Basic Guidelines for Writing Research Project

 

Basic Guidelines for Writing Research Project

 

Professor Mustapha Mukhtar

Department of Economics

Bayero University, Kano-Nigeria

mmukhtar.eco@buk.edu.ng

http//:www.mustaphamuktar.blogspot.com

 

Introduction

The followings are some basic guidelines that can be followed in writing an a research project, while they are not exhaustive it is believed that they form the basic requirements and can guide students for the smooth conduct of their researches. Basically the research should contain either four or five chapters, the contents of each chapter are presented below, however at postgraduate level five chapters are recommended

 

Chapter One: General Introductiom

·        Background to the Study

·        Statement of the Research Problem

·        Aim and Objectives of the Research

·        Hypotheses or  Research Questions(or both)

·        Justification/Significance of the Research(at proposal justification is included while significance is included at the main work)

·        Scope and Limitations

·        Outline of Chapters/Plan of the Study

 

Chapter Two: Literature review and Theoretical Framework

·        Review of Conceptual Literature

·        Review of Empirical Literature

·        Theoretical Framework

·        Gaps Identified in Literature

 

 

 

Chapter Three: Methodology

·        Introduction

·        Research Design

·        Sources and types of data used

·        Methods of data Collection

·        Sample and Sampling techniques (where applicable)

·        Model Specification(where applicable)

·        Techniques of data Analysis

·        Definition and measurement of variables (Where a model is specified)

 

 

Chapter Four: Data Presentation and Analysis

·        Background of the study area/case study (where applicable)

·        Presentation of data

·        Data Analysis

·        Discussion and Policy Implications of the result

·        Test of Hypotheses and or answers to the earlier research questions formulated

 

Chapter Five: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations

·        Summary of Findings

·        Conclusion

·        Policy Recommendations

·        Suggestion for further research

·        References/Bibliography

·        Appendices

 

Where a researcher intends to have four chapters, then methodology is fully presented in chapter one and data analysis become chapter three while concluding remarks is presented in chapter four.

 

Choice of a Topic

A topic is normally choosed by brainstorming and reveiwing literatures, collecting information, taking a lot of notes, and asking a lot of questions to identify a gap that should be filled. Once a topic is coined then every aspect of the research has to be alligned to it for consistency. Literatures are reviewed in order to get an insight on the topic, to ascertain the current trends and to justify the choice of methodology and other important issues.

 

Depending on the nature of the topic and at the same time the objectives of the researcher as well as the problem at hand, usually quantitative based researches are associated with hypotheses, while qualitative based researches in most cases seek to ask research questions (however, this may not  always be necessary). The important thing here is to allign the hypotheses/ research questions with their respective objectives on a one-to-one basis.

 

Conceptual literatures are reviewed in order to have a good understanding of key concepts and terms related to the research, empirical literature is based on empirical studies done in the past that are related closely to the chosen topic either internationally, regionally and locally such that a gap is identified and that gives room for a value addition at the end of the research. The theoretical review is based on review of theories related to the research topic which should lead to a choice of theoretical framework that can be adopted to explain the research or to give it a theoretical base.

 

Methodology is aimed at presenting a method of gathering data for the purpose of achieving the objective of a research; it consists of modeling in some cases and the presentation of tools of analysis that will lead to solid findings at the end of the research. Tools of data collection are also presented and discussed under the methodology.

 

The Section on data presentation and analysis should contain the findings of the research, as well as the test of hypotheses, the findings are expected to provide answers to the research questions earlier stated in chapter one. The last chapter should summarize major findings; conclusion should be based on the findings of the work so also recommendations.

 

Important Tips to Researchers

Organize your research - Develop an outline to help you stay on track as you write (it should contain time frame and activity for each period and if possible the strategy intended to achieve it)

 

Become familiar with the vocabulary of your choosen area of research. For example, time series econometrics use terms such as random walk, white noise, and cointegration.

 

Facts should be logically and inevitably presented so as to lead to a good conclusion and/or the solution presented. Always Proof-read before presenting chapters to your supervisors (you can also correct and  perfect your writing through checking grammar, correcting grammar, spelling, word choice and style mistakes with unmatched accuracy). This can be done via the use of computer softwares like Grammarly, White smoke, ghotit and other grammer checking softwares that can be found free online. Aknowledge all sources consulted.

(For proposal, candidates are to present chapter 1 -3 as section 1, 2 and 3 only, we use sections not chapters)

Candidates can mine literatures and data as well as its management through the following useful sites:

a.     Search Robots such as; www.lycos.com, www.altavista.com, www.google.com, www.googlescholar.com, www.exite.com

b.     Metasearch Tools like; www.metacrawler.com, and www.metaresults.copemic.com

c. Search Data Banks like; www.acu.ac.uk/cudos(Commonwealth Universities Database Online Service), www.aau.org/datad/(Database of African Theses and Dissertations), www.theses.orgOR www.ndltd.org (networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations)

d.  Open Archives such as;http://arxiv.org

e.Specialized Search Robotssuch as;www.ojose.com (Online Journal Search Engine), www.scirus.com, www.phibot.org and www.sciseek.com

f.Directories of  Online Journals and Bookssuch as:www.doaj.org(Directory of Open Access Journals) www.ingentaconnect.com, www.academicpress.com (electronic bookstore), www.amazon.com (electronic bookstore)

g.Electronic Libraries (digital archives) such as:www.ibiblio.org  (rich in Humanities / Social Sciences)

h.Other Sources such as: www.sist-sciencesdev.net, www.soros.org/openaccess/software and www.eprints.org

Avoid using “A wiki” (quickweb, such as wikipedia)  because it is a user editable site.  Content on a wiki can be modified by a user who has little or no knowledge of the subject matter)