Writing Your Thesis

Paul Oliver

• Editorial: SAGE Publications Ltd
• Año: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781446293065
• Edición: 3
• Categoría: Ciencias sociales
• Categoría: Investigación y metodología de las ciencias sociales

?Written in an authoritative and accessible style, this is a must-read for anyone planning, researching and writing a doctoral thesis or dissertation. I will certainly be recommending this book to my research students.? - Professor Goeffrey Elliott, University of Worcester ?Paul?s book was a lifeline during my doctorate: it is now the first book that I recommend for my research students! His book is easily accessible, full of practical advice, and provides useful study strategies to carefully guide you - this third edition is a valuable asset wherever you are on your doctoral journey.? - Dr Scott Buckler, University of Worceste r Based on his extensive experience as a successful thesis supervisor, Paul Oliver shows you how to turn your notes and data into a finished Masters or PhD thesis or dissertation.
Fully up-to-date with current HEFCE/other EU requirements, the book sets out a template for you to follow, including planning and preparation, theoretical perspectives, publishing preliminary findings, and preparing for the viva.

This edition contains:

• Examples of common mistakes and how you can avoid them
• Discussions of artefacts such as creative work
• Research-focused content
• A section on the relationship with your supervisor
• Information on online and digital work, so you are up to date with the latest developments in thesis writing.

Student Success is a series of essential guides for students of all levels. From how to think critically and write great essays to boosting your employability and managing your wellbeing, the Student Success series helps you study smarter and get the best from your time at university.

Part 1 The Process of Academic Writing

1 The Research Thesis

In this chapter you will learn about the different forms which a research thesis can take, and explore the criteria which help to distinguish a master’s from a doctoral thesis. We look at the broad characteristics of academic writing, along with some of the features which characterize a well-written thesis. We also examine the formal university procedures and requirements for academic theses.

Study Strategies

• Visit a university library, and select several examples of the type of thesis you intend to write.
• Read the titles. Do they give an unambiguous indication of the nature of the thesis?
• Read the abstracts. Do they provide a clear summary of the thesis?
• Locate the aims of the thesis. (You may find these near the end of the first chapter.) Are they precise and clearly worded?
• Look at the contents pages and overall structure of the thesis. Is it easy to find your way around the thesis?
• Examine a few sample pages of the thesis at random. Is the page layout ‘easy on the eye’ and is the text easy to read?

Getting the most out of yourself – why do you want to write a research thesis?

This book is designed to help postgraduate students with the process of writing a thesis. For many people engaged in master’s or doctoral research, collecting and analysing data is interesting and exciting. In the social sciences, the research process often involves interaction with other people, and as you begin to amass your data there is a real feeling of progress. However, the time comes when all of this data and analysis has to be converted into a thesis. Writing is a largely solitary process, and progress may seem very slow. The task seems to stretch away into infinity. This book will help you with writing your thesis, from the moment you type your first word, to when you walk into the viva voce examination to defend the completed work! The book is divided into two parts. The first provides help on the broad issues of academic writing which are useful when preparing a thesis. The second part is a template for writing your thesis. It takes you through the process, step by step, from the title page to the final examination. Although there is no single way of using the book, one idea would be to read Part 1 during the early stages of your research, and to save Part 2 for when you actually start writing your thesis.

Motivation

We can start by exploring one or two aspects of personal motivation in terms of academic writing. Most students write a thesis as part of an academic qualification such as a ‘taught’ master’s degree, or a research degree such as a Master of Philosophy or Doctor of Philosophy. There is often a natural tendency to be thinking continually about the final qualification, and to treat the thesis writing simply as a means to that end. This is a pity, because academic writing is a very creative activity. It is an opportunity for you not only to describe your research, but also to reflect on your own intellectual world view. Thesis writing is not merely an instrumental activity, but an opportunity to express your understanding of the world in a fresh and novel way. If you can concentrate on this creative dimension to academic writing you will probably enjoy the process much more.

Communication

More than this, a thesis is also a means of communication. On the one hand, you might see it as being written primarily for the examiners in the oral examination. However, you should also think of the thesis as finally resting on the library shelves, and being consulted by many future students who are struggling with their own research. Students from overseas may study your thesis and take ideas back with them when they complete their course. Part-time students who are in work may be influenced by the thesis, and incorporate ideas at their workplace. In short, the act of writing is an opportunity to convey interesting and sophisticated ideas to an untold future audience. This can make academic writing a very exciting prospect.

Process

There is also, in the process of writing, a sense of being part of the development of ideas. Writing a thesis involves building upon the ideas of researchers and thinkers who have gone before, and helping to lay a foundation for future students. A thesis usually involves reviewing and analysing the background literature to a subject, and showing how current research adds incrementally to the sum of human knowledge. The process of academic writing is here not only part of the transmission of culture, but also of providing a new perspective on the world. The doctoral thesis has traditionally involved the generation of an original contribution to knowledge, but writing any thesis provides an opportunity to create fresh insights into the social world.

This book provides practical advice in the successful writing of a thesis. Although this is very important, I hope it will achieve more than suggesting useful strategies to maximize success. I hope it will enthuse you with the feeling of excitement inherent in the writing process, and its potential for conveying fascinating and complex ideas. Above all, I hope this book helps you to gain pleasure and enjoyment from the writing process.

The nature and varieties of a research thesis

Before we start discussing the thesis in detail, we should clarify some of our terminology. The terms ‘dissertation’ and ‘thesis’ are sometimes used interchangeably in everyday academic conversation, although there is perhaps a tendency for ‘dissertation’ to be used more frequently in relation to master’s degrees, and ‘thesis’ in connection with doctorates. However, to avoid any possible confusion in relation to different institutional practices, the word ‘thesis’ will be used throughout this book. Where there are differences between master’s and doctoral levels, these will be clearly stated.

In the briefest possible terms, a thesis is a piece of formal academic writing which reports on a research study. However, both the structure and content of theses are diverse, and it would be helpful briefly to survey some of this variation. Theses in the social sciences generally tend to use empirical data as the basis of the research. This is data derived from sources such as questionnaires, interviews, measuring instruments or, perhaps, the analysis of documents. In philosophical terms, empirical data is often defined as data which is collected through the use of our senses. Probably a minority of theses, however, employ data which is based upon the analysis of concepts. That is, the researcher explores ideas which are used in a particular subject area, subjecting those ideas to critical scrutiny and examining the meanings and understandings inherent in those ideas. Whatever the type of data used, a thesis generally extends our understanding of a subject, takes the subject further in some way or makes an additional contribution to knowledge. This will, of course, be a more significant feature of a doctoral than a master’s thesis.

Master’s theses

Most master’s degrees such as an MA or an MSc consist of a taught element followed by a thesis. The thesis can vary considerably in length, depending on the type of course and institution, from say 12,000 words to around 30,000 words. Some students find that they have to attend an oral examination, or viva voce, to answer questions on their thesis, although this is not a particularly common practice with master’s degrees. Once the thesis has been approved by the examiners, a copy is usually placed in the university library or repository. This may be a traditional bound copy or an electronic copy.

A Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degree is classified as a research degree, rather than a ‘taught’ degree, and does not normally have a taught element of modules and assignments. This degree is awarded on the basis of a longer thesis, typically up to about 40,000 words in length. With the MPhil degree, a viva voce, or ‘viva’, is a more frequent occurrence.

Doctoral theses

The traditional doctoral thesis such as the PhD is a much more substantial piece of work, of 80,000 words or more. There is usually a viva which is regarded as an integral part of the assessment process. Some PhD programmes include a course in research methods. This course may be additional to the thesis and not assessed, or it may be an integral part of the programme, formally assessed and result in a reduction in the length of the thesis. This pattern is fairly typical of the Doctor of Education, where an assessed course in research methods, or aspects of educational research, is combined with a shorter thesis of perhaps 50,000 words. The Doctor of Education or EdD is sometimes referred to as a ‘taught’ or ‘professional’ doctorate. Such taught doctorates are also available in some other subject areas, such as the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), or Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy). Some university regulations permit the inclusion of creative work, or journal articles which have been written and published, as part of the research for the thesis.

Whatever the variation in structure and format of a thesis, there are certain commonalities which are usually present in one form or another. The research problem or issue should be described clearly, and contextualized within the relevant literature of that subject. There would also usually be an explanation and justification of the research design, and of the data collection and analysis methods. As part of this one might also expect an explanation of the way in which the study is located within a specific theoretical tradition or perspective. Finally, there would be a careful analysis of the data, and a summary of the conclusions drawn.

It should be added that there are other methods for obtaining a doctorate, including the method based on publications. Here the candidate submits a collection of research publications, along with a relatively short critical commentary on these articles or books. The publications and the commentary together constitute the doctoral submission. This process is normally only relevant to fairly experienced academics, and as the critical commentary is typically much shorter than a thesis, it will not be discussed in this book. Aspects of the process of working towards a doctorate are discussed in Leonard (2001, pp. 69–71).

Example – Empirical and Conceptual research

One thesis may involve examining the possible effects of social class on educational achievement in schools. A second thesis may be concerned with whether social class should have an effect upon educational achievement.

The first topic requires empirical data to examine whether class and achievement are linked in any way. The second topic requires conceptual analysis to explore whether we ought to try to eliminate any connection between the two.

Shorter doctoral theses

The new types of doctoral structure, often known as professional doctorates, typically have a much shorter thesis than is the norm with a PhD. Although this may be appealing to potential students it does pose a possible difficulty. In the case of a long, traditional thesis there is generally plenty of scope within the word length, to develop sophisticated arguments and to examine all aspects of issues. This is important, since during the final oral examination, or viva, the examiners will want to assure themselves that the student is thinking, analysing and writing at doctoral level. If there are constraints in terms of word length placed upon you, it may be difficult to decide where to make reductions in length and what to eliminate. You may reasonably feel that by reducing certain sections the final thesis may appear too superficial.

Traditionally one of the marks of good academic writing has been considered to be the ability to examine the different aspects of a question. In so doing one acknowledges that academic and research issues are very comp...