The research

Project and the

Thesis

Copyright, 1996 © Dale Carnegie & Associates, Inc.

 Elements
1. Presentation of the topic (title)
2. Justification
3. Status quaestionis (State of the question, the
antecedents)
4. Objectives
5. Theoretical frame
6. Hypothesis (hypotheses)
7. Sources
8. Methodology
9. Schedule
10. Outline
11. Bibliography
Title
 It should be appealing;
 Not too general;
 It is not the same as the topic;
 One topic may give way to different
approaches, titles, etc.
 You may add a subtitle to be more
specific.
Justification
 The relevance of the topic is explained.
 You may also make reference to your
personal reasons for the choice of topic.
Status quaestionis
 A brief explanation of each existing
book, research, specific bibliography,
etc about the topic.
 This is done so that you prove your
work will be original.
Objectives
 They should be clearly expressed.
 General objectives.
 Specific objectives.
Theoretical frame
 It is the conceptual context that frames the
research process and the hypotheses.
 You should bear in mind the different theories
in your field; how these theories have shaped
previous research; and how your contribution
will be original.
 (Even if the topic has been studied before,
originality may lie on new points of view,
aspects that have been overlooked, unseen
documents, etc.)
Hypothesis
 After reading the bibliography, you’ll ask yourself
some questions.
 The tentative answers are the hypotheses.
 A hypothesis is a reasonable explanation for a
concept, an event or a situation.
 It shows the connection between different factors or
variables.
 Intuition, induction, culture, previous knowledge and
personal experience are central to formulate a
hypothesis.
 A hypothesis should always be based upon previous
research (even if it was done by somebody else)
Characteristics of a hypothesis
 It should be clearly stated.
 It should be meaningful.
 It must be based on previous research or
knowledge.
 It can be contrasted with existing data.
 It should be verifiable.
 It should not be negative.
 It should be concise.
Sources & Methodology
 Indicate your primary and secondary
sources.
 Explain the methodology you will follow.
Be specific and clear in your
explanation. Justify your choice.
Schedule
 Think how much time you have to finish your paper.
Then, make a Schedule. You may consider the
following steps:
 Heuristics
 Analysis (Hermeneutics)
 Development of hypotheses
 Synthesis
 Conclusions
 Writing process
(Remember that this is a cyclic process; these moments
do not necessarily happen in chronological order).
Gantt’s Diagram
Outline
 You have chosen a topic; you have read the
sources and the bibliography; you have
formulated a hypothesis; so you have an idea
of how your final paper will look like (even if
this idea changes throughout the process).
 Thus, you can write an outline that, by the
end of the process will coincide –in general
terms- with the table of contents of your
paper.
Bibliography
 Sources
 Dictionaries and encyclopedias
 General bibliography
 Secondary sources
 Other sources