How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation Introduction
Your introduction should include:
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Your topic, in context: what does your reader need to know to understand your thesis
dissertation?
Your focus and scope: what specific aspect of the topic will you address?
The relevance of your research: how does your work fit into existing studies on your
topic?
Your questions and objectives: what does your research aim to find out, and how?
An overview of your structure: what does each section contribute to the overall aim?
Background and context of the study
• How did the problem or issue arise?
• Why is this an important area to study? The significance of the study needs to be
stated and
comments on the practical and/or theoretical value of the research included.
• Include any underlying assumptions.
• Provide definitions of key terms or concepts used.
• Point out the limitations imposed (the boundaries set).
How to start your introduction
Although your introduction kicks off your dissertation, it doesn’t have to be the first thing you
write—in fact, it’s often one of the very last parts to be completed (just before your abstract).
It’s a good idea to write a rough draft of your introduction as you begin your research, to help
guide you. If you wrote a research proposal, consider using this as a template, as it contains
many of the same elements. However, be sure to revise your introduction throughout the writing
process, making sure it matches the content of your ensuing sections.
Topic and context
Begin by introducing your dissertation topic and giving any necessary background information.
It’s important to contextualize your research and generate interest. Aim to show why your topic
is timely or important. You may want to mention a relevant news item, academic debate, or
practical problem.
Example topicAttitudes of young people toward climate change.Example contextShare a recent
news story about a children’s climate strike, or the increasing importance of youth engagement
in climate politics.
Focus and scope
After a brief introduction to your general area of interest, narrow your focus and define the scope
of your research.
You can narrow this down in many ways, such as by:
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Geographical area
Time period
Demographics or communities
Themes or aspects of the topic
Focus and scope exampleEngagement of American teenagers with current climate policy
Relevance and importance
It’s essential to share your motivation for doing this research, as well as how it relates to existing
work on your topic. Further, you should also mention what new insights you expect it will
contribute.
Start by giving a brief overview of the current state of research. You should definitely cite the
most relevant literature, but remember that you will conduct a more in-depth survey of relevant
sources in the literature review section, so there’s no need to go too in-depth in the introduction.
Depending on your field, the importance of your research might focus on its practical application
(e.g., in policy or management) or on advancing scholarly understanding of the topic (e.g., by
developing theories or adding new empirical data). In many cases, it will do both.
Ultimately, your introduction should explain how your thesis or dissertation:
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Helps solve a practical or theoretical problem
Addresses a gap in the literature
Builds on existing research
Proposes a new understanding of your topic
Relevance and importance exampleYoung people will determine the future of climate policy, so
it is essential to gain an in-depth understanding of their engagement with this issue. While there
has been research on youth attitudes toward climate change in general (Corner et al., 2015;
Holmberg & Alvinius, 2019; Lee et al., 2020), little has focused specifically on how teenagers
understand and respond to current climate policy.
The increasing prominence of youth climate activism suggests that teenagers are highly aware of
the issues at stake. However, it is unclear to what extent they directly engage with government
policy in this area. To fully understand the current state of climate politics, it is important to gain
a more complete picture of young people’s knowledge and perceptions of domestic climate
policy.
Questions and objectives
Perhaps the most important part of your introduction is your questions and objectives, as it sets
up the expectations for the rest of your thesis or dissertation. How you formulate your research
questions and research objectives will depend on your discipline, topic, and focus, but you
should always clearly state the central aim of your research.
NoteWhile you can briefly mention the research methods you used to answer your questions,
don’t go into too much detail here if you are including a separate methodology chapter.
If your research aims to test hypotheses, you can formulate them here. Your introduction is also a
good place for a conceptual framework that suggests relationships between variables.
Example research questionHow do American high school students engage with the domestic
policies on climate change?Example objective
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Conduct surveys to collect data on students’ levels of knowledge, understanding, and
positive/negative perceptions of government policy.
Determine whether attitudes to climate policy are associated with variables such as age,
gender, region, and social class.
Conduct interviews to gain qualitative insights into students’ perspectives and actions in
relation to climate policy.
Definition
A research problem is a statement about an area of concern, a condition to be improved, a
difficulty to be eliminated, or a troubling question that exists in scholarly literature, in theory, or in
practice that points to the need for meaningful understanding and deliberate investigation. In some
social science disciplines the research problem is typically posed in the form of a question. A
research problem does not state how to do something, offer a vague or broad proposition, or
present a value question.
Importance of...
The purpose of a problem statement is to:
1. Introduce the reader to the importance of the topic being studied. The reader is oriented
to the significance of the study and the research questions or hypotheses to follow.
2. Places the problem into a particular context that defines the parameters of what is to be
investigated.
3. Provides the framework for reporting the results and indicates what is probably
necessary to conduct the study and explain how the findings will present this information.
So What!
In the social sciences, the research problem establishes the means by which you must answer the
"So What?" question. The "So What?" question refers to a research problem surviving the relevancy
test [the quality of a measurement procedure that provides repeatability and accuracy]. Note that
answering the "So What" question requires a commitment on your part to not only show that you
have researched the material, but that you have thought about its significance.
To survive the "So What" question, problem statements should possess the following
attributes:
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Clarity and precision [a well-written statement does not make sweeping generalizations and
irresponsible statements],
Identification of what would be studied, while avoiding the use of value-laden words and
terms,
Identification of an overarching question and key factors or variables,
Identification of key concepts and terms,
Articulation of the study's boundaries or parameters,
Some generalizability in regards to applicability and bringing results into general use,
Conveyance of the study's importance, benefits, and justification [regardless of the type of
research, it is important to address the “so what” question by demonstrating that the
research is not trivial],
Does not have unnecessary jargon; and,
Conveyance of more than the mere gathering of descriptive data providing only a snapshot
of the issue or phenomenon under investigation.
Castellanos, Susie. Critical Writing and Thinking. The Writing Center. Dean of the College. Brown
University; Ellis, Timothy J. and Yair Levy Nova Framework of Problem-Based Research: A Guide for
Novice Researchers on the Development of a Research-Worthy Problem. Informing Science: the
International Journal of an Emerging Transdiscipline 11 (2008); Thesis and Purpose Statements. The
Writer’s Handbook. Writing Center. University of Wisconsin, Madison; Thesis Statements. The Writing
Center. University of North Carolina; Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements. The Writing Lab
and
The
OWL.
Purdue
University.
Structure and Writing Style
I. Types and Content
There are four general conceptualizations of a research problem in the social sciences:
1. Casuist Research Problem -- this type of problem relates to the determination of right and
wrong in questions of conduct or conscience by analyzing moral dilemmas through the
application of general rules and the careful distinction of special cases.
2. Difference Research Problem -- typically asks the question, “Is there a difference between
two or more groups or treatments?” This type of problem statement is used when the
researcher compares or contrasts two or more phenomena.
3. Descriptive Research Problem -- typically asks the question, "what is...?" with the
underlying purpose to describe a situation, state, or existence of a specific phenomenon.
4. Relational Research Problem -- suggests a relationship of some sort between two or more
variables to be investigated. The underlying purpose is to investigate qualities/characteristics
that are connected in some way.
A problem statement in the social sciences should contain:
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A lead-in that helps ensure the reader will maintain interest over the study
A declaration of originality [e.g., mentioning a knowledge void, which would be supported by
the literature review]
An indication of the central focus of the study, and
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An explanation of the study's significance or the benefits to be derived from an investigating
the problem.
III. What Makes a Good Research Statement?
A good problem statement begins by introducing the broad area in which your research is centered
and then gradually leads the reader to the more narrow questions you are posing. The statement
need not be lengthy but a good research problem should incorporate the following features:
Compelling topic
Simple curiosity is not a good enough reason to pursue a research study. The problem that you
choose to explore must be important to you and to a larger community you share. The problem
chosen must be one that motivates you to address it.
Supports multiple perspectives
The problem most be phrased in a way that avoids dichotomies and instead supports the generation
and exploration of multiple perspectives. A general rule of thumb is that a good research problem is
one that would generate a variety of viewpoints from a composite audience made up of reasonable
people.
Researchable
It seems a bit obvious, but you don't want to find yourself in the midst of investigating a
complex research project and realize that you don't have much to draw on for your research.
Choose research problems that can be supported by the resources available to you. Not sure? Seek
out help from a librarian!
NOTE: Do not confuse a research problem with a research topic. A topic is something to read and
obtain information about whereas a problem is something to solve or framed as a question that must
be answered.
IV. Mistakes to Avoid
Beware of circular reasoning. Don’t state that the research problem as simply the absence of the
thing you are suggesting. For example, if you propose, "The problem in this community is that it has
no hospital."
This only leads to a research problem where:
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The need is for a hospital
The objective is to create a hospital
The method is to plan for building a hospital, and
The evaluation is to measure if there is a hospital or not.
This is an example of a research problem that fails the "so what?" test because it does not reveal
the relevance of why you are investigating the problem of having no hospital in the community [e.g.,
there's a hospital in the community ten miles away] and because the research problem does not
elucidate the significance of why one should study the fact that no hospital exists in the community
[e.g., that hospital in the community ten miles away has no emergency room].
Definition
Theories are formulated to explain, predict, and understand phenomena and, in many cases, to
challenge and extend existing knowledge, within the limits of the critical bounding assumptions. The
theoretical framework is the structure that can hold or support a theory of a research study. The
theoretical framework introduces and describes the theory which explains why the research problem
under study exists.
Importance of Theory
A theoretical framework consists of concepts, together with their definitions, and existing
theory/theories that are used for your particular study. The theoretical framework must
demonstrate an understanding of theories and concepts that are relevant to the topic of
your research paper and that will relate it to the broader fields of knowledge in the class you are
taking.
The theoretical framework is not something that is found readily available in the literature.
You must review course readings and pertinent research literature for theories and analytic models
that are relevant to the research problem you are investigating. The selection of a theory should
depend on its appropriateness, ease of application, and explanatory power.
The theoretical framework strengthens the study in the following ways.
1. An explicit statement of theoretical assumptions permits the reader to evaluate them
critically.
2. The theoretical framework connects the researcher to existing knowledge. Guided by a
relevant theory, you are given a basis for your hypotheses and choice of research methods.
3. Articulating the theoretical assumptions of a research study forces you to address questions
of why and how. It permits you to move from simply describing a phenomenon observed to
generalizing about various aspects of that phenomenon.
4. Having a theory helps you to identify the limits to those generalizations. A theoretical
framework specifies which key variables influence a phenomenon of interest. It alerts you to
examine how those key variables might differ and under what circumstances.
By virtue of its application nature, good theory in the social sciences is of value precisely because it
fulfills one primary purpose: to explain the meaning, nature, and challenges of a phenomenon, often
experienced but unexplained in the world in which we live, so that we may use that knowledge and
understanding to act in more informed and effective ways.
The Conceptual Framework. College of Education. Alabama State University; Drafting an Argument.
Writing@CSU. Colorado State University; Trochim, William M.K. Philosophy of Research. Research
Methods Knowledge Base. 2006.
Strategies for Developing the Theoretical Framework
I. Developing the Framework
Here are some strategies to develop of an effective theoretical framework:
1. Examine your thesis title and research problem. The research problem anchors your
entire study and forms the basis from which you construct your theoretical framework.
2. Brainstorm on what you consider to be the key variables in your research. Answer the
question, what factors contribute to the presumed effect?
3. Review related literature to find answers to your research question.
4. List the constructs and variables that might be relevant to your study. Group these
variables into independent and dependent categories.
5. Review the key social science theories that are introduced to you in your course readings
and choose the theory or theories that can best explain the relationships between the key
variables in your study [note the Writing Tip on this page].
6. Discuss the assumptions or propositions of this theory and point out their relevance to
your research.
A theoretical framework is used to limit the scope of the relevant data by focusing on specific
variables and defining the specific viewpoint (framework) that the researcher will take in analyzing
and interpreting the data to be gathered, understanding concepts and variables according to the
given definitions, and building knowledge by validating or challenging theoretical assumptions.
II. Purpose
Think of theories as the conceptual basis for understanding, analyzing, and designing ways
to investigate relationships within social systems. To the end, the following roles served by a
theory can help guide the development of your framework.*
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Means by which new research data can be interpreted and coded for future use,
Response to new problems that have no previously identified solutions strategy,
Means for identifying and defining research problems,
Means for prescribing or evaluating solutions to research problems,
Way of telling us that certain facts among the accumulated knowledge are important and
which facts are not,
Means of giving old data new interpretations and new meaning,
Means by which to identify important new issues and prescribe the most critical research
questions that need to be answered to maximize understanding of the issue,
Means of providing members of a professional discipline with a common language and a
frame of reference for defining boundaries of their profession, and
Means to guide and inform research so that it can, in turn, guide research efforts and
improve professional practice.
*Adapted from: Torraco, R. J. “Theory-Building Research Methods.” In Swanson R. A. and E. F. Holton III
, editors. Human Resource Development Handbook: Linking Research and Practice. (San Francisco, CA:
Berrett-Koehler, 1997): pp. 114-137; Sutton, Robert I. and Barry M. Staw. “What Theory is
Not.” Administrative Science Quarterly 40 (September 1995): 371-384.
Structure and Writing Style
The theoretical framework may be rooted in a specific theory, in which case, you are expected
to test the validity of an existing theory in relation to specific events, issues, or phenomena. Many
social science research papers fit into this rubric. For example, Peripheral Realism theory, which
categorizes perceived differences between nation-states as those that give orders, those that obey,
and those that rebel, could be used as a means for understanding conflicted relationships among
countries in Africa. A test of this theory could be the following: Does Peripheral Realism theory help
explain intra-state actions, such as, the growing split between southern and northern Sudan that
may likely lead to the creation of two nations?
However, you may not always be asked by your professor to test a specific theory in your
paper, but to develop your own framework from which your analysis of the research problem
is derived. Given this, it is perhaps easiest to understand the nature and function of a theoretical
framework if it is viewed as the answer to two basic questions:
1. What is the research problem/question? [e.g., "How should the individual and the state
relate during periods of conflict?"]
2. Why is your approach a feasible solution? [I could choose to test Instrumentalist or
Circumstantialists models developed among Ethnic Conflict Theorists that rely upon socioeconomic-political factors to explain individual-state relations and to apply this theoretical
model to periods of war between nations].
The answers to these questions come from a thorough review of the literature and your course
readings [summarized and analyzed in the next section of your paper] and the gaps in the research
that emerge from the review process. With this in mind, a complete theoretical framework will
likely not emerge until after you have completed a thorough review of the literature.
In writing this part of your research paper, keep in mind the following:
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Clearly describe the framework, concepts, models, or specific theories that underpin
your study. This includes noting who the key theorists are in the field who have conducted
research on the problem you are investigating and, when necessary, the historical context
that supports the formulation of that theory. This latter element is particularly important if the
theory is relatively unknown or it is borrowed from another discipline.
Position your theoretical framework within a broader context of related frameworks,
concepts, models, or theories. There will likely be several concepts, theories, or models
that can be used to help develop a framework for understanding the research problem.
Therefore, note why the framework you've chosen is the appropriate one.
The present tense is used when writing about theory.
You should make your theoretical assumptions as explicit as possible. Later, your
discussion of methodology should be linked back to this theoretical framework.
Don’t just take what the theory says as a given! Reality is never accurately represented in
such a simplistic way; if you imply that it can be, you fundamentally distort a reader's ability
to understand the findings that emerge. Given this, always note the limitiations of the
theoretical framework you've chosen [i.e., what parts of the research problem require further
investigation because the theory does not explain a certain phenomena].
Thesis Introduction :
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Example