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When it comes to qualitative research, everyone always talks about coding, codes, categories, and themes. But what does this actually mean? This article will give you an introduction into coding qualitative data for categories and themes and help you understand these terms.

I will show you:

• the basic principle of coding qualitative data (Part 1)
• what a code or category is (Part 2)
• how to derive your first codes from qualitative data (Part 3)
• the different types of coding that exist (Part 4)

After reading this article, you will be well-prepared for your own qualitative research project. You can directly dive into qualitative content analysis, grounded theory, or any other qualitative method.

#1 What is Coding?

Coding refers to the process of assigning conceptual labels to data (Urquhart 2013). It primarily applies to qualitative data, such as text, images, videos, or audio.

For the sake of simplicity, let’s assume in this video that your data was collected through interviews and now exists in the form of interview transcripts.

When you assign a specific label to a specific set of data, you begin to analyze that data. A set of data could be, for example, a response to an interview question or even a random individual line in your transcript. Let´s continue with the introduction of coding qualitative data for categories and themes.

Why is Coding Useful?

Coding can help you summarize larger amounts of data. For example, imagine you conducted 20 interviews, resulting in a total of 200 pages of transcripts.

How can you compress the content of this data into a single results section of a scientific paper? That’s right – by summarizing it. In this case, various coding techniques offer a tool to do this systematically and comprehensibly.

However, coding not only allows you to summarize data but also to structure it. Structure can mean that your data is assigned to specific categories. These categories give meaning to the data. You’ll learn more about this in the second part of the tutorial.

Coding for Theory Building in Qualitative Research

New Constructs

However, coding in qualitative research can go much further than summarizing and structuring. Coding is actually one of the most important tools for developing new theories.

This brings us to the realm of Grounded Theory. You can find more information on that in other tutorials of mine. In addition to watching tutorials on Grounded Theory, I recommend watching the video on “What is a Theory?”

In summary, Grounded Theory is a methodology, not just a method. This means that you can combine different coding techniques to reach your goal: new theory.

This new theory consists of constructs and their relationships to each other. The necessary intermediate step to reach these components from qualitative data is coding.

The specific coding techniques employed and how they are combined depend on the recommendations or authors chosen for your own Grounded Theory study.

New Relationships

In the further course of a Grounded Theory study, determining the relationships between constructs that came out of your initial codes becomes important.

Here, some coding techniques are not only limited to transforming codes into concepts and constructs but also explaining a relationship or process. You can find more information on this in other tutorials, for example on what is referred to as axial coding.

#2 What is a Code or Category?

Simply put, a code is just a label we assign to a specific part of our data. A category is like a bucket in which you collect the codes that fit together.

In general, there is a distinction between descriptive and analytical codes.

Descriptive codes can, for example, adopt certain things such as signal words from the data. In this case, we use the language that appears in the data itself.

However, in most cases, it is better to move away from that quickly and choose your own words for the codes (Urquhart, 2013).

Analytical codes go beyond mere description and offer an interpretation of the data. This is ultimately what we aim for in almost every qualitative method.

The codes can have different levels of abstraction. The lower the level of abstraction, the more descriptive the codes. The higher the level of abstraction, the more analytical the codes.

The different levels of abstraction contribute to creating a kind of hierarchy between the codes. This is also referred to as a category system or data structure.

A category system could consist of a handful of main categories and about two or three times as many subcategories.

A data structure usually consists of first-order themes, second-order themes, and aggregate dimensions. Themes and dimensions are just fancy words for more developed and abstracted codes.

As you can see, the terminology for certain codes and their structures can vary depending on the method and authors. Always adopt the terminology from the methodological guide you are working with.

#3 An Example from an Interview Transcript

Let’s take a look at a simple example of the most basic form of coding, which is open coding.

For a study, I conducted interviews with companies that organize themselves remotely since their inception. Here is a response from an expert in an interview transcript:

“The process usually looks like this: Three people who are specifically interested in it make a proposal, and then it is informally voted on in Slack or during a meeting whether the proposal is good or not.

And it was the same with the rules. Three people who already had experience with such rules from other contexts worked it out in a Google document, and then it ended up in Slack. Different people added comments to the Google document about what they thought of each sentence. This went back and forth for about a week. And in the end, there was a draft that everyone liked, and that was it.”

With open coding, I can assign a code to each line or sentence. I would assign the code “Forming an Interest Group” to the sentence “The process usually looks like this: Three people who are specifically interested in it.”

The section “And in the end, there was a draft that everyone liked, and that was it” could be given the code “Collective Satisfaction.”

These two codes are at a very low level of abstraction because they are assigned to only one sentence or line each. They are also very descriptive and describe what was said.

To arrive at an analytical code, we can now summarize or interpret the codes assigned to each line. For the given response, this could lead to the code “Consensus Building.” This code interprets the data and summarizes in one word what the response was essentially about.

However, an analytical code does not necessarily have to consist of only a single word.

#4 What are different types of coding in qualitative research?

The examples of coding qualitative data for categories and themes we have looked at are typical for (1) inductive coding. This type of coding is primarily used in thematic analysis and, of course, grounded theory.

The process of inductive category development is bottom-up, meaning it goes from the data to the code.

In addition, there is also (2) deductive coding. This is characteristic of structured content analysis or quantitative content analysis. Here, based on existing theory, you establish a category system into which you simply sort your data.

The process of deductive category application is top-down, meaning it goes from theory to data.

However, there is often a grey area between the two. For simplicity, I call this (3) abductive coding. This means that the process of coding happens in a continuous interplay between theory and data. Abduction can encompass more than that, but for now, you don’t need to remember more. Some approaches in grounded theory embrace this approach in their recommendations. Just be careful not to mix recommendations from different authors too much.

And lastly, there is (4) thematic coding, as described by Braun and Clarke (2006). The difference from the other types is that broader codes (themes) are used to interpret larger chunks of data. It is less incremental than the other techniques.

You have an unwritten manuscript in front of you and just don’t know how to get writing motivation to get going?

If this is what you struggle with, you’re in the right place.

I will reveal to you how you can truly motivate yourself to write your paper, essay or book – and I mean really motivate yourself.

The pages will practically fill themselves, I promise. 😉

In this article, I will give you simple methods to help you get started with your writing and make the rest a breeze. For this purpose, I have 4 simple and effective ideas for you to skyrocket your motivation for writing.

At the end of the video, I will share with you a psychological trick that will change everything. With this trick, you will be able to effectively motivate yourself for every upcoming writing task. So be sure to stick around until the end, so you can start your research paper with unlimited motivation RIGHT NOW.

The first sentence is always the hardest.

This is true not only for a novel, an application, or a love letter but also for an academic paper.

I will use the case of writing an academic paper as an example, but if you need to write something else, the principles are exactly the same!

Your apartment is clean, hunger and the need to use the restroom won’t be an issue for the next 60 minutes, and even your friends are unreachable because it’s early Monday morning. Your laptop sits arrogantly on your desk, waiting for you to fill it with your wisdom.

There really is nothing else to do except your academic paper.

The calendar on your smartphone reminds you that the deadline is getting closer and closer. You have to start now, or else you’ll be in trouble. Starting tomorrow is not an option. But how should you even begin? The topic is boring, 20 pages are just too much, and besides, the latest episode of your favorite series has been waiting in the Netflix pipeline for two days already.

The thought of spending the next hours and days on something that really annoys you creates an unpleasant feeling, and you feel the urge to procrastinate the hell out of this damn paper.

How can you motivate yourself right now so that you can finally get the work done?

Idea 1: Stick to Your Routine

Do you usually go to the gym or engage in other hobbies during the week? Do you meet up with friends on weekends? Make sure to keep these commitments with yourself and others. If you eliminate the moments you look forward to from your daily routine, your motivation will further decrease.

The day has 24 hours, and you’re probably awake for about 16 of them. Can anyone maintain focused work for a continuous 16 hours?

Certainly not me.

So, make an appointment with yourself. Set a specific time for working on your research paper. And I mean ONLY for your research paper.

Banish your smartphone and all other sources of distraction so that you can truly use your time effectively. Once the allocated time is up and you’ve achieved your daily goal, it’s time for yourself.

At this point, it is OK to banish the academic paper from your mind.

To learn how to work without distractions, I highly recommend Cal Newport’s fantastic book “Deep Work”. It might happen that this book will change your life.

It did for me.

Idea 2: Consider Your Biorhythm

No joke: We humans are either morning larks or night owls. Some people prefer to wake up early (larks), while others love the late hours of the day (night owls).

It’s scientifically supported. And your type also affects your working behavior.

If you’re not a morning person and struggle to concentrate in the morning, why should you torture yourself during those hours? Listen to your body and write your paper at a time when you can concentrate the best.

For example, I am a true night owl. I have never seen the inside of a university before 9 a.m. (phew!).

All my research papers were written during the evening hours. Even if I start at 5 p.m., I have effectively worked for a full 7 hours until midnight!

However, if you are not a night owl, this strategy might not work for you. Keep in mind that willpower decreases throughout the day so the earlier you schedule your working hours, the better.

In either case, you should never neglect your sleep. Typically, 7-8 hours of sleep will leave you feeling refreshed. Less is not recommended.

Idea 3: Set Short-Term Goals

Divide your research paper into work packages that create milestones.

Estimate approximately what you should achieve each day so that you can complete your paper with a steady amount of work.

You can set your milestones based on tasks, such as literature research, writing the introduction, and so on, or even based on the amount of text you’ve produced towards the end of your paper.

For me, the rule of “1 page per day” has always worked very well. This way, I didn’t have to sacrifice my entire day for the paper and still made significant progress.

If you’re now thinking, “Wow, one page per day? That’s nothing. I can easily write 5 pages if I really push myself.” Great! Go ahead.

There are in fact two types of writers out there. Type 1 is the perfectionist who needs every sentence to be perfect the first time.

And then there is type 2, who just writes a lot now and edits everything later. Try to find out which type you are and set you daily writing goals accordingly.

If you’ve set short-term goals for yourself and you achieve them, something important happens:

You become more confident because your mind appeals to logic. If you reach your mini-goal for writing your paper every day, it will be completed after reaching the final goal.

There’s no way around it.

One important thing to consider here is to build in a buffer. Leave several days between the last milestone and the deadline. This way, the chances of not finishing on time or feeling rushed approach zero.

It can happen that you’re unable to reach a daily goal. It could be Grandma’s birthday or a surprise celebration for your local sports team’s championship. For such special occasions, you have the buffer.

That way, you won’t have any pressure weighing you down.

Idea 4: Visualize Your Long-Term Success

When the task of writing your paper hangs over your well-being like a sword of Damocles, one thing becomes particularly difficult: visualizing why you’re doing all of this in the first place.

Questions arise, such as:

• How will this ever benefit me in my (professional) career?
• What is the purpose of delving into such a topic with pages of discussion?

The answer is complex.

At this point, however, let’s focus on how you can increase your motivation.

To begin with, you should be satisfied with the following answer: A research paper simulates being a researcher, and doing research is a fundamental requirement for a successful academic degree. And you have set this as your goal.

Now proceed as follows:

Visualize your long-term goals that writing this particular paper will enable you to achieve. The paper is just a small step towards those goals, but in this moment, that small step is the most important.

• What do you want to achieve in your studies?
• Do you want to attain a specific grade average to work in your dream profession?
• Or do you want to complete your studies to earn a monthly salary that can fulfill all your material desires?
• Are you perhaps searching for your strengths and weaknesses and want to further develop your skills and intellect?

The attainment of all these goals is connected to this one research paper.

So, get yourself in the mood with your favorite music or a well-prepared coffee, sit down at your laptop, and pour your ideas and arguments onto the keyboard.

Let’s get started!

Bonus Idea: A Psychological Trick

As promised at the beginning of the video, I have a bonus idea for you on how to get writing motivation.

It involves a scientifically supported trick that is almost guaranteed to work.

To do this, we delve into the field of social psychology and explore the conditioning of behaviors. What does it mean to condition oneself or someone else to a specific action?

Quite simply, it involves associating a recurring action or specific behavior with a reward. You already know how effective this can be if you have a dog or have observed sea lions performing tricks at the zoo.

As trivial as it may sound, our human brain can also be conditioned in the same way.

So, what do we need to do?

In order to condition yourself for writing your paper, you need a reward.

Choose a reward that brings genuine happiness to you. For example, a large piece of chocolate, a FIFA match on the PlayStation, or a video from your favorite YouTuber.

Whatever it is, it should be truly enjoyable. But be careful – too much chocolate can be dangerous…

Now, take the short-term goals you already know from Idea #3 and divide them into smaller units. This way, you’ll have about 3-5 sub-goals per day. For simplicity, these mini-milestones could also be measured in hours.

Next, simply place the small rewards along your goals. For example, have a piece of chocolate every hour or play one game on the PlayStation every two hours.

What will happen is this: Your brain will associate the activity (writing your paper) with a positive experience. When you consistently reward this activity, your resistance to motivate yourself will decrease.

If you apply this procedure for a few days, you will have developed a habit. It will become effortless for you to sit down and work on your paper because your brain is now programmed to anticipate the reward.

Once you reach this point, the question of motivation for your paper will no longer arise.

You will simply do it.

Now you know how to get writing motivation and can start writing your paper. There are no more excuses.

Start now, RIGHT AWAY 🙂

In this article, I will introduce you to 7 free AI tools for students that will take you to the next level.

This article is for you if you want to make the most out of your studies and learn more effectively. Whether you’re currently preparing for exams or refining your term paper, these AI tools will revolutionize your study routine.

ChatGPT is not on the list – I am sure you know enough about it already.

#1 Otter.ai

Otter.ai revolutionizes your note-taking during lectures and is a true game-changer for your studies.

Do you know that feeling?

The professor talks too fast, jumps from one topic to another, and you’re trying to frantically take notes.

Or maybe you were at a sports party yesterday and now you’re sitting in the 8 a.m. lecture feeling groggy. Even the best coffee can’t help you keep up with your professor’s speech. In such moments, simply take out your laptop and open Otter.ai.

With this tool, you can transcribe your lectures in real-time and have your personal AI note assistant by your side during the lecture.

Thanks to this tool, you can now fully concentrate on the lecture because you know that a detailed transcription with all the important information will be available to you later.

From my own experience, I know how exhausting it can be to struggle with note-taking and barely have the opportunity to think and ask questions during the lecture.

From now on, you can focus on understanding and absorbing the content instead of worrying about every single word. Additionally, you can upload and transcribe recorded lectures as MP3 files.

This feature is extremely useful if you want to listen to a lecture again or share it with others. Of course, you can also use Otter.ai outside of lectures, for example, for interviews or to capture your thoughts.

So, if a brilliant idea strikes you while traveling on a train, you can simply record your thoughts with your phone and transcribe them later effortlessly and without much time investment using Otter.ai.

#2 QuillBot

The next tool goes hand in hand with Otter.ai. Now that you have the lectures in text format, but the professor has once again beaten around the bush for too long.

No problem!

With QuillBot, you can quickly filter out and summarize the key points of the lecture. This saves time and helps you reduce a wealth of information to the essential aspects.

You can determine the desired length of the summary yourself. Whether you want to get a rough overview first or dive directly into the content, QuillBot allows you to create really good notes in no time, which would otherwise require significant manual effort.

However, please note: If you are a visual learner, it is often helpful to “old school” take notes during the lecture. The act of writing serves as visualization and aids in processing the information.

Even when working on a term paper, QuillBot can be a great help to you. Have you already spent countless hours paraphrasing? But now you’re stuck and starting to face writer’s block?

Don’t worry!

Simply copy your text into the tool, and like magic, QuillBot will paraphrase the text for you. It’s a real relief for the writing process and helps you progress with your term paper.

#3 Speechify

Are you an auditory learner? Then listen up, because Speechify.com is the perfect tool for you. With an AI-generated voice, it reads texts aloud for you.

By hearing the text, you, as an auditory learner, can improve your learning outcomes and deepen your understanding.

This is especially useful when you have a lengthy textbook or script that you need to go through and want to save time. Simply upload the text to Speechify, and the program will read it aloud to you.

Sure, there are audiobooks available nowadays, but I find this tool particularly ideal for scripts or even academic papers.

You can use it while jogging, cooking, or even when commuting on a train. This way, you can effectively utilize your study time while engaging in other activities without being tied to your desk.

#4 Writefull

Surely you’ve heard of Grammarly, right? This program corrects and improves your text. However, there is a tool that is even better suited for academic purposes: Writefull. While Grammarly is more suitable for informal texts like emails, Writefull is great for correcting and elevating your next academic paper. Unnecessary spelling and grammar errors will be a thing of the past.

But that’s not all – with this tool, you can also expand your vocabulary. It suggests synonyms and alternative expressions for specific words and phrases. This makes your writing more diverse and appealing to the reviewer (who gives you your grade).

With the free version of Writefull, you can install the plugin directly in Word and edit your texts there. Just start writing and let Writefull check the spelling, grammar, and stylistic aspects.

It’s a convenient solution to improve your term papers while saving time.

So, what are you waiting for?

#5 Elicit

Currently, there is no escaping the media coverage of ChatGPT, and it impresses particularly with its extensive writing capabilities.

However, if you’re not an expert in the field, it’s difficult to assess the quality of the answer. The reason for this is that ChatGPT does not provide source citations, leaving it unclear where ChatGPT obtains the information for its answers.

For your term paper, this tool is therefore less suitable as you must work with proper sources.

So why not use a tool specifically developed for academic purposes – Elicit?

This tool accesses databases from Semantic Scholar (similar to, but better than Google Scholar) and provides you with answers and citations from real scientific papers.

It not only searches for the question you input but also related terms. Once you have found the relevant scientific papers for your term paper, Elicit also summarizes the key findings of the study for you.

With this tool, you save valuable time as you no longer have to painstakingly search through all the academic journals or spend hours on Google Scholar.

#6 Duolingo (Max)

In many academic disciplines, you’ll immensely benefit from a semester abroad.

But you do not speak another language?

Don’t panic! It’s best to start preparing for it and improving your language skills as early as your first semester.

To get into the flow, one option is to use Duolingo (I personally used it to learn Spanish).

The app uses AI to personalize your learning experience. In the free version, the learning content is delivered in a playful manner, with a motivating system of levels and points.

Particularly exciting is the Duolingo Max version, developed in collaboration with OpenAI. Here, the chatbot acts as your conversation partner, engaging in interactive chats that simulate real conversations. Unfortunately, Duolingo Max is not yet available in Germany, but the concept is promising.

As you engage in dialogue with the chatbot, you gradually develop your language skills and expand your vocabulary.

#7 Wisdolia (+Anki)

Flashcards have been around for decades, and it’s no surprise that they have now entered the digital age. Instead of manually creating cards, you can rely on AI with Wisdolia.

This Google Chrome browser plugin allows you to create flashcards effectively.

Whether you’re reading an article online, watching a YouTube video, or going through a paper, with just a few clicks, you can save the most important information and access it anytime.

But that’s not all – you also have the option to save the flashcards in Anki. This way, you can benefit from Anki’s spaced repetition system, combat the forgetting curve, and retain the information in the long term.

By reviewing the content at the right time, you will internalize it effectively. With Wisdolia and Anki, you have the perfect combination to make the most out of your study sessions.

Now you know the best free AI tools for students and can take your studies to the next level.

Do you need some term paper tips for beginners to make sure your assignment will get you the grade you hope for?

Then you’re in the right place.

In this article, I will reveal 21 of my most helpful term paper tips that have helped me and my students to excel at this peculiar craft.

These tips will help you whether you’re just starting out and staring at a blank page on your laptop, or if you’re already in the final stages of your term paper.

I’ll put them in chronological order in terms of the writing process, so you can pick out the term paper tips that are appropriate for your current situation.

#1 Use a Project Management Technique

The first tip in this video deals with the preparation phase of your term paper, specifically with time management. The goal here is to develop a complete plan that provides you with all the milestones on the way to completing your work at a glance.

To do this, you can use a method related to the so-called GANTT chart. Such a diagram is based on a timeline. The X-axis represents the time until your deadline, and on the Y-axis, you divide the necessary steps for completing your work.

You don’t have to create a GANTT chart by hand, but you can use one of the many free tools available on the internet. Here are two free tools for creating a GANTT chart:

– Agantty (mega stylish)

– Free GANTT chart template in Excel (Link in the description)

You simply enter your individual work stages into the diagram and assign each task its own deadline (e.g., 3 days for literature research, completion on July 15th, etc.). This way, you can keep an overview at all times, celebrate your milestones, and stay motivated to complete your term paper according to schedule.

#2 Allocate your time in three thirds

How do you know when to set the deadlines? I you have never worked on a term paper before, it is difficult to estimate how long each stage will take to complete.

A good rule of thumb is to divide you project into three thirds.

The first third is dedicated to the literature search and writing the front end of your term paper. This includes the introduction and all literature and/or theory sections.

The second third is dedicated to the analytical part of your term paper. During this time, you can collect a small amount of interesting data and analyze it. Otherwise, you take a concrete sample of literature and go really deep. During this time, you write the middle part of your term. It is important that you go from being descriptive (i.e., reviewing literature) to becoming analytic (i.e., crafting your own findings and arguments).

In the last third of your project, you deal with your discussion and conclusion sections. Here, you refer your main findings back to the literature you reviewed in the front end and summarize your original contribution. You can spent the remaining time and proofreading and formatting.

#3 Specify your research question and outline before you start writing

If you were to ask me, “what are the most important things I should consider when writing a term paper?” I would advise you to decide on your research question and outline in the very beginning.

It should be your top priority to come up with a guiding question. You can then create the outline of your term paper around it.

You then take both under your arm and march into the next available consultation hour with your supervisor. There, you get feedback.

#4 Identify a problem not a gap

Before you formulate a research question, for example at the end of the introduction of your term paper, you must justify why it is relevant and important. But how can you do that?

Spotting a Research Gap

The approach that probably comes to mind first and is also often taught is to look for a research gap. This simply means that a particular topic, phenomenon, or theoretical relationship is either not clear or underrepresented in the existing literature.

To make such a statement, you need to do a lot of research and reading. This will give you a complete picture of the debate on this subject in the literature.

Finding a research gap is not a bad thing. But if you’re not careful, you can quickly fall into a trap. In term papers, I often read the following argument:

“…this shows that previous research has not yet thoroughly described or empirically researched this phenomenon. Therefore, my research question is…”

At this point, a red light 🚨 goes off, and the red pen comes out.

Just because a subject has not been researched before does not mean that it should be researched. You must argue why and for whom it is important.

Developing a Research Problem

To come up with a truly important research question, you need to identify a problem.

Or at least it will simplify things for you. It will help you easily develop the argument of your term paper from beginning to end.

Okay, so what is a research problem?

It’s simple: a research problem is a difficulty, contradiction, or shortcoming in existing knowledge. The problem can be either practical or theoretical.

#5 Look for relevance in a topic

A research problem can be highly theoretical, which makes it important for theorists. However, my advice for you would be to look for a problem that has also some practical relevance.

“Practical” means that it is connected to individuals, organizations, or groups that have nothing to do with academia.

Here are three examples of practically-motivated research problems:

#1 Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, employees in many industries were forced to work from home for many months. This situation inevitably has an impact on corporate culture. However, everything we know about corporate culture was created 99% in the context of traditional on-site work. That’s a problem!

#2 Prior to the 2016 US presidential election, it was found that so-called social bots shared content with political opinions on platforms such as Twitter. Since many voters use social media as an important source of information, these bots may have an influence on the outcome of an election. That’s a problem!

#3 The care sector suffers from a shortage of personnel. The industry is working intensively on robots and mechanical pets that are supposed to provide social support. Patients with dementia actually react positively to the robot pets because they assume they are real. However, ethicists express concerns about this development. That’s a problem!

What is your practical research problem? 🙂

#6 Link your topic to your seminar

A term paper is an academic paper, but it is not random. You write it in the context of a specific seminar or lecture.

Consequently, what the lecturer wants you to do is to reflect upon the contents of the class in your term paper.

Additionally, you might go deeper into one of the topics that were presented in the class.

Do yourself a favour and do not deviate from the topic of the seminar too much, even if you are more interested in other topics.

Show the lecturer that you can critically deal with a topic and think independently about it. Use what you have discussed in the lecture as a starting point and expand on it.

#7 Get feedback along the way

Don’t be too proud to ask for feedback.

Get as much as you can, revise your research question and outline, and then have both finally approved.

This step is incredibly important because if the person who will later grade your term paper has given their approval to these two essential parts of your term paper, they cannot critique you for that.

If they were to criticize one of these two things in the evaluation of your term paper, they would be contradicting themselves, so you can only win here.

I was often stubborn and convinced that my outline and research questions made sense and, therefore, did not go to the consultation hour. Don’t make the same mistake, but always take advantage of your lecturers’ consultation time!

#8 Take notes whenever you speak about your term paper

There are actually students (my former-self included) who go to a consultation hour to get feedback on their term paper.

And what do they do?

They calmly and attentively listen to the advice of the lecturer, thank them, and leave.

And after the first five steps in the hallway, they have forgotten all the advice.

This is particularly annoying because if a lecturer gives you tips and hints on how to structure your term paper and you then disregard them, it will have an extremely negative effect on your grade.

So, remember the following from my term paper tips.

A meeting that was not documented never took place.

So if you are sitting like a little heap of misery (that’s how I always felt) in the strangely furnished office of your lecturer, don’t look at the curtains but write until your fingers cramp up by sinking the discussed words into your college notebook.

#9 Only use electronic sources

An outstanding term paper refers to approximately twice the number of literature references as the paper has pages.

For a 15-page term paper, that would be about 30 sources, of which 5 sources could also come from websites or other non-scientific sources as needed. Now imagine having to run to the library for the remaining 25 references and borrow 25 (!) books.

I already need twenty minutes to find a single book. Of course, it depends a bit on your field of study, because theologians, lawyers or other students who have to sift through dusty books for their term papers simply have no other choice.

However, if you don’t belong to this group, you should use exclusively electronic sources. There are two decisive advantages that electronic sources bring with them, which we will cover in the next two term paper tips.

#10 Be quick and systematic in your literature search

Go to the homepage of your university library and search the catalog with the setting “available online” and then open all relevant literature databases for your research discipline.

Type in your keywords and read the abstracts of research articles and assess whether they fit your term paper. In this way, you will have your 25 sources together in just a few hours.

#11 Create a list of relevant references and ditch the rest

It takes at many years for a textbook to be published. The insights described in there could be yesterday’s news.

Current research in your discipline can always be found in scientific journals and conference proceedings, which are published online.

The more current your literature sources, the greater the relevance of your term paper.

For some subject areas or definitions, you may need to go back a few years, but the more current sources you can cite from the past 4-5 years, the more fantastic your grade will be.

An exception to this are models or theories that are the theoretical basis of your paper and can only be found in books.

#12 Practice selective reading

Different sources can be useful in very different ways. You need to define the goal you have when reading a paper, news article, or book.

This is called selective reading.

You must allow yourself to skip large parts that do not contribute to you reaching your goal.

If your goal is to find a definition in a paper, you do not need to read the findings section.

Look for the parts that are most likely to contribute to your goal and skip the rest.

It is tempting to read everything from start to finish. Don’t do it. It is literally a waste of time.

#13 Use a literature management software

Literature management software is the best invention since bananas.

You can also use such a program when you kidnap basketfuls of books from the library. However, you then have to enter them into your program by hand.

With electronic sources, someone has already done this for you. So you upload your sources to your program and link it to Word.

Whenever you want to insert a reference, your program creates the properly formatted reference in the text and at the same time the entry in the bibliography.

Check out Endnote, Mendeley or Zotero and pick one.

#14 Make writing a habit

To complete your term paper on time, you must achieve your milestones step by step,

To prevent the project from appearing like an unconquerable mountain, divide your overall project into smaller chunks (as in the GANTT diagram from term paper tip #1)

Now, all you have to do is link your goals to your actions.

This works best with a habit. For the entire duration until the submission, determine on which days of the week and for how long you will write your term paper.

For example, block off 2 hours each day that are solely dedicated to your term paper. Additionally, measure your success within these 2 hours. If you are in the research phase, aim to look up references, read and make notes from 5 papers, for example.

If you are in an advanced stage, aim to write 500 words per two-hour unit. Of course, you are completely flexible, you can plan for 2 units per day or aim for 1000 words. The main thing is that you establish a habit and get into the flow of writing.

You can also find out how important habits are in learning and how to establish them in the absolutely brilliant book: Atomic Habits by James Clear.

#15 Tell a Story

Remember the research problem you defined in the beginning?

Once you reach the back end of your term paper, you need to close all the loops you opened in the front end.

This means that you answer the research question in a very concise way.

Moreover, you refer back to all the concepts and key papers you presented in you literature section.

Never introduce a concept or theory that you do not pick up again later. Your whole term paper should be like a nicely closed circle.

Go back and forth between back end and front end and align them with each other. By doing this, you will ensure that your term paper is a consistent piece of work.

#16 Get extra points with visual uniqueness

If you are new to this blog, here’s one of the most important tips for fantastic grades:

Originality.

The more original you are in setting yourself apart from the masses with your term paper, the better your academic performance and consequently your grade will be.

This principle applies to both the content and the visual appearance of your term paper. You create a positive first impression in your professor’s mind when the work is looks exciting.

Think about it: If there are 30 papers on your professor’s desk that all look the same, they all have the same chance of getting a good grade.

The homework assignment that visually and formally stands out from the rest has a head start and is more likely to be rated better.

You can achieve your original look by using a professionally looking cover, a title page, a quote with an illustration, or a magnetic title. Just be creative.

#17 Get even more extra points with counter-intuitive thinking

If you just tell a story of what everybody already knows, you will not impress anyone.

Challenge the existing literature. Second-guess assumptions that you found while reading.

What would be an interesting perspective to look at your topic that nobody has thought of before?

If you can show that you think outside of the box with your term paper, your feedback will be immensely positive.

Professors love if their students give them food for thought. If you can find a compelling counter-intuitive argument about a topic, you will be rewarded with an outstanding grade.

#18 Stick to the 80/20 principle

Perfectionism is the killer of every term paper. The solution is the 80/20 rule. Since 20 percent of the effort produce 80 percent of the results, do not stress out about every word.

Avoid careless mistakes by sending the draft to someone else and you will be fine.

You should also apply the 80/20 rule by not trying to re-invent the wheel. Look at academic papers you find fascinating and model their structure.

Take the headings from that paper and apply it to your own topic. This has nothing to do with plagiarism. Let yourself be inspired by what has been successful.

There are only so much ways to write a term paper, so you might as well build on what has worked in the past.

#19 Give yourself a time buffer

The second to last of the term paper tips for today has to do with the final phase of your term paper.

Your GANTT diagram, that is, your project management plan, must provide for a buffer of at least 2 days before submission, especially if you have to physically drop off your homework at the university mailbox.

If the submission of your term paper is only required as a PDF, you can keep the buffer a little shorter. Nevertheless, the last few meters before submission require a series of steps that can be quickly forgotten or dismissed as unimportant.

If you are inattentive at this point, you can ruin your success at the end because you have not planned for a buffer.

#20 Never forget proofreading

Between finalizing your term paper and your submission, you should undertake the following steps:

• Proofreading (by yourself + two other people)
• Carefully check sources and bibliography (to avoid grade deductions)
• Check illustrations (including captions) and appendix
• Create an abbreviation list (if there are more than 4-5 abbreviations)
• Carry out a test print, read again for correction (if a printed version is required)
• Carry out the final print, buy a folder/cover
• Drive to campus (don’t look inside on the way) and submit

#21 Celebrate

The advice of my term paper tips requires your full attention:

Put your study materials aside, call all your friends, and celebrate your submission with them!

Are you in the final phase of your research and need to know how to write a discussion chapter?

Don’t panic.

In this article, you will find everything you need to know to write an exceptionally good discussion and reflect on your results on a high level.

I will reveal to you the 5 essential components your discussion chapter needs to have in order to convince an academic audience of the value of your results.

Why you need a good discussion chapter

If the results are the heart of your academic paper or dissertation, then the discussion is the lungs. Without it, your findings would simply run out of breath. Writing a discussion is absolutely essential for any dissertation and most research papers.

By writing a discussion, you give meaning to your study. The evaluation of your whole study largely depends on how you:

• evaluate
• classify
• reflect

your own results (which can also be the results of a literature review) in relation to previous work.

I cannot emphasize enough how important this is. It is EXTREMELY important.

And now I’ll show you how to do it.

#1 Summarize your findings

On your quest to learn how to write a discussion chapter, you need a clear outline or structure to follow. The discussion is perhaps the most important chapter of the entire study, so you shouldn’t leave anything to chance.

The following tip is worth its weight in gold for structuring your discussion:

Convert your research questions into subheadings.

In the discussion, the primary focus is to answer your previously formulated research questions to the greatest extent possible.

If you have only one research question, this approach may not work as effectively unless it contains multiple sub-aspects. However, this structure is highly suitable when you have two research questions.

Another option for quantitative studies: Instead of research questions, you can use hypotheses as the structuring elements of your first 2-3 paragraphs of your discussion, in which you summarize your findings.

#2 Interpret your findings

The simplest way at this point on how to write a discussion chapter is to scan through the results section of your study from beginning to end and provide your own interpretation for each finding in relation to existing literature.

For empirical studies you can think about the following. For example, if the influence of Variable A on Variable B is significant, the results section will simply state that it is. Usually, this is presented in the form of tables, etc., accompanied by descriptive text.

In the discussion, you are now allowed to assess what it actually means for a significant effect to exist. The same principle applies to the results of qualitative studies.

• What do your findings add to existing literature?
• How are your results different from results other researchers have found?
• How does this affect an existing debate in you field of study?

For literature-based studies you can ask yourself the following questions:

• Did your literature review reveal that certain niches within the field have not been covered?
• What does the research focus on, and which aspects does it neglect?

Discuss the content of the literature you analyzed. Reflect on a meta-level on the themes, assumptions, gaps, or contradictions you have found and what it means in terms of answering the research question(s).

#3 Explain your theoretical contributions

If you work with theory (I hope so!), the next step on how to write a discussion chapter is to relate your theoretical interpretation to existing theory.

The good news is that you have already covered existing theory in the front end of your study. This means that you don’t need to find new sources here. An exception for this are grounded theory studies, in which you do not have a theoretical background but introduce existing theory for the first time in the discussion.

But for most other studies, you can stick to the rule NOT to introduce new theory or authors in the discussion chapter.

The simplest approach is to compare your background chapter with your results and write down how both relate to each other.

Consider the following question:

What do my results contribute to theory?

Have a look at Whetten (1986) who defines what can constitute a theoretical contribution.

• Did you introduce new theoretical concepts?
• A new model?
• Did you transfer an existing theory to a new context?
• Did you shift the boundaries of an existing theory?
• Have you tested new theoretical relationships?
• Maybe you have discovered a new theoretical mechanism?

Read Whetten’s (1986) paper if you have no idea about the things I just mentioned.

#4 Explain your practical contributions

Studies that have relevance to the professional world can optionally include a section or subsection that highlights practical implications.

This refers to what the results actually mean for the world out there.

You can incorporate it into the discussion or treat it as a separate sub-section.

In economics, practical implications could be recommendations for management decisions.

In the healthcare sector, it could lead to implications for the design of processes in hospitals.

Communication scholars could consider implications for media production or distribution.

Mechanical engineers could explore application scenarios for industrial projects.

And so on. Most disciplines can establish a connection to practical applications.

However, every field has their own standards of what is expected in a discussion chapter. Review a handful of papers from you discipline and model the structure you find there.

#5 Mention some limitations

While conducting your research you will encounter various limitations.

In your discussion chapter, you should reflect and explain which limitations you encountered and how they affect your results.

Depending on the research project, possible limitations can refer to the chosen methodology or the reliability of the method may be compromised.

Focus on limitations that were outside of you control to not become to critical with yourself. After all, you want to sell your study as important!

Based on the explanation of the limitations, you can also derive recommendations for further research. You explain how your own results yield new questions or which questions remain unanswered.

In some cases, the limitations and recommendations for future research can be found in the conclusion section of a paper.

If you write more than a paragraph for each, I would recommend to position them in the discussion. This allows you to keep the conclusion short and sweet.

Some final remarks

The most important element of every discussion is your study’s contribution.

If you do not convincingly sell your contributions, a reviewer may claim that your work is too descriptive.

To counteract this, you should invest a lot of time and brainpower into writing your discussion.

If you want to write a discussion that leaves a lasting impression, demonstrate that you have engaged deeply with the literature and/or theory.

Use plenty of references. Not every sentence has to be supported by a reference; you should also craft your own arguments.

It is important to stay close to the literature, but with in constant interplay with your own interpretations.

One characteristic that sets outstanding discussion chapters apart from the average is the ability for critical reflection.

Take a clear position and solidify your arguments by referring to other works.

If you can do this, your results will get the discussion they deserve.

You have your desk full of work, but you just can’t get yourself to start? Your greatest desire is to beat procrastination permanently?

Well, you’ve come to the right place.

Because in this article, I will show you 5 steps that help you to actually start tackling your tasks and ultimately finish what you have set out to do.

By internalizing these steps you will be able to beat procrastination permanently.

The Science behind Procrastination

Before we consider strategies on how to beat procrastination permanently, we first need to understand the problem.

Study the enemy.

So what lies behind the strange word “procrastination” and what happens in our brain from a scientific perspective?

The term “procrastination” describes the act of postponing important tasks and activities.

In Latin, procrastinare actually means “to postpone” and is derived from pro (“for”) and cras (“tomorrow”). Yet, we learned as children: Don’t put off till tomorrow what you can do today…

…Okay, that’s enough.

We know perfectly well that the tasks and activities should be done right now. But how is it possible that we don’t do them, even though we know it would be the right thing to do?

Research has, of course, delved into this problem and conducted numerous surveys with people who suffer from procrastination. Some people suffer from it so severely that the consequences can be dramatic.

Science has a simple explanation for the phenomenon of procrastination.

Procrastination is “a complicated failure of self-regulation: experts define it as the voluntary delay of some important task that we intend to do, despite knowing that we’ll suffer as a result.

A poor concept of time may exacerbate the problem, but an inability to manage emotions seems to be its very foundation” (Jaffe, 2013).

The Monkey and the Panic Monster

Tim Urban, who dedicated large parts of his famous blog, Wait But Why, to this topic, has created a wonderful metaphor for the mechanisms behind procrastination:

In our heads, there are two inhabitants fighting for our attention. The Instant Gratification Monkey and the Panic Monster.

The Instant Gratification Monkey wants to divert you off course because it wants an immediate kick. However, completing important tasks and activities brings no immediate satisfaction.

Instead, the monkey screams for alternatives that trigger an immediate feeling of happiness in us.

The Panic Monster also shows up occasionally and tries to detach you from the little monkey. Because the Panic Monster is aware of the long-term consequences that non-completion of tasks would have.

The closer the deadline for a task approaches, the more powerful the Panic Monster becomes.

It has the power to convince you at the last moment to ignore the monkey and stay on course.

Fortunately, we have the Panic Monster on our side, but we shouldn’t rely on it too often. If we depend on its help too frequently, our performance suffers, and we are subjected to immense stress.

If you want to read the complete brilliant story by Tim Urban, I have linked to it in the description. I swear to you, it’s the best thing you will have read in the last 4-7 days.

And if you prefer procrastinating on YouTube, just watch Tim’s TED Talk on the subject of procrastination.

So within us, there is a battle between instant gratification and long-term success when it comes to procrastination. Both cannot coexist.

Or can they?

Let’s take a look at what you can do.

Remember Your Goals (Step #1)

To beat procrastination permanently, the balance between the Panic Monster and the Instant Gratification Monkey must be maintained.

You must be able to initiate the steps necessary for your personal success in school and other areas of life without hindrance.

Specifically, this means: Keep reminding yourself of your goals, preferably as part of a regular ritual. For example, you could reserve half an hour on Sunday evening to create a status report for yourself.

• How did the past week go, and how much progress were you able to make?
• What does that mean for the upcoming week, and what things ideally need to be done to smoothly reach your milestones?

On a macro level, it helps to visualize your next big goal.

• Is it your university degree?
• What awaits at the end of this tunnel?
• No more financial worries?
• A world trip?
• Your dream job?

Write down how your desired future looks like. Create a collage of images and set it as the background on your laptop. This way, you will be reminded every day why you’re doing all of this.

Create a Plan (Step #2)

Now is the time to put together a plan. When you already know the path, you will be able to tread it more easily.

Planning is the mother of beating procrastination.

But beware! There are people who are great at planning things, but when it comes to implementation, they struggle so much that absolutely no results come out of it.

Nevertheless, to beat procrastination permanently, you need a solid plan. The plan must include time units and work packages.

Or in other words, a plan dictates what is to be completed at what point in time.

Procrastination mainly arises when the task seems so big and distant that we don’t even want to confront it.

Therefore, plan small, manageable work packages.

Ideally, these small work packages should be achievable within a day and designed according to the SMART principle.

Look up what SMART goals are if you are not familiar with this principle.

Create a Small Success Experience (Step #3)

When your big task is divided into small work packages, you have a significant advantage: you can celebrate a sense of accomplishment every day. This not only increases motivation but also creates a streak—a series of small victories.

Your self-confidence grows, and you can track your progress rationally and effectively. This way, you don’t need to rely on the help of the Panic Monster but can come closer to the flow with every mini-success.

Flow?

Exactly. Writing flow, tunnel vision. Flow is the archenemy of procrastination. Once you have overcome procrastination, you are in the flow.

With a series of small completed work packages, you can get closer to a flow experience. However, there is more to entering and staying in the flow.

You have definitely experienced it before: you are so immersed in a task that you lose track of time and don’t even think about stopping.

It’s similar to physics. Once an object is set in motion, it doesn’t stop rolling. Unstoppably, it moves toward its goal and overcomes all obstacles.

You absolutely must get into the flow.

Surf on the Flow Wave (Step #4)

To explore your personal experience of flow, I want you to take a moment and reflect. What usually prevents you from getting into the flow or staying in the flow?

Is it too many distractions? Eliminate them (e.g., using apps that block your phone or other distractions).

Is it a lack of motivation? Visualize your success.

Is it your work environment? Create the best possible conditions.

Do you get hungry too often? Prepare your meals.

Do you have too little time? Structure your day.

And so on.

It is crucial that you analyze your current behavior and spot the things that keep you from getting into the flow.

Getting into the flow is the key to beat procrastination permanently.

Once you’ve achieved it, you can surf on it like a wave. Use the same techniques to protect your flow experiences.

Reward Yourself in the Short Term (Step #5)

Ok, riding the flow wave sounds great but the problem with procrastination is not to keep going but to start.

The Instant Gratification Monkey won’t simply disappear even with a wild ride on the flow wave.

But there might be a way to trick your brain into starting by calming the Instant Gratification Monkey.

Even when you complete small work packages, the long-term reward may still be far off. That’s why you should keep the monkey entertained and give yourself a short-term kick.

How? You know best.

Reward yourself with the activity you would normally indulge in during your procrastination time. For some, it may be watching Netflix, while for others, it could be spending an afternoon at the lake.

The important thing is that the reward comes after you’ve completed your planned work package.

As Tim Urban puts it:

“Now, for the first time in a while, you and the monkey are a team. You both want to have fun, and it feels great because it’s earned. When you and the monkey are on a team, you’re almost always happy.”

You would like to get some inspiration on how to create an outline for a research paper or thesis? Then you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, I will explain step by step how you can create the perfect structure for your text so that you only need to fill in the blanks and can focus on your writing.

Towards a super strong paper or thesis outline

We all learn the classic structure of a text in school: introduction – main body – conclusion.

However, academic papers differ from essays that follow this structure. Here, we need to put a little more effort into preparing such papers, no matter if they are an assignment for a class in college or the final thesis for your studies.

In principle, the basic structure of introduction, body, and conclusions is not wrong. It is just too broad to work with for an academic paper. That’s why today we’re going to delve into more detail.

My first piece of advice on how to create an outline for a research paper would be: If you have never read a proper research article (about 15 pages) that you find millions of in scientific databases, you should do so now.

In research, publications must always follow the same principle. It is optimally designed to “sell” your own research results to an unknown reader.

So take a look at a classic “paper” and pay attention to the headings in which the document is divided. Here is an example outline of such a research article.

Since students should practice the scientific exploration of a topic in their assignments, it makes sense to mimic actual research. The closer you get to the standards of real research with your work, the better your grade will be. I promise.

This means, conversely, that you will never have a problem setting up an outline again. Every new research paper will structure itself; you just need to insert your topic into the basic structure.

The basic structure can be the same for every paper. Now let’s take a look at what such an outline looks like:

#1 Cover page

The first physical page of your paper is some sort of cover page. Check your department’s information to see if there is a template for it. Otherwise, you can design your own cover page.

The following information must not be missing from the cover page of your paper:

• Title of the paper
• Subtitle (optional)
• Designation of the seminar or lecture
• The department or institute
• Name of the supervisor (including all academic titles)
• Your contact information (name, address, telephone, university email address, student ID number)
• Table of contents (optional)

At the beginning of my study career, I usually manually tinkered with my table of contents using OpenOffice. Not a good idea. Read up a bit or watch a tutorial on YouTube on how to automatically create your table of contents in Word.

The automatic table of contents is a huge relief and saves you so much time. In addition, the page numbers are always correct, and you don’t have to worry about anything anymore. Just set the font and font size so that it looks appealing and visually matches the rest of your paper.

#2 Introduction

The next step on how to create an outline for a research paper is the content of your paper. The structure of an introduction for a term paper ALWAYS follows the same pattern:

A cool quote to your liking (optional)

Explain research motivation and relevance

Identify an existing research problem

Name the objective of your paper (including research questions)

Describe your method or approach to answer those questions

Articulate a contribution statement about why your paper is an important gain in knowledge

Now that we have clarified the structure of your introduction, let’s move on to the next major section of your term paper.

#3 Literature sections

Every discipline works a little differently. However, they all overlap in the structure of their research articles, which is why all papers can be structured in a similar way.

You must make individual adjustments for your field of study, such as the weighting of individual chapters. The method and what is considered theory also varies from field to field.

Since the scope of a student paper generally does not necessarily require empirical research, the approach is most often literature-based.

This means that the results of the term paper are based solely on existing research literature, without collecting unique data.

What does this mean for our outline?

The “method” you choose for our paper is initially a literature review. Hence, the first step required is to review current research literature.

Even if you are studying history, dentistry, law, or physics, there is always current research literature on any topic. Every year, thousands of research articles are published that reflect the current state of research in a discipline.

State of the art

In this part of your paper, you create two or three literature sections that explain the state of the art of your topic.

You begin to explain your topics including definitions and current findings from general to specific.

EXAMPLE: If your topic is “Aggression and Video Games”, you start with the literature on aggression in human psychology and define what it is (general).

Then you present recent studies on researching human behaviour in relation to video games (more specific) and finally, what has been researched specifically on your topic, aggression and video games (specific).

You can also imagine this principle as a funnel. You start with a general overview of research in your field and then move closer to your specific problem.

Easy, right?

Theoretical Background

The second part of your literature section can be a theoretical background, but only if you refer to a single model or theory throughout your work.

Then you should present this specific theory in detail in a separate chapter and relate it to your topic.

A research paper can also suffice with some literature sections on the current state of the art.

If you do not want to delve into a specific theory or model, that is fine.

You simply have to make this decision. At this point, the general structure of a research paper is not so rigid.

It often helps to consult with your supervisor about which approach they recommend in a specific case.

#4 Methodology

Once you have developed your theory and reviewed the current literature, we move on to the next section on how to create an outline for a research paper. The methodology or research design section involves the description of methodical steps or your research design in general.

However, this section is typical for empirical studies in which you need to describe your data collection and analyses techniques. If you have a systematic approach to analysing literature, you can explain how you did this in this section as well. If there is no systematic approach, you can skip this section.

#5 Results

If you are work only with literature, this section is where you get really analytical. So far, you have worked descriptively, meaning that you have summarized existing research in your own words and provided many different references.

Every good paper requires some sort of original contribution, and you should provide yours at this point. It is a crucial step on how to create an outline for a research paper. Even if it means reflecting on a problem or placing a subject matter into a different context, this is where your creativity and interpretation comes in if you work with literature.

If you work empirically, this results or findings section involves less interpretation. Instead, you should focus on the description of the results from your data analysis. Show the reader what you have done and bring all your findings together to form a story that the reader can follow.

#6 Discussion

After you have analysed some literature or empirical data, we come to another critical part of your paper’s structure: the discussion of your findings. This is where things get serious.

How well can you connect your own findings with the literature (and theory) and answer your research questions?

It may sound challenging, but with a little practice, you’ll get a feel for it. The term “discussion” here does not refer to a subjective debate or the inclusion of different opinions. What a researcher means with a discussion is a juxtaposition of your results with existing research.

You start with a short summary and interpretation of what you have done and then include more and more other references.

Quote some key sources from your literature review again and explain what your work means in relation to them. Do not introduce new references.

One way to make a discussion more appealing is to summarize your findings in a single figure or table to that a lazy reader could understand the essence of your work by only looking at this one figure or table.

Especially if you have some theoretical elements in your contribution, a figure helps to make it more accessible to the reader.

#7 Conclusion

Now we are almost at the end of the paper outline. However, that does not mean that we can slow down here. Every section requires the same dedicated attention.

In the conclusion, you are back on the meta level like in the introduction. The structure of your conclusion could look like this:

• Summarize your results concisely
• Formulate a polished answer to your research question
• Highlight the contribution you make to the literature (or theory)
• Name any contributions to practice (if any)
• Identify limitations you had while conducting your study
• Consider which topics you or others could investigate in the future

You can divide your conclusion into individual subheadings, but you do not have to.

For detailed instructions on how to write a conclusion, refer to my comprehensive guide that is linked in the top right corner.

Next Steps

That was a lot of information to take in. But actually, structuring a research paper or thesis is not that difficult. The outline remains the same with every other academic work, even if the topics change. And now you know this outline!

Before you even start writing your paper or thesis, it is important to create an outline. It is the roadmap for your writing process now AND the reader later on.

Once you have set up your outline, you won’t face writer’s block because you always know what to do next with this structure.

You would like to know how to overcome Parkinson’s Law?

This article will briefly explain what Parkinson’s Law is and how it affects your time management. But since there are hundreds of articles about Parkinson’s Law available online, I will focus less on how it works and more on how to actually beat it.

To support you in that process, I will give you 3 steps that will help you to overcome Parkinson’s Law once and for all.

If you can reduce the impact Parkinson’s Law has on your work only by a couple of percent, you will see phenomenal gains in your productivity.

Make sure to stay until the end of the video, when I will share with you in what situation this productivity-hacking can backfire.

What is Parkinson’s Law?

Parkinson’s Law states that work will always expand to fill the time available for its completion.

I will read that sentence again.

Work will always expand to fill the time available for its completion.

This still fascinating statement was made by Cyril Northcote Parkinson, a famous British historian and author, in 1955.

If one believes in this law (which I do), then the complexity of a task is not the decisive factor for the amount of time it takes to complete, but rather the deadline.

And that is simply incredible.

According to Parkinson’s Law, your work magically expands to fill the time available to you.

A research paper for which you have six weeks will take you six weeks to complete. If your deadline is in three weeks, you will complete the work with the same quality within three weeks.

The complexity of the six-week paper is only seemingly higher or perceived as higher. In reality, the degree of complexity does not differ.

Why having too much time isn’t always good

The more time you have to complete a task, the longer the period of tension. You constantly have it in your head that you still have to finish it.

You are tense and perhaps even stressed. If you reduce the time, you also reduce the amount of stress you subject yourself to.

It may sound strange, but it’s true.

Parkinson’s Law does not assume that a task should be completed faster than necessary.

It states that the time we give ourselves for a task is far too generously calculated.

In reality, you need much less time to write a paper than you think. Either you plan a buffer or you simply set your personal deadline to the point where you have to start the next task.

Taking time is good.

But using time meaningfully is better. With knowledge of Parkinson’s Law, you can save valuable time. You just have to consider it in your planning.

My personal experience

Last year, I gained a lot of experience with Parkinson’s Law myself.

When I started to write articles for my blog and produced a video on the same topic for YouTube, I gave myself until Sunday afternoon.

That’s when the content usually went live. And guess when I finished with everything?

Always on Sunday around noon.

It doesn’t matter how busy my work week was. Sometimes I was on a business trip and had a thousand other things to do.

Sometimes the week had a public holiday and gave me plenty of time to write.

And yet – I always finished on Sunday.

It’s crazy.

How to Overcome Parkinson’s Law

You will be surprised at how quickly you can complete a task if you allocate less time to it.

Parkinson’s Law does not say that you should work harder.

It says that you should do the work that is necessary in less time. And that seems paradoxical, but it works.

If you assign the right amount of time to a task, you will gain time back. Additionally, the complexity of your task will be reduced to its natural state.

You probably know it yourself – on a study day in the library, you set out to work through the lecture notes of a course.

You start… get yourself a coffee… continue… then it’s already time for lunch… you randomly meet someone from another class… then back to the lecture notes… don’t forget the afternoon snack… wait, who’s messaging me on Instagram… and done!

You spent 7 hours in the library studying and worked through the lecture notes. Net working time: 3 hours. Maximum.

If you hadn’t assigned the lecture notes the whole day, but only 4 hours, you would have had a free afternoon and still completed your workload. Or you would have worked through the second set of notes as well.

3 Steps to Overcome Parkinson’s Law

You can implement these steps immediately.

1. Halve the deadline. For your next submission, be it a paper, report, or presentation – just halve the time you give yourself to complete it. Pretend it’s really serious and enter your own deadline in your calendar. Don’t say things like: “I will finish it by the end of the week.” Instead, say things like “I will finish it by the end of the day.”

What could possibly go wrong?

2. Apply deep work. To outsmart Parkinson’s Law, you need a strong productivity technique. Read “Deep Work” by Cal Newport if you haven’t done so already. It will change your life. The essence of it is that you plan distraction-free time slots throughout your day in which you work on the thing that matters most. It sounds underwhelming, but be honest to yourself. Are you immune to the distractions on you phone and your computer? I’m not. Deep work will teach you how to tame them.

Do you have what it takes turn your back on all distractions?

3. Have fun playing against the clock. Don’t take it too seriously. Imagine you could save 30% or even more time with your newly acquired knowledge of Parkinson’s Law. That would be fabulous. But you shouldn’t torture yourself because of it. If you lose the fun, no productivity technique in the world is sustainable.

See it as a game. It is all about consistency and slow growth. Keep doing the work consistently and you’ll become a winner.

A Word of Caution about Trying to Beat Parkinson’s Law

There is another saying that is as true as Parkinson’s Law.

It states that if you have good time management, you will be rewarded with more work.

If you are a student, entrepreneur or someone who works for himself, that’s fine. Overcoming Parkinson’s Law will positively affect you, as long as you keep a healthy balance and take care of your physical and mental health.

If you are working for somebody else, being quick means that you will get a reputation for that.

For example, if you are really quick at answering e-mails, you will not reduce your workload with e-mails but increase it.

Once people know you reply quickly, they keep sending you more e-mails.

The same happens with projects. If you finish them quickly, you will just end up getting more of hem assigned to you.

The risk here is that you will not be rewarded for the work you do.

Another risk is that co-workers will feel intimidated by you finishing work more quickly than expected.

It can be seen like at attack or undermining their own way of managing their time.

Consequently, the best possible situation for Parkinson’s Law to be overcome is when the outcomes are directly contributing to you and only you.

Keep crushing your goals!