Does smoking e-cigarettes help people quit smoking?
The aim of this assignment is to provide you with the experience of designing a study
and writing a research study proposal. The benefits of this assignment are both
academic and professional: A research proposal is a common form of writing in
academia, but the structure of a research proposal is very often required in various
professional contexts.In general, a research proposal explains why and how the study will be conducted. A
research study proposal is guided by the relevant literature in the research area of interest and the question you want to answer. For your research proposal you have to reference at least five peer-reviewed journal articles. Note that the links provided
in the background information for the suggested topics are not references. If you have a preferred research question that you would like to use for this assignment, contact your course convener to discuss whether this research question is appropriate for this assessment.
Suggested Research Questions
A research proposal generally begins with an introductory section that describes the
research problem and establishes its significance. This section answers the following
kind of questions:
What exactly do you want to study? Why is it worth studying?
Does the proposed study have theoretical and/or practical significance?
Does it contribute to a new understanding of a phenomenon (e.g. does it address new or little-known material or does it treat familiar materials in a new way or does it challenge an existing understanding or extend existing knowledge)?For your assignment, you can choose to design a study which will aim to answer ONE of
the following research questions:
Does smoking e-cigarettes help people quit smoking?(Background: Very often e-cigarettes are promoted as a safe alternative for smoking.Using e-cigarettes is sometimes called vaping or juuling. The battery operated device
can look like conventional cigarettes, pens, or even sleek tech gadgets. Users inhale and exhale aerosolised vapour. This way of taking in nicotine, sometimes referred to as ENDS (for Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems), poses health risks to both users and non-users. E-cigarette promoters claim the devices can help people quit smoking, but the evidence for this claim is inconclusive. In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods
Administration has not approved any e-cigarette product as a cessation aid to help with quitting smoking. More information about e-cigarettes can be found on the Australian