3.

Journal Article

Factors predicting postponement of a final dissertation: Replication and extension.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5334/pb.ac

By Dupont, Serge; Galand, Benoît; Nils, Frédéric

Psychologica Belgica, Vol 54(1), 2014, 33-54.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors predicting postponement of final dissertation completion. This phenomenon affects a substantial number of last year’s graduate students and has been largely neglected throughout higher education literature. We aimed to confirm the results from the only study that investigated the factors related to this phenomenon and overcome some limitations of this study concerning the investigation of the processes involved in FD postponement. A questionnaire assessing individual characteristics, social support, motivational and engagement variables was administered to 268 students a few months before the FD deadline. Results indicated that behavioral engagement, age and role conflict have an independent and significant impact on whether or not the final dissertation is completed on time. In addition, path analyses revealed that role conflict was associated with self-efficacy beliefs which, in turn, predicted greater behavioral engagement. Further, behavioral engagement was the most important contributor of FD postponement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Postponement in the completion of the final dissertation: An underexplored dimension of achievement in higher education.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10212-012-0132-7

By Dupont, Serge; Meert, Gaëlle; Galand, Benoît; Nils, Frédéric

European Journal of Psychology of Education, Vol 28(3), Sep 2013, 619-639.

Research on academic achievement at a university has mainly focused on success and persistence among first year students. Very few studies have looked at delay or failure in the completion of a final dissertation. However, this phenomenon could affect a substantial proportion of students and has considerable costs. The purpose of the present study is to identify factors which predict postponement in the completion of the final dissertation. Several potential predictors (e.g., background, personality, social support, motivational beliefs, and engagement) were selected through an integrative review of the literature on achievement in higher education. A questionnaire assessing these variables was administered to 341 students a few months before the deadline for their final dissertation. Results indicate that perceived peer support, perceived relatives support, role conflict, and age have an independent and significant effect on whether or not the final dissertation is completed on time. In addition, self-efficacy and behavioral engagement appeared to be mediators of the relationship between the social support and the final dissertation completion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Factors Associated With Dissertation Completion Among Clinical Psychology Students

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/e585062013-001

By Carlos, Megan C.; Jackson, Brooke

2013 [American Psychological Association (APA)].

It is not uncommon to see clinical psychology students struggle to complete their dissertations in a timely manner (Muszynski & Akamatsu, 1991). These challenges in dissertation completion are not unique to clinical psychology students, as data suggests that as many as 45% of doctoral students in the social sciences do not finish their dissertations (Council of Graduate Schools, 2008). While several studies have examined dissertation completion in doctoral students across a wide range of fields, only a handful have examined issues specific to clinical psychology doctoral students faced with the challenge of completing this particular hurdle of their graduate study. Examining the challenges associated with dissertation completion within this subpopulation of graduate students is important because there may be issues specific to professional psychology training programs and students that account for difficulties with dissertation completion within clinical psychology graduate students. For instance, Gelso (1993) has argued that many clinical psychology doctoral programs do not foster a research training environment that engages students and motivates them in their own research endeavors. In light of the fact that little published literature exists on dissertation completion in clinical psychology students, the purpose of this poster was to identify and examine, through literature review, factors thought to influence the progress of clinical psychology students in dissertation completion. It was hypothesized that personality factors (i.e., perfectionism), environmental influences (i.e., available financial support), and relational factors (i.e., quality of relationship with one's dissertation chair) would play a critical role in students' ability to make progress toward completing their dissertations. The current literature review identified 36 dissertations, 11 journal articles, and one book chapter that presented information specifically focused on dissertation completion among doctoral students in general. Three journal articles and three dissertations focused primarily on dissertation completion among clinical psychology doctoral students. Critical examination of the available literature demonstrated that there are five core themes in the dissertation completion literature which shed light on factors that support and hinder students in the production of their doctoral theses. These core themes are: 1) relationship variables and relational themes (i.e., relationship with one's doctoral committee members); 2) personality variables (i.e., compulsivity); 3) task relevant abilities and attitudes (i.e., desire to complete one's dissertation); 4) career orientation (i.e., practitioner or research orientation); and 5) competing obligations and stressors (i.e., experiencing high levels of life stress outside of school). These findings provide a basis for making specific recommendations to clinical psychology training programs in the service of decreasing student attrition and to students themselves regarding how to successfully complete a dissertation in a timely manner. Because few empirical studies have examined dissertation completion specifically among clinical psychology students, future research is necessary to better understand those factors which support and hinder clinical psychology Ph.D. and Psy.D. candidates in completing their theses. (PsycEXTRA Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

A qualitative inquiry of the counseling dissertation process.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6978.2012.00018.x

By Flynn, Stephen V.; Chasek, Christine L.; Harper, Irene F.; Murphy, Katherine M.; Jorgensen, Maribeth F.

Counselor Education and Supervision, Vol 51(4), Dec 2012, 242-255.

The authors in this consensual qualitative research study explored the dissertation experiences of 42 graduates (27 counselor educators, 13 counselors, 2 administrators) from 4 midwestern states. Identified domains included impact of environment, competing influences, personality traits, chair influence, committee function, and barriers to completion. An emergent theory reflected the interconnectedness of the dissertation process across internal, relational, and professional factors. Implications related to motivation, personal traits, and identification of barriers in the dissertation process are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

The role of self-regulation in doctoral students' status of all but dissertation.

By Kelley, Martha Joan McCoy

Dissertation Abstracts International Section A: Humanities and Social Sciences, Vol 73(1-A), 2012, 71.

A large amount of research has been conducted on self-regulated learning as it relates to academic achievement. Further, there is a large body of literature regarding doctoral candidates who do not complete their dissertations and are classified as All But Dissertation. However, there is a paucity of research regarding the synthesis of these two disparate bodies of research. The purposes of this study were to: (a) assess self-regulated learning as it applied to the time to completion of the dissertation, (b) determine the relationship between self-regulated learning and the intrinsic task value of the dissertation, (c) assess the impact of intrinsic task value upon time to completion of the dissertation, (d) determine whether there was a linear relationship between self-regulated learning and time to complete the dissertation, (e) assess whether differences existed between the levels of self-regulated learning strategies exhibited by those who were classified as All But Dissertation and those who had recently completed their dissertations and (f) assess whether there were differences in the time since comprehensive exams were taken for those who were All But Dissertation and those participants who had recently completed their dissertations. The researcher developed an online survey (titled the Dissertation Enablers Scale) for this purpose. This survey included four subscales to operationalize the variables and covariates (the Self-regulated Learning Scale, the Intrinsic Task Value Scale, the Research Self-efficacy Scale and the Social Support Scale). This survey was validated through comparison with like instruments, expert review, exploratory factor analyses and reliability estimates. The results of hierarchical regressions indicated that self-regulated learning did predict time to completion of the dissertation, yet intrinsic task value did not predict time to completion of the dissertation. Self-regulated learning was significantly correlated with task value. The findings suggest that there was a linear relationship between self-regulated learning and time to completion of the dissertation. A discriminant function analysis revealed that there were no differences in the use of self-regulated learning strategies between those classified as All But Dissertation and those participants who had recently completed their dissertations. Additional factors that emerged as important to dissertation completion were the importance of financial support and the potential mediating role of intrinsic task value upon self-regulated learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Facilitating dissertation completion and success among doctoral students in social work.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5175/JSWE.2009.200800091

By Liechty, Janet M.; Liao, Minli; Schull, Christine Pegorraro

Journal of Social Work Education, Vol 45(3), 2009, 481-497.

Social work doctoral education is essential to the continuation of the profession through its production of educators and researchers. Predicted shortages of educators give urgency to the problems of dissertation delays, lengthy time to completion, and attrition. Using Vygotsky's sociocultural theory of learning, in this article we review the literature on barriers and facilitating factors to dissertation completion. Findings support the relevance of postulated mechanisms of learning such as scaffolding and interaction with more knowledgeable others. Findings also suggest that interventions are necessary at individual, relational, and institutional/departmental levels, and that individual success is contingent upon relational and systemic factors as well as aptitude. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

14.

Journal Article

The Responsibility Scale: A research note on dissertation completion.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013164498058003011

By Kluever, Raymond; Green, Kathy E.

Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol 58(3), Jun 1998, 520-531.

Created and evaluated the Responsibility Scale assessment of graduate students' concepts of responsibility associated with completion of the doctoral dissertation. Items followed P. Brickman et al's (1982) model structure. The scale was completed by 142 doctoral graduates (mean age 41.8 yrs) and 97 doctoral candidates (mean age 44.4 yrs) lacking only their dissertations. The principal components analysis of the scale indicated that two factors underlie responses: those that represent responsibility for organization and preparation of the dissertation, and university quality control and evaluation of work . The scale appears useful for assessing attitudes of doctoral candidates toward responsibility for dissertation tasks and for planning student advising based on these attitudes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserve

Dear Anders.

You ask the following: Which are possible factors influencing why many doctoral students do not finish in due time? I  decide not to recommend any paper on this issue. (See, for this  respect, Hendrika's cogent answer). Even so, I can share with you my own experience with my Master and Ph D students. What follows is what I tell them when they are working on their dissertations, namely Ph D dissertations.

(1) For you to finish your Ph D thesis in due, you should want to finish it in due. This is not as trivial as it may appear. Note, for example, that when doctoral students forget to attend several sessions scheduled by their advisers, or they do not contact them regularly they do not really want to finish their dissertation in due time at their best, or even to finish their doctoral work  at their worst.

(2) For you to finish your Ph D thesis in due, you should choose a competent adviser.

(3)  For you to finish your Ph D thesis in due time, you should be were that you are not going to make, say, a scientific revolution. When this is the case, you become less anxious while working on your Ph D research and, hence, you are going to procrastinate less about your ability to conduct the focal research.

(4) For you to finish your Ph D thesis in due you should have access to the relevant literature related to the topic of your doctoral research.

(5) For you to finish your Ph D thesis in time, you should not want to know all the literature on the topic of your research. If this were not the case, you risk not having time enough to read that literature and even time to begin your doctoral research.

(6) For you to finish your Ph D thesis in, you should intend to respond to what might be called "irritating" questions and doubts, that is, questions whose response leads us to a better knowledge of the unknown. When this is the case, you feel more motivated to begin, continue, and finish in due time your Ph D dissertation. So, the problem can not be to finish in due time one's doctoral dissertation, but to come up with a good or even excellent research.

(7) For you to finish in due time your Ph D thesis, you should be more intrinsically that extrinsically motivated to perform your doctoral dissertation.

Of course, I could make this list a longer list. Even so, the list points to some personal and situational factors that often lie at the heart of students' postponement of their doctoral responsibilities, namely to finish in due time their doctoral dissertations.

I Hope that this can be of some help for  you.

Best regards, Orlando Lourenço.

Hi Orlando!

Yes, this is a nice list, sprung from experience i guess. It is especially of help for me as i am setting up an interview guide for researching this further on. Thank you!

Dear Mister NORBERG,

I may recommend you this article :

The “All-But-the-Dissertation” Student and the Psychology of the Doctoral

Dissertation, Lawrence D. Blum, 74

in Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 24:74–85, 2010

I finded it very interesting, while searching for some theoritical background for my own doctoral dissertation on "factors influencing students' procrastination about doctoral dissertation".

I may send you my full bibliographic search if it can help, and I will be very interest by mailing with you about this subject.

With my respects,

Hi Sarah! Thanks for the link, seems to be an interesting paper. And you are doing your PhD on procrastination in PhD research I see! Interesting! I am interested in understanding the integration of ICTs in teaching and learning from a time and process perspective -thats my recently finished and defended dissertation (attached). One important part of this seems to be procrastination. The more flexible learning becomes, the more risk for procrastination. I have in a study of a course used "agile frameworks" to adress these mechanisms (attached - can send you the paper privalely, it is not published yet, forthcoming). After that paper I was asked to begin look at PhDs as well - but a lot more factors are involved here it seems. Interested in communicating. Best, Anders 

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Article Time shifting and agile time boxes in course design