GUIDELINES FOR DISSERTATION CRITIQUE

Purpose of the dissertation Clarity of statement Is it clear what the dissertation is about? Derivation What is the basis for determining that the study is asking an interesting and significant question? Prior conceptual research Prior empirical research Theory development Theory building Theory testing Impact How will the results of the study affect stakeholder groups? Academic Practitioner Public Policy Literature Review Topics How were the review subjects selected? What relevant literature streams were omitted? Why? Is there evidence that the review has been thorough, even exhaustive? Is there evidence of objectivity in the selection of references? What is the quality of sources, e.g. level of journals, seminal books, etc.? How did the author summarize the bodies of literature? How did the author analyze the literature? Research Design Qualitative versus quantitative Sample frame Instrument development Assurance of objectivity Ability to generalize Overall Quality Assessment of the Dissertation