research guidelines at szabist dubai

8/3/2019 Research Guidelines at SZABIST Dubai

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SZABIST DUBAI

Fall 2008 Semester

RECOMMENDED THESIS FORMAT AND STYLE

Order of Pages:

The order of pages in the Thesis Report will be as follows:

1. Title Page

2. Thesis Committee Approval page3. Acknowledgements or Dedication

4. Abstract ( should include a brief summary of the following )Introduction of the topic

Need for the study

Objectives of the studyResearch methodology of the study(include hypothesis if any)

Limitations of the study5. Table of Contents6. List of Tables

7. List of Figures/ Illustration

8. Main Body of the ThesisCHAPTER I - Introduction

Introductory paragraphsStatement of the problem

Purpose

Significance of the study

Research questions and/or hypotheses

CHAPTER I-Background

Literature reviewDefinition of terms

CHAPTER III - MethodologyRestate purpose and research questions or null hypotheses

Population and sampling

Instrumentation (include copy in appendix)

Procedure and time frameAnalysis plan (type of statistical tests)

Validity and reliabilityAssumptionsScope and limitations

CHAPTER IV - Results

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CHAPTER V - Conclusions and recommendationsSummary (of what you did and found)

Discussion (explanation of findings - why do you think you found what

you did?)

Recommendations (based on your findings)

Appendix

End Notes

References

Page Nos:

1. Items 1 to7 above in roman number2. Items 8 to 11 above in Arabic numerals, beginning with page no 1.

3. Page nos. should be at the bottom and center of the page.

Style, layout, and page formatting

Paper specification:

Thesis Reports will use A4 paper

Title page

All text on the title page is centered vertically and horizontally. The title page has no

page number and it is not counted in any page numbering.

Contents of Title Page:

1. Title: Font size 14, bold capital letters.

2. Authors Name: Font size 12, bold and capital letters.

3. Name of the Supervisor: Font size 12, bold and capital letters.4. Name of the Department: Font size 12, bold and capital letters.

5. Name of the University/Institute: Font size 12, bold and capital letters.

Page layout

Left margin: 1"

Right margin: 1"Top margin: 1"Bottom margin: 1"

Spacing: 15

Page numbering

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Pages are numbered at the top right. There should be 1" of white space from the top of

the page number to the top of the paper. Numeric page numbering begins with the first

page of Chapter 1 (although a page number is not placed on page 1).

Spacing and justification

All pages are single sided. Text is double-spaced, except for long quotations and the

bibliography (which are single-spaced). There is one blank line between a section

heading and the text that follows it. Do not right-justify text. Use ragged-right.

Font face and size

Arial regular, font size 12.

Generally, the same font must be used throughout the manuscript, except 1) tables and

graphs may use a different font, and 2) chapter titles and section headings may use adifferent font.

References

Authors surname, First and middle names, Year of Publication, Title, Publisher,Place,Vol No.

When using the name of the author your sentence, then follow the authors name with theyear in parentheses. For example:Jones (2004) found that...When the authors name is not included as part of the text, then both the author's name

and year are enclosed in parentheses. For example:One researcher (Jones, 2004) found that...

Examples:

Bradburn, N. M., & Mason, W. M. (1964). The effect of question order on response.Journal of Marketing Research 1 (4), 57-61.

Bradburn, N. M., & Miles, C. (1979). Vague quantifiers. Public Opinion Quarterly 43(1), 92-101.

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PROJECT PAPER WRITING/FORMATTING GUIDELINES (Detailed)

PURPOSE

1.1. The guidelines serve as giving the basic for writing neat and good reports.

1.2. Theentire guidelines aim to guide the students in preparing a more distinctive

report to achieve one of the objectives of the training.

1.3. The guidelines are divided into two areas:

1.3.1. Technical Specifications

This section explains about report writing techniques

1.3.2. Format of project paper

This section explains about the format and terminology, which is used in

preparing the reports.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

2.1TypingThe entire text of the project paper, headings and page numbers, must be typed

using the same font. Students are advised to use either Times New Roman orArial with font size of at least 11 for the main text. Footnotes and text in Tables

should be at least 8 points in size. Bold print can be used for headings. After the

end of each sentence, the new sentence should begin 2 (space bar) away from theprevious sentence.

2.2MarginsThe left margin should be 40 mm wide to facilitate binding of the submitted

thesis. The top, bottom and right margin should be 25 mm. These specifications

are applicable to the printed output, thus margins in the page setup should beadjusted accordingly to produce the desired result.

2.3SpacingThe thesis should be typed, double-spaced, on one side of the paper only. Thefollowing should be single-spaced:

Explanatory footnotes (if necessary)

Quotations longer than three lines set in a block

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References or bibliography (except between entries)

Multi-line captions (tables, figures, and plates)

Appendices (questionnaires, letters, etc)

Slightly long headings or subheadings

2.4PaginationPages should be numbered consecutively throughout the thesis, including pages

for tables, figures and appendices. Each appendix should be identified separately

using a big letter (A, B, C, etc). The pages of the appendices should be numbered

accordingly. Page numbers should appear by themselves and should not bebracketed, hyphenated or accompanied by decorative devices.

The preliminary pages are number in small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, etc), andArabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc) should be used for the remainder of the text. The

title page at the front of the project paper is counted as page i, but the number is

not typed. All other pages should be numbered centrally about 25mm from thebottom.

2.5Length of project paperThe paper shall not exceed 150 pages in lengths (excluding illustrations, maps and

appendices).

2.6PaperGood quality acid-free paper of at least 80 gm weight must be used for theoriginal copy. It must be white and A4 (2.10 cm x 29.7 cm) size.

2.7BindingWhen the project paper is completed and the faculty approves of the final draft, itis ready for binding. Candidates should check all copies carefully to ensure that

pages are in order.

The project paper must be hard bound to enhance its appearance as well as to

protect it. The binding should be of a fixed kind in which pages are permanently

secured. All project paper must be bound in MAROON cover.

The following should be lettered in gold from head to the foot of the thesis spine

using a 24-point font:

Name of candidates

Degree for which the work is submitted; and

Year of submission

The following particulars should be provided on the project paper cover, using

18-point gold block font:

Title of project paper

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Name of candidate

Degree

Name of university

Year of submission

(ReferAPPENDIX A)2. FORMAT OF PROJECT PAPER

2.1. Generally project papers are composed of three main parts: The preliminary

pages or front matter, the text or main body, the appendices. Each part may be

divided into several sections and arranged in numerical sequence of chapters.

2.2. The following is an example of how various pages in a project paper, from

preliminary or front matter to ending pages or back matter, are arranged. Werecommend that this sequencing be used as a guide, although not every project

paper includes all the items listed below:

ITEM REMARKS

Blank leaf

Title page Not to be paginated but counted as I

Dedication Not to be paginated or listed in Table of Contents butcounted as ii

Preface/Acknowledgements To be paginated as page ii or iii if there is dedication and

listed in Table of Contents

Table of contents Paginated, but not listed in table of contents

List of tables Paginated and listed in table of contents

List of figures Paginated and listed in table of contents

List of plates Paginated and listed in table of contents

List of abbreviations and

glossary

Paginated and listed in table of contents

Abstracts Paginated and listed in table of contents

Main body (chapters) Paginated beginning with page 1

Bibliography or references Paginated

Appendices Insert a leaf with only word APPENDICES in the center

of the page; this sheet is counted but not paginated. The

actual appendices are paginated

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Vita Paginated, continuing the number on the preceding page

Approval sheets Not paginated or listed in table of contents

Blank leaf

3.3The PreliminariesThe preliminary pages include the title page, dedication, preface,

acknowledgements, table of contents, list of tables, figures, graphs, maps,

diagrams, plates abbreviations and abstracts.

3.4Title page (ReferAPPENDIX B)This page includes the following information:

Full title of project paper;

Full name of author;

Degree for which the project paper is submitted;

Name of the institution to which project paper is submitted; Faculty to which the project paper is submitted

Month and year of submission

3.5Acknowledgements (ReferAPPENDIX F)Acknowledgements refer to a brief statement of thanks to the supervisors and in

recognition of any special assistance from any individuals or institutions. This

page is not compulsory but generally preferred and should not exceed one page.

3.6Table of Contents (ReferAPPENDIX C)The table of contents immediately follows the Acknowledgements. This page lists

all content of the report that consists of the Preliminaries Pages, Body of theProject Paper, and Ending Pages in a systematic order. The purpose is to assistreaders in finding any part of the report easily. The pages must tally with the

respective titles in the report.

3.7List of Tables

All tables must be listed sequentially. The list should contain page number, and

title of the tables.

3.8List of FiguresThis includes graphs, maps or illustrations of other kinds. Figures should be listedchronologically. Figures number, figures title and page number should be

included.

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3.9List of PlatesFull-page illustrations, especially photographs, are usually called plates. The list,if any, follows the List of Figures, and is numbered consecutively throughout the

project paper.

3.10Abstract (ReferAPPENDIX D)The abstract is a brief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the thesis. Itshould be given the same careful attention as the main text. A well-prepared

abstract can be the most important part of the thesis. Reference to literature is not

normally made in the abstract.

3.11The Text of Project PaperThe text or body of a project paper normally consists of chapters with a number ofheadings or subheadings. The student usually determines its internal organization.

it normally consists the following headings or chapters:

3.12IntroductionThe introduction introduces the problem(s) under investigation and indicates its

importance and validity. It sets forth the context, the hypotheses to be tested andthe research objectives to be attained.

3.13Literature reviewIt discusses the literature related to the topic. A scholarly review of literature

provides an appropriate history and recognizes the priority of the work of others.When summarizing earlier works, avoid nonessential details; instead emphasize

pertinent findings, relevant methodological issues and major conclusions.Develop the logical continuity between previous and present work. The review ismeant to act as a base for the experimental or analytical of the project paper.

Literature selected must be up to date, analyzed and synthesized logically. It is not

a mere summary of works of different authors.

3.14MethodThe method section describes how the study was conducted. The descriptionallows the reader to evaluate the appropriateness of the methods used and the

validity and the reliability of the results. It should include subheadings to include

descriptions of subjects, the apparatus (or materials) and the procedure.

3.15ResultsThe results summarize the data collected and the statistical treatment of them.

Briefly state the main results or findings of the study. Then report the data is

sufficient details to justify the conclusions. The implications of the results shouldbe discussed under this section. Report all relevant results, including those that

may run counter to the hypothesis. The results can be presented in the form of

figures, tables or text so that the key information is highlighted.

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3.16DiscussionIt evaluates and interprets the implications of the study in relation to the originalhypotheses. Be free to examine, interpret and qualify the results as well as to draw

inferences from them. Emphasize any theoretical consequences of the results andvalidity of the conclusions.

3.17SummaryTo distinguish from the abstract, this section generally sums up the findings,discussion, conclusions and recommendations of the study.

3.18Tables (ReferAPPENDIX E)Tables help in reporting the data from a study. It enables the researcher to present

a large amount of data in a small amount of space. It presents exact numericalvalues, and the data are arranged in orderly display of columns and rows.

Number all tables consecutively with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc) throughout the

project paper (including text and appendices). All tables are to be listed under

LIST OF TABLES in the preliminary page (including tables appearing in theappendices).

3.19IllustrationsIn a project paper any type of illustrations other than a table is called a figure or a

plate. It includes such items as maps, charts, graphs, diagrams, and photographs.

Photographs are normally called PLATES, while the rest are called FIGURES.Each of the categories is numbered consecutively throughout the project paper,

including those in the appendices. Illustrations should be of good quality. The

trend now is to use computers. The standard for good illustrations is simplicity,clarity and continuity.

The figure or plate and caption should be typed below the illustration usingArabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc) and lowercase, except for proper nouns and first

letter in caption. Illustrations should be inserted near their mention in the text.

3.20FootnotesThere are two kinds of footnotes that is, content footnotes and copyright permission footnotes. Content footnotes supplement or amplify substantive

information in the text. Footnotes should be used sparingly in a project paper and

should only be included if they strengthen the discussion. Extensive footnotingtends to distract the reader from the main argument of the text. If footnotes are

necessary, the indicators (the reference numbers in the text) are usually

superscript (e.g. ). The numbering of footnotes should begin with 1 and mustbe continuous within each chapter or appendix, and not throughout the whole text.

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3.21Citation in the text

The author is responsible for choosing a style of citation that is appropriate to thefield and using that style correctly and consistently. Students may consult their

supervisors for guidelines.

3.22The Ending Pages

3.22.1 Bibliography

Bibliography is a term commonly taken to mean a list of works cited aswell as works consulted but not cited. If pertinent works have been

consulted but not specifically cited in the text, they should be separately

listed as an appendage to the Bibliography and given the subheading List

of Reference.

The University does not specify which bibliographic style to use. It is,

however, to your advantage to follow a style by an authoritative journal inyour filed. Samples of commonly used bibliographical styles are given in

APPENDIX G.

3.22.2 Appendices

Appendices, if it included in the report, must be useful and must bereferred in the text. It consists of supplementary illustrative material,

original data, and quotations too long for inclusion in the text or not

immediately useful to an understanding of the subject. Appendices areplaced after the reference list of bibliography. Details of the appendices

are listed by type in the Table of Contents. Appendix materials should be

grouped by type e.g. Appendix A. Questionnaire, Appendix B: OriginalData, Appendix C: Result Tables.

3.22.3 Approval sheet (ReferAPPENDIX H)This sheet bears the signature of the Dean, Faculty of Business

Administration and the Advisor.

________________________MBAPPWG/Rev: 03/05 as at November 11, 2005

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NOTE: FRONT 18 FONT, SPINE 24 FONT.

11

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED

BARRIERS TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND

ENTREPRENEURIAL INCLINATION: A CASE

STUDY OF GRADUATE LEVEL STUDENTS AT

MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITIES

SHOAIB RIAZ

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

UNIVERSITI TUN ABDUL RAZAK

2008

SHOAIBRIAZ

MA

STEROFBUSINE

SSADMIN

ISTRATION

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APPENDIX B

TITLE PAGE

INFLUENCE OF MALAYSIAS INTEREST RATE, CONSUMER

PRICE INDEX, GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT AND BALANCE OF

PAYMENT ON EXCHANGE RATE

By

SOO BEE CHOO

Project Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

The Degree of Master of Business Administration in the

Faculty of Business Administration,

Universiti Tun Abdul Razak

July 2005

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APPENDIX C

Suggested Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

DECLARATION ..ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

iiiLIST OF TABLES

vi

LIST OF FIGURES ..viii

ABSTRACT .

ix

1. INTRODUCTION 1

Introduction ..1

Problem Statement

2Objective of the Study ..

2

Significance of the study ..3

Research Hypotheses

4

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

5

Stress 5

Technical Support for End Users .

16User Friendliness of the Information System ...

18

Quality of the Information System ....

20Dependency on the Information System ...

25

Frequency of Information System Use ..27

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ..30

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Introduction

30

Research Model .30

Data Collection Method .

31Measurements

31

Reliability and Validity Analysis 34

Data Processing

35

Statistical Techniques 35

4. DATA ANALYSIS ..

37Introduction ...

37General Characteristics of the Sample ..

37

Factor Analysis

54Reliability Analysis of the Instruments ..

57

Hypotheses Testing .61

5. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS ..64

Discussion of Major Findings .

64Limitations of the Study .

66

Implications of the Study

67Future Research Direction .

69

6. BIBLIOGRAPHY ..

70

7. APPENDIX - Questionnaire ..

77

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8. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH ..

84

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APPENDIX D

Format of Abstract

Abstract of the project paper submitted to the Senate of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak in partial fulfillment of

the requirements for the Master of Business Administration.

INFLUENCE OF MALAYSIAS INTEREST RATE, CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, GROSS

DOMESTIC PRODUCT AND BALANCE OF PAYMENT ON EXCHANGE RATE

By

Soo Bee Choo

July, 2005

Supervisor :Faculty : Faculty of Business Administration

Exchange rate is one of the important prices in an open economy since it affects so many businesses,

investments and policy decisions. The foreign exchange rate has been debated to be influence by the

countries economic factors such as interest rate, consumer price index (CPI), gross domestic product(GDP) and balance of payment (BOP). The study is carried our to test the relationship between Malaysias

interest rate, CPI, GDP, BOP and the foreign currency exchange. The selected currencies are Australiadollar, Euro, British pound and Japanese yen, covering the period from year 1993 to 2003.

In view of more than one independent variable, the multiple regression analysis is adopted in this study. It

is assumed that these independent variables; Malaysias interest rate, CPI, GDP and BOP; explained the

foreign currencies exchange rate variation. The results anyhow shows no significant relationship betweenthese independent variables and Australia dollar, Euro, Japanese yen respectively. There is significant

relationship between British pound and these independent variables. It is anyhow the result shows that the

independent variable; BOP; gave a reversed relationship to the pound exchange rate.

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APPENDIX E

Sample of Table

Table 33

Reliability Analysis of System Quality

Item

Mean

Standard

Deviation

Alpha if item deleted

GET_INFO 3.4421 0.7679 0.8511

ACCURATE 2.9263 0.7752 0.8178

RELIABLE 3.0842 0.8711 0.7956

GET_EASY 3.3053 0.7157 0.8043

CLEAR 3.3368 0.6936 0.8369

Cronbachs Alpha = 0.8526 Standardized ItemAlpha = 0.8531

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APPENDIX F

Sample of Acknowledgement

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep appreciation to my supervisor

Dr. Ravindran and all he faculty lecturers who have dedicated their valuable time and

guidance throughout the whole MBA program, without whom I would not have finished

the program.

Special thanks to my parents, family members and friends for their encouragement and

understanding throughout the duration of my pursuit of this MBA program. Their

encouragement and understanding have been crucial for my timely completion of this

study.

Lastly, my special thanks to Prof. Dr. Ahmad Zohdi bin Abd. Hamid, the Dean of the

Center for Graduate Studies who has been instrumental in ensuring that we were

provided with the best lecturers and tools for the invaluable course. His exemplary

leadership is deeply appreciated.

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APPENDIX G

Sample of Commonly Used Bibliographical Styles

Anonymous or unknown author (common in newspapers):_____Caffeine linked to mental illness. (1991, July 13). New York Times, pp. B13, B15.

Books:

_____Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York:

Macmillan.

_____American Psychiatric Association. (1990). Diagnostic and statistical manual of

mental disorders (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

_____Freud, S. (1961). The ego and the id. In J. Strachey (Ed. and Trans.), The standardedition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 19, pp. 3-66).

London: Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1923)

Group or institutional authors_____University of Pittsburgh. (1993). The title goes here. Journal of Something, 8, 5-9.

Journal article_____Spitch, M. L., Verzy, H. N., & Wilkie, D. M. (1993). Subjective shortening: A

model of pigeons' memory for event duration. Journal of Experimental Psychology:

Animal Behavior Processes, 9, 14-30.

Letter to the editor_____O'Neill, G. W. (1992, January). In support of DSM-III [Letter to the editor]. APA

Monitor, 4-5.

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Magazine article_____Gardner, H. (1991, December). Do babies sing a universal song? PsychologyToday,70-76.

Newsletter article_____Brown, L.S. (1993, Spring). My research with orangs. The Psychology DepartmentNewsletter, 3, 2.

The date is given as it appears on the publication. For anonymous newspaper articles, see

the previous section titled "Anonymous or unknown authors."

Pamphlet_____Just Say No Foundation. (1992). Saving our youth. (9th ed.) [Brochure].Washington, DC: Author.

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APPENDIX G (cont.)

Sample of Commonly Used Bibliographical Styles

ELECTRONIC MEDIA

General Format

Online periodical:

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (2000). Title of article. Title of Periodical,xx, xxxxxx. Retrieved month, day, year, from source.

Online document:

Author, A. A. (2000). Title of work. Retrieved month day, year, from source.

Examples:

Internet articles based on a print source

VandenBos, G., Knapp, S., & Doe, J.(2001). Role of reference elements in the selection of resources by psychology

undergraduates [Electronic version]. Journal of Bibliographic Research, 5, 117-

123.

Article in an Internet-only journal

Fredrickson, B. L. (2000, March 7).Cultivating positive emotions to optimize health and well-being. Prevention &

Treatment, 3, Article 0001a. Retrieved November 20, 2000, from

http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume3/pre0030001a.html

Article in an Internet-only newsletter

Glueckauf, R. L., Whitton, J., Baxter, J., Kain, J., Vogelgesang, S., Hudson, M., et

al. (1998, July). Videocounseling for families of rural teens with epilepsy --Project update. Telehealth News,2(2).

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Retrieved from http://www.telehealth.net/subscribe/newslettr4a.html1

Stand-alone document, no author identified, no date

GVU's 8th WWW user survey. (n.d.). Retrieved August 8, 2000, fromhttp://www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/usersurveys/survey1997-10/

Document available on university program or department Web site

Chou, L., McClintock, R., Moretti, F., & Nix, D. H. (1993). Technology and education: New winein new bottles: Choosing pasts and imagining educational futures. Retrieved August 24, 2000,

from Columbia University, Institute for Learning Technologies Web site:

http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/publications/papers/newwine1.html

Electronic copy of a journal article, three to five authors, retrieved from database

Borman, W. C., Hanson, M. A., Oppler, S. H., Pulakos, E. D., & White, L. A.(1993). Role of early supervisory experience in supervisor performance.Journal

of Applied Psychology, 78, 443-449. Retrieved October 23, 2000, from

PsycARTICLES database.

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APPENDIX H

Sample of approval page

APPROVAL PAGE

TITLE OF PROJECT PAPER :

NAME OF AUTHOR :

The undersigned certify that the above candidate has fulfilled the condition of the project

paper prepared in partial fulfillment for the degree of Master of Business Administration.

SUPERVISOR

Signature : ________________________________

Name :

Date :

ENDORSED BY:

________________________________________________

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Syed Musa Alhabshi/Thesis Committee

Dean, Faculty of Business Administration

Date:

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