Dissertation Writing

Outlining how action research dissertations may be written is a complex task for several reasons. Firstly, as this encyclopedia demonstrates, because action research is a family of approaches that operate in a wide variety of settings and with great diversity, there is no single version of action research where one set of criteria might be considered definitive. Accordingly, there is no consensus on any one approach. Secondly, regulations and practices for the presentation of dissertations differ from university to university and from programme to programme. Thirdly, whether a dissertation is written by an undergraduate, a master’s or doctoral student or a practitioner, doctorate accreditation sets norms for what a dissertation has to contain and how it is presented. This entry focuses on the broadly shared characteristics of an action research dissertation, which are generally seen as essential because the [Page 281]dissertation is viewed as a formal, academic document, usually contributing significantly to the subsequent granting of a postgraduate degree.

An action research dissertation is an academic document and therefore needs to conform to academic requirements of justification of the topic and approach, demonstration and defence of rigour in methodology and methods of inquiry, familiarity with existing content and process literature and contribution to knowledge. In these ways, an action research dissertation is no different from most other social science dissertations, though its presentation and argument differ from traditional presentations.