A Guide to Writing a Senior Thesis in Sociology

A Guide to Writing

a Senior Thesis in Sociology

Department of Sociology

Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Harvard University

A Guide to Writing a Senior Thesis in Sociology | page 1

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A Guide to Writing

a Senior Thesis in Sociology

Cover art: Genevieve Butler

Copyright 2009, President and Fellows of Harvard College

Table of Contents

Time Management and Sample Timeline............ 1

Part Five: Drafting the Thesis............................ 40

Overview......................................................................... 40

Part One: Before You Begin. . ............................ 3

Choosing to Write a Thesis................................................ 3

The First Steps: Choosing a Topic and an Adviser.............. 4

Turning a Topic into a Research Question......................... 8

Choosing a Methodology:

How Will I Answer My Question?................................... 13

Introduction..................................................................... 41

Literature Review: Setting Up Your Thesis...................... 42

Data and Methods............................................................ 43

Results............................................................................. 45

Discussion and Conclusion............................................... 51

Basic Writing Tips............................................................ 52

Revision, Revision, Revision........................................... 54

Part Two: Preparing Your Research................... 18

Beginning the Literature Review...................................... 18

Part Six: Turning in the Thesis........................... 56

Developing and Testing Your Methodology..................... 21

Formatting........................................................................ 56

Choosing Your Sample..................................................... 23

Grading............................................................................ 58

Writing the Prospectus..................................................... 28

Part Three: Collecting Your Data....................... 30

Appendix One:

Abbreviated Version of the ASA Style Guide..... 59

Recruiting Subjects or Gathering Data Sources................. 30

Administering Your Instrument........................................ 32

Data Management:

Administrative Responsibilities during Data Collection..... 34

Part Four: Analyzing Your Data......................... 36

Qualitative Data Analysis Basics........................................ 36

Quantitative Data Analysis Basics...................................... 37

Content Analysis Basics..................................................... 38

Appendix Two:

Funding Sources for Thesis Writers................... 62

End Matter...................................................... 63

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