To develop your Prospectus Form, you need to search the literature for recent, empirical evidence to support that there is a research problem to investigate. The initial step you need to take to search the literature is to
determine what keywords you will use to search, and in what databases, to find your evidence. Using these keywords to search the Library databases for literature, you will identify resources that support a current and
relevant problem in your discipline or professional field. You will continue to build your search strategies to find Supporting Literature throughout this course.
The literature review, which you will focus on during the proposal stage, is an essential part of the research
process and a key component of the dissertation. The Supporting Literature section of the Prospectus Form,
that you are completing in this course, is the first step toward the Literature Review. It informs what is known
about a topic and what might benefit from further exploration. As you continue to research your own topic, you
will be seeking connectivity and relationships among scholarly writings. You will be looking for the gap in the
research that you intend to address.
Using the Walden Library Databases A-Z: Health Sciences, search for and retrieve articles to support/justify
your research problem
Note the keyword and databases searched within the respective section of the Prospectus Form.
The Assignment (Prospectus Form – Supporting Literature section):
The Supporting Literature section of the Prospectus Form requires 10 brief summaries of peer-reviewed
journals in the last five years. This week, you will begin working on the Supporting Literature section of the
Prospectus Form, by providing four articles from peer-reviewed journals in the last five years that support your
problem. Include the complete, APA reference and (a) an in-text citation; (b) what they studied; (c) what they
found; and (d) why this is important in relation to your study. This evidence provides the justification for your
research problem.
References
Rudestam, K. E., & Newton, R. R. (2015). Surviving your dissertation: A comprehensive guide to content and
process (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Chapter 1, “The Research Process” (pp. 3–8)
Ségol, G. (2014). Choosing a dissertation topic: Additional pointers. College Student Journal, 48(1), 108–113.
Walden University Center for Research Quality. (n.d.). Doctoral degree coach. Retrieved December 7, 2020,
from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center/doctoral-coach
Walden University Center for Research Quality. (n.d.). Doctoral prospectus form. Retrieved December 4, 2020,
from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center/program-documents/doctoral-prospectus-form
Walden University Center for Research Quality. (n.d.). Welcome to the Center for Research Quality. Retrieved
December 4, 2020, from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center
Walden University Doctoral Capstone Form and Style. (n.d.). Citations: Home. Retrieved December 4, 2020,
from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/formandstyle/apa/citations
Walden University Library. (n.d.). Choosing your topic: Your topic. Retrieved December 4, 2020, from
https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/library/topic
Walden University Library. (n.d.). Evaluating resources: Introduction. Retrieved December 4, 2020, from
https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/library/evaluating
Walden University Library. (n.d.). Keyword searching: Finding articles on your topic: Introduction. Retrieved
December 4, 2020, from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/library/keyword
Walden University Writing Center. (n.d.). Reference list: Common reference list examples. Retrieved December
4, 2020, from https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/apa/references/examples
Document: PhD Health Services Dissertation Topics Guide (PDF)
Welcome to Legit Writing
