Data collection

 

Before discussing findings, let us delve into data collection.  Data collection is an exciting experience.  At times, we gather just the right type of data to help illuminate the issues that guided our inquiry in the first place. But more often than not, data collection can take us down a rabbit hole, a journey of discovery where each piece of insight opens up a new door, a new field waiting to be explored.

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Sometimes the findings and discussion are specific chapters in a thesis.  These chapters are keystones in the research journey as they capture the essence of moments in the field, and present how the work will enrich existing knowledge in the field.

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Purpose

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The findings and discussion chapters allow us to present and make sense of the data gathered in the field, and organize them into themes and patterns. 

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Here are some considerations while brainstorming for ideas:

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• Think about how you could organize the data

• Think about how you will represent the data

• The literature can give you a place a start, with themes, topics you could use. 

• Do all of the points relate to what you set out to do? How?

• Did you find anything unexpected?

• Did you end up with even more questions and perhaps these are interesting?

• How will you show  this?

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Drafting

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Faced with an abundance of rich data, how do we determine what is interesting and  useful?  The first step would be to remind ourselves of the research questions.  What prompted us to begin the research? 

 

The second step would be to remind ourselves of our chosen method/s of data analysis.  This could be thematic analysis, discourse analysis or even statistical research. 

 

The third step would be to go through cycles of reading our data, highlighting and refining those aspects that are worth reporting. 

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Presenting findings requires one to be systematic.  As you get to know your data, you will be able to devise headings and subheadings that would allow you to present them in a coherent manner.  For instance, if you are conducting a historical study, a chronological organization might help.  If you are doing a case study, you could organize the ideas case by case.  

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Tip: When presenting quotes and graphs, be sure to explain the aspects that might be most salient.  You could think of your explanatory moves as a sandwich, where you start by contextualizing the quote / graph, present the quote / graph, and then explain important elements of the quote / graph, possibly linking it back to some of your main research questions or themes.  

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While the findings chapter illustrates key moments in the field or results, the discussion chapter helps to put the findings in context – teasing them out. If the findings and discussions are separate perhaps this could be a moment to focus on particular aspects of the findings, mentioned in the earlier section on purpose.

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When writing the discussion chapter, consider organizing your writing along themes.  Use this section to reflect back on the literature and see it as an opportunity to challenge or extend theories presented in the literature review.