BUS707 – Applied Business Research

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BUS707 – Applied Business Research T2 2018
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ASSESSMENT 3: Structured Literature Review

This assessment is designed to allow students to identify relevant sources for their research and undertake review on a theoretical concepts/constructs that has real world business implications. This assessment relates to Learning Outcomes a, b and d

This article collections and structured review set a basis for literature review section of Research Proposal in Assessment 4.

Following consultation with the lecturer or tutor, the students research the field to find four academic articles relating to the research topic as proposed in Assessment 2. The articles must be from 2010 onwards, and all articles must be full papers (not research note or book reviews) sourced from refereed academic journals.

Note: Other than in exceptional circumstances, Assessment 3 will set the foundation for literature review of Assessment 4. PRIOR to its inclusion in Assessment 4 Research Proposal, students will be expected to make appropriate adjustments if recommended in feedback.

The structured literature review should addresses the following information:

1. Brief summary of the theory and progression in the field (i.e how has the theory developed)
2. Common themes/findings across the four articles
3. Different themes/findings across the four articles
4. Managerial implication of the four articles
5. Study limitations and future research direction proposed in the four articles.

ASSESSMENT 4: Research Proposal

This assessment is designed to allow students to present and justify appropriate method(s) for a research project designed to address the research question posed. This assessment relates to Learning Outcomes a, b and d.
 
There are two components of the assessment:

• Written proposal: 40%
• Oral presentation: 10%

Based on the Research Question developed in Assessment 2, students should develop a research design aimed at providing insights and/or answers to the question. Students should make any recommended adjustments to the content of Assessment 2, based on feedback provided, prior to including it in Assessment 4.
 
This assessment requires students to choose and justify the most appropriate research design, clearly explaining WHY the chosen design will best answer the research question and is most appropriate in the specific circumstances. Students should clearly justify their recommended research and analysis methods.

Written Proposal: The proposal will contain the following information:

1. Title Page
2. Abstract/Executive Summary
3. Introduction to the research (assessment 2, revised if necessary)
4. Research Problem and Research Objective (assessment 2, revised if necessary)
5. Theoretical Background/Literature review (Based on assessment 3, expand and elaborate)
6. Research Methodology
7. Reference List: Formatted using Harvard (Anglia) style.
8. Appendix: include proposed ethical approval form and informed consent form if relevant.

1. Title Page

Choose an interesting title for the report, the title should indicate the nature of problem/research being investigated. If client organisation is used, the name of the organisation should be part of the title.
 
2. Abstract/Executive Summary

Executive summary should provide key information of your research, 1 page is preferable. Provide summary of: - The introduction of the research - The matter being investigated - The research design and methodology
 
3. Introduction to the research

This section should give convincing background about the research and why the topic is worth to research, by providing evidences to support your arguments. Key points to be included in this section are:

• Introduce the topic of the research
• Overview of client organisation (if any)
• What real problem does the research seek to resolve and why is it important to research this topic
• Outline the structure of this proposal.

4. Research problem and research objectives

This section should be straightforward, state the overall research problem and research objectives based on your brief research plan (A1), revised A1 if necessary.
 
5. Theoretical Background/Literature review

This section is expected to be the extended version of your A3 (structure literature review), therefore, you should not copy paste your A3 into this section, instead you need to use your A3 is a basis to do a comprehensive literature review. Around 10 extra literatures are required (on top of the four articles you used in your A3). Link your literature review back to your research problem.
 
6. Research Design and Methodology 

This section should provide detail plan of research design and research methodology. It should consist information:

• Inform and justify the type of research (exploratory, descriptive or causal)
• Inform and justify the research approach (quantitative, qualitative or mixed approach)
• Describe the type of data will be used (primary or secondary data)
• Describe how data will be collected: interview, focus group or observation for qualitative research, and/or survey and experiment for quantitative research
• Describe and justify the sample: sampling frame, sampling methods and technique, sampling characteristics and size.
• Inform how the data will be analysed : theme-based analysis for qualitative research and statistical analysis for quantitative research, or a combination of both for mixed approach)
• Explain how the methodology plan address all ethical concern. Please note: only provide an overview of YOUR research design and m

7. Reference List : Formatted using Harvard (Anglia) style.

8. Appendix : include proposed ethical approval form and informed consent form if relevant

Proposed Research Details :

Topic:

Summary of the proposed research project, including brief description of methodology (bullet points where applicable)

Ethics Checlist (Participants)

How do you propose to select your participants ?

Will your research involve adults who might be identified by you or anyone else reading the research ? (Yes/No). If yes, how will you obtain their consent?

Does your research involve children under eighteen years old ? (Yes/No)

Will your research take place in an institution ? (Yes/No)

Are in a position of power over participants ? (Yes/No), if yes, describe any ethical implication an dhow you deal with them

Describe any risk or harm to participants which might be associated with yoru research and how would you propose to minimese these risks

Privacy and Confidentiality How will you protect the confidentiality and privacy of your participants ?

Will it be possible to identify participants from published data ? (Yes/No), if yes, is there any ethical issue which may arise from such identification.

Data Collection and Storage Who will have access to the data?

How will you store the data in order to ensure its security

The presentation should contain the following information:

1. Research project title
2. Introduction to the research
3. Research problem and objectives
4. Literature review
5. Research design and methodology
6. Ethical consideration
7. Summary