Transcript The Doctoral Dissertation

The Doctoral Dissertation
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LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
Purposes of a Dissertation
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The doctoral dissertation provides:
 An opportunity for candidates to show that they are
worthy of a doctoral degree.
 A way to demonstrate that candidates can contribute to
the literature in their field of study.
 A time for serious personal and professional growth.
Beginnings
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 Many students complete all of their courses for a
doctoral degree, but fail to complete a dissertation.
 The term for this “condition” is “All But Dissertation”
(ABD).
 Some people even use “ABD” as a title, but it is not
meant as a complimentary term.
Laying the Groundwork
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• As a new student, you should start thinking about a
dissertation topic from the very beginning of your
program (if you haven’t already).
• Where possible, you should explore your potential topic
as part of assignments for every course you take.
• You should also strive to find out if any of the Liberty
faculty members have similar interests to your own.
Nature of the Dissertation
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 The dissertation is scholarly in nature; it is not meant or
written for laymen to understand.
 The dissertation is written for other professionals in
your field of study.
 Some qualitative dissertations may be up to 300 pages
in length. Purely quantitative dissertations in certain
fields of study may be as short as 50 pages (but you
may have trouble having this approved by a committee).
Most dissertations are around 100 pages in length.
Nature of the Dissertation
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 Dissertations have a specific “form.”
 Typically, this includes an introduction, a review of
the literature, a methodology chapter, results (or
findings), and a final chapter including a summary,
discussion, and conclusions.
 Examples of recently completed dissertations are
available through the following website.
Dissertation Style
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 Dissertations require conforming to a certain style of
writing. In education, the American Psychological
Association (APA) style manual is used.
 Often it is required that a special editor checks the
details of APA requirements.
 Your chair should not be expected to provide extensive
editing of your document. If writing is not your
strength, you might consider engaging a professional
editor early in the dissertation process.
Commitment and Perseverance
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 Don’t expect to complete a dissertation in a short period
of time. Many students take three years or more to
finish the process; however, it is possible to complete it
in a shorter period of time.
 You should plan on spending at least one full year to
complete the process.
 Don’t scrimp on time or even money. Do things right
the first time.
 Do expect to put lots of time into the process, and do
expect to be pushed to your limits.
Finding a Research Problem or Question
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 Selecting a problem or question is the most important
aspect of research. It may take much longer than you
expect.
 It is important to select a problem that has the potential
to improve education.
 It is also important to select a problem that can actually
be researched. Do not try to change the world (or
reinvent education) with your dissertation.
 You should consider research that could be completed
through your place of employment.
Finding a Research Problem or Question
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 It is also important to select something that you are
interested in. Don’t pick a topic simply because it’s
easy or convenient.
 Talk to your professors about topics and their interests,
but select a topic that is your own.
 You may view a list of faculty research interests at the
following link.
Related Literature
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 If you have a general topic in mind, the best thing you
can do is get into the literature to see what has been
done and how.
 Even in this electronic age, you will find great benefit in
actually looking through hard copies of research
journals in your field of study.
 Researchers often conclude their studies with
suggestions for further research. You can often use
related studies as models for your own (experimental
design, statistical analysis, etc.).
Evaluating the Problem
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 Once the problem is selected, it must be evaluated.
 Is
it important enough to warrant investigation?
 Has it been investigated enough already?
 Is it really a significant problem?
 Will the problem make a contribution to the body of
organized knowledge?
 Is it worthy of a thesis or dissertation, or any
significant time commitment?
Developing the Prospectus
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 The prospectus is an overview of your plans for a
research study.
 In some ways, it is a short version of a dissertation
proposal, so it should include an introduction to the
study (chapter 1), a review of related literature (chapter
2), and a methodology section (chapter 3).
 Although length expectations may vary, approximately
ten pages is enough to provide a summary of the plans
for your study.
The Prospectus
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 The advantage of completing a prospectus is that it
limits the amount of time you may put into a study, in
case it is rejected.
 Most dissertation proposals are significantly modified
before they are accepted by a committee.
 Just as the dissertation proposal is a short version of the
first three chapters of a dissertation, the prospectus
should be seen as a brief version of the proposal.
Choosing a Committee Chair
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 You are encouraged to talk to faculty members about
your research from the very beginning of your program.
 Your actual dissertation chair cannot be assigned until
you finish all of your coursework and pass your
comprehensive exam.
 You will be sent a confirmation of completion of all
coursework and the comprehensive exam, and you
should present this confirmation to your prospective
chair.
 If your choice for chairs agrees to serve, they should
notify the administrator in charge of the program.
The Dissertation Committee
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 The chair and candidate will then choose the other
committee members (at least one must be from outside
the School of Education).
 Candidates are encouraged to recommend a committee
member from outside of Liberty University. This may
include a former professor from another university, or a
colleague in a local school or school district.
 If you and your chair choose a committee member
outside of Liberty University, please have them
complete the following form.
Choosing the Committee
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 All members of the committee must have an earned
doctoral degree.
 All members of the committee must be willing and able
to make the time commitment necessary for serving on
a committee.
 The selection of your chair is especially important, so
start getting to know your professors early in your
program.
Completing the IRB Process
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 Due to federal requirements, all research conducted
through Liberty University must be approved by the
university Internal Review Board.
 This is not a difficult process, as most educational
research will be categorized as “expedited” or “exempt”
for IRB approval.
 Use the following link for all IRB information.
 You must have full IRB approval before collecting any
data.
Introduction to the Study (Chapter I)
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 In many ways, the first chapter of a prospectus,
proposal, or dissertation is a summary of your plans for
the entire study.
It includes the following sections:
 General Introduction
 Statement of the Problem
 Purpose of the Study
 Hypotheses, Questions, or Objectives
 Definitions
Review of Related Literature (Ch. II)
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According to Glatthorn and Joyner, there are three
types of literature reviews:
The broad scan, which may help you identify a
research problem.
The focused review, which adds to the literature of
the proposal.
The comprehensive critique, which allows the
researcher to identify studies that have a direct
bearing on the research for the dissertation.
Critique of the Literature
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 Since the comprehensive critique of the literature is so
important, it is important to keep good records.
 If you are keeping paper records, photocopy everything
and record all of your sources.
 If you are keeping electronic records, keep back-up
copies of all of your sources.
Critique of the Literature
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 The comprehensive critique of the literature is an on-
going process.
 You will probably need to conduct an update of the
literature most closely related to your study at the very
end of your dissertation process.
 You will also need to update the literature review later if
you intend to have your research published.
Methodology (Chapter III)
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 In many ways, Ch. 3 (Methodology) is the most
important part of a dissertation.
 Once decisions have been made (and approved) on how
to conduct a study, you must detail your plans for your
committee and others.
 One of the characteristics of science, and any form of
research, is that it must be replicable. A well-written
methodology section allows a study to be repeated.
Methodology
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 After a general introduction to your research, discuss
the type of research design you will utilize.
 Be as specific as possible. Don’t just say qualitative or
quantitative research.
 Use the proper terms for your form of research. As
examples: experimental, survey, interview,
ethnographic, historical research, etc.
Research Designs
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Some of the common research designs include the
following:
 Experimental and quasi-experimental
 Causal-comparative
 Correlation
 Survey and Interview
 Descriptive
 Evaluation
 Case Study
 Action Research
 Qualitative
Sample and Instrumentation
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 Discuss the intended sample and exactly how you plan
to utilize it.
 Detail your instrument, survey, interview protocol, etc.
 Include a section at the end of ch. 3 on data analysis
(regardless of the type of study).