An overview on Psychology Dissertations

A psychology dissertation is not very different from a dissertation in any other sciences. It is aimed at providing new information, idea and theory pertaining to the research field. A psychology dissertation is well structured with minimum description and maximum clarity. The main aim of a psychology dissertation is to make the readers understand a complex idea. Precision is really important because in a psychology paper facts are to be supported by research especially from previous researches done. Writing a psychological thesis involves a great amount of discipline in forming a thesis, writing the actual purpose of the thesis, supporting conclusions of the thesis and defending them from various questions and challenges.

The key to psychology dissertation writing is to be able to read the sources critically. This is important for being informed about the subject matter on which you are writing. Also, it helps you to do strength and weakness analysis for your thesis proposal by evaluating the arguments, conclusions, methodologies in others thesis. The thesis can be review papers, theoretical or empirical thesis, but they all will include adopting or working on a writer’s point of view and then adding your observations to same. Therefore, understanding and considering in detail the evidence of the writer which he has used to prove his/her argument is important. It is important to analyze the statistics and check whether the conclusion is in-line with the evidence.

Different types of psychological research papers can be written like grant proposals, research articles, review articles. Students can either take up a research topic of their own or an existing research topic i.e. an empirical research where existing research by someone is reviewed. In case of an empirical research or Literature review as it is called, it is important to add one’s own inputs based on the research done apart from adding up to the existing research. Therefore, it is important that the reader should be able to understand how the context is integral to the thesis that is drafted. If there is doubt related to the strength and relation of the context to the thesis then the instructors should be consulted.

Another very important part of physiological research is that the evidence should be based always on the data available or collected. The evidence should never be based on the perception of the audience or the writer. Even if there are statements that the writer strongly believes they should not be written as facts unless there is a proper data to back it up, hence a statement should not come as surprise to the audience. Therefore, make sure that your psychological thesis should be based on new idea and theory and should support conclusion with evidence to be able to defend it against the questions and arguments.

How to Write a Well-organized Dissertation Proposal

A coherent dissertation proposal is actually the gateway to successful dissertation. However, in order to write such a dissertation, it requires firm determination, research, and dedication. Moreover, a good beginning is what is required for a dissertation proposal to trigger interest. Therefore, it needs a lot of thinking and a systematic process to write a proposal.

As a first step, you start by thinking a bigger picture by writing all your ideas even though they do not relate together. You can then analyze and choose the most interesting one that can easily meet an academic requirement. This step itself is much like a learning experience wherein you conceptualise your proposal. Next, you conduct a preliminary research to peel down your thoughts and find out whether sufficient information is available to investigate your ideas. There is no need to engage in too much reading and research on every literature piece. You just have to get enough information to convince yourself that your dissertation will be original as well as successful.

It is beneficial to discuss the proposal ideas with your dissertation advisor to follow their advice and listen to their criticism. You may also add a timeline in your proposal, as the committee audience will wish to know how long it will take to fulfill the specific goals of dissertation. When you begin to write, ensure that you ask yourself whether there is enough understanding, encouragement, and ability to complete your dissertation. Once sure, you need to pay importance to the structure.

Did you know that several factors affect the structure of your proposal for dissertation? A few of the common factors include your study field, research work, and deadlines. For making your dissertation proposal well organized by keeping these factors in mind, you can follow a few major guidelines.

•    Start with an introduction with all information regarding the former work on that topic.
•    Include all basic information with evidences in the proposal.
•    Draw precise and up-to-the-point conclusions.
•    Ensure clarity about research work purpose and strategies that gave you the results and conclusions. Split your writing into small paragraphs properly to convey your ideas clearly.
•    Have consistency in the format you choose and include proper citations.
•    Concentrate on the specifications, grammar, and vocabulary as well.

As a tip, before beginning even the research work, take some time to go through the proposals of others for getting a better idea of what you have to do.