Usually, things come together in the end. But in a dissertation, they need to come together far sooner. Already, in your introduction chapter, you need to piece everything together. Albeit at a high level, you need to establish a balance between the background to the research problem and its foreground and have a balanced …
Theoretical and conceptual frameworks are challenging for many reasons. Indeed, Bloomberg (2023, p.23) describes them as “…one of the most misunderstood pieces in the dissertation puzzle and … a source of anxiety and frustration for many”. Undoubtedly, it takes careful thought and effort to arrive at such a framework while reviewing the research literature …
The Challenges of Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks Read More »
Imagine having a wise academic owl who keeps you updated with new articles on the key topics of your literature review. And all this at no cost. In effect, this is what Google Scholar offers you with the ‘Alerts’ feature. It sends you emails with links to new articles on the topics you specify. All you …
Google Forms is very useful for conducting surveys. It’s reliable, works beautifully, and now has added formatting options. And, importantly, it’s free which makes it perfect for students conducting surveys – more appealing than its paid rivals with attractive but nonessential extras. But there’s a problem here. As the responses come in, Google Forms provides …
Does Google Forms offer too much? And if so, when does one just have to say ‘No’? Read More »
Are the results of your study non-significant? If you’ve experienced disappointing non-significant results in your research, you may wish to refer to the excellent statistics note by Altman and Bland (BMJ, 1995; 311: 485) that considers that absence of evidence is not necessarily evidence of absence. In their note, these authors explain that …
Have you aligned the problem statement, purpose statement and research question(s) of your dissertation? For your study to deliver on its promises, this is essential. It applies whatever your topic, your research approach or your methodology. While the problem statement focuses on the research problem and knowledge gap, the purpose statement provides the main and …
3 components of your dissertation that need to be PERFECT early on. Read More »
Dissertation submission time can be extremely stressful. If you’re about to submit your proposal or dissertation, you’re probably using Word to set up your document and a style guide like APA7, or equivalent, for formatting. Your document needs to be formatted correctly – heading levels 1, 2, 3, and maybe 4 and 5, double line …
Do you know how smart Google Scholar can be? With Google Scholar you can: 1. Do an Advanced Search so you can combine keywords easily. 2. Save your searches in your own library with folders so your sources are well categorized. 3. Do backward searches so you can find articles that have cited other articles. …
5 SMART Ways to Raise the Level of Your Literature Review. 1. Update your references to show that you’re informed of current research in your field. At least three-quarters of your references should come from the last five years. 2. Focus on what the authors are saying with references, rather than who is saying it. …
5 Smart ways to Raise the Level of your Literature Review Read More »
A great test of how well you understand your research problem is whether you can explain clearly and concisely what your study is about. Ideally, you should be able to explain it in a few seconds, without hesitation. In ‘Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation’, Bloomberg (2023, p.25) describes the concept of Elevator Speech to illustrate how clearly …
Communicating your research problem perfectly: Elevator Speech Read More »