discussion
and conslusions
Discussing and concluding the dissertation
In
this section of a research
dissertation you need to review and present your key findings and
discuss possible connections between them. Always refer back to your
research question(s). You should relate your own findings to those in
existing related studies outlined in your literature review. Where your
findings differ you should offer a suggested explanation. What light do
they shed on the phenomenon under discussion? What new research
questions are raised by your investigation and study?
Be sure to explain what the limitations of your own study are. What are
the limitations of your sample? To what degree are your findings
specific to a particular socio-cultural or organisational context? In
what ways is your interpretation of your findings related to your own
theoretical assumptions? What insights into the phenomenon does your
study seem to offer? What could others learn from your study?
Discuss any wider implications in relation to your theoretical
framework. This is important because many people discuss implications
as if these were simply logical consequences and leave implicit the
model within which the findings might have such implications. Your
theoretical model must be explicit. Undergraduates are sometimes
unwisely tempted into using the concluding section of their
dissertation in order to make general pronouncements on the topic,
often going well beyond the scope of their study. Conclusions may be
optional in research articles where consolidation of the study and
general implications are covered in the Discussion section. However,
they are usually expected in university dissertations and essays.
Many academic experts have identified a number of key components that
form part of a conclusion. Again (as with introductions) it will not
always be necessary or desirable to include all the elements they
mention. However, you will probably want to use some of these in some
combination, in order to conclude your work.
• A summary of the main part of the text
• A deduction made on the basis of the main body
• Your personal opinion on what has been discussed
• A statement about the limitations of the work
• A comment about the future based on what has been
discussed
• The implications of the work for future research
• Important facts and figures not mentioned in the
main body
Conclusions must follow coherently from the evidence; do not be tempted
into speculation, prediction or moralising. Unless specifically called
for, personal opinions should not feature. If you must end with a
quotation, make sure it is a very short one. In dissertations and
research papers, conclusions tend to be more complex and will also
include sections on significance of the findings and recommendations
for future work.
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