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Writing a Doctoral Research Paper A Social Science Perspective

Introductory Meeting
Dr. Christoph K. Streb Faculty of Economics & Business University of Groningen, The Netherlands

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C.K. Streb 2011

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Teaching Aims
To provide you with insights about research paper writing from a social science perspective

To provide you with practical suggestions for the writing process Most importantly, to provide you a forum for discussion and questions
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Questions Upfront
Who are you and what are you working on? What do you expect of this brief seminar? What is a (scientific) research paper? What is your experience with scientific writing?
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Agenda
An Introductory Thesis Example
What is Good Research? The `Standards of a Research Paper

Paper Content
Excurs: APA Guidelines, Literature Review and Rankings

Schedule of this Course (How are we going to do this?)

An Alternative Example
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Introductory Thesis Example

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What is Good Research?

1. Good Research is Clear and Precise.

2. Good Research is Systematic.

3. Good Research is Logical. 4. Good Research is Empirical. 5. Good Research is Replicable. 6. Good Research is Honest.
Adapted from ReportBD.com (2011)

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Paper Content
Introduction and Research Gap: What do you want to research and why? Base this strongly on relevant (scientific) literature and sources Research Question: State a precise research question and include proper sub questions Theoretical Background: Elaborate on the existing literature regarding your topic Conceptual Model: What theoretical concepts did you identify relevant for your study, how are they defined and how do they interrelate? Methodology: Identify and decide on the proper methodology to address your research question Data Collection and Analysis: Collect your data, analyse it, state the findings and discuss them in the theoretical context Conclusion: Summarize your findings in a broader scientific context and show, if possible, theoretical and practical implications
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Excurs: Conceptual Model (Example)

Xin, Dolfsma and Streb (2011)

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Excurs: APA Guidelines

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Excurs: Literature Review

Brereton, Kitchenham, Budgen, Turner and Khalil (2007)

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Excurs: Literature Review

Streb and Gupta (2010)

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Excurs: Journal Rankings

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Criteria for evaluating research questions

Be clear (to you and others) Be researchable Connect with established theory and research Sub -questions must be linked to each other Have potential for making a contribution to knowledge Be neither too broad nor too narrow

Bryman & Bell (2007)

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What, Why, and How framework

What?

Why?
Will that be enough to interest others? Is it a contribution to knowledge? How? - Practical

What puzzles, intrigues me?

What do I want to know more about? How? - Concept

What can I bring together for a basic conceptual model to guide my research?

How can I gain access to (information) sources?

Methodology?

Watson (1994)

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Questions to ask when evaluating research

Is the research gap logical and clear to the non-specialist reader? Is it worth being researched and will add additional knowledge? Is it based on sound theory? Is it precise and focused? Does the research question appropriately address the research gap? (Do the sub-questions follow this logically?) Is the proposed issues, variables, etc. researchable (in terms of constructs, time, effort, )? Does the chosen methodology fit the research goal? Is the approach and the conceptual framework well connected with established theory and research?
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How are we going to do this?

You will work in peer-review teams of 3 people each. It will be your task to critically assess and discuss the research paper drafts of your fellow team mates and to provide honest, critical and constructive written feedback about their work. To do so, you need to organize yourselves in teams and exchange your material. You can prepare your peer-review by yourself, but you should meet at least once before our next meeting and exchange within your group what are the common findings, critics and suggestions. During our next meeting each group should briefly present their results to the overall group.
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Your Questions?

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Aging: Example Germany

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Source: Statistisches Bundesamt

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Aging: An International Comparison 1950 1975 2005

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Country

-Age

Country

-Age

Country

-Age

Country

2050

-Age

1. Austria 2. Channel Islands 3. Belgium 4. Germany 5. Luxembourg 6. United Kingdom 7. France 8. Sweden 9. Switzerland 10.Norway

35.8 35.7 35.6 35.4 35.0 34.6 34.5 34.3 33.3 32.7

1. Germany 2. Sweden 3. Latvia 4. Channel Islands 5. Luxembourg 6. Hungary 7. Belgium 8. Estonia 9. Bulgaria 10.United Kingdom

35.4 35.3 34.8 34.6 34.4 34.2 34.1 34.1 34.0 33.9

1. Japan 2. Italy 3. Germany 4. Finland 5. Switzerland 6. Belgium 7. Croatia 8. Austria 9. Bulgaria 10.Slovenia

42.9 42.3 42.1 40.9 40.8 40.6 40.6 40.6 40.6 40.2

1. China, Macao 2. Republic of Korea 3. Martinique 4. Italy 5. Japan 6. Singapore 7. Slovenia 8. Ukraine 9. Slovakia 10.Lithuania

54.4 53.9 53.0 52.5 52.3 52.1 51.9 51.9 51.8 51.7

Germany:

47,4

Source: United Nations Secretariat (2005)

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Aging: The Netherlands

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Source: http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/themas/ dossiers/vergrijzing/publicaties/artikelen/archief/2008/2008-085-pb1.htm C.K. Streb 2011

Aging Workforce Management Study: Background

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The demographic change in society is affecting the age composition of the available workforce for organizations
People
900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0

15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 Age

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Aging Workforce Management Study: Daimler AG

Workforce Mercedes-Benz Plant Bremen People
900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0

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2002
Direct Workforce Indirect Workforce Employees 39,0 42,3 43,6 46,5 49,1 50,3

2010

Average. ()

40,3

47,5

15

17

19

21

23

25

27

29

31

33

35

37

39

41

43

45

47

49

51

53

55

57

59

61

63

Age
Source: Daimler Bremen

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Aging Workforce Management Study: Core Issues

R E Q U I R E M E N T S R E S U LT I N G
Productivity
FROM INCRE AS ED

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COMPETITION

Cost Reduction

Technology/Organization

Increasing average age of workforce

46

40 2007 2015

IMPACT ON

Productivity
Risks: Decreasing employability and flexibility of workforce Increasing numbers of constrained workers

Labor Costs
Risks: Costs of declining state of health and absenteeism Assigning constrained workers to tasks with little value creation Costs of structural arrangements
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Quality of Work
Risks: Loss of knowledge and skills Less innovation Decreasing motivation

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People
900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0

More Absenteeism More Constrained Workers Restricted Deployment Flexibility Knowledge Loss
15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 Age

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Exploring aging workforce management and clarifying fundamental concepts

Article I
Specific Objective
Identifying the current status quo of the aging workforce topic in theory and practice

Methodology
Reviewing the literature and practical examples, applying second data analysis

Finding
Secondary and empirical research findings on the aging workforce adopting a business management perspective (in theory and practice)

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Article II
Specific Objective
Theoretically defining the challenge and identifying the constituting elements of aging workforce management

Article III
Finding
Definition of the challenge of managing an aging workforce and constituting elements in the context of one specific industry

Methodology
Qualitative data collection and analysis (e.g. archival data and interviews) applying grounded theory

Specific Objective
Evaluating the effectiveness of applied aging workforce measures in practice

Methodology
Qualitative data collection and analysis (interviews) applying a case study

Finding
Effectiveness of a set of five practical health and human resource measures found at the MercedesBenz plant in Bremen

Synthesis
Fundamental insights and seminal results that provide new potential research streams in the field of aging workforce management
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Aging Workforce Management Study: Findings

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Competitiveness

Productivity Aging Workforce Symptoms

Constrained Workforce Efficiency Costs Measures Aspiring Competitiveness

Standardization (of Work) Flexibility of Workforce

Performance of Workforce

Days Absent
Commitment of Workforce

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Succes! My email: c.k.streb@rug.nl