The effectiveness of safe injection sites

CJ 300
Research Proposal Assignment: Putting It All Together
For this assignment you must put together the various pieces (homework assignments) of the research proposal you have worked on throughout the semester. You will not actually collect the data, but your research proposal should be of sufficient detail and clarity that you (or someone else) could do the research following the proposal description (think of it as a recipe). Make sure that it reads as one paper.
The following issues should be addressed in your paper. These steps can be used as an outline for the proposal; some of the items can be integrated. Use subheadings!!!!!!!: recommended subheadings are listed below in Bold and Underlined. Give your paper a title, include a title page.
Research Proposal Rubric/Questions
a.) Introduction/ Problem or Objective:……………………………………… 7pts
a. State the general problem area. What is your overall research topic and question? Why is this topic important? Why are you interested in this topic?
b.) Literature Review:…………………………………………………………15pts
a. Review 3-5 scholarly articles. Make sure and edit and address the feedback you
received on that homework assignment before including it.
b. Composite/Narrative and critique of what the literature says;
c. Strengths and weakness of the overall literature. Broad statement at the end of
the review that ties them all together. How does this inform what you would like to do?
c.) Research Questions or Hypothesis:………………………………………. 5pts
a. State the specific hypothesis(es) that you wish to examine. A hypothesis is a
statement, not a question. You must be clear of what you are stating.
b. Identify your independent and dependent variables.
c. If you do not have a hypothesis, you should state what it is you will be
researching and any expected relationships you will look for.
The items below should all be under the subheading Methods.
d.) Subjects of Study or Sampling:……………………………………………… 11pts
a. Who or what will you study? Will you need to sample? If yes, what kind of sampling design will you use and why? Explain your sampling procedure. Would you use a probability or a nonprobability sample? Pick the type of sample you would like to do from either of these two approaches (e.g., snowball or simple random sample [SRS]). Any difficulties you may encounter implementing your approach? (Hint: There’s usually always something.) If you will not need to sample, why not? NOTE: this section should not discuss a research method (i.e., surveys, experiments, interviews, etc.)—I want to know about your sampling method only.
e.) Measurement/ Conceptualization and Operationalization/ Variables: ……… 20pts total
a. What are the two (or more) concepts that you are trying to link in your hypothesis/research question? Conceptualize your two main concepts. (Be sure at least one concept is abstract. That is, relating gender to last year in school

b.
c.
d.
completed will not get many points. Social deviance is an example of an abstract concept. Questions? ASK ME.) Then include (conceptualize) 4 other relevant variables that you will include in your research proposal. Two may be demographic variables, the other two should be abstract variables. 5 pts
After conceptualizing, operationalize your variables. I need to be clear on how you will measure each concept. (E.g., if my variable was the murder rate, I would measure it using the FBI UCR reports—this has some strengths and some weaknesses; if my variable was depression, I would measure it using a psychological assessment that has been developed by psychiatrists to measure depression—this has some strengths and weaknesses as well.) Discuss the strengths and limitations of your measurement approach. This section here should closely tied to section (f). That is, do not say you will ask a question of a person if you are not using the interview/survey data collection method. Questions? Please ask. 5 pts
Identify the independent variable and the dependent variable in the hypothesis. How did you determine which variable was independent and which was dependent? Discuss what you need to establish a causal relationship (causation)? 5 pts
At what level will each variable be measured?
Nominal, ordinal, interval-ratio? Quantitative vs. Qualitative. 5 pts
f.) Data Collection Methods:…………………………………………………… 15pts
a. What type of research design/method will you use to collect and analyze your
data? Why did you select that design? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the selected design?
Surveys, interviews, participant observation (different types), existing records (court/police/university/etc.), existing statistics (UCR, NIBRS, others), secondary data analysis (data that was collected by someone else for a different purpose, but which may be used to answer my (your) research question, content analysis. Even if you decide you want to evaluate a program, you will have to use one of the above methods to evaluate that program.
All of these methodologies have strengths and weaknesses (they have to do with
reliability and validity threats).
b. Discuss the reliability and validity of the method(s) you chose. Is your chosen
method strong/weak in validity/reliability? What techniques can you use to assess the reliability and validity of each variable or of your instrument (survey/questionnaire/coding sheet, pilot studies etc.)?
g.) Ethical Considerations/
Other Limitations of the Study:……………………………………………………10pts
a. What, if any, ethical considerations enter into your project? How do you plan to handle these issues? Review what you learned in our chapter on ethics. What are some issues you will have to consider and account for? Are you dealing with a special population? 5 pts
b. Discuss any special problems or issues that you might experience in doing your research. For example, access to your participants, deception, records, etc. How will you deal with these issues? 5 pts

h.) References:…………………………………………………………………… 7pts a. Proper APA citation format… See Homework 2 or library APA citation
reference for.
i.) Grammar and Mechanics:…………………………………………………….10pts a. Is the writing clear, easy to follow, and does it meet the standards of
written English?
i. Is there a beginning, middle, and end?
ii. Does the piece flow well?
iii. Can you understand it?
iv. Are the sentences properly constructed?
v. Run-ons?
vi. Fragments?
vii. Mechanical/grammatical errors?
viii. APA proper citation provided after quote(s)?
Total points possible: 100
The paper length should be about 5-8 pages long—double-spaced. Use the Writing Center for help—it will be of great benefit to you and your GRADE. If you do not have access to University services, try to find someone who will proofread your writing. Use 12-point font Times New Roman with 1-inch margins all around. Final paper will be due SEE CANVAS. Submit through Canvas, through the assignment drop box. Papers submitted after the deadline will be counted late—see our syllabus for guidelines. No papers will be accepted after SEE CANVAS.