THE RESEARCH

PAPER
CHAPTER 1

This part explains the background of the

research problem, states a set of specific
research questions, and of optional
hypotheses or assumptions. The purpose of
this section is to let the readers see the

INTRODUCTION connection of the purposes of your research

questions not only with the current world
condition, but also with theoretical principles
that underlie your topic and other aspects of
your research.
 The introduction is an important and challenging part of any
research paper as it establishes your writing style, the
quality of your research, and your credibility as a scholar.
 It is your first chance to make a good impression on your
reader. The introduction gives the reader background and
context to convey the importance of your research.
 It should begin by broadly introducing your topic, then
narrowing to your focused research question or hypothesis.
The introduction to a research paper is where you set up your topic and approach for
the reader. It has several key goals:

 Present your topic and get the reader interested

 Provide background or summarize existing research
 Position your own approach
 Detail your specific research problem and problem statement
 Give an overview of the paper’s structure

The first job of the introduction is to tell the reader what your topic is and why it’s interesting or
important. This is generally accomplished with a strong opening hook. The hook is a striking
opening sentence that clearly conveys the relevance of your topic. Think of an interesting fact
or statistic, a strong statement, a question, or a brief anecdote that will get the reader
wondering about your topic.
BACKGROUND OF THE
STUDY
• The background of a study is the first section of the
paper and establishes the context underlying the
research. It contains the rationale, the key problem
statement, and a brief overview of research
questions that are addressed in the rest of the
paper.
• The background forms the crux of the study
because it introduces an unaware audience to the
research and its importance in a clear and logical
manner. At times, the background may even explore
whether the study builds on or refutes findings from
previous studies.
• Any relevant information that the readers need to
know before delving into the paper should be made
available to them in the background.
STATEMENT OF THE
PROBLEM
• The problem statement is your
opportunity to explain why you care and
what you propose to do in the way of
researching the problem.
• A problem statement is an explanation
in research that describes the issue that
is in need of study. What problem is the
research attempting to address?
• Having a Problem Statement allows the
reader to quickly understand the
purpose and intent of the research.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

• The Purpose of the Study illustrates what the study will

do, which should reflect the statement of the problem.
• The purpose also discusses how you will conduct your
study and the kinds of comparisons you will make. The
most essential component to the purpose of the study
is introducing the Research Questions and Hypotheses
(if applicable) of your study.
 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE
STUDY

• The significance of a study is its importance. It refers to the

contribution(s) to and impact of the study on a research field.
• The significance also signals who benefits from the research
findings and how.
• It gives you an opportunity to prove the study’s impact on your field
of research, the new knowledge it contributes, and the people who
will benefit from it.
 THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK
• A theoretical framework consists of concepts, together with their
definitions, and existing theory/theories that are used for your particular
study.
• The theoretical framework must demonstrate an understanding of
theories and concepts that are relevant to the topic of your research
paper and that will relate it to the broader fields of knowledge in the class
you are taking.
• The theoretical framework may be rooted in a specific theory, in which
case, you are expected to test the validity of an existing theory in relation
to specific events, issues, or phenomena. Many social science research
papers fit into this rubric.
 THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK
• For example, Peripheral Realism theory, which categorizes perceived
differences between nation-states as those that give orders, those that
obey, and those that rebel, could be used as a means for understanding
conflicted relationships among countries in Africa. A test of this theory
could be the following: Does Peripheral Realism theory help explain intra-
state actions, such as, the growing split between southern and northern
Sudan that may likely lead to the creation of two nations?
DEFINITION OF TERMS

• The “Definitions of Terms” gives your readers an understanding of the

concepts or factors that will be discussed throughout your study, as well
as contextual information as to how you will be using those concepts in
your study. The “Definitions of Terms” ensures that your readers will
understand the components of your study in the way that you will be
presenting them, because often your readers may have their own
understanding of the terms, or not be familiar with them at all. In this
section, you provide a list of terms that will be used throughout the
dissertation and definitions of each of them.
The rule of thumb is to include and define terms that are important to your study or
are used frequently throughout the research but are not common knowledge. You
also want to include terms that have a unique meaning within the scope of your
study. You do not need to include terms that most, if not all, of your readers will
understand without having definitions provided.
For example, something like leadership probably does not need to be included in your
“Definitions of Terms,” but laissez-faire leadership would be a good choice to include.
However, if your study is about leadership, then it may be beneficial to the
understanding of your readers to define leadership based on how you are using it
within your study. Things like success or achievement may need definition as well, if
you are using them within your study, as the readers will need to know what measures
or markers of success or achievement that you will focus on within your study.
LIMITATIONS OF THE
STUDY
• Research limitations are, at the simplest level, the weaknesses of the
study, based on factors that are often outside of your control as the
researcher. These factors could include things like time, access to
funding, equipment, data or participants.
• For example, if you weren’t able to access a random sample of
participants for your study and had to adopt a convenience sampling
strategy instead, that would impact the generalizability of your findings
and therefore reflect a limitation of your study.
 LIMITATIONS OF THE
STUDY
• Research limitations can also emerge from the research design itself.
• For example, if you were undertaking a correlational study, you wouldn’t
be able to infer causality (since correlation doesn’t mean certain
causation). Similarly, if you utilised online surveys to collect data from
your participants, you naturally wouldn’t be able to get the same degree of
rich data that you would from in-person interviews.
1. Limited Access to Information
Your study may involve some organizations and people in the research, and sometimes you may get
1.
problems with access to these organizations. Due to this, you need to redesign and rewrite your study.
You need to explain the cause of limited access to your readers.

2. Time Limits
Needless to say, all the researchers have their deadlines when they need to complete their studies.
Sometimes, time constraints can affect your research negatively. If this happened, you need to
acknowledge it and mention a need for future research to solve the main problem.

3. Conflicts on Biased Views and Personal Issues

Some researchers can have biased views because of their cultural background or personal views.
Needless to say, it can affect the research. Apart from this, researchers with biased views can choose
only those results and data that support their main arguments. If you want to avoid this problem, pay
your attention to the problem statement and proper data gathering.
 SUMMARY

• Then the author would wrap up the

chapter with the summarization of
the chapter and a transition to the
next chapter.
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
• BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
• PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
• THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
• DEFINITION OF TERMS
• LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
• SUMMARY CHAPTER 1