Today’s programme

• Choice of topic• Developing the research question • Towards the research design• The essence of the process of reflection and cognition• Stay in control – the road to a great thesis process• How to plan thesis work• Find your own energy boost

Teaching forms

Lectures 5 %

Teaching others 80 %

Source: Rikke von Müllen

From topic choice to research design

Topic topic research question methodology research let’s get

Choice delimitation - draft choice design to work!

Choice of topic

Classic pitfalls:

• Not to regard choice og topic as a piece of work

• To let oneself be ruled – and not just guided – by others

Relevant issues:

• Rules - The academic profile

• Interests - The most interesting topic is the right one

• Ownership – Your work, your decisions

• Originality - Just a new angle, not Ph.d. research

• Complexity - Does not mean at large topic

Choice of topic

Relevant tools:

• Write lists of pro’s and con’s

• Draw your topic – mind maps, arrow diagrams

• Inspiration from literature

• Inspiration from your surroundings

Thesis topics from CBS faculty and companies on e-campus

From topic to research question

• The right research question rarely appears by itself!

• And it is not written in the research literature – but the literature is a fine source of inspiration.

2 typical situations:

From topic to research question

1. There is published so much about my topic that I can’t find a new perspective.

 

Solution: Read the literature for what is doesn’t say: Which methods are not used? Which of the theories’ boundaries are not explored? Which types of cases are not researched into? What other theoretical areas have not been combined with the topic before?

From topic to research question2. There are nothing published about my topic.

 

Solution: Combine theories from different academic areas that are related to the topic. Then write a literature review and apply the theories together and apart in different parts of the analysis, or develop your own model for analysis where the theories supplement each other.

 

Example:

Topic: Something to do with marketing of non-material products via social media.

Relevant academic fields: On-line marketing, creative business, social media

To develop a research question

is a job to be done!

Consequences

Causes

’Problem tree’ for identifying things to research

It is a problem with litter in the streets of Copenhagen

People just throw their litter at the streets

Danes don´t care about their environment

There is a lack of dustbins

Authorities don´t priorities the litter problem Change in attitude

through time

Fastfood and coffee -to-go create more litter

There is more litter than there used to be

To few people work with cleaning the streets

It is not nice to look at

Fewer tourists

Could be injurious to health

Lack of income to the municipality

Higer medical expenses

Litter at the streets make more people to throw their litter

More difficult to change attitude

Exercise using association - procedure

1. Conduct an exercise where you brainstorm about your topic using association

 

2. Allow yourself to be creative!

 

3. Are some questions sub-questions to other questions?

 

4. Draw the questions – where can you (not) identify a connection between them?

 

5. Write the 1st draft version of the research question

- Accept that it is hopeless!

 

6. Look carefully at the 1st version – does it capture everything you wish to research into – and only that?

 

 

Exercise using association - procedure

7. What is missing and what is to much? – Write it down in a few words 8. Write the 2nd draft version of the research question - Accept that this version is also hopeless!  9. Repeat 7 and 8 until your written research question matches your interests. 10. How does the 2nd version matches the criteria for ’the good research question’? 11. What is missing? 12. Write the 3th draft version of the research question It won’t be perfect – but you can continue work based on it

A good research question:

- IS OPEN

- IS BALANCED

- HAS AN ANALYTICAL FOCUS

- tension, delimitations, shows academic wondering

- theory vs. data

 

Formula:

Why does company X do Y (observation/topic) when theory A and B suggest Z?

This sentence contains a tension between a known theory and an observed practice.

Exercise: The Good Research QuestionDiscuss with the student sitting next to you to what extent the research

questions below follows the criteria for the good research question and how the research questions can be improved.

Research question no. 1:

Will ‘clean air’ as vision or guiding philosophy in the brand platform (the brand’s identity system) entail major changes in the way brand management is conceived and practised in terms of processes, actors and resources?

Research question no. 2:

"How can a country, as a tourist destination, by means of marketing and branding, reverse the negative safety perception to increase international tourists numbers?"

Discuss for 5 minutes. Then we have a plenary discussion

A good research question:

 

   Article (e-campus/thesis):

Vibeke Ankersborg: Problemformuleringer – en nødvendig logisk umulighed

i Vibeke Ankersborg og Merete Watt Boolsen (red.)( 2007): Tænk selv! Videnskabsteori og undersøgelsesdesign i samfundsvidenskab, Forlaget Politiske Studier.

 

English version of model and user manual on e campus

From research question to research designA skeleton for a structured consistency:  Structure

 

Research question Introduction

Material used Theories and methodologies

 

Sub question/ Which parts of Analysis chapter 1

Hypothesis literature and data?

 

Sub question/ Which parts of Analysis chapter 2

Hypothesis literature and data?

 

Sub question/ Which parts of Analysis chapter 3

Hypothesis literature and data?

Conclusion

What does the research question calls for?

Consistency between research question, levels of knowledge and methodologies.

The formulation of the research question itself dictates the kind of knowledge your research can possible create and the kind of methodologies and data you can possible apply.

 

Classic errors:

• To conclude at a level of knowledge different from the researched level of knowledge

• To use a research design for testing theories even though the objective of the thesis is not to test a theory

`

 

`

What does the research question calls for in terms of methodology? - exampel Intranet

Initial research guestion:

Why do employees in organisation X not use the Intranet, and how can management incorporate the Intranet into the daily work of employees?

Calls for:

Qualitative analysis of the employees

Qualitative analysis of the Intranet’s present form and use

Qualitative analysis of the need of the organisation

Empiricals studies of others on digital media in organisations

Conclusion: Context dependent knowledge about this particular case.

What does the research question calls for in terms of methodology? - exampel Intranet

Initial research guestion:

How widespread is the use of intranet in Danish organisations and how is the connection between the use of intranet and employee satisfaction?

Calls for:

Quantitative analysis of the spread of use of intranet

Quantitative analysis of employee satisfaction

Empiricals studies of others on employee satisfaction

Empiricals studies of others on digital media in organisations

Statistical knowledge

Conclusion: Generalised, descriptive knowledge

What does the research question calls for in terms of methodology? - exampel Intranet

Initial research guestion:

How does the concept of Intranet and the use hereof appear in social science literature on digital media in organisations and how can Foucault’s concept of power contribute to our understanding of the use of Intranet?

Calls for:

A literature review on the literaure on digital media in organisations, particulary the use of Intranet

A discussion on Foucault’s work

A comparative analysis of the above.

Conclusion: A new theoretical view on the concept of Intranet.

What does the research question calls for - Exercise:

1. Tell the student next you what you would like to write about.

2. Help each other to find possible methods.

3. 7 minutes for each thesis.

The essence of the process of cognition It is easier to act when you know why, you react the way you do.

The essence of the process of cognition

Crucial decisionsMany

Few

Little A lot of

Knowledge

The essence of the process of cognition

The wrong approch:

Develop the research question read theory

collect data analyse

write up the repport conclude

Even if you use a theory testing design, you should write while you read!

The essence of the process of cognition

Characteristics:

• You need to make a lot of unfounded decisions without knowing the consequences

• It is impossible to control everything

• It is good to be confused!

• Feels stupit

There are a lot of unanswered questions in thesis writing. The unanswered questions represents knowledge that you haven’t gained yet and that you either choose to delimit yourself from or to research and thereby answer.

Stay in control – the road to a great thesis process

1. Be familiar with the learning processes in major academic work

2. Acknowledge that the thesis process is exactly that – there are a lot of unanswered questions

3. Regard the process as a job to be done – set aside sufficient amount of time and energy

4. Apply different techniques for different actions

5. Regard knowledge production and text production as integrated parts of the process,not two different things

Source: Vibeke Ankersborg (2011): Specialeprocessen! Tag magten over

dit speciale, Forlaget Samfundslitteratur

Stay in control – the road to a great thesis process

6. Don’t regard writing as a goal in itself – focus on the knowledge production

7. Be aware of your choices and the direction of the thesis that the choices lead to

8. Delimit your research

9. Accept that your research question cannot be perfect

10.Write tentative research designs for each version of possible research question

Source: Vibeke Ankersborg (2011): Specialeprocessen! Tag magten over

dit speciale, Forlaget Samfundslitteratur

Stay in control – the road to a great thesis process

11.Use the chosen research design as a guideline

12.Treat the literature on methodology just as seriously as you treat the literature on theory

13.Do not try to read al relevant literature, and not set aside the first 3 months for reading only

14.Formulate an objective for your knowledge production

15.There are not just one way of writing a thesis – so find your own way

16.Remember that this is your first thesis – you are suppose the learn along the way

Source: Vibeke Ankersborg (2011): Specialeprocessen! Tag magten over

dit speciale, Forlaget Samfundslitteratur