PROBLEMS IN RESEARCH PLANNING OFTEN INVOLVE DIRECT AND RELATIVELY OBVIOUS QUESTIONS RATHER THAN SUBTLE AND COMPLEX THEORIES OR DESIGNS. THIS GUIDE IS MEANT TO EASE THE TASK OF THE RESEARCHER IN DEVELOPING PLANS FOR PROPOSALS BY IDENTIFYING THE MOST COMMON PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN REVIEWING STUDENTS' RESEARCH PROPOSALS. IT IS ALSO MEANT TO PROVIDE A FRAMEWORK WITHIN WHICH RESEARCH REPORTS MAY BE CRITICALLY AND KNOWLEDGABLY READ. THE BASIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR DEVELOPING A RESEARCH PROPOSAL DEPEND UPON THE PARTICULAR RESEARCH BEING PLANNED. THE FOLLOWING CONVENTIONAL OUTLINE SHOULD BE CONSIDERED IN PREPARING A PROPOSAL: (1) A BACKGROUND STATEMENT-I.E. THE PURPOSE OF THE RESEARCH; (2) A LITERATURE REVIEW; (3) THE SPECIFIC FOCUS OR THE HYPOTHESIS; (4) THE METHODOLOGY; (5) AN ANALYSIS OF DATA; (6) A STATEMENT OF RECOGNIZED LIMITATIONS; AND (7) A SUMMARY INCLUDING ANTICIPATED RESULTS. MANY OF THE CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING A RESEARCH PLAN THAT ARE DISCUSSED IN THIS GUIDE HAVE BEEN MADE PURPOSELY REDUNDANT TO PROVIDE THE RESEARCHER WITH SEVERAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE SAME BASIC PROBLEM. THE CONCEPT OF A CENTRAL THEME IS EXAMINED WITHIN A CONTEXT, AS WELL AS FOR SIMPLICITY, CLARITY, PARSIMONY, AND CONSISTENCY. THE MAJOR ISSUES THAT ARE ILLUSTRATED AND CONSIDERED ARE DESIGNED TO AID THE STUDENT IN RECALLING RELEVANT MATERIAL FROM PREVIOUS READING OR COURSEWORK. A LIST OF COMMON RESEARCH TERMS AND CONCEPTS ARE DEFINED AND ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLES ARE GIVEN. REFERENCES AND AN APPENDIX ON THE PREPARATION OF A RESEARCH PROPOSAL ARE PROVIDED. (JCP)