Discussion sections and Dissertation findings

The findings and discussion sections of your dissertation can be rewarding. In this part, you discuss what you have done but not what other individuals have said.

There are many ways to note your discussion and findings. You may have both in one section in a shorter dissertation but are usually separate in longer scripts.

Preparing to write

Many students face obstacles when writing their findings due to the amount of data to be analyzed. By the time you get to the end of your research process, you probably have a mountain of data. When faced with such a task, be smart in your decisions on what to include and what to discard. You cannot bombard the reader with all that information.

The best way to beat this is to have an outline that focuses on two main points. Have your focus on answering the research questions, and secondly, include the captivating findings that you have found as you wrap up your research. The outline will guide you and make the presentation process easier.

Introducing your findings

It can take up to 40% of the word count in your piece. It is an enormous bit of information and needs to be very organized.

The main components of your introduction are;

• Reminding the reader of your intention
• A short description of the approach of results write-up
• Putting the work in the context
• Directing readers to research instruments

There will be no suspense for the reader with a findings chapter. Right from the beginning, tell the readers what they need to know for them to have a vivid idea of what’s coming.

Data organization

It depends on the project type that you have. For a qualitative research project, there are themes within a program or software used in the organization of data. For a quantitative project, you may structure your chapter per your hypotheses.

Be organized and concise with your introduction. Make the reader have a vivid image of what they should know and organize the piece of information to make sense. For better results, have a sit-down discussion with your supervisor to help you out.

Qualitative data presentation

If you have interviews under your research, there are chances that you will have pages of work. You will find it strenuous to have all this under one chapter as it is also going to be an uphill task on selecting what to include and what to discard.

It is advisable to start with the outline you have. Create headings that represent points on the focus you want. In the headings and subsections created, make sure to include the best and sufficient information you can find. In doing this, the reader will have a better understanding of what you are trying to communicate.

Quantitative data presentation

In this, you may get a little bit worried about length. It can be overwhelming to the reader with the influx of numbers, statistics that can end up being confusing.

Ensure that your data gets organized. You can use the help of software for analysis like SPSS, Stata, or R.

Make sure you explain your findings as well as make a justification for why you have presented the tests you got. You may go ahead and explain how the discoveries relate to the research question.