Before you start your dissertation it is worth taking a little time to negotiate study and writing time at home and, if appropriate, at work. Although at this stage in the programme you will already have established your own patterns of study, if you are intending to undertake empirical research, remember that you may need to build in extra time for visits, working around participants’ timetables, etc.
Also, don’t underestimate the importance of support mechanisms of all kinds. Keep in regular touch with members of your peer group and share your experiences – whether they are good or not-so-good. Give one another moral support. You may find it useful to work more closely with one or two of your fellow students and perhaps read and comment constructively on one another’s work at regular intervals. Proof-reading is an invaluable service that you can perform for each other.
In getting started, no matter what the research focus, there are a number of procedures of which all researchers need to be aware. Such procedures often follow the sequence listed below. Many students find it helpful to work through this sequence - but it is not intended to preclude other ways of working. If you wish to go about your research in a different way you are strongly advised, nevertheless, to undertake steps i-iii and to discuss your next steps fully with your supervisor.
(i) Outline your research interest, and discuss this with your supervisor.
(ii) Begin a research diary as soon as you start thinking about your dissertation and keep this going throughout your study (see p22). Keep a record of your ideas and how these develop or change; things to follow up; notes to remind yourself to go back to a particular piece of literature, etc.
(iii) Work out a timetable for your research, including how long you will spend reading, gathering information/ data, analysing and writing - this is very important and should be considered carefully because you must set yourself realistic, achievable goals (see Appendix 4). Don't regard your timetable as something oppressive but as an adaptable guide. It can be extremely motivating as you 'tick off' even very small things that you have completed.
(NB: Steps iv-x, below, refer to the gathering of data normally required for an empirical study. For non-empirical research [library-based study] these stages in the research process will obviously not apply in the same way.)
(iv) Obtain any necessary permission to conduct your research.
(v) Make initial contact with those individuals whom you want to participate in the research. This may involve making telephone calls, sending letters or emails, and making initial visits. You may need to bear in mind what costs could be involved.. It is very important to explain clearly what it is you want to do and the kinds of demands you will be making on your participants. You should make it clear that, if necessary, you will do everything you can to protect their identity. This will involve respecting confidentiality and using pseudonyms in your writing where individuals are quoted. (See Section Three for more information about ethical issues.)
(vi) Unpack your main research question into questions you wish to ask people in an interview or which will help you to identify issues or points of interest you think may be significant during any observations. Devise a questionnaire or interview schedule, if this appears to be useful for data collection. Make sure you choose realistic data collection processes and that you do not collect much more than you need. (It can be great fun generating data but remember that someone - you - will have to sort it!)
(vii) Carry out a small pilot study which will help you to clarify issues or firm up questions you need to include in your research, or to review your research question. It will also alert you to potential difficulties with your chosen research methods, and to the scale of the task you are proposing to undertake.
(viii) Arrange fieldwork which may involve telephone calls and emails or letters.
(ix) Gather your data. As you do so, try to organise it according to an indexing system which will help you when you come to the analysis stage. It is very important not to allow your data to pile up in a heap in the corner of a room! Depending on the nature of your research, it may be possible to outline the structure of your dissertation and chapter headings at this stage.
(x) Analyse data. There are various computer packages available for analysing both quantitative and qualitative data. Many students find these helpful but, unless you are already familiar with such packages, bear in mind that you will need to build time into your research period in order to be able to use them effectively. Always remember, too, that, however impressive they are, such packages cannot actually do your thinking for you! Whatever means of analysis you use, as you begin to analyse your data and make sense of what you have gathered you may find that new issues have arisen, or that your data look very different from what you anticipated at the outset. If so, you may need to review your original research questions at this stage, and perhaps re-focus.
(xi) Return to your literature review and relate your understanding of it to the data/information you have collected. Do not be afraid to move beyond your earlier readings and explore new avenues which have arisen as a result of your data analysis and/or subsequent readings and investigations. Steps (xi) and (xii) are interrelated and you will find that you move between the two as you work out how you are going to present your findings/conclusions.
(xii) Plan the structure of your dissertation. What is your main argument? How are you going to relate your findings to the literature? Once you are clear about this, you can then decide on chapter headings. These should be broken down into subheadings and an outline prepared noting what is likely be included under each one.
(xiii) Prepare your chapters and bear in mind that, no matter how experienced a writer you are, there will always be a need for drafts and redrafts. Redrafting is an important part of the writing process. Sometimes new ideas and possibilities can emerge out of the very process of writing. When you have written all the chapters, and read through them as a whole, you may find that the argument running through has been lost at various points and needs to be retrieved or reinforced. Allow yourself plenty of time for reflection and re-writing in the final stages.
(xiv) Proof-read before your final submission. If possible, get someone else to proof-read your dissertation. This is a particularly important stage which is often neglected because inadequate time is allowed for the final presentational. When the ‘real work’ of the dissertation is complete you need to allow at least a week, and preferably longer, to check and correct details of content and formatting. Work may be referred by the Board of Examiners for amendments before the award of a Masters degree can be recommended. Allowing sufficient 'checking time' often helps to avoid this kind of disappointment.