Evaluating Chapter 5: Summary, Conclusions, PURPOSE STATEMENT

and Recommendations
-Provides one sentence statement of purpose
including the problem statement, methodology
design, population sample and location.
10 strategic points of chapters I-III
DATA COLLECTION
1. TOPIC
2. LITERATURE REVIEW -Describes primary instruments and sources of
3. PROBLEM STATEMENT data to answer research questions.
4. SAMPLE AND LOCATION
DATA ANALYSIS
5. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
6. HYPOTHESIS/VARIABLES -Describes the specific data analysis approaches
7. METHODOLOGY AND DESIGN to be used to address research questions.
8. PURPOSE STATEMENT
9. DATA COLLECTION CHAPTER 5
10. DATA ANALYSIS -a comprehensive summary of the study
TOPIC framework including a recap of the essential 10
strategic points of Chapters 1-3
-Provides a broad research topic area/title
-reminds the reader of the importance of the
LITERATURE REVIEW topic and briefly explains how the study
intended to contribute to the body of
-Lists primary points for four sections in the
knowledge on the topic
literature review:
-further reminds the reader of the research
a. Background of the problem and the
question(s)
need for the study based on citations
from the literature -illustrates how the data analysis approach (not
findings) reported in Chapter 4 aligns to
b. Theoretical foundations
answering the research questions
c. Review of literature topics with key
-informs the reader that conclusions,
theme for each one
implications, and recommendations will be
d. Summary presented

PROBLEM STATEMENT CONTENTS

-Describes the problem to address through the • begins with a summary of the essential
study based on defined needs or gaps from the points made in Chapters 1 and 3 of the
literature. original research proposal

SAMPLE AND LOCATION • includes why this topic is important and

how this study was designed to
-Identifies sample, needed sample size and
contribute to the understanding of the
location.
topic
RESEARCH QUESTION
• remainder of the chapter contains a
-Provides research questions to collect data to summary:
address the problem statement.
• overall study
HYPOTHESIS/VARIABLES
• findings and
-Provides hypotheses with variables for each conclusions
research question (quantitative) or describes
• recommendations for
the phenomena to be better
future research and
understood(qualitative).
practice
METHODOLOGY AND DESIGN
• final section on
-Describes the selected method and specific implications derived
research design to address problem statements from the study
and research questions.
REMEMBER
-should be presented in the simplest possible
form, making sure to preserve the conditional
nature of the insights
-concluding words of Chapter 5 should
emphasize both the most important points of
the study, study strengths and weaknesses, and
directions for future research
-articulate new frameworks and new insights
-references should be made to findings or
citations presented in earlier chapters
-no new data should be introduced in Chapter 5
INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY
• introduces Chapter 5 as a
comprehensive summary of the entire
study
• reminds the reader of the importance
of the topic
• briefly explains how the study intended
to contribute to the body of knowledge
on the topic
• informs the reader that conclusions,
implications, and recommendations will
be presented
• minimum of two to four paragraphs or
approximately one page
Evaluating INTRODUCTION and
SUMMARY OF STUDY
• Provides a transition, explains what will
be covered in the chapter and reminds
the reader of how the study was
conducted.
• Provides an overview of why the study
is important and how the study was
designed to contribute to our
understanding of the topic.
• Reminds the reader of the research
questions and how the reported data
analysis (not findings) align to
answering the research questions.
• Provides a comprehensive summary of
the study framework including a recap
of the 10 strategic points.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
• Organized by research
question/hypothesis
• Conveys the specific findings of the
study
• Presents all conclusions made based on
the data analysis and findings of the
study
• Relates the findings back to the
literature
• Minimum three to five pages
Evaluating SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND
CONCLUSIONS
• Provides a conclusion to summarize the
findings, referring back to chapter 1,
and tying the study together
• refrains from including unrelated or
speculative information in this section
• discusses significance (or no
significance) of findings and relates
each of the findings directly to the
Significance of the Study section
• Illustrates how findings are supported
by the data and theory, and how the
findings directly align to and answer the
research question(s)
• Illustrates how findings are supported
by the data and theory, and how the
findings directly align to and answer the
research question(s)
• Compares, contrasts and synthesizes
study findings in context to prior
research on the topic (chapter 2)
• organizes Chapter 5 using the same
section titles as Chapter 4, by research
question(s)/hypothesis(es)
IMPLICATIONS
• organizes Chapter 5 using the same
section titles as Chapter 4, by research
question(s)/hypothesis(es)
• Theoretical implication
- involve interpretation of the dissertation
findings in terms of the research
question(s) and hypothesis(es) that guided
the study
• Future Implications
- may come in two kinds, one based
on what the study did find or do, and
the other based on what the study did
not find or do
EVALUATING IMPLICATIONS • correctly formatted to dissertation
template using the Word Style Tool and
• THEORETICAL IMPLICATIONS
APA standards
-study results are discussed in context
• omits unrelated or speculative
to how the results advance a
information that is not unsupported by
practitioner’s knowledge of that theory,
data
model or concept.
• provides recommendations that relate
-connects the findings of the study back
back to the study significance section in
to the theoretical
Chapter 1
framework/conceptual framework
• in-text citations are accurate, correctly
-providing a retrospective examination
cited and included in the reference
of the theoretical framework presented
page according to APA standards
in Chapter 2 in light of the dissertation’s
• all research presented in the Chapter is
findings
scholarly, topic-related, and obtained
• PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS AND FUTURE
from highly respected academic,
IMPLICATIONS
professional, original sources
-how the results may influence future
• writing is free of mechanical errors
research or practice
-states how the results advance
practitioners knowledge of the topic
-develops practical and future
implications for research based on new
insights derived from the research
-connects the study findings to the prior
research discussed in Chapter 2
• STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
-the degree to which the conclusions
are credible given the methodology,
research design, and data analysis and
results.
-critically evaluates the strengths and
weaknesses of the study
• -indicates all limitations of the study

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

• contain a minimum of four to six

recommendations for future research

• full explanation for why each

recommendation is being made

• recommended research
methodology/design should also be
provided

• minimum one to two pages

Evaluating RECOMMENDATIONS FOR

FUTURE RESEARCH

• discusses who will benefit from reading

and implementing the results of the
study
• identifies and discusses the areas that
need further examination, or that will
address gaps or needs the study found
• lists a minimum of four to six
recommendations for practitioners and
for future research