Final Project: The Research Proposal
Purpose: To provide a compelling rationale (Chapter 1) and process (Chapter 3) for addressing an unanswered problem or question in the field of nutrition and dietetics.
Required Elements:
Title Page
Table of Contents (TOC)
Chapter 1: Introduction
Overview
Narrative hook (broad focus)
The research problem (narrowed focus)
Studies that have addressed the problem
Deficiencies in past literature
The importance of the proposed research
Purpose of study
Research Aims and Hypotheses
Definition of Terms (including the operational definitions of variables)
Delimitations and Limitations
Chapter 3: Methods
Participants and study design
Describe subject selection and sample size determination process (appendix?) (Inclusion/exclusion criteria: age, gender, health status, activity status, medications, BMI, etc.)
Recruitment strategy and randomization strategy
State IRB approval and written consent will be obtained
State research design (e.g., randomized controlled trial)
Describe blinding, study duration, timing of measurements
Describe the independent variable in detail: specific diet, specific supplement, exercise protocol, etc.
Protocol procedures/dependent variables
Describe the study protocol in detail. Describe monitoring procedures, use of questionnaires etc.
Flow chart for design (appendix?*)
Laboratory analyses (appendix?*)
Describe blood/urine collection and processing (appendix?*)
Reference procedures and provide some details
Statistical analyses
State how data are presented (mean±SD)
Statistical tests and statistical program used (correlation or t-test)
State level of probability (p<0.05)
