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He used more restraint with his dissertation and his committee thought he wasn't positive enough. When he defended his master's thesis, his committee told him his conclusions went too far out on a limb. Steven David, PhD, who successfully defended his dissertation in clinical geropsychology at the University of Southern California last May, found this point to be particularly difficult. "If your study was not a true experiment, replace verbs that imply causation with words and phrases such as 'correlated with,' 'was associated with' and 'related to,'" write John Cone, PhD, and Sharon Foster, PhD, in a forthcoming revision of "Dissertations and Theses from Start to Finish" (APA, 2006). That includes avoiding language that implies causality when your study can only make relational conclusions. Speculation is fine as long as you acknowledge that you're speculating and you don't stray too far from your data, say experts. One of the biggest errors students make in their discussion is exaggeration, say experts. "No reader wants to wade through ten pages of suppositional reasoning," says Roddy Roediger, PhD, chair of psychology at Washington University.ĭO: Emphasize the positive. Limit your discussion to a handful of the most important points, as Sackett did on the advice of his adviser.
"However, this will make your dissertation seem like it has raised more questions than it answers." "It is easy to get caught up in the desire to be extremely comprehensive and to bring up every potential issue, flaw, future direction and tangentially related concept," says Sackett.
Sounds simple, right? In fact, choosing what to include can be overwhelming, warns sixth-year Yale University social psychology graduate student Aaron Sackett. "You can't and shouldn't rely on others to intuitively appreciate the beauty and importance of your work," he says. For example, a clinical study might discuss how psychologists might apply the findings in a clinical setting or a social psychology project might talk about political implications.īy exploring those kinds of implications, students address what Scholl considers the most important-and often overlooked-purpose of the discussion: to directly explain why others should care about your findings. Then, launch into "bigger picture" issues. If your results differ from others' findings, you should try to explain why, says Nolen-Hoeksema. That means going back to the literature and grappling with what your findings mean, including how they fit in with previous work. "The point of a discussion, in my view, is to transcend 'just the facts,' and engage in productive speculation," he says. Your discussion should begin with a cogent, one-paragraph summary of the study's key findings, but then go beyond that to put the findings into context, says Stephen Hinshaw, PhD, chair of the psychology department at the University of California, Berkeley. How do you find the balance? Follow these do's and don'ts.ĭO: Provide context and explain why people should care. "This section of the dissertation provides an opportunity to revisit the 'forest.'"įellow students, your adviser and your dissertation committee members can help provide that outside perspective, adds Yale clinical psychology professor Susan Nolen-Hoeksema, PhD, who teaches a course on writing in psychology.Īnd while the discussion should put your research into context and tell a story, say experts, it should not overstate your conclusions. "Many students reach this stage of their careers having been focused for several years on the 'trees,'" says Yale University cognitive psychology professor Brian Scholl, PhD. Rather, it's the time to pull back and take a fresh look at your work. This is not the time to hurry through just because the end is in sight, say experts and students alike. Yet, arguably the most difficult part of writing your dissertation awaits: your discussion, the place where you sew up the various threads of your research into a cohesive narrative. You're tired and the last thing you want to do is keep writing.
You've conducted your research, analyzed your findings and written your results.