For example, your research question might be “What is the effect of prolonged TV-watching on children?” You can then use that question to build your study around. Narrow down your research topic if it’s too broad. A broad research topic makes breaking the objectives down much more difficult. A research question like “How can we save the environment?” is a huge question. Something like “What safety measures would prevent ocean pollution?” is more specific and attainable. [2] X Research source
Remember that in most cases, you shouldn’t state that your study will prove or disprove something exactly since you haven’t done the work yet. Don’t say “This study proves that honey is not an effective treatment for acne. ” Instead, make it something like “This study will demonstrate whether or not honey is an effective treatment for acne. ”
If your research question was “What is the effect of prolonged TV-watching on children?” then there are a few categories you could look at. Objectives wrapped up within that question might be: 1) the incidence of eyestrain among children who watch a lot of TV, 2) their muscular development, 3) their level of socialization with other children. Design your objectives around answering these questions.
You could always state in your research proposal that you plan to design future experiments or studies to answer additional questions. Most experiments leave unanswered questions and subsequent studies try to tackle them.
A general objective might be “Establish the effect of diet on mental health. " Some specific goals in that project could be 1) Determine if processed foods make depression worse, 2) Identify foods that improve mood, 3) Measure if portion sizes have an impact on mood. Not all research proposals want you to divide between general and specific goals. Remember to follow the instructions for the proposal you’re writing.
The best goals align with each letter in the SMART acronym. The weaker ones are missing some letters. For example, you might come up with a topic that’s specific, measurable, and time-bound, but not realistic or attainable. This is a weak objective because you probably can’t achieve it. Think about the resources at your disposal. Some objectives might be doable with the right equipment, but if you don’t have that equipment, then you can’t achieve that goal. For example, you might want to map DNA structures, but you can’t view DNA without an electron microscope. Ask the same question for your entire project. Is it attainable overall? You don’t want to try to achieve too much and overwhelm yourself. The specific words in this acronym sometimes change, but the sentiment is the same. Your objectives should overall be clear and specific, measurable, feasible, and limited by time.
Verbs like use, understand, or study is vague and weak. Instead, choose words like calculate, compare, and assess. Your objective list might read like this: 1) Compare the muscle development of children who play video games to children who don’t, 2) Assess whether or not video games cause eyestrain, 3) Determine if videogames inhibit a child’s socialization skills. Some proposals use the infinitive form of verbs, like “to measure” or “to determine. ” This is also fine but refer to the proposal instructions to see if this is correct.
You can further explain your objectives further in the research proposal. No need to elaborate a lot when you’re just listing them. If you’re having trouble shortening an objective to 1 sentence, then you probably need to split it into 2 objectives. It might also be too complicated for this project.
For example, “Determine if sunlight is harmful” is too vague. Instead, state the objective as “Determine if prolonged sun exposure increases subjects’ risk of skin cancer. ” It’s helpful to let someone else read your proposal and see if they understand the objectives. If they’re confused, then you need to be more specific.
For example, don’t say “Measure the effect of radiation on living tissue. ” Instead, say “Determine what level of radiation is dangerous to living tissue. ” Remember, don’t state the objectives as you’ve already done the experiments. They’re still not answered.
This is a common format for research proposals, but not universal. Always follow the format that the instructions provided. Depending on how long your introduction has to be, you might also list the objectives there. This depends on whether or not you have room.
At the very least, the abstract should list the general objective. This tells the readers what your study is working towards.
In some research projects, the general objective is called a long-term goal instead. Adjust your language to the proposal requirements. Some proposals directions may just want the specific objectives rather than a division between the general and specific ones. Don’t divide them if the instructions tell you not to.
Your introduction may be as follows:“My long-term objective with this project is determining whether or not prolonged video-game playing is harmful to children under 5. I will accomplish this aim by meeting the following objectives:1) Compare the muscle development of children who play videogames to children who don’t2) Assess whether or not videogames cause eyestrain3) Determine if videogames inhibit a child’s socialization skills” The specific objectives are usually listed as a bullet or numbered points. However, follow the instructions given.
