Project Planning for the Beginner: Defining a Topic

First, you should think about these three points:

A research project has to be doable. That means that you must be able to see not only what it should be and how it might be done in the most ideal possible set of circumstances, but also how you could do it given your time, money, existing resources, knowledge, and expertise. You should be able to do enough to fulfill the aim of your research and, in one way or another, add to our knowledge of the social world.

Every research project is constrained because we never have limitless resources. So, you have to make sure that you have enough resources in hand to get the job done. These constraints include:

• Time available

• Material resources required

• Ethical approval

The first constraint is always your own time. The following aspects are all important, but some will be more vital to you than others.

What is the deadline for the production of the research output? This could be a submission deadline for students or any other deadline for other researchers.

How much of your own time can you devote to the project? There are always other calls on your time, some of which you can anticipate. For example:

• Other work: An undergraduate or Master’s student might have to get other assignments done alongside their dissertation/thesis. A PhD researcher might have teaching or research assistant commitments.

• Other aspects of your life: Remember you should have one! Friends, family, work—it’s good to have balance.

Think as if Murphy’s Law always holds—if something can go wrong it will. This might not be the case, but if you anticipate what could go wrong and how you could deal with it, then you won’t be overwhelmed if it does happen.

You will usually need a computer of your own and access to secure back-up storage. For researchers without access to a personal computer, it is still possible to do good research with no more than a pen and a pad of paper, but it is harder.

It’s important to have somewhere to work—this could even be your own bedroom, but you have to have somewhere to think and to write in reasonable peace and comfort.

Do you need to travel to do your research? Is there transport available? Do you have the money to pay for travel?

Do you need to employ assistants? Have you got the money to pay them?

Do you have access to the people or the place that you will be researching, or can you get it?

Depending on your research area, gaining ethical approval may involve differing amounts of time and effort. You will likely have to produce one of the following before beginning your research.

You may simply require an adequate statement about ethical issues in your research proposal. “Adequate” means you have identified the potential ethical issues and said how you would handle them in doing the research.

For most research in Health and related areas, such as Social Care, you will have to submit a detailed ethical statement to a formal body for approval. You will have to be able to justify not only the ethical conduct of the research, but also argue for the appropriateness of the methods you deploy. This can be tricky when the approval body does not include members who understand your approach.

You may have to get some sort of certification before you can engage with your research subjects. For example, if you are doing any research with children, you may have to get police clearance, which demonstrates that you have no record of child abuse which would make it inappropriate for you to engage with them. Remember, this takes time.