An important consideration for doctoral students as they plan for an action research dissertation is to determine the appropriate methods for their study. Doctoral students can include a cycle in the action research process to learn how to use and experiment with different methods. In deciding to include such a cycle in my doctoral action…

With the advent of readily accessible generative artificial intelligence (GAI), a concern exists within the academic community that research data collected in the context of conducting doctoral dissertation research is authentic. The purpose of the present study was to explore the role of GAI in the production of new research paying particular…

Most education and social science research methodology texts offer detailed and often prescriptive advice to higher degree students generally following established paradigmatic frameworks for qualitative and/or qualitative research. Lived Experience and Educational Research Methodology: Reflections on the PhD Journey offers instead a set of…

Purpose: This article explores challenges faced by doctoral candidates using grounded theory (GT) in their theses, focusing on coding, theory development and time constraints. It also examines the impact of doctoral committees on GT dissertations, addressing epistemological clashes and the desire for familiarity over novelty.…

This paper describes a content analysis used to examine educational doctoral degrees (EdD) dissertations in a U.S. university. The purpose of the study was to get a better understanding of the validation techniques utilized in dissertations published by EdD students. Forty-nine dissertations were selected and examined for research methodologies,…

The thesis by publication (TBP)--a collection of standalone articles aimed at publication and accompanied by an explanatory narrative--has grown in popularity over the last two decades. Although research on the TBP is beginning to emerge, it is thus far fragmented. We carried out a scoping review of the literature on the TBP for the years…

This essay shares the ongoing efforts of faculty in one EdD program to embrace applied research methodologies and the shifts made in research coursework to support our doctoral candidates as they explore problems of practice. Framed by third space theory, our redesign work is positioned as the lived experience through which we were able to reflect…

Centering the research process on building, rebuilding, and maintaining relationships, this multi-vocal article highlights the need to revisit practice. We consider research conducted in a city where all public schools are charter schools and discuss tensions between the implementation of our research approach and the university as we trouble the…

This study features a content analysis of gifted education doctoral dissertation studies from 2006 through 2016 (n = 683) to identify the characteristics and shifts of the field. The major topics of the studies were categorized into the National Association for Gifted Children's 16 networks and compared with the future directions suggested by the…

Although there is an increasing number of studies concentrating upon education, some researchers have revealed that most studies, including qualitative studies in education, have methodological issues. One of the most common mistakes and neglected issues in qualitative studies is not to ensure the trustworthiness of the research, which indeed is…

This descriptive-interpretive qualitative study analyzed educational technology scholars' written discourse with the goal of promoting sustainable terminology usage in the educational technology field. The study analyzed 105 conceptual definitions extracted from 191 doctoral dissertations on various forms of technology-based learning, including…

We conducted a content analysis of generic qualitative counseling dissertations (GQR; N = 70), examining their methodological justifications, coherence, and trustworthiness. Dissertations authors often presented vague methodological justifications. Findings have implications for constructing methodological justifications, integrating relevant…

Purpose: In this study, the authors explored the situation of the doctoral candidate in the social sciences as they were confronted by crisis and forced to make changes to their dissertation research plans. The authors conceptualized this as a methodological pivot, or an unexpected shift in trajectory, in which candidates engaged and that…

The author writes about the importance of the role of the research methodologist on dissertation committees. She discusses positive and negative aspects of the role and the importance of choosing a methodologist with care. She reflects on the qualities of a dependable methodologist. The role, identity issues for the methodologist, and the joy of…

We conducted a qualitative content analysis on counseling dissertations (N = 250) completed between 2017 and 2018. Identified categories included: (1) paradigms, philosophies of science, and theories; (2) research methodologies; and (3) trustworthiness. The results indicated an infrequent use of paradigmatic frameworks and a distinct pattern of…