In this video, we are going to explain exactly how to write up the discussion chapter for a
dissertation, thesis or any other kind of formal academic research project. We will
walk through the process step by step so that you can craft your discussion section with confidence.
So, go grab a cup of coffee, a cup of tea, whatever works for you and let us jump into it.
Hey, welcome to Grad Coach TV where we demystify and simplify the oftentimes intimidating world of
academic research. My name is Emma, and today we are going to explore the discussion chapter
which follows the results chapter in a typical dissertation or thesis. If you would like to
learn about the results chapter which lays the foundation for the discussion chapter, we have got
another video specifically covering that. I will include a link in the description below. If you
are new to Grad Coach TV, welcome, and be sure to hit that subscribe button for more videos covering
all things research-related. Also, if you are looking for hands-on help with your research,
check out our one-on-one coaching services where we help you craft your research project
step by step. It is like having a friendly professor in your pocket whenever you need
it. If that sounds interesting to you, you can learn more and book a free consultation
at www.gradcoach.com. All right, with that out of the way let us get into it.
Before we get into the nuts and bolts of how to write up a discussion chapter,
it is useful to take a step back and ask the question what exactly is the discussion chapter,
and what purpose does it serve? If you understand both the what and the why
you will have a much clearer direction in terms of the how. So, what is the discussion chapter
all about? Well, the discussion chapter is where you interpret and explain the analysis results
within your thesis or dissertation. If you have watched our video about the results chapter, you
will remember that the results chapter is where you purely present and describe the findings,
not interpret their meaning in relation to your research questions. So, in the discussion chapter,
you will unpack your analysis findings in terms of their meaning and you will discuss the
significance and implications of your results. In the discussion chapter, you will connect the dots
between your analysis findings and your research aims and research questions. In other words,
you will explain exactly how your study's results help answer your original research questions.
In addition to this, you will also link your findings back to previous studies and literature
which you would have covered in your literature review chapter. You will discuss whether your
findings align with the existing research or not. If not, you will explore potential reasons why
this might be. Simply put, the discussion chapter is there for you to interact with
and explain the meaning of your research findings thoroughly and coherently. A good
discussion chapter takes the findings that you presented and described in the results chapter
and explains what they mean in relation to your research aims and research questions,
as well as how they fit into the existing literature. If you are not sure how this
differs from the results chapter remember we have got a separate video explaining that chapter
in detail. I will include the link below. Okay, with that out of the way it is time to take a
look at what you need to include and exclude in your discussion chapter. Let us do it.
Okay, so let us take a look at what goes into the discussion chapter. An important thing
to note up front is that for most studies the results and discussion are separate chapters.
But in some universities and programs, it is preferred to combine the two into one chapter. So,
before you start writing be sure to check with your university or dissertation supervisor
what their structural norms and expectations are. In this video,
we will treat the results and discussion as separate chapters as this is the most common. So,
what goes into the discussion chapter? Basically, your discussion chapter needs to analyse,
explore the meaning and identify the importance of the data you presented in your results chapter.
In the discussion chapter, you will give your results some form of meaning
by evaluating and interpreting them. This will in turn help answer your research questions,
achieve your research aims, and lay the foundation for your conclusions. In practical terms,
this means that your discussion chapter needs to focus on the findings that are directly
related to your research aims and research questions. In other words, the core contents of
the chapter should directly address the research problem you have set out to solve. Nothing more,
nothing less. Do not waste precious time and word count on findings that are not central
to the purpose of your study. If you are not sure whether to include or exclude a particular point,
ask yourself whether it directly relates to the research aims or not. This is the simplest way to
assess what to include and what to exclude from this chapter. Since the discussion chapter is
based on the findings presented in the results chapter it is vital that you do not report
any new findings here. In other words, you cannot present claims in the discussion chapter
if you did not present the relevant data in the results chapter first. So, make sure that for
every discussion point you raise in this chapter you have covered the respective data analysis in
the results chapter. If you have not you will need to go back and revise your results chapter
accordingly so that you have a firm foundation for discussion. If you are struggling to get started,
try writing down a bullet point list of everything you found in your results chapter.
At the same time take this opportunity to assess whether each finding is relevant. In other words,
that it directly addresses or connects to the research aims and research questions.
From there you can craft a list of points you need to cover in your discussion chapter. Right,
with that out of the way we need to look at how to
actually go about writing up the discussion chapter, let us jump into it.
Now that you have got a clear idea of what the discussion chapter is and what it needs to cover,
we can look at how to go about structuring and writing up this important chapter. Broadly
speaking, six core components need to be included. Let us take a look at each of them step by step.
Step one, restate your research aims and questions. The first step in writing up your
discussion chapter is to remind the reader of your research aim or aims and research
questions. If you have any hypotheses, you can also briefly mention them here.
Do not stress if you do not have any hypotheses though, every study is different. This reminder
for your reader is very important because after reading dozens of pages they may have
forgotten the original point of your research. In other words, your research problem and purpose
or become distracted by something and digressed in another direction. It is also likely that some
readers will skip straight to your discussion chapter from the introduction chapter so this
little reminder helps create a smooth flow and connection between the two chapters. In practical
terms, this section should not be lengthy. It is just a reminder, not a full explanation.
So, a paragraph or two should be ample, do not waffle on it or it will start to feel repetitive.
Step two, summarize your key findings. Next, you will want to summarize your key findings
from your analysis. In other words, the findings that directly relate to your research questions.
What this looks like will depend on whether your methodology was qualitative, quantitative
or mixed. For example, qualitative research may report on themes, whereas quantitative
research may report on potential relationships regardless of the methodology. In this section,
you need to highlight the key analysis findings in relation to your research questions. Typically
this section only requires one or two paragraphs depending on how many research questions you have.
Try to be as concise as possible here as you will unpack these findings in more detail later
in the discussion chapter. For now, a few lines that directly address your research questions
should be ample. To help you visualize what this section might look like here are some examples of
the kind of language you would typically use to present your key findings. The data suggests that
the data support or oppose the theory that, the analysis identifies X and Y as key factors in,
these are purely examples. What you present here will largely depend on your original research
questions. So, you may consider using those to structure this section of your discussion.
Step three, interpret your results. Once you have restated your research aims and research questions
and briefly presented your key findings, you can unpack them by interpreting your results in
detail. Remember you can only discuss findings that you reported in your results section, do
not introduce new information in your discussion chapter. From a structural perspective, it can be
a wise approach to follow a similar structure in this section as you did in your results chapter.
This will help improve readability and make it easier for the reader to follow your arguments.
For example, if you structured your results by qualitative themes in the results chapter,
it could make sense to do the same here. As an alternative, you could consider structuring this
discussion by research questions or based on an overarching theoretical framework that your
study centred on. Every study is different, so you will need to assess what structure works
best for your situation. Whatever the case, craft an outline structure before you start writing and
make sure that you apply it consistently. Do not dive into the writing without a clear structural
outline. When interpreting your results you will also need to assess how your findings compare to
those of the existing research which you would have covered in your literature review chapter.
Even if your findings contrast with the existing research, you need to include these in your
discussion. In fact, these contrasts are often the most interesting findings and can make for
valuable discussion points. In these cases, you will need to think about the potential reasons
why you did not find what you were expecting and what the significance of this contrast is. Here
are a few questions to think about and address in your discussion chapter. How do your results
help answer your research questions, how do your results compare to those of previous studies?
If your results differ from those of previous studies, why may this be the case? What do your
results contribute to your field of research? When you interpret your findings, be careful
not to draw conclusions that are not substantiated or that are reaching a little too far. Every claim
you make needs to be backed up with evidence or findings from the data. This can look different
for different studies. Qualitative studies may require interview quotes as evidence, whereas
quantitative studies would rely on statistical analysis and tests. Whatever the case, every claim
you make needs to be strongly backed up by data which should be covered in the results chapter.
Step four, acknowledge the limitations of your study. The fourth step in writing up
your discussion chapter is to acknowledge the limitations of the study. A quick side
note though, for some universities and programs this limitations discussion will feature in the
conclusion chapter which is typically the next chapter rather than the discussion chapter.
Each institution has its own structural norms, so be sure to check with your research supervisor or
faculty what their preference is. The limitations discussion can cover any part of your study from
the scope or theoretical basis to the analysis method or sampling strategy. For example, you
may find that you ended up collecting data from a very small sample with unique characteristics,
which would mean that you are unable to generalize your results to the broader
population. For some students discussing the limitations of their work can feel a bit
self-defeating, why highlight your weaknesses, right? This is a misconception though, as a
hallmark of high-quality research is its ability to identify its own shortcomings.
In other words, accurately stating the limitations of your work is a strength, not a weakness. It
shows that you understand the ins and outs of research design, it shows that you can think
critically about your methodology and provide a foundation for future researchers to build on.
Every study has limitations, that is the nature of research. At the same time be careful not to
undermine your research, it is no use talking your project down to the point of uselessness.
So, tell the reader what the limitations are and that they exist, and what improvements could be
made. But also be sure to remind them of the value of your study despite its limitations.
Step five, make your recommendations. Now that you have unpacked your findings and acknowledged the
limitations thereof, the next thing you will need to do is reflect on your study in terms
of two factors. Number one, the practical application of your findings. Number two,
suggestions for future research. Again, some universities and programs may prefer
that you cover this content in the conclusion chapter rather than the discussion chapter. So,
be sure to double-check what their preference is. The first thing to discuss is how your findings
can be used in the real world. In other words, what contribution can they make to the field or
industry? For example, if your study explores communication and health settings, how can your
findings be applied to the context of a hospital or medical clinic. Make sure that you spell this
out for your reader in practical terms, do not assume they will connect the dots. But also be
realistic and make sure that any applications you propose are feasible. The next discussion point
is the opportunity for future research. In other words, how can other researchers build on what you
found and also improve the findings by overcoming some of the limitations in your study which you
discussed a little earlier? In doing this you will want to investigate whether your results
fit in with the findings of previous research and if not, why this may be the case? For example,
are there any factors that you did not consider in your study, what future research can be done to
remedy this? When you write up your suggestions make sure that you do not just say that more
research is needed on the topic, be specific about how researchers can build on your study.
Step six, provide a concluding summary. Finally, you have reached the home stretch. In this
section, you will need to provide a brief recap of the key findings. In other words,
the findings that directly address your research questions. Basically, your conclusion should tell
the reader what your study has found and what they need to take away from reading your report.
Brief is the keyword for this section, it need not be a lengthy review of everything you discussed
in the chapter, you just need to highlight the key takeaways so that you can lay a firm
foundation for the final chapter. A paragraph or two should be enough, do not ramble on.
Now that you understand what the discussion chapter is about, what to include and exclude
and how to structure and write it up, here are some closing tips to help you craft a quality
discussion chapter. Number one, when you write up your discussion chapter, try to keep it consistent
with your introduction chapter as some readers will skip from the introduction chapter directly
to the discussion chapter. So, revisit your introduction chapter to make sure that there is a
good flow from that chapter to this one. Number two, do not make assumptions about your readers.
As the researcher, you have hands-on experience with the data and so it can be easy to present
it in an oversimplified manner. Make sure that you spell out your findings and interpretations
for the intelligent layman. Connect the dots for your reader to ensure they pick up what you are
putting down. Number three, have a look at other theses and dissertations from your university,
especially the discussion sections. This will help you understand the standards and conventions of
your university and you will also get a good idea of how others have structured their discussion
chapters. Number four, avoid using absolute terms such as the results prove, rather use
softer terms such as suggest or indicate. It is quite unlikely that a single dissertation
will scientifically prove something due to the numerous resource constraints involved in these
types of projects. So, be humble in your language. Number five, use well-structured and consistently
formatted headings to ensure that your reader can easily navigate between sections and so that your
chapter flows logically and coherently. It is generally a good idea to make use of Microsoft
Word's predefined styles for your headings and subheadings. This will also allow you to
use Word's automatic table of contents generator which is really handy. If you incorporate these
five tips into your writing process and follow the structure we have discussed in this video,
you can rest assured that your discussion chapter will be headed in a good direction.
Alright, so that wraps it up for today. If you enjoyed the video, hit the like button and leave
a comment if you have any questions. Also, be sure to subscribe to the Grad Coach channel for more
research-related content. Also, if you need a helping hand with your research, be sure to check
out our private coaching service where we work with you on a one-on-one basis, chapter by chapter
to help you craft a winning dissertation, thesis or research project. If that sounds interesting to
you, book a free consultation with a friendly coach at www.gradcoach.com. As always, I will
include a link below. That is all for this episode of Grad Coach TV. Until next time, good luck.