Reference no: EM134012857

Advanced Research Topics in Information Technology

ASSESSMENT ITEM 1: This individual assignment will be delivered in two parts. In Part A, you will be required to first select a research topic aligning with your chosen specialisation in the course and then develop a research question after initial literature review. In Part B, you will develop a full research proposal.

ASSESSMENT ITEM 2: This individual assessment will have multiple deliverables. You will be required to write a mock research paper and a self-reflective journal in the report. The research paper will include an abstract, literature review and a brief description of methodology that you have proposed to adopt in your research topic.

ASSESSMENT ITEM 3: In this individual assessment, you will be required to give a 10-minute presentation to fellow class members as well as a panel of academics. There is no physical submission, you will be solely graded on your presentation and ability to answer questions from the panel.

Research Proposal
Topic Selection/Initial Literature Review/Research Question

The research question lies at the heart of your research project. After considering a research problem (whatever the field of study) from there you will develop the research question. We will discuss formulating research questions in sessions one and two, but within the research problem, the research question focuses specifically on one aspect of the problem that you will undertake as part of the research programme.

Even if you have a good idea of your topic, you still need to read the existing literature to build background knowledge and narrow down your ideas. In sessions 1 and 2 we will discuss how to find research papers and identify the gaps in your selected area. You need to narrow down a broad topic to specific questions. There are many ways to present the research question, and these will be discussed during the sessions. Submit your assignment in one document file by the due date and time to the assignment drop-box.

Full Proposal

The full proposal is a document that contains your entire proposal for the research to be undertaken. These documents are normally required by academic departments before students are admitted to undertaking research degrees such as a master's research degree or a PhD. This document will contain your research question from the previous submission but integrated into a coherent document along with other components that will be discussed in class. A selection of references that you will use in developing your research paper will also be included at this stage.

Assessment Item 2: Introduction

Introduction

The Introduction of the research report contains a full introduction to the research you have undertaken. The Introduction normally contains a statement of the problem (including the initial research question, the Significance of the problem, some historical background. The purpose, or goal to be gained from a better understanding of the research question, statement of hypothesis, any assumptions, and limitations as well as any possible ethical considerations. Perhaps also a brief overview of the methodology.

The format of the Introduction can be found in the example document (Report Introduction.doc). Use this document as a starting point to develop your Introduction (add and delete sections as appropriate).

Submit this chapter by the due date and time to the assignment drop-box.

Literature Review

Task description

In this task, you will write the Literature Review chapter (typically Chapter 2) of your research report. This demonstrates your knowledge of the field, identifies research gaps, and positions your research question within existing work. It builds on your Assignment 1 proposal and Introduction.

What you must include

Your Literature Review must:

Cite investigations and findings from previous researchers to provide the background needed for your study.

Show your preparation and understanding of the body of knowledge in your specific IT/IS research area.

Identify key themes, debates, gaps, and contradictions in the literature.

Critically analyse sources (don't just describe but evaluate their relevance, strengths, and limitations).

Use a range of appropriate, authoritative sources (for example, peer-reviewed journals, conferences; aim for 20+ recent sources).

Include a Concept Map: Create and embed one visual diagram (for example, mind map or concept map using tools like XMind, Lucidchart, or Draw.io) that summarises key themes, relationships between sources, and identified gaps. This aids synthesis and will be assessed for clarity and insight (this will not be counted in word limit).

Follow the suggested guidelines and structure in "Research Report_Literature Review Template". The unit lecturer will discuss literature review techniques in class, with examples provided.

Methodology

Task description

In this task, you will write the Methodology chapter (typically Chapter 3) of your research report. This outlines what you intend to do (research design) and how you intend to do it (procedures and methods), building directly on your previous chapters. The description must be precise enough for another researcher to replicate your proposed study.

What you must include

Your Methodology must:

Specify your research design (for example, experimental, correlational, descriptive, qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods).

Detail the specific methods for data collection (for example, survey, experiment, interviews, simulation) and analysis (for example, statistical tests, thematic analysis).

Justify why these methods suit your research question, problem, and context.

Describe procedures step-by-step, including sampling, instruments/tools, data handling, and validity/reliability measures.

Address any ethical considerations, limitations, or potential biases specific to your methods.

Research PaperIn this submission, you incorporate the previous three submissions into a final document and submit by the due date and time. This submission will incorporate the Introduction, The Literature Review, and the Methodology chapters into one document. This will give you a chance to take on board any comments given by your instructor in the previous submissions, make corrections and possibly recover some marks which may have been deducted in the previous submission.

Your submission also contains the full abstract. This is an extension of the initial abstract submitted with the proposal document and summarizes the report including the hypotheses, procedures, and major findings (you will not be conducting the research, so you won't have any findings). The Full abstract should be no more than one page.

Submit this document by the due date and time to the assignment drop-box.

Task description

This is the final submission for Assignment 2. Integrate your previous three chapters (Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology) into one cohesive research report document. Revise earlier sections based on instructor feedback to improve quality and potentially recover marks. Add a full Abstract to summarise the entire report.

Note: This is a mock research paper, you are not conducting the actual research or reporting findings/results.

What you must include

Full Research Paper

Full integration: Combine and refine Introduction (10 marks), Literature Review (20 marks), and Methodology (15 marks) into Chapters 1 - 3. Ensure smooth flow and consistent narrative.

Abstract: A standalone summary (extend your Assignment 1 proposal abstract) covering: research problem/question, hypotheses, proposed procedures/methodology, and anticipated contributions/insights (≤1 page / 300 words).

Title page, table of contents, list of figures/tables (if any), and complete IEEE reference list.

No new substantive content beyond refinements and the Abstract.

Self-Reflective Journal: Append as a separate section after references. Reflect critically on your research process:

What you learned about research design, literature searching, and methodology selection.

Challenges faced (for example, finding gaps, refining your question) and how you overcame them.

How this process changed your understanding of IT/IS research.

Key skills developed and their relevance to your future career/study.

Write in first person; approx. 500 to 600 words; no formal referencing needed.

Research Paper: 5,000 - 6,000 words total (excludes Abstract, references, tables, figures).

Self-Reflective Journal: approx. 500 to 600 words.

Single PDF document with professional formatting (for example, 12pt font, 1.5 spacing).

Embed any visuals (for example, Concept Map from Lit Review, procedure flowchart from Methodology).

IEEE referencing style throughout.

Assessment Item 3: Overview

Presentation

For this component, you will be required to give a 10 - 15 minute presentation on your research report and answer any questions from the audience. The presentations will be conducted in a symposium type setting after the end of the semester, typically in week 15. There is no submission for this component of assessment, you will be graded on your presentation and ability to answer any questions put to you. The structure of the presentation will be discussed during the semester and a suggested format for the presentation will be made available in a sample set of PowerPoint slides.

As this component is based on your presentation, you will need to present your work to get any grade for this component.