First-year Thesis Workshop

Laura J. Black, Ph.D.April 2014

©Greer Black Company 2014

Overview of Today’s WorkshopWhat are you trying to accomplish?

•How might it be accomplished?

•How can you improve basic skills necessary for the process?

Overview of Today’s Workshop•What are you trying to accomplish?•Getting a clearer picture of the goal

•How might it be accomplished?•How can I improve basic skills necessary for

the process?

From Dictionary.com the·sis: noun, plural the·ses [thee-seez] 1. Proposition stated or put forward for consideration, especially one to be discussed and proved or to be maintained against objections: He vigorously defended his thesis on the causes of war.2. A subject for a composition or essay.

3. A dissertation* on a particular subject in which one has done original research, as one presented by a candidate for a diploma or degree.

*dissertation: a written essay, treatise or thesis, especially one written by a candidate for the degree of Doctorate of Philosophy

From Wikipedia.org“A thesis or dissertation is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author’s research and findings…. The required complexity and/or quality of research of a thesis or dissertation can vary by country, university, or program.”

From Wikipedia.org• What is the document’s content?The document reports “on a research project or study, or an extended analysis of a topic.”• How is the document structured?“The structure of the thesis … explains the purpose, the previous research literature … on the topic …, the methods used and the findings of the project.”

From Wikipedia.org• “Most world universities use a multiple chapter format : – a) an INTRODUCTION, which introduces the research topic, the methodology,

as well as its scope and significance; – b) a LITERATURE REVIEW, reviewing relevant literature and showing how this

has informed the research issue; – c) a METHODOLOGY chapter, explaining how the research has been designed

and why the research methods/population/data collection and analysis being used have been chosen;

– d) a FINDINGS chapter, outlining the findings of the research itself; – e) an ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION chapter, analysing the findings and

discussing them in the context of the literature review (this chapter is often divided into two—analysis and discussion);

– f) a CONCLUSION.”– Also: a comprehensive bibliography of all REFERENCES used in the thesis

What are you trying to accomplish?• The thesis document is finite: It has 7 sections,

plus an abstract. –Aim for 50 to 75 space-and-a-half or double-spaced

pages with reasonable font size

7 Sections [estimated pages]

1.You must explain why the research question is important to the world

This is the Introduction [12]2.You must explain why existing research is helpful

but not sufficient to answer the questionThis is the Literature Review [15]

3.You have to describe your approach (what and why) to designing and doing the research

This is the Methods [8]

7 Sections [estimated pages]

1.You have to describe what you learned from doing the research

This is the Findings—often includes tables, graphs, charts, and sometimes quotations—“just the facts” [12]2.You have to say why we should care about what

you foundThis is the Analysis and Discussion—often describes

the “so what?” for scholars and for practitioners, references to others’ research, and your own recommendations [15]

7 Sections [estimated pages]

1.You have to explain the extent to which you did what you set out to do—and what you might do if you continued the research

This is the Conclusion [5]2.You have to provide enough information on your

citations that anyone can find and read what you referred to

This is the Bibliography [2]

Therefore what?Some parts of the thesis can be assembled before, and simultaneously with, other parts.

• In a thesis you do not write what you already know….• You write WHAT YOU ARE LEARNING.

Overview of Today’s WorkshopWhat are you trying to accomplish?

•How might it be accomplished?• The iterative nature of research and writing

•How can I improve basic skills necessary for the process?

The Linear Approach Is a Myth!

From Conklin, J., 2006, Dialogue Mapping: Building Shared Understanding of Wicked Problems, John Wiley & Sons, citing Guindon, R, 1990,“Designing the design process: Exploiting opportunistic thoughts,” Human-Computer Interaction, 5: 305-344.

From Conklin, J., 2006, Dialogue Mapping: Building Shared Understanding of Wicked Problems, John Wiley & Sons, citing Guindon, R, 1990,“Designing the design process: Exploiting opportunistic thoughts,” Human-Computer Interaction, 5: 305-344.

The Linear Approach Is a Myth!

Many Cycles Are Useful!

Act

Observe

Orient

Decide

Clarity Increases with More Cyclesclarity of writing

clarity of thinking

+

+

How do I know whatI think until I see

what I say?

R

Kinds of Theses (not exhaustive)

•Output / outcome–Theoretical–Applied• Types of data used–Qualitative–Quantitative• Types of analysis–Qualitative, statistical, model-based, simulated

Therefore what?• The thesis is finite, addressing a specific

question in a particular way.• You want a research question that–Interests you–Allows you to do something tangible (research) to

produce a plausible answer/insight/solution to it–Is pretty darn specific

Overview of Today’s Workshop•What are you trying to accomplish?•How might it be accomplished?•How can I improve basic skills necessary for

the process?–Focusing the research question–Navigating the literature–Giving credit appropriately to others–academic honesty–Matching the methods to the question

Focusing the Research Question

Topic ≠ Research Question

Focusing the Research Question

Topic• Noun phrase• No verbs• No increasing or

decreasing, before or after, more or less

Research Question• Ends with a question

mark• Has nouns and verbs• Starts with something like…– To what extent…–What are…– [not a yes-no question]

Topic ≠ Research Question

How to Focus the Research Question

•Write a question about the topic (even if it is not a good question) in the middle of a page• “Lasso” each main word and off to the side write

what that means (also what it doesn’t)•Write another, more specific question based on

what you learned from seeing what you wrote

Navigating the Literature• True or False: The best time to look for articles

and chapters on my thesis topic is AFTER I am SURE what my topic will be.

Looking for articles and chapters can help you

refine your thesis focus greatly. You may

continue to refine your focus for weeks.

Navigating the Literature•How many articles or chapters or class activities

do you think you SHOULD read related to the topic or approach by the time you complete the thesis?

“as many as possible”

yes…but no

Navigating the Literature•How many….?–Choose a goal—make it a finite number–Recognize you will need to draw on different kinds of

articles• Topic—context • Different elements of research question• Methods• Theories about what you care about• Practical advice about what you care about

Navigating the Literature• You do not need to love all you read. You will

probably find 2 to 5 articles you really admire.• You need to be familiar with what others have

said about your topic.• You need to read what others have said about

your research question.• You need to draw on methods others have used.

Navigating the Literature

Making the most of GoogleScholar • scholar.google.com • Search on topic terms• See what appears• Click through and read abstracts (plenty)•Note if they are books, articles, reports,

webpages

Navigating the Literature•Making the most of GoogleScholar…• In a Word document, –Freewrite what you learned about how other people

use these terms–Freewrite what YOU mean –Copy the citation for GoogleScholar entries that pique

your curiosity and write several sentences about why you think each might be important

•Given what you see, refine your search terms…

Iterative Nature of Writing and Research

• This process will help you–Scope your thesis to something doable–Identify the important thinkers — scholars and

practitioners — about your topic / question–See the Big Picture of what others say about the topic–Get a feel for methods others have used to study it–Generate pages, give you something to work with later

How to Cite Others’ Works• True or False: It is possible to plagiarize when

paraphrasing another's ideas.

True!

How to Cite Others’ Works• True or False: If you refer to the source, then it

is impossible to plagiarize when paraphrasing.

FALSE!

FALSE!

FALSE!

How to Cite Others’ Works• Plagiarizing is presenting another’s ideas as

your own.–Paraphrasing without citing –Using another’s words without quotation marks,

even if you cite• Even inadvertent plagiarism is viewed as

academic dishonesty.

How to Cite Others’ Works• To paraphrase without plagiarizing, 80 percent

of the words and sentence structures must be YOUR OWN.• It is hard (nearly impossible?) to paraphrase

effectively when you are looking at the quotation you are trying to paraphrase.

How to Cite Others’ WorksPractice:Climate change adaptation is defined as adapting means adjusting to a new set of climatic attributes, either new or unfamiliar from those already existing, or changed parameters of existing attributes.

How to Cite Others’ WorksPractice: • Indigenous knowledge systems have not been exploited enough

to fit into the current scientific framework for environmental conservation and natural disaster management in Africa. As a result, there is a general lack of information and understanding of the need to integrate or mainstream indigenous knowledge into scientific knowledge systems for sustainable development in the continent. Sustainable development would only be achieved by blending of approaches and methods from science

and technology and from indigenous knowledge systems.

How to Cite Others’ WorksPractice: Natural Region I, which represents 1.6% of the country, receives an annual rainfall of more than 1,050mm. It is the prime region which is suitable for a variety of agricultural activities such as dairying, tea, coffee and intensive livestock production. The region is well endowed with rivers and forms part of the country’s watershed. Annual rainfall in Natural Region II ranges from 700 to 1,050 mm, and supports significant agricultural production of tobacco, maize, cotton and horticultural crops. The region also possesses a significant amount of water resources and forms part of the country’s watershed. Natural Region III receives annual rainfall of between 500 and 700 mm, and is subject to periodic seasonal droughts, prolonged mid-season dry spells and unreliable starts of the rainy season.

How to Cite Others’ Works•Even when you paraphrase you MUST

include a citation to the source!–or else it is plagiarism• Cite when you paraphrase (put another’s thoughts

in your own words)• Cite when you quote (use another’s exact words

with quotation marks around them)

How to Cite Others’ Works•Options for citation–Footnotes • Superscript number in the text with full reference at the

bottom of the same page• Complete list of all references at the end–In-text citations• Author’s last name and year of publication in the text• Complete list of references, listed alphabetically by author’s

last name, at the end

How to Cite Others’ Works• A URL is not enough for a reference! –Start with the name of the author (if one is listed),

or the title of the report (if no author is named)–Include as the date the date of the report or the

date the website was last updated–Also include the date you accessed the website

(because web content can change!)– Example: Economist Intelligence Unit. 2010. Enabling efficient policy

implementation: A report from the Economist Intelligence Unit, sponsored by Oracle http://www.oracle.com/us/industries/public-sector/economist-report-193495.pdf. Accessed July 21, 2013.

How to Cite Others’ Works• Choose a style• Be consistent• Include at the end of the thesis ONLY

references you cited in the text• For EVERY reference cited in the text, include

that reference at the end of the thesis

How to Cite Others’ Works• https://owl.english.purdue.edu/

Project Planning• The value of planning lies not the plan, but in the

ways that the act of planning changes your thinking.• Plan; share your plan• Executing your plan badly is far better than not

having a plan!

Working with a Supervisor• Ask early—be specific about why you are

asking THAT person • Set regular meetings / for asking questions,

sharing drafts, getting feedback• The more specific your questions, the more

helpful the answers• After EVERY meeting, immediately send an

email to your advisor summarizing what you agreed to do next, and by when.

You can do this. You can do it well.You can do it without going crazy.

Laura Black is Associate Professor at Montana State University, and Principal, Greer Black Company. She teaches the Strategic Planning class at the Master of Advanced Studies in Humanitarian Logistics and Management (MASHLM).

You can watch highlights from her thesis workshop here:

http://youtu.be/oAyIlwxhEJg

http://youtu.be/RoNkOdlZZU8