Aligning the Problem Statement Purpose Statement Research Questions

Aligning the Problem Statement, Purpose Statement, Research Question(s), and Hypotheses

Problem Statement • The problem statement should be 100 -200 words and include: – Citations from the literature – A general business problem – Specific business problem to be studied • The citations should support that the problem exists and needs to be researched

Purpose Statement • A mini story in 250 words or less that describes the intent of the research and includes: – Research method (qualitative, quantitative, mixed) – Research design is clearly stated • (for quantitative: variables briefly identified, independent, dependent (experimental study), or a correlation (relationships, comparison). – Sample population is identified and justified with references – Geographic location is identified – How study will contribute to knowledge or impact business practice

Linking the Purpose and Problem Statements • The specific research problem should be linked directly to the first sentence of the purpose statement. • Example: – Specific business problem: agricultural cooperatives are losing members. . . (citation). . . – Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore why membership in agricultural cooperatives appears to. . .

Aligning the Research Question • The research question(s) must align with the problem and purpose statements. – What would be a good research question for the specific problem: membership in agricultural cooperatives appears to. . . (citation). . . ? – There might be several different ones, but possibly: • Are cooperatives offering the services that their members need?

Hypotheses • For quantitative studies, there should be a hypothesis and null hypothesis for each question. – Research question 1 = H 1 o & H 1 a – Research question 2 = H 2 o & H 2 a • An example: – H 1 o: Agricultural cooperatives offer members desirable benefits. – H 1 a: Agricultural cooperatives do not offer members desirable benefits.

Conclusion • All research should include a problem statement that is supported by previous research citations and grounded in a theory or conceptual framework • The purpose statement should quickly summarize for the reader the what will be researched, how, who will be involved, and where it will occur • The research question should align with the problem and purpose statements