Background To The Study and Research Problem

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

RESEARCH PROPOSAL WRITING

BY Dr.Nyonje

THE INTRODUCTION
The Research Proposal
• All research proposals use roughly
the same format. All have the
same basic structure and format.
The rationale is that readers of
research reports (i.e., decision
makers, funders, etc.) will know
exactly where to find the
information they are looking for,
regardless of the individual report.
The Research Proposal
• Once you've learned the basic rules
for research proposal and report
writing, you can apply them to any
research discipline.
• The same rules apply to writing a

proposal, a thesis, a dissertation, or
any business research report.
Content
• Background to the study

• The research problem
Background to the study
• Setting or position of the study

• Brief overview of the problem
• Demonstrates researcher’s view
of the research problem
• Shows the reader that the
researcher knows the study area
Qualities of an effective background to
the study
• Brief and specific – summary of
literature review (1- 1.5 pages)
• Engages interest of reader, excites
• Glimpse of the problem
• Structure of the proposal
• Language is simple and straightforward
• Informative and persuasive
Steps…..1
1. Analyze the topic, title and
variables
2. Locate relevant literature
3. Sieve the literature and select
only the most specific
4. Compile the material – books,
journal articles and take notes
Steps…..2
5.Formulate the background to the study- cite
previous studies, expound on the factors
necessitating the need for the study and
portray familiarity with the topic etc.
6.Theoretical fit- show how study fits into

broader context of current theory and
relevant research
WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROBLEM?
• Situation in need of a
solution, improvement, or
alteration; or a
discrepancy between the
way things are & the way
they ought to be.
• Current, significant area of
concern
• A situation that needs answers
• If a situation has no possible
answers then it makes no sense
expending resources researching it.
• Take this statement, “everybody
wants to go to heaven but nobody
wants to die”.
• A research on how people can live
forever makes little or no sense.
A research problem may be described as
an incongruence; a discrepancy between
what is and what ought to be.
• It may be also described as the gap in
knowledge that needs
• A problem statement is the description
of an issue currently existing which
needs to be addressed.
• It provides the context for the research
study and generates the questions
which the research aims to answer.
• A good problem statement is just
one sentence (with several
paragraphs of elaboration).
For example it could be:
"The frequency of job layoffs is
creating fear, anxiety, and a loss of
productivity in middle management
workers”
• Situation in need of a solution,

improvement, or alteration; or a
discrepancy between the way things
are & the way they ought to be.
• Current, significant area of concern
Definition: Situation in need of a

solution, improvement, or
• A problem does not mean something wrong,
but any situation where a gap in knowledge
exists.
• Something is working well – why?

• Something has failed – Why?
Research is needed where there is no

information to explain why.
Justification of need
• Knowledge Gap
• Conflicting findings
• Omission of variables in previous studies
• Methodology
• Current issue
• Significance for the field
• Cite previous findings to justify your problem
Key phrases for stating a problem
• Little is known about...
• Findings of previous studies are
conflicting………
• Few studies in this area have been
done….(cite a few and show the gap)
• A problem must indicate the variables
being addressed and their relationships.
• Address the root problem, not the

symptom.
• The problem is clarified after literature

review.
• Refer to literature to support the
problem.
• Should be brief and precise – one
paragraph to one page.
Please note!
• In some qualitative methodologies, a

statement of variables will not be possible and
should not be done. However, an explanation
of the qualitative methodology and the
parameters of the research methodology
should be explained.
Example 1
 “The impact of abortion on academic performance of female
students in secondary schools and colleges in Nairobi province”
 The overall research problem addressed in this study is that despite
an increase in the number of female students in secondary schools
and colleges procuring abortion, little has been done to analyze the
impact of abortion on education. Studies carried in Kenya show that
about 300,000 abortions occur annually among teenage girls aged
between 15-19 years (Njau and Radney, 1995). Abortion is
documented as the leading cause of admissions of female teenagers
in Kenyan hospitals (Lema and Njau, 1991). However, the impact of
abortion on school performance has not been studied adequately.
This study therefore seeks to investigate the impact of abortion on
the academic performance of female students in secondary schools
and colleges in Nairobi province.
Example 2
• INFLUENCE OF INTERNAL AUDIT IN ACHIEVING PUBLIC SECTOR CORPORATE
GOVERNANCE IN KENYA: THE CASE OF GOVERNMENT MINISTRIES
• A considerable number of studies have been conducted on public sector audit

and corporate governance (Context). According to Beasley (1999) the quality
of financial reporting is higher for corporations that have strong and
independent internal audit departments compared to those without or with
weak departments in charge of audit activities. Abbott et al. (2004) examining
the performance characteristics of internal audit committees and the
likelihood of financial statements drew a similar conclusion. (Supporting
evidence)
• In Kenya, scandals involving the public sector such as the Goldenberg scandal,
Anglo leasing and the existence of evident structural gaps raise serious
questions on the role of internal audit thus making this study even more
useful. This calls for further research to build on the existing and assumed
roles of internal audit (Kowledge gap).
Example 2
• In his research, Gendron et al. (2004) conducted an investigation on the
practices of effective internal audit activities and indicated a positive
association between the quality of oversight roles and independence of
internal audit players. King (2004) notes that an effective internal audit
function should ensure that management processes are adequate to
identify and monitor significant risks; confirm the effective operation of
the established internal control systems; ensure credible processes for
feedback on risk management and assurance; and objective confirmation
that the board receives the right quality of assurance and information
from management (variables of concern)
Example 2
• In his research, Philip (2005) identified internal audit as a means of
enhancing corporate governance.
• However in the awake of international scandals involving large amounts of
financial resources the influence of internal audit should be re-examined
and strengthened. DeFond and Francis (2005), in a summary of audit
research after the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, indicated that more
research needs to be done on the influence of internal audit in enhancing
best practice and governance in all organizations.
• This study, therefore, seeks to investigate the influence of internal audit
on achieving public sector corporate governance in Kenya: The case of
Government Ministries (The statement)
Conclusion
• While the problem statement itself is just one
sentence, it is always accompanied by several
paragraphs that elaborate on the problem.
• Present persuasive arguments why the
problem is important enough to study. Include
the opinions of others (politicians, futurists,
other professionals, scholars etc).
Conclusion
• Explain how the problem relates to business,
social or political trends by presenting data
that demonstrates the scope and depth of the
problem. Try to give dramatic and concrete
illustrations of the problem. After writing this
section, make sure you can easily identify the
single sentence that is the problem statement.

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MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

RESEARCH PROPOSAL WRITING

• The same rules apply to writing a

• Background to the study

• Setting or position of the study

6.Theoretical fit- show how study fits into

• Situation in need of a solution,

Definition: Situation in need of a

• Something is working well – why?

Research is needed where there is no

• Address the root problem, not the

• The problem is clarified after literature

• In some qualitative methodologies, a

• A considerable number of studies have been conducted on public sector audit

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