1. Practical Research: Writing research proposals Hannah Jones SO914 week 9 2013/14

2. Writing a research proposal • Research design • Presentation and language • Resourcing, budgeting and timetabling • Ethics • Research impact and dissemination • Working with partners

3. Research design • Research field • Research questions • Aims • Objectives • Methodology • Methods • Analysis • Dissemination

4. Presentation and language • Clarity • Originality, ‘innovation’, excitement • Gaps in the existing research • Feasibility (resources, money, time, people) • Your skills and track record • Outputs (engagement, impact, collaboration)

5. Resourcing, budgeting and timetabling • Money • Skills • Time • Access

6. Ethics • Data collection • Data management • Analysis • Dissemination • Impact • Collaboration

7. Research impact and dissemination • Who is the research for? • What will it change? • What will you do to share the research findings? • What will you do with the raw data?

8. Working with partners • Other researchers • Other research organisations • Research users • Research participants • Partners/stakeholders?

9. Writing • Feedback, collaboration and advice • Format • Think of the reader

10. Exercise 1 Write an abstract of your planned research project. This should be between 200 and 250 words, and set out: • The general issues and debates that your study will engage with • Your specific aims and objectives • The research strategy you will follow to meet these objectives

11. Exercise 2 In groups of no more than two or three, take it in turn to be one another’s ‘critical friend’. Person A spends 10-15 minutes asking Person B about her research project. [e.g. What are your research questions? What are your aims? What are your objectives?] Help and encourage Person B to refine the abstract s/he has written by asking further questions and reflecting on the answers together. Then swap roles.