Blog Index

2019, Current to 3/1

Topic	Dates of Posts
Dissertation, general
Dissertation calculator
Selecting a Topic
Committee Members
Mentor Interviews
URR
Center for Research Quality
Overview of Process	2/13
Premise
Prospectus	1/25
Proposal	1/30
Research questions
Research design
Theory	1/23
C. 1
C. 2 (literature related)	1/7, 1/9, 1/14, 1/16, 1/21, 2/6
C. 3
Defense
IRB
Data Collection
Quantitative
Qualitative
Mixed Methods
C. 4	2/1, 2/27
C. 5	2/22
Appendixes
Final Defense
Career	2/11
Goal Form
Motivation
Organizing	2/15, 2/18
Secondary Data
Support, Getting
Resilience
Writing
Other	½, 1/11, 1/18, 2/20, 2/25

Previous Years

Topic	Dates of Posts - 2014	Dates of Posts - 2015	Dates of Posts - 2016	Dates of Posts - 2018
Dissertation, general	6/25, 12/5	1/7, 3/6, 11/20, 12/16	4/8, 4/11, 5/11, 6/20, 8/29, 9/2	1/20, 2/1, 5/5, 5/24, 6/5, 7/17, 8/18
Dissertation calculator	9/5	3/9	4/15	8/21
Selecting a Topic	4/28, 5/9, 8/25		9/7	1/27
Committee Members	5/7, 10/8, 12/22	9/14, 10/14, 12/18	8/10, 9/19	5/1, 5/19, 5/26, 12/6
Mentor Interviews			9/21, 9/23, 9/26
URR
Center for Research Quality
Overview of Process
Prospectus	4/4, 4/7, 4/9, 4/11, 4/14, 4/18, 4/21, 4/23, 4/25, 4/28, 5/2, 5/5, 8/27		2/3
Proposal	9/8, 11/3, 11/5		2/5	6/7, 6/9, 6/14, 6/16, 6/19, 6/21, 6/23, 6/29, 6/30, 12/8
Research questions	4/18	6/19	4/13	2/10
Research Design		6/15, 6/22, 6/26		2/13, 2/17, 7/9
Theory		6/15, 6/17	2/1, 4/27, 5/2, 5/4	2/6, 2/8, 8/25
C. 1	11/7	3/11, 3/13, 3/16, 3/18, 3/20, 9/18, 9/21	3/23, 10/1, 10/3, 10/5, 10/7, 10/10, 10/12	8/23, 8/28, 8/30, 9/1, 12/11
C. 2 (literature related)	6/9, 6/11, 6/16, 9/10, 9/15, 9/17, 9/19, 9/26, 9/29, 11/10, 12/26	1/9, 3/23, 3/25, 3/27, 4/3, 4/8, 9/23, 10/21	1/4, 1/6, 1/8, 1/11, 1/13, 1/15, 1/20, 1/22,1/25, 2/10, 3/7, 3/9, 7/11, 7/13, 8/22, 10/14, 10/17, 10/19, 10/21, 10/24	1/11, 7/5, 9/8, 9/11, 9/13, 9/15, 9/18, 12/13
C. 3	1/3, 1/6, 1/13, 11/12	4/10, 4/13, 4/15, 4/17, 4/20, 4/22, 4/24, 4/27, 4/29, 5/4, 5/6, 5/8, 5/11, 5/13, 5/15, 5/18, 9/25	3/21, 3/25, 10/26, 10/28, 11/7, 11/9, 11/11, 11/14, 11/16, 11/18, 11/21, 11/25, 12/2, 12/3, 12/5, 12/7, 12/8	9/20, 9/22, 9/25, 9/27, 10/2, 10/4, 10/6, 10/9, 10/11, 10/13, 10/18, 10/20, 10/23, 10/25, 10/27, 11/3, 12/19
Defense		9/28		1/9, 12/20
IRB	1/10, 1/15, 1/17, 1/20, 1/22, 1/24, 1/27, 1/29, 2/3, 2/5, 2/7, 2/10, 2/12, 2/17, 2/19, 2/21, 2/24, 10/13, 10/15, 10/17, 10/20, 10/22, 10/24, 10/27	6/24 10/5	3/28, 4/4	2/15, 12/22
Data Collection		6/24, 11/23, 11/27, 12/4, 12/7, 12/9	6/3, 6/6, 6/8, 6/10, 6/13, 6/15, 6/17	2/20, 2/22, 2/24, 5/3, 7/19, 7/21, 7/26, 7/28, 7/31
Quantitative	1/3, 2/26, 3/12, 7/9, 7/14, 7/16, 7/18, 7/21, 7/23, 7/25, 7/28	5/4, 5/8, 5/11, 5/13, 5/15, 7/1, 7/6, 7/8, 7/13, 7/15, 7/17, 7/20, 7/22, 7/24	11/9, 11/11, 11/18, 11/25, 12/21	3/28, 4/3, 4/7, 4/10, 4/12, 4/14, 4/17, 4/19, 4/21, 4/24
Qualitative	1/6, 3/14, 10/29, 12/12, 12/15, 12/17, 12/19	1/5, 1/12, 10/19	5/16, 5/18, 5/20, 5/23, 8/1, 11/2, 11/4, 11/16, 12/3, 12/5, 12/7, 12/19, 12/26	3/8, 3/10, 3/17, 3/20, 3/22, 3/24 3/27
Mixed Methods	1/3, 1/6	4/10, 5/6, 5/8, 5/11, 5/13, 5/15	11/2, 11/4, 11/18, 11/25, 12/5, 12/7, 12/16, 12/19
C. 4	3/5, 3/10, 3/12, 3/14, 3/17, 3/19, 3/21, 11/14	5/20, 5/22, 5/25, 5/27, 6/3, 6/5, 10/7	9/16, 12/12, 12/14, 12/16, 12/19, 12/21, 12/26	1/2, 11/6, 11/8, 11/10, 11/13, 11/15, 12/25
C. 5	3/21, 3/24, 3/26, 3/28, 11/19	6/5, 6/8, 6/10, 6/12, 10/9		1/4, 11/20, 11/22, 11/27, 11/29, 12/4, 12/27
Appendixes
Final Defense		10/12		4/26
Career	8/18, 8/20		9/9	1/23
Goal Form	5/23, 5/26, 6/2, 8/15, 11/24
Motivation	1/1, 6/4, 6/6, 7/4, 7/11, 9/22, 10/10, 12/3	1/21, 3/2, 7/3, 7/10, 9/2, 9/4, 9/7, 9/9 9/11	5/9, 7/1, 7/4, 7/6, 7/8, 7/15, 7/20, 7/22, 7/25, 8/8, 8/15	6/2
Organizing	8/1, 8/4, 8/6, 8/8, 8/11, 8/13, 12/8	7/27, 7/29, 8/3, 8/5, 8/10	2/22, 2/24, 2/26, 3/4
Secondary Data	2/24			1/13
Support, Getting	5/21	1/26	8/17
Resilience		2/6, 2/16, 2/18, 2/20, 2/23, 2/25, 3/4	5/25, 5/27
Writing	5/16, 5/19, 6/16, 6/18, 6/20, 7/2, 7/7, 8/27, 12/10	1/14, 1/23, 2/9, 12/11, 12/14	3/11, 3/14, 3/16, 6/24, 7/18, 8/3, 8/5, 8/12, 8/26	1/16, 1/18
Other	2/14, 3/3, 3/7, 4/16, 5/12, 5/14, 5/28, 6/2, 6/13, 6/23, 6/27, 8/22, 9/1, 9/3, 9/12, 10/3, 10/6, 11/17, 11/26, 12/1, 12/24, 12/29, 12/31	1/16, 1/19, 1/28, 1/30, 2/4, 2/11, 2/13, 4/1, 4/6, 6/1, 8/12, 8/14, 8/19, 8/21, 8/24, 8/26, 8/31, 9/16, 10/2, 10/16, 10/23, 10/26, 10/28, 11/2, 11/4, 11/6, 11/9, 11/11, 11/13, 11/16, 11/18, 11/25, 12/2, 12/21, 12/23, 12/25, 12/28	1/1, 1/17, 1/29, 2/12, 2/15, 2/17, 3/2, 4/1, 4/6, 4/18, 4/20, 4/22, 4/25, 5/6, 5/13, 6/1, 6/22, 6/27, 7/27, 8/17, 8/19, 8/24, 9/12, 9/14, 9/19, 9/28, 11/23, 11/28, 12/23, 12/30	1/6, 1/25, 2/3, 3/1, 3/3, 3/13, 4/5, 5/8, 5/10, 5/12, 5/15, 5/15, 5/22, 5/29, 6/12, 7/10, 7/12, 7/14, 7/24, 8/2, 8/7, 8/9, 8/11, 8/14, 9/6, 11/23

Next time we will look at the issue of missing data.  Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

Making Data Make Sense- data cleaning

What do I mean by data cleaning? There are many definitions, but I am talking about a two-step process. First, double-checking that all cells are filled, you will probably discover some are not and decisions will need to be made on this.  The second step is carefully checking the statistical assumptions of your variables and looking for extreme scores.

Why are these steps necessary? Because the results of your study will only be as accurate as the data you analyze. Therefore, it is very important to take the time to check your data carefully, so that you know that your results are valid and accurate.

I want to refer you to a great book that much of my advice over the next few posts will be based:

Osborn, J. W. (2013). Best practices in data cleaning. DC: Sage.

Next time I will posted an updated blog index.  Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

Can you help?

You are invited to take part in a study on the experiences of older online graduate students. The object of this study is to explore how being an older online graduate student affects relationships. I am looking for participants who are Walden University students over the age of 30 who are currently enrolled in a graduate program. You may contact me through my e-mail  shirley.losiewicz@waldenu.edu or call/text me at 720-207-4405 if you would like to participate.

Welcome to Spring Quarter!

Spring feels far away in Montana, we have had many below zero days and lots of snow. What are your plans for the summer quarter related to your dissertation? It can be hard to set aside time for writing when there are so many other things clamoring for attention. My suggestion is to carefully make out a weekly plan, leading to your final quarter goal. Write in any family plans or commitments and realistically set weekly goals for yourself.

Another suggestion, if you have not yet done it, is to get my book on Amazon, Finding Your Way to a Ph.D.: Advice from the Dissertation Mentor, that guides you through the dissertation process. It discusses dealing with committee members, tips on writing each chapter and getting through the IRB process. I also include many motivational sections for those times when you need a little extra encouragement.

Make this quarter the one in which you make great progress and move ahead! Next time, we will begin a discussion on data cleaning. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

Chapter 5 Issues

Chapter 5 is the final chapter and discussion of your dissertation. One question that students ask me is "can I introduce new literature in chapter 5?" This is not a straightforward question in that any new literature should only be related to new topics that have arisen through the analyses of the data. I will use as an example, a recent study of mine (Stadtlander et al., 2013). We found that people over 85 who had escorts when they visited their physician, tended to indicate they liked their physician more and considered them more kind than people who went alone. Assuming that this had not been previously discussed in the literature review, in chapter 5 it would be appropriate to report any research related to this finding.

Also in chapter 5, you will need to relate your findings to your theories that you discussed in your proposal. Questions to ask yourself are: What does the theory predict should happen in the study? How are my results similar or different from the predictions? If your findings are different from the theory's predictions, why do you think that might be the case? If there a way to modify the theory to incorporate your results?

You must also think through the implications of your results. Given that the findings are correct, what does this mean for the population? How could such findings be explained? Here's an example from one of my papers. We found that people over 85 who had escorts when they visited their physician, tended to indicate they liked their physician more and considered them more kind than people who went alone. What are the implications of such a finding? Some that we suggested are: it may be that escorts encourage patients to change physicians if they do not approve of them. On the other hand, having someone else approve of the physician may cause a halo effect (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995), improving the oldest-olds' perception of the physician. An alternative, is those who like their physician may be more motivated to get treatment, and thus more likely to secure an escort. Are there further ideas that you have thought of?

Notice that the reference given (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995) has probably not been previously discussed in the literature review. There would have been no reason to discuss halo effects before we had the results from the study.

Next time, we will welcome spring. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

Greenwald, A. & Banaji, M.R. (1995). Implicit Social Cognition: Attitudes, self-esteem, and stereotypes. Psychological Review, 102(1), 4-27.

Stadtlander, L., Giles, M., Sickel, A., Brooks, E., Brown, C., Cormell, M., Ewing, L., Hart, D., Koons, D., Olson, C., Parker, P., Semenova, V., & Stoneking, S. (2013). Independent Living Oldest-Old and Their Primary Health Provider: A Mixed Method Examination of the Influence of Patient Personality Characteristics. Journal of Applied Gerontology. (Available in Walden Library's Psychology/ Sage database)