•1 page Is there a description of the researcher’s interests in choosing this pr

•1 page Is there a description of the researcher’s interests in choosing this problem or phenomenon for investigation?
• Is there a brief description of the general theory that was used to understand the phenomenon?
Add the theoretical and topic-specific assumptions. Theory of Planned Behavior (generic qualitative study)
Need for the Study 1 Page
This section focuses on the need for the study. The need for the study is often referred to as the “gap in the research literature” that your study addresses. It is often stated as something that is unknown or has not been previously researched. This section should clearly articulate how the study will relate to the current literature. This is done by describing findings from the research literature that define the gap. Typically, researchers will approach this by indicating that previous studies have found “A,” “B,” and “C;” but “D” had not been investigated. This section need not be lengthy, but should be very clear what the need for the study is and why it should be investigated.
Assumptions and Limitations
Assumptions 1 page
• Is there a description of the assumptions clear and include where the assumptions come from?
• Is there an explanation of the epistemological, ontological, and axiological philosophical assumptions that support the methodology and design?
• Are the theoretical assumptions discussed?
Theoretical assumptions Next, your theoretical framework (see the “Chapter Two” of this Guide for a full discussion of the “theoretical framework”) carries with it many particular assumptions. Some of them will bear on your study, and you will need to identify them.
Topic-specific assumptions Additionally, the previous research and literature on your topic may reveal other topic-specific assumptions made by researchers in your field.
Limitations Typically 1 page
• Is there a description of the limitations of the methodology, approach, and design used for the research? (Note that in Chapter 5, a more thorough discussion of specific limitations that may have happened during the process of performing the research, such as not getting a large enough sample. Here in Chapter One, the focus is more on the design of the research and its limitations).
Delimitations (intentional areas not investigated) 1 page
• Are the delimitations or artificial boundaries of the study described?
There is a second class of limitations: things that an educated or expert reader might expect your study to investigate that you are not going to investigate. Put generally, these limitations are “things the study will not investigate.” (“Things the study will not investigate” are often called delimitations because they create artificial boundaries, they delimit, your study’s focus.) To identify such delimitations, you will usually rely on two main sources: your literature review of the general problem and your theoretical orientation.