St. Paul University PhilippinesRESEARCH FORMATBy: Charissa Camile F. Delgado Isabella Hossana

PARTS OF RESEARCH

TITLE PAGEThe title page is the first thing the reader sees when considering the manuscript; therefore, it should contain information that is as clear and to the point as possible. The title itself should be able to stand alone, convey the importance of the idea, communicate the content, and should be no more than 15 words.The title should not include reference to method and results, and should not begin with redundancies like A Study of or An Experimental Investigation of.

ABSTRACTThe abstract is the summary of the contents of a thesis/dissertation. It provides enough information for the reader to learn the purpose and the results of the research that is being reported and does so in concise and forthright fashion.

Length of the abstract varies from a maximum of 350 words as specified by Dissertation Abstract International to a maximum of 600 words as suggested by Bautista & Vina, (1982).

CHAPTER 1 THE PROBLEM AND REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATUREThis chapter provides the framework for the problem that is being studied and a context for the statement of the purpose of the study. Sufficient information and justification on why the researcher considered the problem worthy to be investigated is the ultimate goal of this major section.

Background of the Study (Introduction/Rationale)This portion aims to acquaint the reader of the problem to be dealt with by describing the facts, personal concerns, or actual conditions and situations in the environment (of interest in the study) which become the basis for selecting the research problem.Gaps in knowledge Need to clarify conflicting practices in a specific field

Need for data base in evaluating practices and policiesDevelopment of new or better research procedures for scholarly work

Validation of certain theories/principles

Review of Related LiteratureThe purpose of reviewing the past literature on the topic is to expand the context of the study, to help further define the problem, and to provide an empirical basis for the hypotheses. This section cites references of significant publications and current journal articles related to the problem. In summarizing related studies, avoid nonessential details; emphasize major findings and methodological issues. This section should be terminated with a coherent and systematic synthesis of all information reviewed.

Conceptual/Theoretical FrameworkExplains in narrative form, the main dimensions to be studied the key factors or variables and the presumed relationships among them.Getting the framework in a single diagram forces the researcher to find the general constructs that hold the phenomena, to map relationships, to divide variables that conceptually or functionally distinct, and to work with all the information at once.

General constructs come from theories and previous empirical research. As a general rule, the more parsimonious the framework, the better it is.

A conceptual framework is a tentative theoretical scheme that the researcher has developed or his/her research problem. It is introduced by a discussion of the theoretical orientation used by the researcher.Theoretical framework on the other hand, presents an integrated set of propositions espoused by an individual or group of individuals which has generally been recognized.

Statement of the Problem This portion should state the problem clearly as a main problem, written either as a declarative statement or as a question broken down to specific subproblems, usually also written in the form of questions.

Qualitative research does not test hypothesis.

Guidelines in statingIt is recommended that hypothesis should be stated in its expected outcome or finding (research hypothesis) rather than in the null form. However, in a highly quantitative study, the null hypothesis is to be preferred.

It should be stated in testable form.

Level of significance (alpha level) is usually at .05 and is set before testing.

Significance of the Study

It describes the theoretical and practical values derived from the study. This section may also be presented in terms of who will benefit from the investigations and in what ways.

Scopes and DelimitationsIt specifies the precise boundaries of the study. It indicates what the study will include and what it will not include. Scope would refer to the parameters of the study, its coverage, method, and subjects. Delimitations refer to what are the limiting aspects of the study as well as restrictions to generalizability of results.

Definition of Terms It lists and defines the principal terms used, particularly where the terms have different meanings to different people.

It includes both a conceptual and operational or behavioral definitions, that is, how the variables are manipulated or measured in the study.

CHAPTER 2 METHODS AND PROCEDURESThis chapter describes how the study is conducted. This information is reported in sufficient detail so that anyone can refer to this section and replicate the study.The components included in this chapter are: Research Design, Sample and Sampling Procedure, Subjects, Participants or Respondents, Instruments and other sources of data, Data collection, Data analysis

RESEARCH DESIGNThis portion describes the overall plan for the investigation. The design may be descriptive survey, correlational, experimental, etc.

SAMPLE AND SAMPLING PROCEDUREThe researcher should describe the group from which the sample is drawn, the method of sampling and the rationale for the sampling method.

It also includes how many subjects or participants were involved in the study.

INSTRUMENTS AND OTHER SOURCES OF DATAIt describes each of the instruments used for data gathering in terms of process of preparation, information about administration, scoring, and interpretation, evidences of reliability and validity.

DATA COLLECTIONThis portion discusses in detail the procedures, techniques, and strategies employed in data gathering. Detailed discussion is required to enable another researcher to replicate the method.

DATA ANALYSISIt identifies the statistical designs used to analyze data including level of significance employed and mode of analysis.

It specifies which variable s were used in the analysis. Statistical formulas should be included in the discussion. For complex statistical designs (e.g., regression analysis, factorial analysis, etc.), there is a need to include a stepby-step procedure in using them.

CHAPTER 3

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONResults This subsection reports the findings objectively without interpretation. Modes of presentation includes: Tabular, Graphical, Qualitative

RESULTSThe presentation can be done by first, briefly stating the main results or findings. Then report the data in sufficient detail to justify the conclusions. Mention all relevant results including those that run counter to the hypothesis. Do not include individual scores or raw data, with the exception of single-case studies or illustrative samples.

Tables provide exact values and can efficiently illustrate main effects, figures of professional quality attributes of a test, the degrees of freedom, the probability level, and the direction of the effect. Be sure to include descriptive statistics (e.g., means or medians); where means are reported, always include an associated measure of variability, such as standard deviations, variances or mean square errors. Statistical significance: Commonly used alpha levels are .05 and .01. Before you begin to report specific results, you should routinely state the particular alpha level you selected for the statistical tests you conducted.

DISCUSSIONIt begins with a summary of the salient findings. Then, evaluate and interpret their implications, especially with respect to the original hypothesis. In here, the researcher is free to examine, interpret, and qualify the results, as well as draw inferences from them. Emphasize any theoretical consequences of the results and validity of the conclusions. The literature review may again be cited to explain the results. Procedural limitations are also discussed.

Guide questions for the researcher to come up with an understandable and integrated discussion are:What have I contributed in this study?

How has my study helped to resolve the original problem? What practical and theoretical implications can I draw from my study?

CHAPTER 4

SUMMARY,

and RECOMMENDATIONS

CONCLUSIONS

Briefly summarize the findings of the study; wording of the summary and abstract should not be exactly the same; summary is usually longer than the abstract presented at the beginning of the report.

General statements or conclusions should be logically inferred from the results. Generalizations should be clearly delimited. Conclusions may either support or not support the hypotheses.

It includes suggestions which may involve change in policies, practices, etc.

It includes questionnaires, checklists, and interview protocols developed for the study; computer printouts of statistical tests; and other supplementary materials.

ESSENTIAL GUIDELINES IN USING THE APA WRITING STYLETyping Instructions1. Make margins uniform and a minimum of 1 inch on all sides. (Each page should contain no more than 27 lines of 12-point type using a standard font such as Geneva, Times New Roman, or Courier. Do not use special type styles such as Script or Italics.) 2. Typed and word-processed manuscripts should be left justified.

3. Do not hyphenate words at the end of the sentence; end each line of text with a complete word. 4. Double space references. all lines including

5. Every page should be assigned a number. On the title page and on the half-title pages introducing major sections, the page numbers are not shown.

6. Lower-case Roman numerals are used for the preliminary parts. The title page is assigned i although this numeral is not written. The numbering begins with ii on the next page of the preliminaries. The body of the text, the references, and the appendices are numbered continuously with Arabic numerical.Page numbers are located in the upper-right corner of each page 1 inch from the top and right margins. (For all practical purposes the first line of typing on each page is reserved for the page number.)

CITATIONSEach quotation is accompanied by a parenthetical citation that includes the name (s) of the author(s), the publication date, and the page(s) where the quotation is located. If 5 or more words from the source are used and in the same order in your paper, the rules for quoting need to be followed.

All paraphrased works must also be cited parenthetically within body of the paper with one exception: In summarizing/critiquing a single article, paraphrasing does not have to be referenced. Always paraphrase accurately. Citations for paraphrased works require the surnames of the authors and the date.

When a work has multiple authors the citation should link the last authors name with the others using the ampersand symbol if the citation is in parenthesis; otherwise the word and is used.

Use only the source that you have directly accessed.

Obtain permission to quote when necessary. APA copyrighted works require written permission before using a total of over 500 words from that work. Quotations from a single source should be limited to fewer than 500 words.

A complete quotation of less than 40 words should be incorporated within the papers text, begun and ended with double quotation (i. e., ) marks, and must be followed by a parenthetical reference citing the author(s), date of publication, and the page(s) where the quotation is printed.

Quotations of 40 or more words must be presented: a) as indented (5-7 spaces from the left margin) block, b) without quotation marks, c) followed by a parenthetical reference that cites the page(s) where the quoted materials are located in the original work. Quotations that cite or quote another copyrighted work should be avoided.

The uses of ellipsis () points are not recommended. These are used when one omits part of an original source (i.e., when not quoting an entire sentence). Footnotes are not recommended.

References refer to the formal list of

CONSTRUCTING REFERNCES

materials which constitute the actual sources of information on the particular subject under investigation.It is important because it furnishes the readers information as to the sources of materials used in the development of the subject. After the last page of the text, a blank page follows containing the single word which is fully capitalized, centered and fixed symmetrically.

CONSTRUCTING REFERENCESThe list of references is always started on a new page. The word References should be centered at the top of the page. All sources cited in the manuscript must be listed in alphabetical order in the reference list.

References are not bibliographies. Bibliographies refer the interested reader to additional sources for further reading that were not specifically cited in the manuscript, and are not used in APA-style manuscript.Each reference is typed doublespaced. The first line of each reference is indented either 5,6 or 7 spaces (the same spacing used in the paper to indent paragraph.

The general format for reference includes the components:

a book following

First, all authors are listed (in the order in which the names appeared on the original manuscript by their surname followed by the initials of their first and middle name (if known). The date of publication is presented in parentheses after the listing of authors, and is followed by a period.

The underlined title follows the publication date, and only the first word of the title is capitalized with two exceptions: Proper nouns, such as a persons name is capitalized and when the books complete title uses a colon, the first letter of the word following the colon is capitalized. If the book is a second or later edition, after the title, in parenthesis without underlining, the edition is indicated using the following type of abbreviations: (2 ed.).

The last component of a book reference is publication information which includes the city where the book was published and the name of the publisher (city and publisher are separated by a colon). If the name location of the city is not well known, the citys name should be followed by the abbreviation of the state where the city is located.

Information about the publisher should be as brief as possible (e.g., do not use Co., Inc.) in the articles title is capitalized (again, proper nouns such as persons name or use of a colon in the article title require additional capitalization). The article titled is followed by period.

The next part of the journal reference is the name of the journal, underlined, with each word capitalized except, for prepositions and conjunctions (e.g., of, and), followed by a comma, and the numeric volume number underlined. Issue number follows the volume number, in parentheses, but are only used when each issue of the journal begins with page 1; issue number is not underlined and there is no space between it and the volume number.

A comma separates the journals volume number and the inclusive range of pages where the articles are published in the journal without the abbreviation pp. or the word pages. The general format for a conference paper requires that the authors be listed the same way they are listed in book and journal references. After the authors names the year and month of presentation, separated by a comma, is given in parentheses, followed by a period.

After the presentation date is the title of the paper. It is underlined; with only the first word of the title capitalized (exceptions include proper names and the word following the colon). The title is followed by a period. The last part of a convention paper reference is a short statement (abbreviated) in which the meeting was held.

Example of a Reference to a Conference Paper:Hummel, J. H., Huitt, W.G., Michael, R., & Walters, L. (1994, April). What you measure is what you get. A data-based presentation made at the annual meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, New Orleans, LA.

At present, the general format for referencing electronic media is: a) authors surnames and initials separated by commas in the order in which they appear on the paper, with the last authors surname connected to the others with an ampersand;b) the date, in parentheses, of publication or copyright (if not available, the date of the research is used) followed by a period;

c) the full title, underlined, of the source followed, brackets, [ ], by a description of the nature of the source (e.g., on-line, CD-ROM) ending with a period, and d) an availability statement that permits a reader to retrieve the document. Do not end the reference with a period.

Example of an ERIC Document Reference:Pollock, J.S. (1992). Chapter 1 Early literacy summer school: Final evaluation report. Columbus, OH: Columbus public Schools. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 350 585)

Authors surname and initials Date of completion in parentheses Followed by a period Full title of the thesis or dissertation underlined Label of whether it is an unpublished masters thesis or dissertation or followed by a comma Name of the college or university where the graduate degree was obtained followed by a comma Location of the college or university.

The Format for Referencing an Unpublished Thesis or Dissertation

Example of a Reference to an Unpublished Thesis:Almeida, D.E. (91989). Fathers participation in family work: Consequences for fathers stress and father-child relations. Unpub lished masters thesis, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Reference:American Psychological Association (1994) Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association