Guide to Writing the Masters Dissertation
Guide to Writing the Masters Dissertation
A dissertation will include the following sections:
Abstract
The Dissertation commences with a short abstract (not more than 500 words) of your work, although you should write the abstract when the entire work is finished.
The abstract should provide summary information on the following aspects of your Dissertation:
- Aim and objectives: What are the main themes, ideas or areas of theory being investigated?
- Boundaries: What is the context and background to this Dissertation? In what areas of theory or business practice should the reader concentrate their attention?
- Methodology: What was/were the main method(s) employed to generate the results?
- Results: What were your main findings?
- Conclusions: What are the main conclusions that you arrive at when viewing the entire Dissertation?
Chapter 1: Introduction to the Dissertation
The Introduction to the Dissertation should set out the background and purpose of the research project as well as making the reader aware of exactly what to expect throughout the Dissertation.
Structure of the Introduction Chapter
Area of Study/Context in which the research took place:
- Provides an overview of the principle area of study (theories and concepts) and the context in which the research took place?
- Is there an industry sector that needs to be introduced? Does a particular focal organisation need to be described?
- Does the country/countries in which the research is being conducted need to be introduced?
- Are there important trends or pivotal variables of which the reader needs to be made aware?
Provide justification as to why this study was carried out:
- Was this study undertaken in order to test some aspect of (international) marketing and/or business theory?
- Was the research carried out to fulfil the demands of a business organisation?
- Note: General or specific personal interest is not a valid justification
Aims, Objectives and Research Questions
- A clear and succinct statement of the aims and objectives that the Dissertation is going to address.
- Have you presented a clear and unambiguous exposition of your research aim, the objectives you will address to meet this aim and your research questions?
Definition of Terms
- This section is necessary only if you are dealing with unfamiliar terms or jargon. You can also use this section to introduce any acronyms you will regularly use in the Dissertation.
Chapter Summaries
- This short final section of the Introduction should tell the reader what topics are going to be discussed in each of the chapters and how the chapters are related to each other.
- In this way, you are, in effect, providing the reader with a ‘road map’ of the work ahead. Thus, at a glance, they can see (1) where they are starting from, (2) the context in which the journey is taking place, (3) where they are going to end up, and (4) the route which they will take to reach their final destination. Such a ‘map’ will enable them to navigate their way through your work much more easily and appreciate to the maximum what you have done.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
The main reasons for the inclusion, in a Masters Dissertation, of a literature review section are:
- To present and to analyse, in a critical manner, that part of the published literature which is relevant to your research topic and which acts as the basis for a fuller understanding of the context in which you are conducting your research; thus helping the reader to a more rounded appreciation of what you have completed.
- To act as a backdrop against which, what you have done in the remainder of the Dissertation may be analysed and critically evaluated so as to give the reader the opportunity to assess the worth of your writing, analytical and research skills.
- To show that not only have you discovered and reported what you have found to be relevant in the literature search, but that you have understood it and that you are able to analyse it in a critical manner.
- To show that your knowledge of the area of interest is detailed enough that you are able to identify gaps in the coverage of the topic; thus justifying the reason(s) for your research.
- To show that you know what the key variables, trends and ‘actors’ are in the environment of your study, i.e. you show that you know what the important issues are that need to be investigated.
- To enable readers to be able to measure the validity of your choice(s) of research methodology, the appropriateness of the process by which you analyse your results, and whether or not your findings are congruent with the accepted research which has gone before.
The literature review is presented in the form of a précis, a classification, a comparison and a critical analysis of that material which is germane to a full understanding of your research study. Such published material may be drawn from all, or a combination of, textbooks, journal articles, conference papers, reports, case studies, the Internet, magazine features or newspaper articles, but it should be remembered, that the most important source of academic literature is from peer-reviewed academic journal articles and you should ensure that you are familiar with the most recent publications in quality journals relevant to your subject area. These should form the core of your literature review.
Structure of the Literature Review Chapter
The Introduction of the Literature Review should include:
- An overview of the chapter, this forecasting section familiarises the reader with the structure of the chapter and its principle main contents.
- A definition or description of topic in general terms, or of the issues you propose to investigate – this will give the reader a context in which the literature may be viewed.
- The key trends in this sector of the literature, the main theories and areas of disagreement, and possibly, gaps in the literature.
- An explanation as to why, if appropriate, some literature has not been included in the study.
The Main Body of the Literature Review should include:
- A discussion of the main theories or models, which are appropriate to your study.
- Group together appropriate themes or trends and discuss them in detail.
- Begin in general terms and then narrow down to specific details, this applies to the entire literature review and to individual sections.
- Try to explain and, if possible, to resolve conflicts in what you report.
- Cover all topics relevant to the Dissertation.
- Be comprehensive enough to act as a suitably firm foundation, such that it will support the research in the remainder of the Dissertation.
- Be up to date – always try to employ the most contemporary journal articles or sources.
The Conclusion of the Literature Review should include:
- A summary of the major points that the literature review has uncovered.
- Clear identification of the gap(s) in the literature, if there are any, and use these to emphasise the justification for carrying out the current research project.
- A review of research objectives of the study are, so that the reader is in no doubt as to what you are about to investigate and to provide continuity between chapters.
Hints on conducting a Literature Review
- The University’s subject librarian will help you find relevant material.
- Use the Internet as a way of gaining access to relevant material. In particular, learn how to input the keywords for individual search engines – each have their own idiosyncrasies.
- Make a decision as to those keywords which encompass your subject within reasonably narrow confines; too ‘wide’ a definitional span and you will be engulfed with too much that is of only peripheral relevance; too ‘narrow’ a definition and you will be excluding items which are of use.
- Always try to gain access to full, original articles or to complete texts; using quotes or citations from third parties may carry with them a certain ‘colour’ which the original author did not intend and which might bias your review.
- Please use your notes from the key skills literature review sessions to guide your approach to this chapter.
Questions to be asked when carrying out a Literature Review
- Are the references included relevant to the topic(s) under investigation?
- Do the references support all the topics or themes that must be discussed to aid a full understanding of the context of the research and of the research objectives?
- Has the literature review discussed, to the appropriate level of detail, each of the topics?
- Have all the key authors been cited and discussed?
- Does the space given to each section of the literature review reflect its individual importance?
- Have the most current texts and journals been employed?
Chapter 3: Research Methodology
The chapter entitled ‘Research Methodology’ is that part of the Dissertation where you have the opportunity to justify to the reader the process by which the research objectives and questions, which were derived by an analysis of the relevant literature, were answered. It is not sufficient to say, for example, “Suitable respondents were sampled using a quota sampling technique and then surveyed using a postal questionnaire” and then leave it at that. It might well be the case that, given the problem(s) to be investigated, such a choice of research methods is entirely appropriate. However, if you have not taken the opportunity to justify your research choices to a reader they could be correct in assuming that you have, by chance, merely guessed at what would work and, more by luck than judgement, arrived at the ‘correct’ solution to the problem.
The chapter on research methodology must, painstakingly, argue for and justify each decision that is taken when arriving at the way in which the research is to be organised. Every time that you, the researcher, has to make a decision as to what choice to make from a number of choices, you must state what each of these are, why you made the choice you did, and why you rejected the others. Bear in mind that as you progress through the chapter the need to discuss methodology in its broadest sense is reduced. Opting, for example, for an interpretivist philosophy and a qualitative data collection strategy (in sections 1 and 2) means that a discussion of survey or experimental methods is unnecessary.
It is also important to note that justification of your methodology will require appropriate reference to both methodological texts (books, methodology journals) and to other studies in your area.
Remember that many of the principles and procedures of empirical research will have been introduced and discussed in both key skills and International Marketing Research, you may wish to refer back to your notes.
Structure of Methodology Chapter
- An Introductory paragraph
- You should begin the Research Methodology with an overview paragraph which outlines how the chapter is organised.
- Research Philosophy
- Your philosophical orientation underpins all other decisions within the methodology and your approach to data collection/analysis. Most research methods texts will include a discussion of dominant philosophical paradigms and these will help you decide on your own position. It is useful to consider your chosen philosophy in light of you aim, objectives and research questions and these should be reiterated in this section.
- Research methods
- Primary versus Secondary Research
It may be that your Dissertation does not require the collection of any primary data and your decision as to which you select should be discussed. Please note that secondary research relates to published reports and data which are collected for other purposes than your study but for which you can analyse. Please note that your literature review is not secondary data.
- Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods
If you opt to collect primary data then you will need to select and discuss your chosen method. Note that certain research philosophies make a detailed debate between quantitative and qualitative methods unnecessary. However, no ‘rule’ says that a choice must be made between two or more choices, and this is so at any point when you are faced with having to make a decision; this applies not just for the section currently under discussion. For example, there are many research projects, which employ both primary and secondary research, and/or qualitative and quantitative research methods. You make your choice, or choices, in the light of your unique research situation and context and the questions which need to be answered. But whatever choice, or choices, you make – you must justify what you have done.
For a Choice of Qualitative Research Method(s)
Why did you choose the method(s) you did?
What are the benefits of this form of research above others in this instance?
The manner in which the results are to be analysed?
For a Choice of Quantitative Research Method(s)
Why did you choose the method(s) you did?
Why did you reject the others?
You will need to justify the precise fieldwork method and approach to data collection.
- Research instrument
In this sections you will outline what techniques will you use to collect data, how did you create questions etc. NOTE: All questionnaires and topic guides which are to be used in research must be approved by project supervisors.
- Questionnaire Design (if you used a questionnaire)
Considerations: question content; question phrasing; types of response format; question sequence; questionnaire layout; pre-test, revision and final version of the questionnaire.
- Interview Guide Design (if you used an interview guide)
Considerations: question content; question sequence, use of follow up questions/ probes
- Sampling
- Probability versus Non-probability Sampling Techniques
All research projects will arbitrate between these two sampling methods and you should justify why you chose one over the other. Note that you will also have to justify the form of either probability or no probability (also known as random and non-random sampling) you utilise.
- Ethics, Reflexivity and Bias
- Discussion of ethical issues are relevant to all topics, reflexivity and bias should be considered in with regard to mainly qualitative studies.
- Data Collection
- Describe your data collection process in detail (i.e. when, where the data was collected; how long were the interviews, how many surveys collected etc.). Clearly, this section (and the following two can only be completed after you have completed the process so make sure you keep notes.
- Data Analysis
- Consult your textbooks for the most appropriate way to analyse the data you have collected (outline coding techniques, statistical tests etc.). You should also consider reliability and validity issues.
- Limitations
- It is important to be honest at this stage as to the scope and limits of your approach. What were you not able to do that you would have liked to.
- The conclusion of this chapter should provide a summary of the main points that have been covered. The conclusion should also direct the reader as to how the contents of this chapter link in with the contents of the next chapter.
Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion
You described the context of the research in the introduction to the Dissertation. In the literature review you analysed the work of previously published authors and derived a set of questions that needed to be answered to fulfil the objectives of this study. In the research methodology section you showed the reader what techniques were available, what their advantages and disadvantages were, and what guided you to make the choice you did. In the findings section, you present to the reader the outcome of the research exercise.
Structure of Findings and Discussion Chapter
The nature of your research problem, context, and type of data collected will determine whether you have a combined findings and discussion chapter (common with qualitative research) or separate chapters (associated with quantitative research).
Findings
The introduction of this chapter reminds the reader how the findings relate to the research objectives. The introduction should also explain how the results are to be presented.
The main part of the chapter is the presentation of the results. Even projects of relatively moderate dimensions will generate a mass of data which has to be considered. This data must be organised in a logical and coherently ordered whole so that the author’s thought processes and interpretation are clear to the reader.
Whatever analysis of the data has been undertaken, it must be accomplished with care and attention to detail, as should the way in which the results are presented. Nothing is guaranteed to frustrate a reader more than to have to plough their way through an arid mass of tables, figures, statistics or enormous quotes. Better by far to describe in an accessible manner (which does not mean that you should talk down to the reader) what the research has uncovered and to include only the most pertinent figures as evidence of your findings. Remember, your review of the literature and your evaluation of the various themes, issues and frameworks helped you to develop a more specific set of research questions. In essence, your analysis of the data that you have collected from your fieldwork should provide answers to these questions. You should, as a matter of priority, focus attention on data that is directly relevant to the research questions. You should avoid the mistake of including analysis that might be interesting in a general way, but is not linked to the original direction of the Dissertation. Peripheral data can be included as an appendix, however you are reminded that there is a limit of twenty-five pages for appendices.
Graphs, diagrams, pie-charts etc. are all useful ways of presenting research results; they are an imaginative way of ‘breaking up’ solid blocks of text – they let a little ‘light’ into the body of the text as long as they are relevant and illustrate your points.
Not all Dissertations contain quantitative data. In many situations, students will have made extensive use of qualitative research techniques such as focus groups and/or in-depth unstructured interviews. While quantitative data lends itself to graphs, tables and so on, qualitative data, and the way it is presented, pose particular challenges for students. As ever, your objective should be based on the belief that the data must be presented in such a manner as to make it easy for the reader to follow the logic of the analysis.
The analysis of qualitative data should be based on the research questions and issues that you explored during your fieldwork. For instance, you may have addressed six or seven critical questions in a series of focus groups. Each of these questions should be examined separately, rather than describing each focus group in turn. This provides a degree of logical flow and development to the analysis. In addition, it is advisable to focus on the points of agreement and disagreement that emerged during the interviews. This must be supported with relevant quotations from the transcripts of the interviews. You should avoid lengthy quotations, unless they are of critical importance. However, short excerpts enrich the reader’s understanding of the issues and provide you with the opportunity to shed a clearer insight on the topic.
Many students make the mistake of providing a very superficial, descriptive analysis of qualitative data. This does not allow you to demonstrate that the research you undertook was of a substantive nature. Tables can also be included that reflect the respondent’s overall attitudes, perceptions and views about the themes. You can include the topic guide that you used for the interviews in an appendix.
Discussion
In this section, which is of central importance to the Dissertation, you will assess the findings of your research in the context of the literature review which you must fully reengage with in order to critique your findings. In other words you are exploring in what way, if at all, your research differs from what is known already. Do your findings extend those of others or do they reveal something completely new. This section may be organised by research objective, question or the main themes identified in your data.
Chapter 5: Conclusions
In the final section of the report, you must draw from the results and above discussion, for each of the research objectives, the implications that the findings have business/marketing theory (or alternatively industry sector) that you have been investigating.
Like the discussion section, links between your conclusions and some of the principle areas of literature may be drawn. Commonly, these comparisons will be summarised in a section labelled ‘theoretical implications’. Other implications which are relevant to particular industry sectors or organisations would be labelled as ‘managerial implications’.
- Limitations
- In the course of your research, problems may have occurred due to all or some of the following reasons:
- The constraints of time.
- The degree to which the results can be applied to a larger population.
- The potential effects of non-response.
- The potential effects of substituting a sample unit, in the field, because of ‘not at home’ elements.
- In the course of your research, problems may have occurred due to all or some of the following reasons:
If any, or all, of the above did occur, then it is important that you bring them to the attention of the reader. Without any discussion of these points, an essential element of the context in which the research took place will be missing. It is important that you demonstrate an appreciation of both the practical limitations of your work and the conceptual limitations in terms of the method adopted and the implications of that method for the data collected.
- Final Conclusions and Future Research
It is within your brief, as the researcher, to suggest areas of interest/concern where additional investigation(s) should be directed. In the final section of this, the last chapter, you should tell the reader what you personally have learned about the subject area, what you have learned about research methodology, and finally, what, if you were to repeat the project, you would do differently.
5. Style and Writing Suggestions
As was stated at the start, a Dissertation is a ‘formal’ document and, as such, its contents must be expressed in a certain style. That style is the third person, singular passive e.g.
“Marketing sits within the wider knowledge base of the social sciences and, while it cannot, because of its nature, employ the techniques, formulae and laws of the pure sciences, it should aspire to a ‘scientific’ level of objectivity.”
This is an objective statement, and that is the way in which your Dissertation should be expressed. Although you cannot ‘take yourself out’ of the project, you can take yourself out of the written document.
You should write your Dissertation with the idea in mind that the intended reader has little or no specialist knowledge of the subject matter – even though it will be read by members of staff who are experienced and knowledgeable in these areas. In this way, you will not be tempted to write having made too many implicit assumptions, i.e. by making the erroneous assumptions that the reader has your degree of knowledge about the matters in question or can follow, exactly, your thought processes without spelling them out. It should be a document which is ‘self-contained’ and does not need any additional explanation, or interpretation, or reference to other documents in order that it may be fully understood.
Within these conventions, it obviously makes sense to also aim for a generally clear-cut and well-produced layout. In practice, the most common shortcoming by far is careless proof-reading: simple cosmetic errors create an immediate bad impression which, with proof reading, is easy to avoid.
Citations and References
It is important that you get your citations and references correct.
Citation: any formal mention that you make in your Dissertation to something written by someone else. Every citation must be supported by a reference which supplies the details which will enable the reader to follow up that citation.
The Department employs the Harvard System of referencing. If you refer to the work of an author in your text then it should be cited as, for example, “Smith (1997) states that the shoe size of an individual is a function of three criteria.”
or
“Shoe size has been demonstrated to be a function of three criteria (Smith,1997).”
Perhaps more than one author has made a broadly similar point and you want to include them all. In such a case the citation should appear as follows:
“Marketing research is always important in new product development (Freeman 1997; Hardy 1989; Willis 1999).”
If you quote directly from an author’s work you should include the page number from which the quotation is taken, e.g. (Smith 1997, p 4.)
References: placed at the end of the Dissertation (in alphabetical order of first authors surname), are written thus:
For a journal: Smith, S. (1997) “The Effects of Shoe Size on Consumer Behaviour”, Journal of International Shoe Manufacturers, Vol. 34, No. 45, pp 23-45.
For a textbook: Smith, S. (1997) Strategy, Marketing and Consumers, Paisley, Academic Free Press, 7th edition.
References NOT Bibliography: You may have come across publications containing a ‘Bibliography’ instead of a list of ‘References’. This first is not just an alternative description of the second. The distinction is that the bibliography is a list of source documents which are not cited specifically in the accompanying text, but do relate to it. For the Dissertation you must only use a list of references – this should include the work of ALL authors you have cited in your Dissertation.
Advantages of the Harvard System
The great practical asset of the Harvard System is its user-friendliness, exhibited in many ways. There is no need to number the references, since the citations aren’t numbered. Suppose you need to update your paper or Dissertation at a later stage by including somewhere in mid-text a citation you have just found. In the Harvard System, you just insert it. The Harvard method results in a list of references in alphabetical order. This makes life far easier if you need to check that you have included someone or to find a particular reference at a later date; you don’t have to remember at which point in the text you made the citation. Furthermore, it helps examiners to check easily and quickly that you have referred to the one or two really well-known authorities on the particular subject. If we assume that you have, then this is to your advantage.
Introductions and Conclusions
Each of your chapters will require both an introduction and a conclusion. The former provides the reader with a contents ‘map’ of what is to come, and the latter provides a concise summary of what they have just read. Each introduction should look back to the conclusion of the previous chapter, and forwards to the contents of the chapter which you are introducing.
The conclusion should look back into the chapter just completed, and forward to the introduction of the following chapter. These conclusions and introductions act like small links which bind the ‘chain’ of the chapters together in a more seamless whole than would have occurred if the chapters had not been introduced or concluded; they ‘smooth out’ the transition from chapter to chapter and from topic to topic.
Length
Your Dissertation word count must be between twelve to fifteen thousand words long, (not including abstract, reference list, appendices, tables and figures). A penalty will be incurred for students who fail to adhere to this word limit. For the avoidance of doubt – the word-limit tolerance is within the 12,000 to 15,000 (3,000) range.
Additional Pages
(Specimen) Contents Page
- Title page
- Abstract
- Declaration
- Acknowledgements (if any)
- Dedication (if any)
- Keywords
- Table of Contents (including list of appendices)
- List of Tables
- List of Figures
- List of Appendices
All of the above pages should be numbered using Roman numerals e.g. i, ii, iii, iv, v etc.
- Chapter One: Introduction
- Section 1.1
- Sub section 1.1.1
- Sub section 1.1.2[1]
- Section 1.2
- Section 1.1
- Chapter Two: Literature Review
- Section 2.1
- Section 2.2
(You may include more than one literature review chapter, in which case subsequent chapters will be numbered differently)
- Chapter Three: Methodology
- Section 3.1
- Section 3.2
- Chapter Four: Findings and Discussion
- Section 4.1
- Section 4.2
(As discussed before these may be included as separate chapters in which case they would be numbered differently.)
- Chapter Five: Conclusions
- Section 5.1
- Section 5.2
- References
- Appendices
All of the pages above are numbered using the Arabic numbering system e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.
Title Page
A standard title page, complete with the logo must be included at the start of the Dissertation. This page will be available on the Masters Programme Area under Dissertation/Research Methods Files
Declaration of Originality Page
A Declaration of Originality page must be included at the front of the Dissertation. This must be signed, dated and bound into the paper copy of the Dissertation. This page will be available on MyPlace on the Masters Programme Area under Dissertation/Research Methods Files.
The page reads as follows:
This Dissertation is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree, Master of Science in (International) Marketing/Tourism Marketing Management in the, and accords with the University Regulations for the programme as detailed in the University Calendar.
I declare that this document embodies the results of my own work and that it has been composed by me. Following normal academic conventions, I have made due acknowledgement of the work of others.
I declare that this piece of work, in whole or in part, has not been submitted to two institutions simultaneously or submitted previously to another institution or institutions.
Name (please print) ……………………………………………………………………………
Signed ……………………………………………………………………………………………
Date………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Physical Preparation and Presentation
Please observe the following rules for presentation.
- The report must be word-processed on A4 paper, on one side of the paper, using 12 point, Times New Roman font, 5 line spacing, leaving margins as follows:
- Top 20 mm
- Right 25 mm
- Bottom 40 mm
- Left 40 mm
- All pages of the text and appendices should be numbered in Arabic numerals. Tables of Contents, Lists of Figures etc. preceding the text should be numbered in lower case Roman numerals. All page numbers should be placed centrally on the page, about 12 mm below the top edge, or about 30 mm above the bottom edge.
- A Table of Contents is essential and serves to provide the reader with a framework of the report. Normally only major headings from the text are listed, but if the report is long or its structure complex it may be felt desirable to incorporate subheadings. The headings or subheadings listed in the Table of Contents must be worded exactly as they appear in the body of the text.
- Appendices (if any) are treated as part of the text for this purpose, and should be listed in the Table of Contents.
- If the report contains many tables, figures or illustrations, a separate page should be devoted to a list of them, giving the Table or Figure number, title, and the page number where it will be found.
- A list of symbols used or a glossary of specialist terms should be included and their full interpretations given.
5. Academic Integrity
It is critical that your degree from the is of the highest academic integrity; otherwise qualifications will become disreputable and meaningless.
Definitions and Examples
- Definitions: Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty
The University’s degree regulations state that your degree will be awarded in recognition of your personal achievement so any written work which you submit towards your degree must be your own. Plagiarism is therefore unacceptable. Plagiarism is defined in the University regulations as:
The unacknowledged use of another’s work as if it were the student’s own work, or excessive use of another’s work as your own.
Examples which apply to both conventional sources and information downloaded from the Internet are:
- Inclusion of more than a single phrase from another’s work without the use of quotation marks and appropriate acknowledgement of sources.
- Summarising another’s work by changing few words or altering the order of presentation without acknowledgement.
- Copying another’s work.
- Using another’s work and presenting it without acknowledgement as if it was the student’s own ideas.
Academic dishonesty also includes in the case of assignments, unacknowledged collaboration between individuals or groups, which results in work that is, if not identical, overly similar to that of other students claiming the work to be their own.
Academic dishonesty also includes falsification, misrepresentation or fabrication of primary or other research carried out as part of a coursework assignment or the Dissertation.
Academic dishonesty also includes commissioning which is paying a third party to write, re-write or copy edit any part of your Dissertation. The whole project should be written in your own words.
The consequences of committing plagiarism or other forms of academic dishonesty are very serious. Incidents of suspected academic dishonesty will be brought to the attention of the Programme Director and Director of Teaching, and, if deemed appropriate, the Head of Department. The Director of Teaching will arrange a meeting of the above staff or their nominees, the relevant class co-ordinator and the student. Marks are likely to be reduced, in some cases to zero or the student may be required to leave the course. More serious cases will be formally referred to the University’s Discipline Committee which, in the worst cases, has powers to deny degrees or withdraw degrees already awarded. Details of University Procedures and Guidelines can be found on the web site of the University Secretariat or from the Course Director.
- Plagiarism – some examples
The following original passage can be found in MacIntosh, R. and MacLean, D. (1999), Conditioned Emergence: A Dissipative Structures Approach to Transformation, Strategic Management Journal, Vol 20, No. 4, 1999 … this passage appears on p299-300.
It is clear that in many respects the content and process views of strategy are complementary if taken as a set or incomplete if treated as individual elements. If one likens the issue to a journey, the content approach has a clear destination but the means of transport is indeterminate whereas with the process approach the transport is known and in motion, but the journey is something of a “mystery tour.” One could argue that if a complete theory of strategy is in fact needed, why not just use the two approaches as appropriate as is indeed the practice in many institutions. It is our belief however that an overall framework which transforms and reconciles the mutually contradictory assumptions of each approach would constitute a significant step forward, in both practical and scholarly terms.
- Avoiding plagiarism
There are practical steps which you can take to avoid plagiarism.
- Note taking
- It is often faster and easier to take paper copies of articles and other material or to download large chunks of material from the Internet – but this increases the danger that you will plagiarise work – even if unintentionally. So:
- Make your own notes before writing essays and write the essays from these notes. Allow plenty of time to organise your thinking before writing essays and to develop your own ideas.
- Don’t write essays by cutting and pasting sections of text from different sources. Read documents carefully so that you understand them and then rely on your memory to report in your own words.
- When you copy text from any of your sources always put quotation marks around it and highlight the text in a different colour.
- Each note should be accompanied by a note of the author and title of the source.
- Develop a bibliography of sources, search engines and databases used. As well as saving time later on, this will making checking of sources easier.
- Style
- Cite direct quotes, using inverted commas to indicate selected text.
- Do not quote more than one or two sentences directly. Quoting complete paragraphs is not acceptable, even if you do reference the source.
- Show sources of ideas by giving the year of publication and the date e.g.
- (Smith, 2003 p 10).
- Cite sources of all ideas including those from lectures.
- You must cite material taken from web sites as well as academic articles.
- Listing works used in the bibliography alone is not adequate – they must also be cited at the appropriate points in the text.
- Do not paraphrase the work of others with only minor changes. You must use your own words and cite the sources of ideas.
- It is not necessary to cite sources of common knowledge i.e. if information is undocumented in other sources or it is information which the reader will already have (e.g. The sun is yellow, the Second World War ended in 1945) but, if in doubt, cite a source as precaution.
- Help and advice
- If you are having difficulties with this you should seek advice, in the first instance from the class co-ordinator, or otherwise the Course Director.
Turnitin and Avoiding Plagiarism
- Turnitin is an online web application which allows academics, administrators and students to check students’ work for improper citation, or potential plagiarism, by comparing it against continuously updated databases using the industry’s most advanced search technology.
All students will be required to provide a Turnitin ‘Originality Report’ to accompany the formal submission of their Masters Dissertation. The Originality Report provides the opportunity for students to check that they have used proper citation methods in their Dissertation, as well as safeguarding students’ academic integrity.
Turnitin is recognised worldwide as the standard in online plagiarism prevention and helps academics and students take full advantage of the internet’s educational potential. Students will be provided with access to the Turnitin system and will be given a demonstration of how to use the system, early in the second semester, and nearer the time they formally submit their Dissertation. The demonstrations will be given by Mr Martin Smith, the department’s Teaching and Learning Technology Officer, and any queries regarding the use of Turnitin – after reading the information in the links below – should be emailed to him at
Further information about Turnitin can be found here: http://www.turnitin.com
In the event of any suspicion on the part of your supervisor that all is not what it seems, you may be required to present evidence of data collection. This may include, for example, signed consent forms, email communication, recordings, or raw survey data. It must be stressed that such instances are rare, but you must be aware that your supervisor will have a history of supervising MSc Dissertations and is likely to spot any such falsifications. If you are found to be guilty of this, your Dissertation will be heavily penalised and possible disciplinary action may be taken.
You should not bind this information into your Dissertation, submit it with your Dissertation.
[1] As a rule a ‘4th level’ heading i.e. 1.1.1.1 is not necessary and likely to confuse the reader. 4th level headings (if needed) should not be numbered and do not need to be included in the table of contents.
Guide to Writing the Masters Dissertation
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