Giving thanks

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving; let's take a few moments to consider who deserves some thanks and positive thoughts from you. You have not gotten as far as you have in your dissertation alone, there have been many people who have made it possible for you to be here. There is of course your family, who have given you the time, money, energy, and positive support to make it all possible. Be sure you give each one a hug and thanks. 

Your friends and classmates have given you positive support, a shoulder to cry on, and advice. Send them thanks. Your chair and committee members have given you their time, wisdom, and experience, send them positive thoughts. 

Remember all of your teachers along the way that have led you to today…. The first grade teacher who taught you to read. The high school teacher who corrected your grammar and taught you a love of writing. Perhaps you had a college instructor who made you love learning and gave you encouragement. Send them all positive thoughts and thanks. 

Take a few moments and send an email or two today, to the people who have supported you the most and let them know how very much you appreciate them. 

Next time, I will post an updated 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 

Today's break photo is from the Bear Paw Battleground in Eastern Montana

 

 

Planning

What are your plans for winter quarter (which starts in a week)? Let's take some time to plot out some strategies. There are holidays involved in December and January, so that needs to be considered- you probably won't get much done during that time. I suggest laying out your quarter by weeks, then write in times when you know you will be busy- highlight those, so you don’t forget to take them into account. Then think through what you can reasonably accomplish each week. Research suggests you want to have a tough but reachable goal – so try that for each week. How many articles will you read? How much will you write? Here's an example to get you started: 

Week 1 (12/2-12/6) 

Week 2 (12/7-12/13) 

Week 3 (12/14-12/20) Hanukkah- 12/16-12/24 

Week 4 (12/21-12/27) Hanukkah- 12/16-12/24, Christmas 12/24-12/25  

Week 5 (12/29-1/3) New Year's 12/31/1/1 

Week 6 (1/4-1/10) 

Week 7 (1/11-1/17) 

Week 8 (1/18-1/24) Martin Luther King Day 1/19 

Week 9 (1/25/-1/31) 

Week 10 (2/1-2/7) 

Week 11 (2/8-2/14) Valentine's Day 2/14 

Once you have everything laid out you will be ready to decide on your goal for the quarter. Let's make some real progress this quarter by sticking to your goals! 

Next time, we will give thanks. 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 

Today's break photo is a sunset near my home in Bozeman 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References, Appendixes, and Curriculum Vitae

There are several final sections of your dissertation, these are also important to your future reader, graduate student, Lucy. First, are the references, Lucy needs to see the literature you are citing, so she can read more about the theory and studies that you have shared with her. Remember, her study will be building off yours, she needs to follow your train of thought and logic; the best way for her to do that is to follow the path you took by reading the same literature. 

Next, are the very important Appendixes, this is where you give Lucy the documents that you used in the study. Your consent form, ads that you may have posted, permissions you received, and any other relevant information is posted here for Lucy. With this information she knows exactly what your participants saw and how they were thinking about your study. 

Finally, you provide your curriculum vitae for Lucy; this gives your professional background info and provides her with a way to contact you if she would like further information, such as whether you have done additional studies on the subject. 

I hope you have grasped in these discussions that your dissertation is a time capsule, in a sense, to future researchers. Leave them full documentation, and careful explanations of the path that you followed in your dissertation journey. 

Next time, we will do some planning. 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 

Today's break photo is of Blackmore Mountain (from the air), near Bozeman, Montana.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 5

Chapter 5 is where you bring everything together for your future reader, Lucy. In this chapter is your opportunity to explain to Lucy your logic in how you are interpreting your findings. Begin by summarizing the results for her, and then move into relating the results back to the literature that you reviewed in chapter 2. Explain to Lucy how your results fit into the theory you used for your study, if the results do not match the predictions from the theory, speculate as to why you think that is the case. 

Discuss your ideas for future research, this is section is very important to Lucy, she may want to take one of your research ideas and use it for her own dissertation. Explain your recommendations as in terms of previous studies, as well as your study, and what your recommendations would bring to the literature. 

Finally, relate to Lucy how your study may influence social change. These ideas may lead to her to suggest an applied study that will lead to further social change. Finally, talk to her directly and leave with her with your final message that captures what you feel are the most important elements of your study. 

Next time, I will examine the finals sections of the dissertation and why they are included. 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 

Today's break photo is from the Crazy Mountains in central Montana.

 

Take a Break!

 

Today begins your first 2-week Walden break! I have heard many dissertation students say that that breaks don’t matter – they just keep working. I am a firm believer that even a couple of days away from your desk (and computer) will make you feel rejuvenated and more energized about your paper. So I encourage you to plan some time off, to get away from everything and recharge your batteries. 

To that end, I am going to post a photo for you every day from my home state of Montana, giving you a moment of mental vacation each day. J Today's photo is of northern Montana near Glacier National Park. Hey, go take a nap, and dream of mountains! 

Next time, I will consider Chapter 5 and why each of the sections are included. 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 

Chapter 4

Your future reader, Lucy, has reached the heart of your dissertation, Chapter 4. This is where she finds out what actually happened in your study! First you will give her a quick overview of the study and why you were doing it. Then you jump into any pilot studies that you did. It is important to indicate any deviations that you made to your original plan in c. 3. Carefully lay out how you went about recruiting your sample for the pilot study and any changes that you made based upon what happened in the pilot. Lucy needs to very clear about where you are as you begin the main study. 

Next, you describe the setting of your study, remember that Lucy needs to know exactly how you went about it, so be detailed. Describe your participants, so Lucy can clearly see how your participants might differ from hers. Now clearly and in detail, explain how you went about your procedures with your participants. Lucy should be able to replicate your study based upon your description. So talk about how and where you recruited, how and where the study took place, how long it took, etc. 

Next, in c 4 is the data analysis section, describe how you went about analyzing your data. Discuss each step and how you went about it. Lucy should be able to take your data set, analyze it exactly as you, and get the same results that you did, based upon your description.

Now present your results, Lucy is very excited to see how your study came out, so give her a careful and logical explanation of everything you found and relate your findings back to your research questions. Finally summarize the chapter and what you will cover in c. 5. 

Next time, we will take a little side trip and celebrate going on break! 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

Chapter 3

Let's bring back your future dissertation reader, grad student, Lucy. The key issue for Lucy in reading your chapter 3, regardless of your methodology, is understanding what you did in the study. It needs to be explained in enough detail that she could replicate it if she wanted to. What does this mean for you, as a writer? It means you must clearly define who is eligible to be in your study and how you decided how many people should participate. Thoroughly explain any measures you used, give statistics on the reliability and validity of the measures.  

Did you do a pilot study? Why? Explain how you went about it. Discuss exactly how you recruited your participants What did they see as potential subjects (e.g., ads, flyers, etc.); include them in your appendix. How did they let you know they wanted to participate? What happened when they started the actual study? Was it done in a group? Individually? Online? How did you maintain privacy? How long did it take people complete the study? Be sure to include all measures, permission to use them, interview questions, etc. in your appendix. Discuss the ethical issues in your study, how you went about protecting your subjects and their data. Finally describe your plan for analysis of your data. 

Why do you have to include all of this? Because Lucy needs to be able to clearly see how your study differs from the one that she is considering. She needs to know how your participants are different from her population. Should she use the same measures you used or different ones? How should she structure her methods based upon your study? 

Think of chapter 3, in particular, as teaching Lucy about your study. Make sure she clearly understands the rationale for your methods as well as how you went about it. Next time, I will consider Chapter 4 and why each of the sections are included. 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