Postgraduate Research Handbook : Succeed With Your MA, MPhil, EdD and PhD

List of Figures and Tables x Acknowledgements xi Introduction 1(8) What the book does not do 3(1) What the book does and how it is structured 4(5) PART ONE STARTING RESEARCH Starting Your Postgraduate Research 9(14) Why do an MA, MPhil, PhD or other Doctorate? 9(3) Planning, key issues and suggestions 12(2) Starting to think about developing a hypothesis and/or research questions 14(9) Choosing the Right Research Degree 23(9) Types of degree 23(2) Varieties of research degree 25(2) Choosing your university and supervisor 27(5) Choosing Your Supervisor(s) 32(16) Introduction 32(1) Choosing your supervisor, and internal regulations 33(1) Working with your supervisors: initial contracts and contacts 34(1) Managing your supervisor 35(3) Things to ask/not to ask your supervisor(s) 38(1) Planning to get the most from your supervisor 39(1) What research students can expect of supervisors - a brief summary 39(3) Stages of supervisions - what you might expect at different stages 42(2) Planning work and supervisions 44(4) Research Questions and Hypotheses 48(17) Developing research questions or hypotheses for research proposals and the research 49(2) The research process 51(1) Stating your title 52(2) Research questions 54(1) Key stages - developing a hypothesis or research questions 54(1) `Operationalising' a concept 55(3) Boundaries and gaps 58(3) What kind of research is yours going to be? 61(1) Stages of asking the research question 62(3) Research Methodologies 65(13) Choosing research methodologies 65(1) Methodology 66(4) Research approaches 70(4) Methodology, worldview, methods, data and research 74(1) Using qualitative and quantitative research methods together 75(3) Conceptual Frameworks 78(8) Research paradigms and perspectives 78(2) Some examples of areas 80(6) Ethics and Confidentiality 86(9) Typical procedures and their history 86(9) Writing a Research Proposal 95(12) What do you want to research? How you can draw up a good proposal 97(10) PART TWO GETTING GOING -- SUPERVISORS, TIME AND COMMUNITY Managing Your Supervisor(s) 107(16) Planning work and supervisions 107(2) Learning contracts 109(14) Managing the Balancing Act 123(7) Balancing what? 124(1) Varieties of roles and activities -- an audit 125(1) What kind of balancing act suits you? 126(4) Managing Your Time and Tasks 130(10) Good planning: long-, medium- and short-term management of time 131(1) Overall planning and the cycle of research 131(9) Learning as a Research Student -- Learning Approaches, Styles and Pitfalls 140(17) Learning styles: deep, surface and strategic learning 141(1) Disciplines 142(2) What kind of learner are you? 144(13) Developing a Supportive Research Culture Locally and at a Distance 157(12) Group/project team supervisions 158(1) Self-managed groups and networks 159(1) Peer pairing 160(1) Peer support systems over a distance 161(1) Using electronic and video links to support research students in their work 162(1) Different modes of contact explored 163(1) Other peer-support systems -- establishing a research culture 164(5) PART THREE CARRYING OUT THE RESEARCH AND STARTING TO WRITE Carrying out a Literature Review -- Developing the Theoretical Perspectives Chapter 169(17) A literature review/theoretical perspectives chapter 170(2) International students -- some particular issues 172(2) Carrying out the literature review 174(6) Writing the theoretical perspectives chapter 180(6) Methods in Brief 186(27) Quantitative research methods - designing and using questionnaires 187(4) Qualitative research methods - interviews, focus groups and observation 191(19) Case study 1 210(1) Case study 2 211(2) Using Grounded Theory, Case Studies, Journals and Synectics 213(14) Grounded theory 213(3) Case studies 216(2) Case study 1 218(1) Case study 2 219(2) Journals 221(1) Synectics 222(5) Action Research and Practitioner-based Research 227(15) Benefits of practitioner-based research 227(1) Possible pitfalls or problems 228(1) Action research 229(9) Phenomenography 238(4) Problem-based or Enquiry-based Research and Problem Solving 242(9) Stages of problem-based or enquiry-based research 243(2) Case study 245(6) Research Methods for the Arts and Humanities 251(20) The documenting, critiquing and creative continuum 252(10) The form and shape of arts and humanities theses 262(2) Case study 1 264(1) Case study 2 264(1) Researching your own creative work/using the creative in your research work 265(6) PART FOUR SUPPORT, PROGRESS, ANALYSIS, WRITING UP, THE VIVA, PRESENTATIONS AND AFTERWARDS Being Organised, Keeping Records, Writing Up, Stage-by-Stage 271(7) Time and task plan -- key stages and obvious potentially difficult moments 272(6) Writing the Thesis or Dissertation 278(14) Developing the framework of different chapters 278(2) The shape of the thesis as it develops 280(1) Models 281(2) Elements of the structure of the thesis explained -- and variants discussed 283(9) Overcoming Writing Blocks and Learning from Feedback 292(21) Writing 292(2) Analysis of narratives, interviews, interactions, cases 294(5) Some ideas about the writing habit 299(6) Developing writing 305(8) Analysing Data and Thinking about Findings 313(13) Making sense of your data - interpretation and findings 314(1) Managing data, both quantitative and qualitative 315(1) Annotating 316(1) Summarising and generalising 316(3) Qualitative data activity 319(1) Documentary analysis 320(1) Findings 321(5) Learning from Feedback 326(10) Working with supervisor and other feedback 326(10) Writing Transfer Documents and Progress Reports for MPhil, EdD and PhD Theses 336(13) Open University (OU) EdD 336(2) Transfer to a PhD 338(6) MPhil, PhD and EdD -- scope and differences 344(3) Presentation issues to bear in mind as you carry on with your work 347(2) Writing Up: Definitions and Qualities of a Good MA, MPhil, EdD and PhD Thesis 349(21) The Master's dissertation or thesis 349(1) The EdD 350(1) Definitions of a good dissertation or thesis 351(1) Positive features in a successful MPhil and PhD 352(5) Writing up 357(13) Preparing Your Thesis and Dissertation -- Coherence, Conclusions and Conceptual Level Work 370(6) The proposal -- revisited 371(5) Preparing for and Undertaking Your Viva 376(12) Being prepared 377(2) Postgraduate viva 379(2) Generic questions 381(3) Stress management 384(1) The viva voce -- a brief outline 384(4) Dealing with Corrections -- life after the Viva... 388(4) What next? 389(2) Celebrate 391(1) Presentations, Conferences and Publishing 392(18) Plan 394(1) Prepare 395(5) Practise 400(1) Presentation 400(3) Publications 403(7) Life After the Research 410(4) `Is there life after the research?' 410(4) Bibliography 414(11) Index 425