GUIDELINES IN WRITING CHAPTER 1 OF A RESEARCH PAPER

Chapter 1 – THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Parts:

I. Introduction

What to discuss in this part?

(1) Introduce the problem or issue. Mention relevant literature to present

the scope of the study and its problem. You can use statistics and
literature that can present or describe the current state or situation of
the problem.
(2) Explain your reasons in pursuing the topic. Identify factors that gave
you rise to your study.
(3) Present the context in which the topic is viewed and area of
investigation.
(4) Include the setting of the study with historical description as well as the
participants or respondents.

II. Theoretical/Conceptual Framework of the Study

What to discuss in this part?

(1) Outlines the theory/theories that you want to espouse or verify. Explain
how the theory/theories is/are going to be operationalized in the study.
Discuss each theory in terms of its significance, relevance and how it
fits to the present study.
(2) Justify the rational behind the investigation. Discuss the relevance of
each variable involved in your current study.
(3) Give an overview of the study based on the research paradigm or
schematic diagram.

III. Schematic Diagram of the Study

What to present/show in this part?

(1) The figure that represents the components of the research process.
(2) The framework that shows the interplay of variables involved in your
study. It serves as a pattern or model.

IV. Statement of the Problem

What to discuss in this part?

(1) State the research objectives (general & specific) and what the
research expects to achieve and why it should be undertaken. The
articulation of the objectives should use the SMART guide. By SMART,
 we refer to the proposed objectives to be specific, measurable,
attainable, relevant/result oriented, and time bound.
(2) The research objectives should be clear enough as to what the study
intends to accomplish or achieve and must be attainable within the
timeframe and the required resources, not what the researcher intends
to do.

V. Hypotheses

What to present/include in this part?

(1) The null hypothesis refers to a hypothesis that states that there is
no relationship between two population parameters.
(2) The alternative hypothesis is the opposite of the null hypothesis that
states that there is relationship between two population parameters.

VI. Significance of the Study

What to discuss in this part?

(1) Present the contributions of your research to various sectors or group

of persons. State here how the person or groups will benefit your
study.
(2) Answer the question “Why is your research important?”
(3) Explain in paragraph form addressing each sector in relating the
importance of the study findings.

VII. Scope and Delimitation of the Study

What to discuss in this part?

(1) Presents what is covered by the study that directly gives answer to the
objectives. It is not limited to the area where the study is to be
conducted but includes items such as respondents as well as
problems under consideration.
(2) Delimitations are features in the study that can be controlled so as to
determine the parameters or scope of the study. Researchers have
control over characteristics of the research problem, research purpose,
research questions, methodology, time, location, subjects, variables,
and samples.

VIII. Definition of Terms

What to include in this part?

(1) Provide a list of terms that will be used throughout the study and
definitions (conceptual or operational) of each of them. The conceptual
definition describes in terms of its abstract characteristics and
relationships to other conceptual entities, while the operational
definition describes how the term is being used in the study.
 (2) The source of the conceptual definition should be cited.
(3) Terms being defined are arranged in alphabetical order.

Sample:

Thinking Skills. This term refers to the set of basic and advanced
skills and sub-skills that govern a person’s mental processes (Fisher, 2005).
As used in this study, this term refers to the levels of learning as categorized
in the revised Bloom’s taxonomy of cognitive learning from the concrete to the
abstract. This includes remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing,
evaluating, and creating.