Attitudes toward traditional and nontraditional dissertation research: Survey of directors of clinical training.

Abstract

Analyzed survey responses from 62 directors of clinical training. Respondents reported that many more of their clinical and nonclinical colleagues would support classical experimental and correlational methods for dissertations than would support nontraditional methods (phenomenological studies, surveys, library research, and case histories.) Directors also rated traditional methods as producing data more valuable to the practitioner than data provided by nontraditional methods. A small but meaningful number of directors reported faculty acceptance of nontraditional approaches. Results are discussed in the context of doctoral research training and current concerns about the viability of traditional views of science for clinical psychology.

Learning to Use Discourse Analysis on a Professional Psychology Training Programme: Accounts of Supervisees and a Supervisor

“…Keeley et al, 1988;Ponterotto, 2005b;Shemberg et al, 1989). Ponterotto's (2005b) survey of qualitative research training on counselling psychology programmes in North America, reported that qualitative methods courses were largely elective and that although 95% of the responding programmes accepted qualitative methods dissertations, only 10% of students had actually conducted qualitative studies in their research.…”

A systematic review of research on dissertations in health service psychology programs.

“…The four articles in this category included primarily descriptive surveys of directors of clinical or counseling training programs about types of dissertation methods used by doctoral students in their programs. Three of the articles indicated that traditional empirical designs were the most commonly used or supported dissertation methods (Galassi, Brooks, Stoltz, & Trexler, 1986; Sanchez-Hucles & Cash, 1992; Shemberg, Keeley, & Blum, 1989). Sanchez-Hucles and Cash (1992) surveyed 40 directors of clinical training and found that only about one third of students in Vail-model programs, programs focused primarily on training practitioners, used nonempirical dissertation designs (e.g., clinical or theoretical projects, literature reviews, case studies).…”

Surveying Qualitative Research Teaching on British Clinical Psychology Training Programmes 1992–2006: A Changing Relationship?

“…This compared relatively favourably with US studies. For example, Shemberg, Keeley and Blum (1989) found that Correspondence fewer than half the directors of US clinical psychology training programmes felt a majority of their faculty would see phenomenological and survey methodology as acceptable for their students. Keeley, Shemberg and Zaynor (1988), examining the percentage of clinical psychology dissertation abstracts found that although "nontraditional" research methods (including qualitative methods) had increased from 2.8%, it had still only risen to 9.8% in 1985.…”

“…This compared relatively favourably with US studies. For example, Shemberg, Keeley and Blum (1989) found that Correspondence: David J. Harper, Reader in Clinical Psychology, School of Psychology, University of East London, Water Lane, London, E15 4LZ, United Kingdom. E-mail: D.Harper@ uel.ac.uk 5 6 D. J. Harper…”