BRS20103 Research Methodology Assignment 1 September 2026: Research Framework (Chapters 1 and 2) | MSU, Malaysia

BRS20103 Research Methodology Assignment 1: Research Framework Development (MSU)

Assignment 1 for MSU’s BRS20103 Research Methodology (20%, APA 7th) asks you to write the first two chapters of a quantitative research proposal on a topic you choose. Chapter 1 builds the background, problem statement and research gap; Chapter 2 reviews the literature from an underpinning theory through to a research framework and hypotheses.

Report Structure

Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter sets the stage. You must convince the reader that your chosen topic is significant and that a gap exists.

• 1.1 Introduction: introduce the chapter (e.g. background of the study, problem statement and so on).
• 1.2 Background of the Study: narrow down to your specific context, using recent statistics or industry trends to justify why the topic is relevant today.
• 1.3 Problem Statement: clearly articulate the pain point, the specific issue, conflict or gap in knowledge that needs solving (tip: use the “Ideal vs. Reality” approach).
• 1.4 Research Objectives (RO): what you aim to achieve (e.g. to examine the relationship between X and Y).
• 1.5 Research Questions (RQ): translate your objectives into inquiry form (e.g. does X significantly influence Y?).
• 1.6 Definition of Key Terms: conceptual and operational definitions for the main variables.
• 1.7 Significance of Study: how the study will help managers, policymakers or future researchers.
• 1.8 Scope and Limitations: respondents, geographical location and constraints.

Chapter 2: Literature Review and Framework

• 2.1 Introduction: introduce the chapter and its role as the foundation of the study.
• 2.2 Underpinning Theory: identify one or two core theories that explain the framework (e.g. Agency Theory, Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory or the TAM model).
• 2.3 Literature Review (Variable Synthesis) with Matrix Table: group the reading by themes or variables and discuss what previous scholars found about the independent and dependent variables.
• 2.4 Hypotheses Development: propose directional hypotheses (e.g. H1: There is a significant positive relationship between financial literacy and investment behaviour).
• 2.5 Theoretical Framework: theory, then variables, then hypotheses development.
• Conceptual Framework: a visual diagram showing the relationship between the independent variables (IV) and the dependent variable (DV).

Technical Specifications

• Font: Times New Roman 12 pt or Arial 11 pt, 1.5 line spacing, justified
• Headings: Level 1 14 pt bold upper case; Level 2 12 pt bold; Level 3 12 pt bold italic; Level 4 12 pt italic; Level 5 12 pt roman
• Referencing: APA 7th Edition; standard university cover page template

Important Reminders

• Academic integrity: keep Turnitin similarity below 20% and the AI index below 15%.
• Matrix table: review at least 30 to 50 peer-reviewed journal articles published within the last five years, recording author, year, title, research problem, objectives, design, variables, sampling, data collection method and key findings.
• Marks are deducted for each day of late submission.

Evaluation Rubric (Chapters 1 and 2)