How narrow should a dissertation topic be?
Supervisors will often suggest (or straight-up tell you) that your dissertation topic is too broad. It's no surprise. Coming up with a broad dissertation topic is such an easy thing to do, especially if you are an undergraduate student (i.e., it is your first dissertation). However, seldom will your supervisor explain why it is too broad or help you understand how to identify whether your dissertation topic is too broad in the first place. Since this is a tricky thing to do, we can't claim that this article will have all the answers, especially since there are so many reasons why different dissertation topics may be too broad. But it should help you to identify (a) some of the factors that make a dissertation topic too broad and (b) how to try and identifying whether your dissertation topic is too broad in the first instance. Factors that make a dissertation topic too broadSome of the factors that suggest your dissertation topic is too broad include: (a) the research questions you have devised are too open; (b) you are trying to address too many research questions and/or hypotheses; (c) you have included too many concepts, theories, and/or variables; (d) the population you are interested in is too broad to target effectively; and (e) there is no identifiable outcome to your dissertation. Each of these is discussed below: The research questions you have devised are too open You are trying to address too many research questions and/or hypotheses You have included too many concepts, theories, and/or variables The population you are interested in is too broad to target effectively There is no identifiable outcome to your dissertation The research questions you have devised are too openAll dissertations address some form of research question, whether this is a quantitative, qualitative or mixed methods research question [see the section on Research Questions]. When you come up with your idea for a dissertation topic, it should be based around trying to address one or more of these research questions. Devising research questions that work for your dissertation topic is a difficult task. However, since you will have to clearly state the research questions you intend to answer in both your dissertation proposal and the first major chapter of your dissertation (usually Chapter One: Introduction), it is important that they are not too open. If they are, the reader may think that the dissertation topic you have selected is too broad. When we say that a research question is too open, we mean three things: First, there may be a lack of precision in the way that your research questions have been written, which makes it difficult for the reader to identify exactly what the dissertation is trying to achieve. Second, the goals of the research may be too ambitious, such that it is unlikely that you will be able to answer your research questions in the timeframe available (i.e., dissertation research at the undergraduate or Master's level often lasts between 6 and 9 months; give or take a few months). Third, the research questions that you have set may be theoretically weak, failing to build on or draw from any established concepts or theories. Let's look at each of these issues in turn: REASON A |