What you need to discuss
Within the thesis you are trying a quarrel according to evidence. This evidence might have a diverse range of forms and become collected or selected by lots of other ways, using the discipline and field of inquiry. However, every thesis must answer these questions:
This covers not just the process acquainted with collect and analyse data, nevertheless the theoretical framework that informs both a range of methods along with the method of interpreting the information, and relates several of these clearly for that research question(s) addressed within the thesis.
You might like to summarise available methods and theoretical way of pursuit subject you’ll without a doubt have to justify selection of method(s) (where a combination of methods can be utilized, that should be justified too), and indicate any relevant limitations they have.
All this is determined reduced preliminary form within the research proposal you authored for confirmation of candidature, but you might have refined and developed it after that. In addition, you have to report the facts of how, when and where the research actually was transported out.
The detail and emphasis of what’s covered can alter in a number of disciplines.
- rationale for selecting materials, methods and procedures
- facts about materials, equipment and procedures that will others to
- replicate experiments
- understand and implement technical solutions
- kind of fit between methods selected and research question(s)
- the way a data was
- collected
- recorded
- analysed
- rationale for sampling or selection of cases, representativity of sample or situation
- what sources were selected
- rationale for selection of sources (thinking about their match the study question, and exactly how representative they’re)
- method of interpretation – what approach was selected and why
To present it within the thesis
Within the classic “Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion” thesis structure common within the experimental and social sciences, the discussion of research methods occupies another chapter.
However, in which the research includes numerous experiments or studies which are reported individually, most commonly it is appropriate to devote an instalment getting its very own methods section to every study.
Theses which are arranged in thematic chapters have a discussion of methodology and theoretical framworks within the opening chapter, or possibly the discussion might be built-into individual chapters.
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