Qualitative Study Proposal
For this project you will be designing a qualitative research study that you could carry out during your fieldwork next semester. Identify one group, issue, or organization and make a research plan based on some initial exploratory research. Be sure to draw from and refer to the ethnographic exercises you took part in for this course, as well as the literature review created for an earlier assignment.
This qualitative design document will define the question or questions around which your qualitative fieldwork will be organized, and will lay out the plan for gathering the data you need to explore that question or set of questions.
In qualitative research, there is no absolute template for a research study design. However, there are elements that should be included, and these you will find listed below. Be sure to review the Merriam and Tisdell course text for design options especially chapter 4 and be sure to cite that text in your paper, as well as any other relevant course texts. In most cases you will simply be proposing some form of ethnographic research. If you opt to do an action research study, then you should rely on the Stringer text as well for guidance on what to include. If you opt for an appreciative inquiry approach, you should consult both that course text, as well the Appreciative Inquiry Commons website listed on the Discovery page for this course. In all cases, be sure to cite the Merriam and Tisdell text.
All research design proposals should answer the following questions, using the words below in bold as your subject headings:
Topic (What do we need to understand better?)
Research Questions (What do I propose to study?)
Research Context (What is the setting and who will be the participants?)
Literature Review (What have other studies shown about my topic?) Note: Draw from the Annotated Bibliography ALA that you did for this course, and include additional new sources only if necessary.)
Data Collection (What methods will I use?)
Ethics (What possible ethical issues might arise in the study?)
Reflexivity (What is my personal connection to this topic, and why do I care?)
Value and Scope (What is the anticipated connection between my fieldwork study and my thesis project?)
