Designing a research project is possibly the most difficult task a dissertation writer faces. It is fraught with uncertainty: what is the best subject? What is the best method? For every answer found, there are often multiple subsequent questions, so it's easy to get lost in theoretical debates and buried under a mountain of literature. This book looks at literature review in the process of research design, and how to develop a research practice that will build skills in reading and writing about research literature--skills that remain valuable in both academic and professional careers. Literature review is approached as a process of engaging with the discourse of scholarly communities that will help graduate researchers refine, define, and express their own scholarly vision and voice. This orientation on research as an exploratory practice, rather than merely a series of predetermined steps in a systematic method, allows the researcher to deal with the uncertainties and changes that come with learning new ideas and new perspectives. The focus on the practical elements of research design makes this book an invaluable resource for graduate students writing dissertations. Practicing research allows room for experiment, error, and learning, ultimately helping graduate researchers use the literature effectively to build a solid scholarly foundation for their dissertation research project.
Author(s): David J. Harris
Publisher: Routledge/Taylor Francis Group
Year: 2020
Language: English
Pages: 177
City: Milton
Tags: Research, Dissertations, Academic, Social Science: Research
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
Acknowledgements
Part I: On research
1. Research philosophy
A story about the world-your own version
Fact, not fiction
Uncertainty
The community of researchers
The research literature: a conversation among scholars
Project 1: what does research do for you?
2. Research practice
Your vision, your purposes
Allocation of resources
Research design
Defining the research question is a significant problem
The problem of learning
Use what you already know
Writing and thinking Practice: writing is a skill to developRhetoric and persuading your community
Cultivating confidence
Finishing your projects
Project 2: the practice of research
Part II: Reading literature
3. Attitude
Reasons to read scholarly literature for research design
Reasons to read 2: personal purpose
How to read: your attitude
Heroes and villains
Why is so much academic writing bad?
Different definitions, different ideas
Breaking down arguments
Finding the sources for your own ideas
Project 3: being critical
4. Managing the literature
Managing an entire discourse Reviewing the literatureRecord keeping
Using what you have read
Finding and selecting literature
Accept practical limits
Seek efficiency: issues in selecting literature
Iterative reading: from quick reviews toward deep reading
First iteration: title and publication information
Second iteration: abstract
Third iteration: single sections
Project 4: managing the literature
5. Deep reading
Direct models
Motivation
Audience
Use of other literature
Style and rhetorical models
Questions: from concept to practical research
Reading checklist/questionnaire
Project 5: deep reading Part III: Writing about literature6. Writing with literature
Write with purpose
Drafts and feedback
Target lengths
Focal, contextual, and tangential materials
Situating your work
In conversation with heroes and villains
Audience
Focus on your own work
Paraphrasing
Project 6: writing with literature
7. Writing a literature review
What is a literature review?
The purpose of a research background literature review
Writing about search terms
Voice
How short can a literature review be?
Start from the core, and work outward
Writing aliterature review-structural concerns Project 7: writing a skeleton literature reviewConclusion
Suggested readings
Index
