Dissertation and Thesis Writing

RESEARCH
THESIS
DISSERTATION

What are their

similarities & differences?
 The Title
So many papers, so
little time!
 The Title
 A good title is defined as the fewest possible
words that adequately and accurately
describe the contents of the paper.

 Part of a paper that is read most, and usually

it is read first.

 It is the advertisement for the article.

 How to Prepare the Title
(Gaafar, 2012)

 Make a list of the most important keywords

 Think of a title that contains these words
 The title could state the conclusion of the paper
 The title NEVER contains abbreviations, chemical
formulas, proprietary names or jargon
 Think, rethink of the title before submitting the paper
Parts of a Thesis/Dissertation
 Writing the Introduction
 The introduction serves the purpose of leading the reader
from a general subject area to a particular field of research.

 It provides background information that describes and

justifies the need for or advantage of the scientific study.

 It then clearly defines the purpose or problem, explains

the approach taken.
 What questions are needed to be answered in
the Introduction?
What is the thesis of The best initial statement is often a description of a claim. A principle
your study? or a general belief that the candidate wants to prove which stimulates the
author to conduct the study.
(Situate the Reader)

What is the existing The author should synthesize information from the literature into an
state of knowledge of account that traces the development of the problem and summarizes
this topic? What is its current state. In particular, gaps or inadequacies of current knowledge
the Gap? Is there an should be identified.
Opportunity? (Review the Literature)

What is the author He or she must indicate specific objectives or hypotheses that will be
going to do? tested. These should be clearly spelled out and in the case of
hypotheses, should be statements that are capable of being either
supported or refuted by the planned work.
(State and Justify the Purpose)
 Objectives of the Study
• There should be an introductory statement which
reflects the main problem of the study.

• Sub-problem should be stated in such a way that it is

not answerable by either yes, no, when and where.

• Sub-problems should include all the independent and

moderate variables which are reflected in the
conceptual framework.
 Sub–problems should be arranged in
logical order and extensive in coverage
and must be mutually exclusive in its
dimensions.

 If the research is quantitative avoid the

“how questions."
Characteristics of a Good Research Question
(Fraenkel and Wallen, 2007)

Can be investigated without

Feasible Undue amount of time, energy
Don’t involve physical or
or money
psychological harm to human
Beings, natural or social env.

Ethical Clear

People agree as to what the

key words in the question mean
Problem is worth investigating
Significant

Measures Relationships/Differences between Variables

 I am ready to
answer clarifications
for Chapter 1.
 Writing the Review of
Related Literature and Studies

Related Literature
Related Studies

How do they differ?

 Steps: Review of Literature
Step 1: Plan the topic and the scope
Step 2: Read and Construct ROL matrix
Step 3: Analyze, Summarize,
Synthesize and critique information
Step 4: Write the Draft
Step 5: Revise the Draft
Characteristics of a Good ROL:
• Focused - The topic should be narrow. You should only present ideas and only
report on studies that are closely related to topic.
• Concise - Ideas should be presented economically. Don’t take any more space than
you need to present your ideas.
• Logical - The flow within and among paragraphs should be a smooth, logical
progression from one idea to the next
• Developed - Don’t leave the story half told.
• Integrative - Your paper should stress how the ideas in the studies are related.
Focus on the big picture. What commonality do all the studies share? How are
some studies different than others? Your paper should stress how all the studies
reviewed contribute to your topic.
• Current - Your review should focus on work being done on the cutting edge of
your topic.
Example:
Piaget’s theory of stages of cognitive development
and Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development
are commonly used for educational psychology
courses (Borich & Tombari, 1997; LeFrancois, 1997;
Slavin, 1997). Piaget described characteristic
behaviors, including artistic ones such as drawing, as
evidence of how children think and what children do
as they progress beyond developmental milestones
into and through stages of development.
• The critical response to the poetry of Phillis Wheatley often
registers disappointment or surprise. Some critics have
complained that the verse of this African American slave is
insecure (Collins 1975, 78), imitative (Richmond 1974, 54-
66), and incapacitated (Burke 1991, 33, 38)—at worst, the
product of a “White mind” (Jameson 1974, 414-15). Others,
in contrast, have applauded Wheatley’s critique of Anglo-
American discourse(Kendrick 1993,222-23), her revision of
literary models…
Theory Identification: Effect of ROL
Investigation

Theory?
Constructs? Concepts? Variables?

What is the Role of Theory

in your paper?
Hypothesis/es: Effect of ROL Investigation

Hypotheses?

What is the Role of Hypothesis/es

in your paper?
 I am ready to
answer clarifications
for Chapter 2.
Writing the Methodology

Research Design?

Quantitative Research Designs

Qualitative Research Designs
Mixed Research Designs
 Writing the Methodology
Research Design: What to Write?

Identify the Design.

Define the Design.
Justify the appropriateness of the Design.
Writing the Methodology

Research Respondents

Principles of Sampling
Sampling Techniques
Sampling Bias
 Writing the Methodology

Research Respondents: What to Write?

The Locale of the Study.

The Population.
The Sample.
The Sampling technique.
Justification.
Writing the Methodology
Research Instruments

Standard or Researcher-Developed?
Adapted or Adopted?
Validity and reliability Requirement.
Etic or Emic perspective?
Writing the Methodology
Data Gathering Procedure

Methods of Data Collection

Meta-Analysis
Data Mining
Theory Building
Data Mining
Data Mining
Data Mining
 Data Mining and
Theory Building

Inductive Theory Development

Deductive Theory Development

Tool: Data Mining

 Statistical Treatment of Data

Univariate Analysis
Bivariate Analysis
Multivariate Analysis

Missing Best Practice: The researcher must decide

what to do with the data.
 I am ready to
answer clarifications
for Chapter 3.
Presentation, Analysis and
Interpretation of Data
Presentation Modes:

Textual
Tabular
Graphical
Presentation, Analysis and
Interpretation of Data
Writing the Results and Discussion

Result
Analysis
Interpretation
Reporting Statistics
Reporting Statistics
Reporting Statistics
Reporting Statistics
Reporting Statistics
 Writing Interpretation
 Relate to International, National and Local Policies and Standards

 Support Findings with Theories

 Anchor Discussion on Principles, Theories and Best Practices

 Always End with the Implication of the Theory where you
anchored your study.
 Writing the Abstract
 One (1) Paragraph
 100-150 words
 Components
 Background
 General Objective
 Methodology
 Findings
 Conclusion
 Recommendation (if it has international implication)
 I am ready to
answer clarifications
for Chapter 4 & 5.
Enjoy Writing Your
Thesis/Dissertation.