International Cultural Adaptation

Quantitative Proposal Assignment
The purpose of this assignment is to give you experience preparing a detailed methodology for gathering quantitative data in the form of a survey. The ultimate goal of this assignment is for you to be able to incorporate your understanding of the key elements of survey design and sampling into a written blueprint for gathering data. Given the ubiquitous nature of surveys in our society, especially with an increasing number of online and email surveys, you will likely find yourself in a position where you are asked to comment on gathering data using a survey in whatever field of work you are interested in or organization that you choose to be a member of.
Your quantitative proposal is to be oriented towards gathering data to investigate the research question indicated in your literature review assignment. You may only significantly deviate from that topic/question after receiving prior approval from the instructor. Your proposal should reflect your mastery of the concepts covered throughout the entirety of the first half of this course. In particular, your proposal should demonstrate your understanding of: research ethics, conceptualization and measurement, survey design, survey administration, and survey sampling. A successful research proposal, quantitative or qualitative, explains to the reader exactly how you will conduct your study and does not leave significant gaps that lead the reader to wonder “but what about…”. At the same time, because of a firm maximum page limit, you will need to practice being concise and clear in your writing. These skills will be of particular importance should you find yourself submitting a research proposal to an organization you are requesting funds from, or to a person with higher rank/status in your organization.
To successfully complete this assignment, you will need to do the following:
1. Provide an introduction to the topic under study, as well as the particular research question(s) to be answered. Concepts related to the research question should also be specified.
2. Identify the particular survey methodology that will be used to collect data and a rationale for this decision.
3. Identify the measurements that will be used to answer your research question. Measurements of the demographics of the sample are also required.
4. Identify the population and your sampling strategy, as well as provide a rationale for your choice in sample and sampling strategy. You should include here your strategies for increasing the likelihood respondents will participate (i.e., cover letter, mailing strategies).
5. Indicate how you will protect your research subject, as well as identifying any potential ethical issues and how they will be addressed.
6. Briefly describe the analysis strategy that will be used to answer your research question.
7. State your expectations (hypotheses) of what you expect to find in analysis.
8. Conclude with a brief summary statement of the value of this particular proposed research.

You will be able to find examples on BlackBoard of a quantitative methods proposal written for a previous researching society class, as well as a literature review and quantitative proposal written for a graduate level course. The purpose of this is to give you examples of different levels of writing as well as examples of how to format a quantitative proposal. It is important to note that the methods proposal for the graduate level course involves secondary data analysis, but will still be useful in regards to helping you think about measurement and analysis strategies.

Format:
Your paper needs to be at least 4-6 pages long, and is not to exceed 10 pages in length. All quantitative proposals are to be double spaced, use 12 point Times New Roman font, page numbers included in the bottom right of the footer, and have 1 inch margins on all sides. You are to have a title page (which is not included in your page count) that includes your name, the title of your proposed research, the instructor’s name, the course name, and the date. All contents of the title page are to be centered vertically and horizontally, and no page numbers are to be included on the title page.

Rewrite:
You will receive an “ungraded” review of your draft highlighting areas to be improved. You are expected to deal with each issue raised and to rewrite that section of your paper addressing the concerns highlighted in the review of your paper.

Submission:
You are required to submit your rough and final drafts by 11:59pm on the dates listed above on BlackBoard in the corresponding assignment located under the Major Assignments folder. Submitting the rough draft after the listed due date will result in the final grade for the assignment being lowered by a full 10 percent. You will not be able to access the final draft submission link until you have submitted a quality rough draft.