān)文獻。文獻綜述有以下一些重要功能：1. 確保你不是“重新發(fā)明車輪”（意即不是重復前人已有的成果）；2. 向奠定該研究基礎(chǔ)的前人致謝；3. 說明你對該研究問題的了解；4. 闡述你對該問題相關(guān)的理論和研究的理解；5. 展現(xiàn)你對相關(guān)文獻資料