Thesis Workshop

Today’s Program
 Getting Started
 Step One: Fishing for a Topic
 Step Two: Assessing Your Topic Choices
 Step Three: Narrowing Your Topic
 The Proposal
 The Thesis/Dissertation
 Organizing Thyself
 Writing the Darn Thing
 Selecting and Working Successfully with a Chair
and Committee
 The Big Picture
What do you wish you’d known when
you entered your graduate program?
 Expect to sell yourself to your director
 Don’t worry about the possibility of change in
focus
 Realize the importance of self-management

 From Peggy Hawley’s Being Bright Is Not Enough

The first step: Fishing for a
topic
Topic-seeking Behaviors
 The Expedient Approach: you select a research
topic out of expediency rather than thinking it
through.
 The Procedure-First Approach: you fall in love
with a procedure and then set about finding ways to
employ it. Instead, you must determine the problem
first and then design the methodology to fit it.
Choosing a Research Topic
 Whether you start from scratch or have a project
well in mind, your journey begins with a search of
the literature.
 Look for gaps in the body of knowledge and errors
of omission.
 Work from the general to the specific by starting with
generic ideas that fall within the ballpark of your
interests and gradually narrow the field.
 Read copies of theses accepted in your department.
 Look at the conclusions and suggestions for further
research in recent dissertations and publications.
 Take into consideration potential committee
members when choosing a topic.
Choosing a Research Topic

• Consider papers you have written that were

particularly successful. Can your thesis
include a similar type of research and
organization?
• Early on in your coursework, consider
potential research topics and try to write
pieces of your thesis/dissertation as you go
along.
As you review each topic, ask these three
questions:
 “What kind of information will I need?
 How and where will I get this information?
 Is the topic feasible in terms of available
sources of information, the complexity of
getting that information and analyzing it, and
the time I have available?
Types of Research
 Replication Study
 “In what way could I change a published study’s
method a bit so as to produce an interesting
variation on its results?”
 Explanatory Theory
 “Can I suggest a reasonable and apparently new
explanation of the author’s results that is different
from the author’s explanation?”

 From Thomas and Brubaker’s (2001) Avoiding Thesis

and Dissertation Pitfalls
Types of Research
 Typology
 “Can I suggest a reasonable and apparently new typology
for categorizing research results that’s different from the
ones available in the professional literature?”
 Ethnographic Case Study
 “How can I accurately describe the events that transpire in
the society that I study so as to make clear the roles people
play and the influence that the physical environment, the
society’s traditions, and the individuals’ interactions exert
on individuals’ behavior and the group’s outcome?”

 From Thomas and Brubaker’s (2001) Avoiding Thesis and

Dissertation Pitfalls
The second step: Assessing
research topics given YOUR
needs and preferences
Assessing your research topic
 Is it manageable?
 Will your results be regarded as significant whether
they confirm or disconfirm the hypothesis?
 Is the data source reliable?
 Does it make a significant and original contribution?
 Is it controversial?
 Is it interesting to you?
 Does it play to your strengths?
 Will it reflect well upon you as you enter the market?
Narrowing a Topic
 “Theories of Education”
 “Thomas Dewey’s Reflective Theory and Concept
Formation among Gifted Fourth Graders”
 “Protecting the Environment”
 “Natural Burn Policies and the management of
Our National Park System: Yellowstone, a Case
in Point”
 “The Classical Humanists”
 “Classical Humanistic Values and the Reality of
Anti-Semitism in the United States in the 1980s”
Create a calendar
Fall 2017 Spring 2018
Coursework Coursework
Fall 2018 Spring 2019
Thesis A Thesis B & Graduation
The Proposal
Proposals (see handout)

 Title
 Abstract
 The Problem
 Literature Review
 Methods
 Institutional Review Board?
Proposals: Title

 Title
 “A Study of the Efficacy of Vocational Interest
Inventories Versus Personality Inventories Using
Multivariate Analysis in the Prediction of Job
Satisfaction for Adults, Aged 18-24 in Their First
Year of Employment”
Proposals: A Problem Statement

 In simplest terms, a problem statement is an

inquiry about the relationship between two or
more variables.
 “Are children whose mothers work outside the
home more self-sufficient than children of mothers
who do not?”
Proposals: A Problem Statement
 The Research Problem (2-8 pages)
 A well-developed statement of the problem or research
question is a result of sifting through a mountain other
people’s findings to extract those few question which you
want to address.
 Example: There is a significant relationship between
bilingualism and self concept. A) do college students who
are fluent in a language other than English achieve higher
scores on the Tennessee Self Concept Scales than those
who speak only English; B) Is there a significant difference
in scores on the Tennessee Self Concept Scales among
people whose second language is Spanish, French, or
German?
Proposals: Literature Review

 Each cited source should help further your

thesis/dissertation
 Locate your study among similar published
studies
 Identify strengths and limitations of those
studies
 Demonstrate what contribution your study
can make to that domain of knowledge
Proposals: Literature Review

 Make sure you develop a detailed outline

first, to be reviewed by your adviser.
 Use headings within the chapter, conforming
to your outline, which allow you to break the
review into discrete sections that are more
easily handled.
Proposals: Methods
The main purpose of the Methods section is to describe
(and if necessary defend) the experimental design and
then provide enough detail so that a competent worker
can repeat the experiments. Many (probably most)
people will not read this section.
1) The usual order of presentation is chronological.
2) Use subheadings, preferably matching them to those
in the Results section.
3) Be precise, objective and accurate.
4) Use graphics (tables, graphs, photographs) as
needed.
The Thesis
Front Matter (see handout)

 A title page
 A copyright page
 Signed certifications by your committee
 Acknowledgments
 A table of contents
 A list of tables and figures
 A list of abbreviations
Back Matter

 Bibliography
 Appendices
 Tables of original data
 Facsimiles of supporting documents
 Questionnaires used for collecting data
 Vita
The body

 Introductory chapters (often from proposal)

 Introduction
 Literature review
 Methodology
 Presentation chapters
 Results
 Discussion
 Theme chapters
 Conclusions and Future Work
Organize Thyself
Patricia Shields’ Step by Step
 Things-To-Do List
 Calendar
 Sources to Find
 Miscellaneous Useful Information
 Bibliography
 Article and Chapter Notes
 Organizing Ideas: The Integrated Outline
 Class Handouts
 Early Drafts of the Paper
 Source Documents (copies of papers, etc.)

Order Step by Step: ISBN 158107117-5

Things-to-Do List

 Helps you plan

 Helps you use time effectively
 Separates the project into manageable parts
 Compels you to do a little each day
 N.B. Write something every single day and
build in rewards when you successfully
complete items on your to-do list.
Examples of a Things-to-Do List

 Spend 30 minutes checking library data

bases
 Identify and download the best articles
 Check out books
 Work on bibliography (5 references)
 Take notes on Chapter 1 Effinger
 Read Simonds
Calendar

 Coordinates Things-to-Do list with your real

life
 Allows you to get the big picture
 May be integrated into your existing planner
 Establishing contracts with your committee
chair and listing them on this calendar keeps
you moving forward and feeling the pressure
to finish.
Sources to Find
 You can hand record sources you’re looking for or
three-hole punch printouts/copies of bibliographies.
 The point is to develop a notation system to show
books/articles you’re seeking and to indicate those
that you have located
 Often the most useful references are the sources in
related articles, so check out bibliographies rather
than Googling your topic.
Sources to Find

Date Found Material to Find

Bibliography
 Work on your
bibliography as you go
along.

Book/Journal location Bibliographic Entries

Citing Sources
 Modern Languages Association
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/
American Psychological Association Style Guide:
http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html

American Sociological Association Style Guide:

http://www.asanet.org/page.ww?name=Quick+Style+G
uide&section=Sociology+Depts
Miscellaneous Useful Information

 This section gives you a place to put those

miscellaneous pieces of information you
locate along the way such as contacts,
emails, ideas for other projects.
Article and Chapter Notes

 A home for your notes on the articles and

books you’ve read.
Notetaking
 Keep good records. When you write/type your
notes, be sure to include some notation system (//)
to show page breaks (i.e. “Jack Spratt could eat
no // fat, and his wife could eat no lean” (Smith 123-
24).)
 Double-check all quoted material after you’ve
transcribed it.
 Once you begin taking notes from a source, cite it in
a working bibliography to ensure you have all the
information required and to avoid that last-minute
rush to locate/cite sources.
Writing the Darn Thing
Writing the Darn Thing
 Write a little each and every day
 Make contracts and honor them
 Meet your advisor regularly
 Join a support group
 Avoid stress
 Talk, talk, talk to crystalize ideas
 Stay motivated by regularly rewarding
yourself for work completed
 Develop a filing system and organize thyself
Your Chair, Your
Committee, and You
Your Chair, Your Committee, and You

 “The single most important relationship you

will ever make as a Master/doctoral student is
the one with your dissertation chair” (Hawley
53).
 Your chair must be someone with whom you
can communicate, who is knowledgeable in
your area, who is politically astute, and who
has enough interest in you to see you
through the process.
Professors to Avoid

 Autocrat
 Judge and Jury
 Opportunist
 Sexist
 Seducer or Seductress
Strategies for Finding the Chair You
Want
 Take a class from the prof under
consideration
 Consult the study grapevine
 Ask faculty about faculty
 Make sure the faculty member is available
 Strategies for Working with your Chair

 Establish clear guidelines and expectations on each

side from the beginning.
 Be professional. Remember that you’ve engaged
this person to help you improve your work, not to
rubber-stamp it.
 Speak up, politely but firmly.
 Stay in charge of your own writing.
 Establish regular meeting times and stick to them!
 Settle explicitly what your advisor is, and isn’t,
willing to read.
Adapted from Joan Bolker’s Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day
The Role of the Ph.D.
Candidate and the Faculty
Advisor
From Martin Hammerhead’s So You’re a
New Ph.D. Candidate: The How Tos of
Completing That Dissertation (1995)
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Have a clear research  Help refine YOUR
question and focus of ideas
your dissertation
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Have performed  Discuss where your
extensive literature literature review may
review on your topic. have gaps.
You should know your
topic better than your
advisor.
Communication should
be at the level where
you tell your advisor
about literature NOT
where you advisor finds
literature for you.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Link your literature  Help in organizing your
review clearly to presentation more
hypotheses. Explain to clearly.
the advisor how each
variable you use in your
analysis is derived from
previous literature and
what your expected
relationships are.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Develop your measures  After you have selected
based on measures the variables, the
used in previous advisor may be able to
studies, logic, content help you cull or add
validity. Be able to others.
defend what variable
you have included in
each index and why
you have included
them.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Develop your  After you have made
measures/indexes your decisions about
using standard how to measure
methodological particular concepts (e.g.
techniques. For after you have
example, be able to completed your factor
explain the results of analysis and explained
factor analysis and results to your advisor),
what items you the advisor may be able
selected for inclusion in to give you suggestions
your index based on for further improvement
factor analysis. of measures.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Decide what statistical  Consult on whether or
techniques you need to not these are
use. appropriate.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 If you do not know the  The advisor can suggest
particular technique, learn modifications on your
it and perform it. Tutoring analyses, adding new
and consultation are variables, testing for
available. Do not expect relationships you may not
faculty to have the time to have thought about.
tutor you on techniques
you should have learned
on your own. Tell the
advisor the results of your
analysis.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Be able to write up your  The advisor can help
analyses in the style of refine your writing style.
a professional. See
journal articles and
other dissertations for
guidelines.
The Grad. Student The Advisor
 Be able to link the  The advisor can help
results of your analyses strengthen these links.
to your hypotheses and
theory.
The Big Picture

 This is a thesis/dissertation, not your entire

life’s work.
 This is a thesis/dissertation, not your life.
 This is a thesis/dissertation–a means to an
end.
Sources
 Bolker, Joan. Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen
Minutes a Day. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.
 Hammerhead, Martin. So You’re a New Ph.D.
Candidate: The How Tos of Completing That
Dissertation,1995.
 Hawley, Peggy. Being Bright Is Not Enough. 2nd
edition. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 2003.
 Peters, Robert L. Getting What You Came For: The
Smart Students’ Guide to Earning a Master’s or
Ph.D. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1997.