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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Bildung
- Sprache: Englisch
Producing a dissertation has become a major requirement of most university courses, both undergraduate and Masters. It's likely to be the largest single piece of work you'll have to submit - and also the hardest!
Writing a Dissertation For Dummies walks you through all the practical and theoretical aspects of writing a dissertation to help you produce a first-class work. This guide is ideal for any student in the broad range of the social sciences, from anthropology to law, psychology to media studies. From choosing a topic, to researching the literature, utilising your supervisor, managing your time, and structuring and writing your dissertation, you'll be able to avoid all the common mistakes and stay on top of your workload throughout the process. You'll also find tips on the best way to reference your work, and expert advice on presentation and binding. This is a must if you want to maximise your marks on your university dissertation.
Writing a Dissertation For Dummies covers:
Part I: What is a Dissertation?
Chapter 1: So You Have to Write a Dissertation
Chapter 2: Thinking About a Research Question
Part II: Getting Set Up for Your Dissertation
Chapter 3: The Structure of Your Dissertation
Chapter 4: Getting Started
Chapter 5: Finalising Your Research Question, Dissertation 'Type' And Considering Ethics
Chapter 6: Reading Efficiently and Taking Useful Notes
Part III: Getting On With Your Research
Chapter 7: Researching in Libraries and the Using the Internet
Chapter 8: Creating Your Own Empirical Data
Chapter 9: Analysing Data And Drawing Conclusions
Chapter 10: Staying on Track
Part IV: Writing and Polishing
Chapter 11: Managing Your Argument: 'Writing Up' Your Non-Empirical Dissertation
Chapter 12: Writing Up Your Empirical Dissertation
Chapter 13: Writing Effectively
Chapter 14: References, Bibliographies and Appendices
Chapter 15: Sorting Out The Presentation of Your Dissertation
Part V: Managing The Overall Experience
Chapter 16: Your Work Habits
Chapter 17: Looking After Yourself Physically and Emotionally
Chapter 18: Ten Common Dissertation Pitfalls to Avoid
Chapter 19: Ten Essential Tips For Completing Your Dissertation
Chapter 20: Ten Items For Your Very Final Checklist
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Seitenzahl: 528
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2010
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Writing a Dissertation For Dummies®
Table of Contents
Writing a Dissertation For Dummies®
by Dr Carrie Winstanley
Writing a Dissertation For Dummies®
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About the Author
Dr Carrie Winstanley works with undergraduate and postgraduate students, teaching different aspects of education including psychology, philosophy and history. She also teaches and researches with highly-able children and is especially interested in those who also have learning difficulties, sensory impairments and/or disabilities. She regularly runs workshops with children and adults in museums, galleries and schools, and is fascinated by learning and teaching in formal and non-formal contexts.
Carrie has taught in Higher Education for a decade, following ten years of teaching in schools (in the maintained, independent and international sectors). She is also an educational consultant and writer. Carrie holds higher degrees in social justice and education (PhD, London), psychology of education (MPhil, Cambridge), as well as the philosophy and history of education (MA, Surrey), plus an undergraduate degree in education (BHEd, Kingston, CNAA). She was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship from the Higher Education Academy in 2008.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the students I have supervised and the tutors who have supervised me.
Author’s Acknowledgments
I am grateful to colleagues, both in my immediate workplace and in the wider Higher Education sector, for myriad discussions over the years about supervision and academic writing. Thanks are also due to the many students whose dissertations I have shared and the tutors who supervised my own writing; you have all taught me a great deal.
This project was made possible by Wejdan Ismail and Simon Bell at Wiley, and my heartfelt thanks are due to them and to Colette Holden, Christine Lea and Anne O’Rorke. I appreciate all the support and the perceptive comments that have kept me on track, juggling this book with other projects and with real life too.
I would like to thank Ma, Pa and Suzi for their wonderful ongoing help and support and Missy for some excellent conversations about students and the common mistakes they make. I am also truly grateful to Andy for patience, endless cups of tea at just the right moment and a calming influence.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at http://www.dummies.com/register/.
Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:
Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development
Commissioning Editor: Wejdan Ismail
Publishing Assistant: Jennifer Prytherch
Development Editor: Simon Bell
Content Editor: Jo Theedom
Developer: Colette Holden
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Introduction
If you’re reading this you’re either already a student starting to prepare for your final year project or someone planning to study, and wondering what’s entailed. Whatever your motivation, you’ll find this book gives you answers to the questions you have and to plenty of questions you didn’t realise you wanted to ask. The dissertation is the most significant piece of work most students undertake on their degree course. It’s worth more than any other aspect, it has more time assigned to it and it’s often the only time when you have the opportunity for sustained one-to-one support from your academic tutor.
You should do all you can to make the most of the possibilities afforded to you in undertaking a dissertation. This book helps you maximise the positive aspects of the experience. You can pick up tips and find out about common pitfalls, as well as having a rich source of help and support for your writing and research.
Before you read further, take a moment to consider that congratulations are in order! If you’re writing a social science dissertation, you’re probably in the third or final year of your degree course. On most degree courses, a dissertation, or final year project, is obligatory. You can’t register for such modules, unless you’ve successfully completed previous coursework, essays, exams, presentations, portfolios, and many other requirements. You are already a success story!
However, there is still a long way to go. A dissertation is an exciting,challenging, rewarding and often wonderful experience. Simultaneously, it’s also likely to be exhausting, frustrating, time-consuming and irritating. You need to maximise the positive and minimise the negative and that ‘s where this book can really help.
About This Book
This book is presented in an accessible way, through straightforward writing and a user-friendly format. To make sense of the book, you don’t need to read it from start to finish. In fact you don’t even need to read it in order. It’s a reference for you to dip into, as and when you need advice or help. It covers the usual empirical dissertations with all you’ll need about research methods and analysis, but it also helps you if you’re planning a library-based, theoretical thesis.
Conventions Used in This Book
Each chapter covers the basics you’ll need and also provides further details and examples that you can skim over if you’re pushed for time. I also flag up points in the book where you can cross-reference to different chapters, so that you can read the book thematically with ease.
For ease of navigation, I use the following conventions:
Italic is used for emphasis, to highlight new words, and terms which the text defines.
Bold text is used to indicate keywords in bulleted lists.
Monofont is used for Internet addresses.
Sidebars, the shaded grey boxes you see from time to time point out information which might come in handy, but doesn’t qualify as essential reading.
What You’re Not to Read
If you’re undertaking an empirical dissertation, you can skip over the sections that deal with non-empirical work and vice-versa. If anything arises where a cross-reference is helpful, I have directed you to it in the text. Here and there I’ve included anecdotes and examples that are interesting but not in the least bit essential to your dissertation journey. They’re presented in grey shaded boxes – sidebars – and you can leave them out without worrying that you’ve missed something essential.
Foolish Assumptions
I wrote this book with social science students in mind. As I was writing this book I had flashbacks to conversations and supervisions with countless students and colleagues over the years. As I worked on each page, I was thinking about students just like the ones I’ve supervised over the years, just like those I’m working with now and just like those I’ll work with in the future. There’s no template for these students: They come from different backgrounds, have varied interests, diverse ideas, unique constellations of skills and their own distinctive approaches to their work. I have made a few basic assumptions about you, though. This book is for you if you:
Are already on a degree course or embarking on one.
Are committed to completing your dissertation.
Have already written some essays.
Are studying some aspect of social science.
Want to improve your grades.
By definition you have to be pretty on the ball to be doing a degree (usually!). This is book is for you if you’d just like some help getting to grips with what’s expected of you.
How This Book Is Organised
The book has six parts, mostly about the process of the dissertation with a few about broader concerns such as social science in general, or your well-being, along the way. Here’s a summary of each section to help you navigate your way around Dissertations For Dummies.
Part I: Understanding What a Dissertation Is
You need to be clear about which subjects come under the umbrella heading of the ‘Social Sciences’ and you also need to be sure that you understand the different types of long essays and research projects that are called ‘dissertations’. This first part of the book will help you locate your work within the discipline of social science and set you on the path to a useful and realistic research question to form the basis of your dissertation.
Part II: Getting Set Up for Your Dissertation
In order to get the most out of this project you need to be very clear about exactly what is expected. This part of the book will help you prepare effectively and will save you time and grief once the project is underway. Planning thoroughly means and you’ll be more organised and won’t miss anything vital. This section also gives you strategies for reading and taking notes.
Part III: Getting On with Your Research
Now you are clear about your research question you need to get on with gathering the data to answer your question. This part of the book helps you to get to grips with actually starting to write up your notes. It will also help you gather the required data now that you have a clearer focus and you know what you are looking for both in libraries and through collecting your own experimental data. It also helps you keep an overview of the dissertation process as a whole.
Part IV: Writing and Polishing Your Work
Your data is collected and analysed or your arguments are delineated and your references are stacking up nicely. This part helps you get from piles of ideas to a clear set of arguments, rounded off with a strong conclusion, all fully referenced and neatly presented. There is a glimmer of light at the end of the dissertation tunnel.
Part V: Managing the Overall Experience
Writing a dissertation is an endurance test! You will need stamina to sustain your interest and determination. Giving some attention to your work habits and to your lifestyle will pay dividends when the inevitable rush to the finishing post kicks in, some time down the line.
Part VI: The Part of Tens
The Part of Tens provides you with quick tips and warnings. You’ll see how to avoid tripping up on the more commonly found obstacles, reminders about what you need to include and ultimately the definitive list of final advice to ensure you’re all done and dusted to the satisfaction of your eagle-eyed examiners.
Icons Used in This Book
The icons you see scattered through the book tell you what you have to know, what you could do with knowing, and what you should steer well clear of.
This icon highlights helpful strategies for your dissertation experience.
Wherever you see this icon there’s a point you that you should make into a mental or physical note – something to keep in mind.
This book is full of the advice that students really need but don’t usually get until after the work is completed. They’re priceless alerts to help you avoid mistakes.
Anywhere you see the gradebuster icon you know what you’ll have to do in order to get a brilliant mark. Aiming for a first class mark? Look out for these hints and helps.
Where to Go from Here
The typical place to go from here is to the first chapter, but in the case of this book, you should start with what you need. If you’re stuck on your questionnaire, head for Chapter 8; if you can’t find any journals, it’s Chapter 6. If you’re just overwhelmed with the whole thing, turn to Chapter 17 and if you’re in a panic, start with Part VI to get some perspective on what really needs to be done.
If you’re feeling fine and want to just get going on your dissertation, put on the kettle, plump up the sofa cushions and browse through the book until you find something that grabs your eye. Good luck on your dissertation journey.
Part I
Understanding What a Dissertation Is
In this part...
In this part I explain what a dissertation is, how much work it involves, and on what sort of course you can expect to be asked to write one. I also give you the tools to produce a workable and rewarding research question – the question which underpins your dissertation – including how to choose an area which maintains your interest.
Chapter 1
Sorting Out the Basics of a Dissertation
In This Chapter
Finding out what a dissertation is
Discovering the different types of dissertation
Sounding out some of the main social science subjects
Chances are you’ve picked up this book because you’re embarking on a dissertation, or similar final-year project. This implies that you’ve successfully completed previous essays and exams and probably even presentations and portfolios as well. So, you’re already a successful student and this book will help you build on your strengths whilst identifying ways to improve how you study.
If you’re still quite far off from getting to your final year, thinking about it now is a great start - thorough preparation is going to help you succeed.
A dissertation is just an important sounding name for a long essay – based on your own research. Writing a dissertation is an exciting, challenging, rewarding and often wonderful experience. At the same time it can be exhausting, time-consuming, frustrating and exasperating.
Take heart! In this book I set out to tell you the ins and outs of writing a dissertation and give you all the help you need to make sure your dissertation is a success.
What Is Social Science, Exactly?
Broadly, the social sciences look at the state of society and the people that make up societies. By now you’re sure to have discovered that the social sciences cover an enormously wide range of subjects. Deciding what counts as social science is an ongoing area for debate – a topic that’s great for a dissertation in itself!. For clarity in this book I’m going to rely on the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) definition of social sciences. The ESRC is the main government funding council for research in social science in England and Wales and so their ideas have currency. In the section ‘Pinpointing your field of study’ later in the chapter you can find a description of each of the areas the ESRC considers makes up the social sciences.
Here’s a mini A–Z rundown of the main social science disciplines; a refresher course that’s hopefully going to get your dissertation juices flowing. If the subject you’re studying is related to any of the disciplines in the list, with luck the book is going to be spot-on for your dissertation. Throughout this book I use examples from the more commonly studied social science subjects, such as education and sociology, but the ideas apply equally to other sub-disciplines of the social sciences like sociolinguistics, journalism, international relations, criminology and gender studies. These fields usually fall under a broader discipline, so gender studies form part of sociology while international relations constitute part of political science.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of human beings and their way of life. The word anthropology comes from the Greek ‘anthropos’, meaning a ‘human being’ or ‘person’. The main research method in the science of anthropology is ethnography, which involves collecting raw data through field work and reviewing the data to get the whole picture of the society being studied and linking the data to other areas such as archaeology, biology, linguistics and the humanities.
Economics
The science of economics analyses and describes how wealth is produced, distributed and consumed. Economists use current thinking backed up by data to find ways of balancing people’s economic needs with the way the needs are going to be financed . The word economics comes from the Greek words ‘oikos’, meaning ‘family’ or ‘household’ and ‘nomos’ meaning ‘custom’ or ‘law’. Generally, economics is split into two branches: the study of individual households, companies, industries, and commodities (microeconomics) and the study of economics on a large scale such as national income and international trade (macroeconomics).
Over the last 20 years, the methods and reasoning underpinning economics are being applied to other social issues. For example, the economic principles of cause and effect, which tries to explain how the economy is affecting people’s behaviour in areas such as businesses, families and relationships. Economics also takes in green economics, Marxist ideas, socialism, globalisation, institutional economics and economic sociology. Despite the many different areas that economics embraces, the science is above all concerned with getting value for money by way of human effort, or ‘labour’.
Education
Education (also called pedagogy) is the science of teaching and learning. Educational science covers both theoretical and applied research and draws on a multitude of disciplines as well as taking into account other factors affecting learning: emotional, social, psychological, philosophical, historical and the physical setting. Hailing from the Latin verb ‘educare’, to educate meaning ‘to draw out’ education concerns acquiring knowledge and skills, and nurturing talents and potential abilities to give the individual the opportunity of leading a full life and making a positive contribution to society.
Much educational research is linked to schooling and the development of children and adolescents, but education isn’t just confined to these areas. Educationalists claim that prebirth experiences affect education (and educational opportunity) and studies include a cradle-to-grave approach. Informal education through leisure activities is also getting more attention and educational practice, such as testing and examinations are continually being questioned, evaluated and explored.
Geography (human)
Geography is made up of three sub-disciplines: human geography (people’s relationship with the built environment); physical geography (the natural environment); and environmental geography (the interaction between people and their physical environment). Practical applications of geography include urban planning, transportation and studying the built environment. Geographers use a range of data including aerial photography and statistics in their research. Some geographers consider geography as a pure science, which is why you find that physical geography is separated from human geography in some universities.
History
History is more often thought of as being part of the humanities than of the social sciences. In the UK, history research is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). The study of history particularly focuses on both continuity and change and mostly considers the development of humanity as continuous, providing a narrative of past events. Postmodernist theory is challenging the idea of continuity, but for most undergraduate dissertations taking the more traditional approach of continuity still holds good.
The main reason for including the study of history in the social sciences is backed up by the research methods being used when researching history, which includes using primary sources, secondary sources and other evidence. Data comes in the form of documents, public records, images, artefacts and personal memoirs.
Law
Law is all about being governed by established legal systems. The law plays an important and significant part in society, which is why the law is so important to social scientists. Taking a broader view, the law is part of international relations and can be more difficult to enforce. International law is more a study of what’s ethically acceptable and of finding ways of using legal systems to work for the good of the majority. The study of law links closely with political science, economics and philosophy, blurring the boundaries between the humanities and the social sciences when it comes to deciding which academic discipline law fits into best.
Linguistics
The science of linguistics deals with language and includes both cognitive and social aspects of the use of language. Linguistics is divided into related subdivisions:
Phonetics and phonology: Deals with pronunciation and speech production.
Neurolinguistics: Explores the role of the brain in language development, and the processing and storage of language in the brain, the investigation of diseases or abnormalities and recovery from injuries and emotional shock.
Syntax: Concerns the rules governing sentence structure.
Semantics: Relates to the meaning of words.
Other social science subjects, such as history and anthropology, include evolution and the origins of language, and psychology looks at emotional and cognitive aspects to understanding and observing human language.
Political science
Political science is the theory and practice of government and politics, which involves exploring and analysing political systems and political behaviour. The study of political science includes international relations and law, foreign policy, comparative political and studies of superpowers. At national levels political science includes civics, the notion of participation and democracy, political development, public administration and law, justice and public policy.
When studying political science, social science methods are frequently used: surveys, statistical analysis, case-studies, and building conceptual models for exploring ideas. Primary sources (historical documents, official records) are used as well as secondary sources, like journal articles and government data.
Psychology (social)
Psychology is the study of the mind and human behaviour and is both a research and an applied discipline. Having knowledge of how people behave is used when treating mental illness and helping people cope with problems occurring in their daily lives. Close links exist between psychology and other fields such as neuroscience, biology and sociology, and specialisms including social psychology, neuropsychology, clinical psychology and educational psychology.
Sociology
Sociologists study the origin, development, structure and functioning of society and are interested in how society is organised, both on micro and macro levels. Sociology is a relatively new academic discipline, only reaching back to the early 19th century. Since then researchers and commentators have created a body of social theory and apply social science research methods to the discipline. Sociology has specialist areas such as: criminology (the study of deviant and criminal behaviour); demography (population studies); gender and race studies and issues to do with socioeconomic status. Sociology provides information about patterns of behaviour across society, influencing policy making.
Social work
Social workers are involved in the public sector, supporting individual people, families, communities and groups and helping people to deal with their social problems. The aim of social work is to make sure that social justice is being applied and to improve the lives of those people less able to make their needs and wishes known. Social workers are committed to enhancing the quality of life for all members of society by applying social theory and research findings to the everyday lives of people at every level of society.
All aspects of social science are included in social work. Social workers build up specialist knowledge from evidence they’ve collected using social science research methods, such as collecting empirical data through surveys, studying individuals through case-studies and using qualitative information.
Other areas of social science
There are also some other areas of the social sciences that you may like to think about:
Media studies – involves the analysis of images, sounds and text you get via the media: TV, radio, newspapers and so on
Development studies – is about the developing world
Information science – looks at systems and methods of storing and retrieving information
Sociobiology – attempts to prove that social behaviour has a genetic basis influencing human development
Pinpointing your field of study
If you didn’t come across the subject you’re studying in the A–Z list a useful source for finding your subject is the ESRC website (www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/index.aspx which describes social science in a way that you may find more helpful than a listing of subjects.
Social science is a wide-ranging discipline. For example, the kinds of jobs that social science students go on to do include teaching, policing, business social work, health care, local government, urban planning, and many more.
Seeing what makes social science a distinct discipline
Although the social sciences include so many different disciplines what they all have in common is that they address the concerns of society and of people. As a result, many of the disciplines adopt similar theories and research methods. The overlap of disciplines can be subtle or overt.
Your reading and your degree course has likely been helping you make sense of the many subject areas in the social sciences and the theories and research methods that are being used. In Table 1-1 you can see a tiny sample of the kinds of social science questions you may meet but which are frequently presented in different forms. I’ve also noted some of the related theoretical standpoints and a brief summary of the research area.
The more you appreciate and are comfortable with the variety of approaches in the social sciences the easier it’s going to be for you to excel in your dissertation. How to improve your knowledge? – by reading, thinking and discussing topics thoroughly with others.
In Table 1-1 you see just a fraction of the theories that abound in the social sciences – research is shifting and developing all the time. For example, you may have already come across critical theory; feminist theory; dialectic theory; materialism; rationalism; postmodernism; pragmatism; structuralism, to name but a few.
Researching social science
No matter which aspect of social science you’re studying you’re likely to be faced with a range of research methodologies, some more favoured than others. In Table 1-2 you can see some examples of methods of research that you may meet in your reading.
You’re sure to come across the words qualitative and quantitative in connection with social science research. Here are the main differences between the two terms together with a brief description of each term:
Qualitative data – usually takes the form of words, pictures and objects, and the data can be subjective because the researcher is personally involved in collecting rich data.
Quantitative data – is numerical data and focuses on classification, statistical models and numerical information that’s collected as objectively as possible using research tools.
I’ve given you a very simple introduction and summary of what social science research involves. You need to read on in this book to get a fuller picture of what social science research involves.
Understanding the Different Types of Dissertation
In social science research, both practical and theoretical considerations are of the utmost importance. In your dissertation, however, you’re likely to be taking a practical or a theoretical approach. For an undergraduate dissertation, your examiner is going to expect you to choose a largely theoretical or a mainly practical look at your chosen subject. Any useful practical research you carry out requires a sound theoretical basis, and any theoretical study you do needs to link to what’s happening in the world around you.
A theoretical study can be mainly abstract with an emphasis on the philosophical, ethical and cultural considerations of the subject, or your subject can be an applied theoretical study with an emphasis on political, social or economic issues, for example. More practical research studies in social science are usually about exploring issues through surveys, action research, observations, case-studies or a review of existing studies.
The type of dissertation you end up writing depends on the topic you’re researching. In Table 1-3 I give you a few examples of different ways of approaching a topic just to get you thinking:
Empirical dissertations
An empirical dissertation involves collecting data. For example, to gather the views of patients at a GP’s surgery, volunteers in a police service, children in a play centre or translators in a refugee centre, you have to find ways of asking the individuals involved what they think or review what they’re doing. You can collect your data in many ways: from questionnaires and observations to interviews and focus groups. Or, you may prefer to collect your data by taking another approach such as looking at and analysing existing data from new angles, making useful comparisons or drawing interesting parallels.
Even if the focus of your dissertation is on using data, don’t forget that you’re still going to need a sound theoretical basis for your work.
Non-empirical dissertations
Making the choice to do a non-empirical dissertation shouldn’t be taken lightly. Sustaining an argument over the length of your whole dissertation is a distinct challenge. If you enjoy spending time in the library, reading, thinking and discussing theory, this is likely to be the right choice for you. If you know that making the university library your home for weeks on end is going to be difficult, you may be better off choosing a more empirical research question to explore.
Key theories in your discipline such as feminism or pragmatism can be the basis of an abstract discussion in your dissertation. Subjects such as sociology have this type of theory at their centre and so it’s perfectly valid, for example, to discuss aspects of the theory of pragmatism as your dissertation topic. A dissertation that draws upon major theories, such as in education more often takes an applied route, but can also be exclusively theoretical, for example, some work in the philosophy of education.
Narrative dissertations
You’re more than likely to choose doing an empirical or a non-empirical dissertation. However, in other disciplines you may come across different methods of producing a dissertation.
Dissertations in many science subjects include or even focus around a laboratory report describing all the aspects of setting up, carrying out and analysing a complex experiment. In physical geography, time is spent somewhere wild and windswept collecting data needed for analysis. Laboratory work and field trips are a key part of the student experience of writing a dissertation. It’s possible you may even use a passage from the classics or biography as an illustration or example in your dissertation.
Reading Other Students’ Dissertations
A great way of getting a feel for what you’re letting yourself in for in doing your dissertation is to look at some examples of previous students’ work. Generally, undergraduate dissertations aren’t held in the university library so you may have to ask your supervisor if you wish to look at a few undergraduate dissertations. The best way of going about reading the dissertations is to set aside a couple of hours and give yourself plenty of space to spread out. It’s a really good idea to try to compare several dissertations at the same time because this gives you a sense of the range of acceptable formats and also discourages you from trying to read each dissertation from cover to cover – yes, you do have better ways of spending your valuable time.
I want to discourage you from the practice of reading large amounts of other students’ work (unless your supervisor has specifically told you that there’s a dissertation you simply must read) as you’ve no guarantee of the quality of the student’s work – the dissertation may turn out to be a not very inspiring model.
Checking level and course
If the dissertation you’re looking at is an MA dissertation, the format is likely to be similar to your undergraduate work, but the work itself is obviously at a higher level, so don’t be overwhelmed or worried about what the MA student has achieved. MA dissertations can sometimes be very intimidating!
When you’re sure your looking at an undergraduate dissertation, take some time to check whether the dissertation is from the same programme as the one you’re following. Remember that regulations change over the years, and the accepted format for the dissertation you’re looking at may no longer be acceptable. In ‘Fathoming the format and layout’ there are some questions to ask yourself while you’re flicking through the dissertations you’ve selected.
Fathoming format and layout
A well laid-out dissertation, needs to be clear and easy to navigate around, and be manageable in size and weight. Ask yourself:
Is the student’s name and/or identity number clearly displayed?
Is the title obvious?
Is the dissertation properly bound?
Are the contents pages, appendixes, chapter headings eye-catching and easy to read?
Are the abstract, acknowledgements and introduction in the right order?
If the dissertation contains charts and graphs, are the charts and graphs clear, and do they make an effective use of colour?
Has the student chosen a suitable font that’s easy on the eye?
Considering content and argument
You’re not going to have time to read the dissertations right through, but you can get a sense of the content by scanning through the chapter headings and subheadings displayed both on the contents pages and in the dissertation itself. If you can find a dissertation that deals with a topic close to your own, jot down some of the chapter headings to see if this dissertation has any links to your own subject. (Don’t use the dissertation as your one and only guide however.)
If you see ideas that you can use in your own dissertation, make a note for future reference. At this stage, you’re just getting an overall impression of what an undergraduate dissertation looks like, so concentrating on the introductory section or wherever the student introduces his research question is your best bet. Take note of how the most successful research questions are generally rather narrow, or at least firmly focused. With luck, the student has explained how he narrowed down his ideas from a formless idea to a workable question. Compare a few of the dissertation titles to find out which you think works the best.
You also need to take a good look at the research methodologies. If the student carried out an empirical dissertation using data and practical examples, keep a record of any ideas that strike you as particularly effective. If the dissertation is non-empirical and concerns analysis and interpretation of ideas, look at how the student has structured his chapters. For example, do subheadings relate to theorists or specific ideas, or are the subheadings thematic? If there’re no subheadings in chapters, how has the student signposted their reader?
If you can find your way around the dissertation effectively, this is a piece of work that has been well signposted. Don’t forget that the examiner is likely to have a pile of dissertations to get through, and the easier the dissertation is structured, the more likely that the examiner is going to be in a good mood when he’s marking. From leafing through the dissertations, you should now have a good idea of what really works well. If you have any doubts about your judgement, ask your supervisor to check what you think is great is also something that your supervisor considers to be an appropriate model.
Examples of dissertation titles are thoroughly considered in Chapter 2 when you’re invited to get to grips with your research question. Take the opportunity for now of jotting down any good (or awful) dissertation titles while you’ve got the dissertations in front of you.
Decoding bibliographies
Make sure you spend a little time looking at the bibliographies and references in the different dissertations. The way you have to compile your bibliography is set out in the dissertation guidelines, but it’s still worth paying attention to the way that students use underlining, italics, spacing, alignment, capital letters, and so on. As you compare the different bibliographies, make a note of which are the best set out and easiest to read – these are the models you want to take on board (as long as the model meets your dissertation guidelines, of course).
Also, look through the chapters, examining how students refer to books, journals, websites, reports and other sources in the body of their dissertations. Again, you’re given guidelines to work in but it’s a valuable exercise to see different referencing styles in practice.
Criticising constructively
Flicking through a dissertation and pulling it apart, picking on all the errors and focusing on what you think you can do better if the dissertation was your work, is all too easy. Of course the student who’s written the dissertation is unlikely to be sitting next to you, waiting for feedback, but don’t forget that there are likely to be some good bits in the dissertation (failed ones generally don’t make it to the library). Before you get too smug, picking on the bits that need improvement, remember that this student has successfully completed the task that you’re about to begin, and he’s probably acutely aware of all the things that he could have done better!
Don’t spend too long on looking over your fellow students’ work – what you’re aiming to do is come up with some great ideas for your own dissertation and discover a few things you want to avoid. And that’s all.
Chapter 2
Thinking About a Research Question
In This Chapter
Discovering what makes you tick
Finding a suitable topic
Putting your research proposal in order
Finding an inspiring research question for your dissertation and coming up with a title – that’s short, clear and informative – can be a long and complex business. In this chapter I help you through the process of finding a research topic that gets you fired up and ready to go. Discovering what intrigues and excites you is an excellent way of selecting a topic to research and for creating a great dissertation proposal.
Discovering What Excites You
As your dissertation develops the wording of your title may alter, but the basic question(s) that you’re researching stay much the same. It’s vital that you make a careful choice about what you want to research. Discovering a topic that keeps you interested and motivated is all important. Writing your dissertation is going to take up a lot more time than you normally spend on an essay or other coursework. Most institutions allow one year for dissertations, although some courses allow a little more time, others a little less. At the least, writing your dissertation is going to take a good few months and it can be hard keeping motivated even when you’re genuinely interested. Trying to research and write a dissertation that isn’t holding your interest can be difficult to manage as well as draining and dispiriting. Some of the questions that I’m asking in the following list may seem trivial, but trust me – if you can tap into areas that arouse your curiosity, you’re sure to enjoy the dissertation process a lot more than if you pick a topic based on what you think is expected of you or what you think is going to be easy and manageable.
Jot down your answers to the following questions in your dissertation notebook (yes – new stationery!):
What are your favourite TV programmes?
What type of music do you like best?
What sort of films do you enjoy watching?
What kind of books do you read for entertainment?
When spending time with friends, what do you like to talk about?
What inspired you to go to university?
Do you enjoy your own company?
Have you a childhood interest that you’re still keeping up?
What do you do with your free time?
Which subjects on your course are you enjoying most?
When chatting with other students about what they’re studying, which subjects sound appealing and interesting?
What sort of impact do you think your career is going to make?
From your answers try looking for patterns in what you enjoy doing. For example, you may find you enjoy listening to political music, watching documentaries and discussing politics with friends. Or, you have a passion for reading novels set in foreign countries, you like world music and wearing fashions from other cultures. Having highlighted aspects of yourself that make you tick can inspire you to get working on a research topic such as the cost of providing sports facilities in deprived areas or the particular needs of newly arriving immigrants. For example, if you’ve listed watching soap operas or reading magazines, it seems you’re really interested in relationships and people’s lives. Think about how your research can focus on people’s emotional response to their situation.
Although following your interests is important, be careful not to bring any deeply held personal feelings or hurts into your research. If you select a topic that’s upsetting you may not be doing the subject or yourself any favours. You need to strike a balance, so avoid choosing a topic that’s closely linked to a negative personal experience.
Following your interests
One of my students became aware that dance had fascinated her from early childhood, but was viewing dance as just a hobby and not seeing how dance linked in any way with her studies for a degree in education. After realising that her interest in dance was still important to her she ended up evaluating dance workshops for primary-aged school children, although her original idea was to carry out a theoretical study. She was delighted to be able to research something that she felt passionate about and make it part of her studies. Another student identified an interest in photography and was inspired to carry out a project involving working with preschool children on their perceptions of their day care settings; giving the children digital cameras and analysing the pictures they took of their environment as data for her dissertation.
Picking an idea that interests you
Finding a suitable research question involves building on your previous learning and touching upon issues that you care about. Instead of just thinking ‘What would I like to research?’ ask yourself which aspects of your field you find fascinating. Some people find that picking the bits they enjoy is easy and end up with more ideas than they can possibly follow through. Others feel that they don’t have any specific interests, but in my experience people do have feelings about what they’d rather or rather not read about and research.
Sometimes a student may say that she has no particular interests, but after asking a few probing questions the student gets a clearer picture of what interests her, leading into a possible research topic. Here’s a typical conversation between tutor and student – while waiting in the queue for coffee! – about potential dissertation topics:
Student: Actually, I was going to email you because I don’t really have a clue about my dissertation topic.
Tutor: What are you interested in, generally?
Student: You know, just about children and that.
Tutor: Any particular age?
Student: Yeah, 14- and 15-year-olds. Earlier this year, I helped out at a centre for teenagers who dropped out from school; they were doing some sort of youth scheme.
Tutor: Oh, that sounds interesting. What kind of activities did they do?
Student: I was thinking of doing my dissertation on it, but actually it was a bit rubbish. I was really disappointed.
Tutor: In what way?
Student: They had this budget for doing visits, but they were so worried about the teenagers’ behaviour that they just didn’t even spend it. It seems to me that if you don’t trust the teenagers, then you’re just making the problem worse. I mean, I know what they were nervous about, but that’s the whole point of the scheme, right? Taking people to different places, giving them different chances . . .
Tutor: There’s enough material here for a couple of dissertations!
Student: How do you mean?
Tutor: Well, you’d have to be careful how you manage the anonymity of the teenagers, and make sure that any criticism is constructive, but don’t you think it would be interesting to see whether there are any studies tackling the problems faced by the centre?
Following this conversation the student had plenty of ideas on expanding the topic and I only gave a few prompts – to get the student to specify the age group she was interested in, a couple for some more detail, and to encourage her to rethink her initial decision of abandoning studying the centre because her experience there had been negative.
Negative experiences can frequently be rich sources for a research question. Don’t dismiss a negative experience too quickly.
After thinking about the range of possible research topics in your field, you’re likely to find that some switch you right off, others get you excited and some leave you undecided. Try imagining the topics you’ve come up with so far as a lucky dip barrel. In your mind, reach in and pull out a topic one by one. Using Table 2-1 assign the topic to one of the three columns listed in the table.
Weigh up the pros and cons of each idea and move the topic from column to column until you have a clear idea which topic you want to choose.
Have a go at doing this exercise more than once and sharing it with friends to encourage discussion. It’s useful to put each topic on a Post-it note and, by moving them around the three columns, see which topics have greater appeal and possibilities.
Working out what you don’t want to do
If trying to discover what inspires and motivates you isn’t working, try focusing on what you don’t want to research. Start by throwing out all aspects of your field of study that you simply don’t want to take further. For example, your field is urban renewal but you have no particular fascination with one aspect of urban renewal over another. Try narrowing down your subject by rejecting the bits that you think are likely to be boring to research in depth. To find where you stand on urban renewal ask yourself:
Am I honestly bothered about street furniture?
Do I care about community amenities?
Do I want to investigate the idea of ‘special character’ or conservation areas?
Am I worried about the design of public buildings?
Would I like to know more about how urban projects are funded?
Do I want to think about transport?
Can I bear to be reading about the gentrification of areas?
Do I feel the urge to find out more about compulsory purchase orders?
Do I feel strongly about green spaces?
With luck a picture of a possible research question comes into view. This is only the beginning of your journey however. You need to start doing some initial research to confirm your instinct that this is the topic for you, and thinking it through thoroughly before speaking to your supervisor.
If you’ve decided on your topic, the section on writing a research proposal will help you put your ideas into practice.
Firing yourself up about ways of working
Despite all your best efforts you may find you come up against a blank wall in choosing a topic to research. If this happens, try going about your search for a topic from a different angle. Try thinking about how you’d like to go about a piece of research and what research methods you’d like to use and the kind of data your method is going to generate. Considering the following methods of research may help you hit on a research question:
Interviewing –you enjoy meeting and talking to people.
Case-study – you’re naturally self-confident and are good at building personal relationships without getting too involved.
Reviewing existing data – focusing your research on the current literature and archival material.
Number-crunching – you can handle and are fascinated by numbers.
Statistical analysis – you have an analytical mind.
Qualitative research – you prefer concentrating on focused samples of research.
