Linda Dale Bloomberg

101 Golden Nuggets for Preparing a Qualitative Dissertation

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Sage Publications Inc Ebooks
• Seitenzahl: 440
• Erscheinungstermin: 27. Juni 2025
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 178mm x 255mm x 28mm
• Gewicht: 826g
• ISBN-13: 9781071978603
• ISBN-10: 1071978608
• Artikelnr.: 73481247

Inhaltsangabe

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Part 1: Qualitative Research Methodology: Background and Context
1. In what ways do qualitative research and quantitative research differ,
and what are the defining features and principles of qualitative research?
2. How has the field of qualitative inquiry evolved over time, and what is
critical qualitative research?
3. What is implied by rigor in qualitative research, and what does it mean
to conduct a rigorous qualitative study?
4. What are the criteria of trustworthiness or legitimation regarding
qualitative research, and how do these issues compare with quantitative
research standards?
5. How do I best understand the concept of researcher-as-instrument and the
centrality of reflexivity on the part of the researcher?
6. What is meant by positionality, and how do researchers' subjectivity and
power dynamics play out in the research process?
7. What are the key ethical considerations in conducting qualitative
research?
8. What is qualitative secondary research, and what are the benefits,
limitations, and ethical implications with this type of research?
9. What constitutes a qualitative dissertation?
10. What are the similarities and key differences between the PhD and EdD
degrees, and how do the differences play out in the dissertation?
Part 2: Planning and Gearing Up for Doctoral Research
11. I have heard that writing a qualitative dissertation is a long and
iterative process. What should I expect to best prepare myself for the
dissertation journey?
12. How does one manage masses of data to be most efficient and practical
throughout the dissertation process?
13. How should I start thinking about planning my time and resources?
14. What would be a realistic timeline in which to complete my
dissertation, and how can I remain practical about this?
15. In what ways are journaling and writing memos such integral aspects of
the qualitative dissertation process, and why are these activities
necessary?
16. What, if at all, is the value of developing a collegial peer support
system?
17. How do I go about choosing suitable advisors and dissertation committee
members?
18. What is the value of the feedback cycle with regard to dissertation
advisement?
19. What are the general standards of good practice among advisors and
students?
20. What are the responsibilities among a doctoral student and their
advisors?
21. What are some of the most important aspects of academic integrity, and
because plagiarism is a serious academic offense, what are some strategies
to avoid this?
22. What are the ethical implications of incorporating artificial
intelligence (AI) in conducting your research?
Part 3: Laying the Groundwork for Your Study
23. The dissertation process seems long and involved. What is the actual
starting point of any qualitative dissertation research?
24. Once I have decided on a broad area of interest, how do I go about
developing and refining a researchable topic?
25. How do I move from identifying a research topic to developing and
articulating a viable research problem that meets PhD or EdD program
requirements?
26. How do I go about developing and honing my research problem statement?
27. What is the purpose statement, and how do I articulate this?
28. How do I develop effective and relevant research questions that address
the research purpose?
29. What does alignment imply when it comes to qualitative research?
30. What are the differences between methodology and research methods?
31. What is meant by methodological congruence, and what are the
implications of this for my study?
32. What are the actionable strategies used to address the trustworthiness
of a qualitative study?
Part 4: Choosing an Appropriate Qualitative Research Design
33. What are the most common qualitative research designs (traditions or
genres), and what are the key differences among these?
34. With all the different options available, how do I go about choosing
the most appropriate qualitative research design for my study?
35. What are the key characteristics of case study design, and how do I
conduct a case study?
36. What is ethnography, and how is an ethnographic study conducted?
37. What are the basic tenets of phenomenology, and how is a
phenomenological study conducted?
38. What is grounded theory, and what does a grounded theory study entail?
39. What is narrative inquiry, and how does one go about conducting this
type of research?
40. What is action research, and what is involved in an action research
study?
41. What is entailed in setting up and conducting a mixed methods research
design?
Part 5: Preparing and Writing the Dissertation Research Proposal
42. What exactly is the research proposal, and what is its function and
purpose?
43. How do I go about developing my research proposal, and what are the key
components of a qualitative dissertation proposal?
44. What are some of the most important guidelines regarding academic
writing?
45. What are the general format and style requirements for writing a
qualitative dissertation?
46. What is Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, and why is this
necessary?
47. What are the procedures, requirements, and expectations regarding
contacting the Institutional Review Board (IRB) and submitting the
necessary documentation?
48. What is the difference between Institutional Review Board (IRB)
approval and site permissions, and what are some of the details surrounding
online site requirements?
Part 6: Conducting the Research: Data Collection
49. What is the research sample, and how is this different from the target
population?
50. How do I go about selecting my research sample, and how large does my
sample size need to be to reach saturation?
51. What kinds of information will I need from the research site and
research sample?
52. What is the difference between anonymity and confidentiality when it
comes to protecting the privacy of research participants?
53. What are the ethical concerns specifically with regard to research that
is conducted by collecting data online?
54. What are the most commonly used methods of data collection in
qualitative research?
55. What is meant by triangulation, and why is this integral to qualitative
research?
Part 7: Conducting the Research: Data Analysis and Interpretation
56. What is qualitative data analysis all about?
57. What advice is there for student researchers to best prepare themselves
for the huge task of data analysis?
58. There is a lot of talk about qualitative data analysis software (QDAS).
What types of programs are available, and are these preferable to
conducting a manual, old-fashioned analysis of my data?
59. What are the main differences among inductive, deductive, and abductive
analysis?
60. What are codes, what is the procedure for coding my data, and what are
some useful coding guidelines?
61. What is meant by thematic analysis, and what are some useful guidelines
in developing themes?
62. How can I best understand the concept of data saturation?
63. What are content analysis and discourse analysis, and how do these
methods fit with qualitative analysis?
64. What are visual data, and how is analysis of visual data conducted?
65. In what ways does data analysis differ from interpretation of findings?
66. Once I have developed themes, how would I then go on to describe and
interpret my study's findings?
67. How and in what ways do analysis and interpretation differ among
qualitative research designs?
68. What are the limitations of my credibility in the analytic and
interpretive process? After all, I bring my own perspectives, experiences,
and hence assumptions, subjectivity, and biases!
69. How do I ensure and address cultural integrity in my research?
70. What is the rationale for conducting an audit trail to demonstrate
trustworthiness, how does one go about this, and what is the ultimate value
in my dissertation?
Part 8: Writing and Presenting Your Research
8.1: Introduction to the Study
71. What is the overall purpose of the study's introductory chapter, and
what are the key components and quality markers of this chapter?
72. In what ways is the research problem expected to inform the development
of research purpose and research questions, and how is a qualitative
research problem evaluated?
73. In the introduction to the dissertation, the researcher lays out the
rationale and significance of the study. What is the difference between
these two concepts?
8.2: The Literature Review
74. What are the function and purpose of the literature review in a
qualitative dissertation, and what are the quality markers?
75. What is the scope of the literature review in the dissertation? In
other words, how extensive is the review meant to be?
76. Conducting a scholarly literature review requires skill and expertise.
What abilities does this demand of the researcher, and what are some best
practice guidelines?
77. There are many different types of literature. What are these types, and
what are the distinctions among them?
78. What should I know about and be aware of with regard to online
resources?
79. What are annotated bibliographies, and what purpose do these serve?
80. How do I start preparing for the literature review, and how can I break
down the stages that constitute the literature review process?
81. What is the idea of synthesis vis-à-vis the literature review write-up,
and how is synthesis different from summary?
8.3: Theoretical or Conceptual Framework
82. So much is made of the theoretical or conceptual framework. What are
these frameworks, and what are the main differences between them?
83. What are the function, application, and value of the theoretical or
conceptual framework in the qualitative dissertation?
8.4: Reporting the Study's Methodology
84. What is the purpose of the methodology chapter in a dissertation, and
what are the quality markers of this chapter?
85. What are the key components of the methodology chapter, and how should
this chapter be structured?
8.5: Reporting the Study's Findings
86. What constitutes the dissertation's findings chapter, and what are the
quality markers of this chapter?
87. How are research findings presented in a qualitative dissertation, and
does this presentation differ based on the selected research design?
88. I've read conflicting reports about the generalizability of qualitative
research findings. How can I better understand this issue?
89. What are meant by limitations and delimitations in a qualitative
research study, and what is the difference between these two concepts?
90. What are the qualitative researcher's role and responsibility in
ensuring transparency and criticality in reporting findings?
8.6: Presenting Analysis and Interpretations of Findings
91. What are the role and function of the analysis chapter of the
dissertation, and what are the quality markers of this chapter?
92. How do I develop and present the interpretation of my research
findings?
93. A lot is made about the notion of synthesis. What are the implications
of synthesizing and integrating the findings with my study's theoretical or
conceptual framework?
94. What is the purpose and value of including a positionality statement?
8.7: Conclusions and Recommendations
95. How should I begin thinking about developing trustworthy conclusions,
and how do I formulate my study's conclusions?
96. How can I go about developing actionable recommendations, and for whose
benefit are the study's recommendations?
Part 9: Dissertation Defense Preparation and Beyond
97. As I near completion of my dissertation, what are some final tasks I
need to address?
98. Will I have an opportunity to reflect on my research and findings?
99. What is the essential purpose of the dissertation defense?
100. As I approach my dissertation defense, how can I best prepare myself
for this milestone event, and what are some beneficial pre-defense
strategies that I should know about?
101. Following the defense and all necessary revisions to my dissertation,
what opportunities can I pursue regarding publishing and presenting my
research?
102. BONUS NUGGET: Finally, I have heard the mantra that "the best
dissertation is a DONE dissertation." However, how does one actually
evaluate the quality of a completed qualitative dissertation?
Afterword
References
Index
102. BONUS NUGGET: Finally, I have heard the mantra that "the best
dissertation is a DONE dissertation." However, how does one actually
evaluate the quality of a completed qualitative dissertation?
Afterword
References
Index