SENIOR THESIS Chapters IV & V

Chapter IV: Presentation of Findings  show and tell the results of your research  Just a few pages!  Introduction  Trends  Outliers  Charts/graphs

Chapter IV In a Nutshell  Look at all those numbers/descriptions you collected.  How can you summarize them (describe)?  Review your research goals  What is your research question? Sub-questions?  Make sense of what you have found.

Chapter IV In a Nutshell  Data should be well organized, purposeful in its organization, and convey meaning.  Never include raw data in Chapter IV.  What is raw data?  Where do you include it? Appendix.  Do not discuss the meaning of the results in this section.  Save for Chapter V  Follow proper APA format for tables and figures

Before you can write Chapter IV, you must first KNOW your data  You must figure out the “story” of your raw data.  What does it tell?  How does it tell it?  Trends emerge which can be highlighted in the write-up of the data  Goal: Readers “take note” of important results

The process of analysis starts the moment your data begins to arrive.  Ask:  Does it make sense?  Will it be enough?  Is it accurate?  Can I defend these numbers/descriptions?

The process of analysis starts the moment your data begins to arrive.  Other questions to consider (THINK ABOUT):  Did you answer or adequately address your original research question?  Where are the weaknesses in the data and research design?  What data are most meaningful, and which are worth using?  How will you present the data (lists, tables, bar and pie charts)?  What unintended findings came up, and what do they mean?

Basic layout of QT information 1. Make copies of your data and store the master copy away.  Use the copy for making edits, cutting and pasting, etc. 2. Tabulate the information  I.e., add up the number of ratings, rankings, yes's, no's for each question.

Basic layout of QT information 3. For ratings and rankings, consider computing a mean, or average, for each question.  For example, "For question #1, the average ranking was 2.4". This is more meaningful than indicating, e.g., how many respondents ranked 1, 2, or Consider conveying the range of answers  E.g., 20 people ranked "1", 30 ranked "2", and 20 people ranked "3".

Basic layout of QL information 1. Read through all the data. 2. Organize comments/descriptions into similar categories  E.g., concerns, suggestions, strengths, weaknesses, similar experiences, program inputs, recommendations, outputs, outcome indicators, etc. 3. Label the categories or theme  E.g., concerns, suggestions, etc.

Basic layout of QL information 3. Attempt to identify patterns, or associations and causal relationships in the themes  E.g., all people who attended programs in the evening had similar concerns, most people came from the same geographic area, most people were in the same salary range, what processes or events respondents experience during the program, etc.

Forms of Data Display  Charts, graphs, and textual write-ups  Designed to refine and distill the data  Goal: Readers can glean interesting information  Summarizing data is critical to supporting arguments made with that data  So is presenting data in a clear and understandable way.

Pie charts vs. bar charts

When in doubt...  Use a bar chart or table

CHAPTER V Discussion

From our handbook  Evaluate and interpret the implications, especially with respect to your original hypothesis.  Examine, interpret, and qualify the results, as well as to draw inferences from them.  Open this section with a statement of the support or non-support of your original hypothesis.  Note similarities and differences between your results and the work of others.  Negative results should be accepted as such and not be explained away. They are as valid as positive results.  The APA manual suggests that you keep these questions in mind when writing this section.  What have I contributed here?  How has my study helped to resolve the original problem?  What conclusions and theoretical implications can I draw from my study?”

In Chapter V…  You review and interpret your findings  Evaluate and interpret the results  especially with respect to the original research question and sub-questions  GOOD IDEA: Look back at the last three sections of Ch. I (implications, significance, application)

A good discussion chapter will:  Summarize the main points you made in your introduction and review of the literature  Review research methods and/or design you employed.  Repeat (in abbreviated form) your findings.  Discuss the broader implications of those findings.  Mention the limitations of your research (due to its scope or its weaknesses)  Offer suggestions for future research related to yours.

Here, you will:  Place your findings back into the general literature framework  Briefly discuss any major problems with your methodology  Discuss further directions for research  Answer questions

End with a Bang  Finally, you need an ending paragraph in which you make a final summary statement of the conclusions you have drawn.  Comment on the importance and relevance of your findings.  How are your findings related to the big picture?