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Writing the Doctoral dissertation : A Systematic approach
The title to my book Writing the Doctoral Dissertation: A Systematic Approach may be a little misleading because the emphasis is on management of the dissertation process rather than on writing the text of the dissertation. The first edition of this little guide was used by more than 50,000 doctoral students. This book has a special place in the books I have written. It is the only one that elicits such heartwarming comments as ?I read your book, and it saved my life? (figuratively, I assume). I have served as advisor for many dissertations and have been on over 100 dissertation committees. In the guide, I have distilled a process for managing the doing of a doctoral dissertation. The book is short, so it can be read at the beginning of a doctoral program and reread at various times in the process. The underlying message of the book to doctoral students is to take control of the management of the dissertation process. There is a second, important use for the book. It can be used in advising doctoral students. How does a professor become a good advisor? If one had a really good advising experience, one can emulate it with advisees. The problem is that the advising experience may not have been as good as it should have been, or if good, the process may not have been experienced in a way that can be replicated. The process outlined in the book can be a starting point for formulating a personal faculty approach to advising. Three propositions underlie the systematic approach to completing a doctoral dissertation: 1. Structuring of the dissertation project can significantly improve performance (by means of topic analyses, proposal documents, plans, schedules, and so on). 2. The student has primary responsibility for the management of the doctoral dissertation project. Advisors and other faculty members can help, but the student should take responsibility. 3. Faculty (advisor and committee) are a scarce, important resource. The student should follow methods of interaction and presentation that effectively use the time and talents of the advisor and committee members. Since the first proposition implies a large productivity gap between managed and unmanaged doctoral dissertation work, there are process guidelines, suggestions for developing proposal alternatives and selecting among them, estimators to use in establishing a schedule, and ideas about dealing with common problems. The inside back cover has a dissertation management checklist. The first edition was published in 1979. An 18-year life span prior to revision suggests solid substance in the approach. In these comments, I will first summarize the changes for those who have used the first edition. I will then describe in more detail the major parts of the book. The second edition adds an emphasis on identifying the theory or concepts supporting a research topic. There is a chapter on the dissertation as knowledge work. There is discussion of the difference between an ?entry-level? doctoral program and a ?mid-career? doctoral program, and how these affect course work and the dissertation. The role of the dissertation in a plan for a scholarly career is emphasized. In the first edition, there was strong support for positivist, empirical research; the second edition considers alternative methodologies. The appendices have changed. The old ones on tools for research, research references, and use of the computer to process analyses were dropped. Up-to-date materials on these topics are very accessible and can be tailored to areas of research. The old appendices explained the use of punched cards in data analysis and provided suggestions and guidelines for applying the cards. Punched cards are no longer used, so those appendices are no longer needed.
Ketersediaan
| Call Number | Location | Available |
|---|---|---|
| MA 808. 042 Dav w | PSB lt.dasar - Pascasarjana | 1 |
| Penerbit | New York Barron\'s., 1997 |
|---|---|
| Edisi | - |
| Subjek | Report writing Dissertations Academic |
| ISBN/ISSN | - |
| Klasifikasi | - |
| Deskripsi Fisik | - |
| Info Detail Spesifik | - |
| Other Version/Related | Tidak tersedia versi lain |
| Lampiran Berkas | Tidak Ada Data |