Introduce and specify the research question to be addressed and the intellectual purpose of the research, such as why the research question is important. (What is the puzzle? What is the research question? What is the justification for the research?)

Literature review: Set the scene and put the subject within its empirical context and within the context of the relevant academic literature; what else has been written on the topic, how does this relate to what you want to investigate?
Hypotheses: Specify a testable hypothesis or hypotheses. Your hypothesis should be an empirical statement, not a question, and one that can be verified with empirical evidence. You can have more than one hypothesis, but more than three is not advisable.
Methodology: Outline the methods and sources that will be used to answer the research questions and test the hypotheses. You will not actually have to carry out the research for the research design, but you should make a statement about what sort of research method would be appropriate and why, as well as how you are going to collect your data and what any potential problems may be.
Ethical Issues: Comment on any ethical issues that the research raises and how you plan to deal with them.
Bibliography: A list of references cited in the text of your research design.