A Qualitative Inquiry of the Counseling Dissertation Process

Abstract

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

Dissertation experiences of doctoral graduates from professional psychology programs

“…conceptualization, writing, faculty relationships, and time management) helped students continue to progress toward completion (Delamont et al, 2000;Pauley, 2004). Additionally, support from other dissertating peers led to the completion of major dissertation goals; improved communication with chair, committee members, or mentors; and increased feelings of competence (Flynn et al, 2012;Pauley, 2004). Interestingly, support from families yielded mixed results with regard to dissertation completion: in one study, family concerns hindered dissertation completion because they distracted students from working on their dissertations, but students who completed their dissertation also rated their families as significantly more supportive than students who identified as ABD .…”

“…Fifth, other support systems, such as friends and family, are also influential during students' dissertation experiences (Cao, 2001;Flynn et al, 2012;Lenz, 1997). More specifically, emotional support from friends and peers mitigates the isolating effects of a dissertation, and friends' and peers' encouragement and feedback on various aspects of the dissertation process (e.g.…”

“…It may be that strong chair-student relationships mitigate factors that adversely influence dissertation experiences (Gelso, 1997). For instance, feelings of social and intellectual isolation that students experience during their dissertation are typically alleviated through chair support, encouragement, and positive feedback (Delamont et al, 2000;Flynn, Chasek, Harper, Murphy, & Jorgensen, 2012;Kluever, Green, & Katz, 1997). Furthermore, positive chair-student relationships are associated with students' stronger research self-efficacy beliefs, positive feelings toward research, and positive growth as a researcher (Schlosser & Gelso, 2001;Schlosser & Gelso, 2005;Schlosser & Kahn, 2007;Schlosser et al, 2003), which may be important to sustaining the necessary confidence and motivation to complete a dissertation.…”

“…Also notable in these relationships is the absence of structure and guidance during the dissertation process, perhaps a further reflection of chairs' lack of investment in the students' research. Given that students perceive chairs to be key sources of support during the dissertation process (Flynn et al, 2012;Kluever, 1997), these difficult relationships were possibly disheartening to participants and may have further isolated them from chairs, a perspective supported by prior research (Knox et al, 2006;Schlosser et al, 2003). We were not surprised, then, that participants often expressed uncertainty about how to proceed with their dissertation, reflecting their difficulty in navigating the more challenging elements of a dissertation, a finding supported by prior research (Delamont et al, 2000;Flynn et al, 2012;Kluever et al, 1997).…”

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“…CACREP-accredited programs seemed a logical starting point since these programs are required to meet a common set of standards around doctoral research training, but the standards are somewhat general and so allow flexibility in dissertation products. In fact, research training in these programs varies widely (Borders, Wester, Fickling, & Adamson, 2013;Goodrich et al, 2011), suggesting the programs' requirements around dissertations also might vary. It was hoped that this study would provide initial information that could serve as a starting point for further investigations and discussions around doctoral counseling students' dissertations, including format, topics, expectations, and quality, as well as trends in research interests and students' potential "to disseminate innovative counselor education research in scholarly venues" (Adkison-Bradley, 2013, p. 47).…”