# data[].attributes.body
Initial brainstorming, ideas thoughts and inspirations!

I wanted to begin broad and think about things related to my industry that I might want a better understanding of. Some of these initial ideas sparked interest whereas others, although interesting, weren't topics I was passionate about.

# data[].attributes.body
I discussed some of the concepts I had first considered with my friends and peers. They agreed that I was much more talkative about topics that inspired me and that they liked seeing Aphantasia spoken about, as there isn't much coverage on it.

# data[].attributes.body
I was concerned I was going to fall into an aphantasia hole and not explore other ideas, so I went back and made a mind map of some of the things that have inspired me and interested me most during life.

# data[].attributes.headline
Dinosaurs! And their representation within pop culture...

# data[].attributes.subject
Dinosaurs! And their representation within pop culture...

# data[].attributes.body
Something I have forever enjoyed discussing is dinosaurs and how incorrectly they are portrayed within the wider media, I knew this was an idea I wanted to look further into when it came to my initial dissertation concepts!

# data[].attributes.body
Further research...

I really enjoyed deep diving into this topic, I read a very interesting thesis by Buffalo College describing the struggles between palaeontology and pop culture which inspired me a lot.

# data[].attributes.body
I had 2 concepts and knew I needed to narrow it down to one, to do this I wanted to continue research into both to see if one in particular, stood out to me.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
When the mind is dark, making art is a thrilling way to see | Psyche Ideas

# data[].attributes.body
Reading this blog on Aphantasia allowed me to realise that it effects every part of your brain and the way you work as a human. It did feel slightly overwhelming as well as intriguing, but it did beg the question - Is this topic too scientific for me?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the early 2000s, I encountered a patient who had lost his previously active 'mind's eye' following neural complications arising from heart surgery: he could no longer conjure up the faces of family and friends, visualise places he'd visited or imagine scenes in a novel; even his dreams were now without imagery. Before his loss, the vividness of his imagery approached 'real seeing' - afterwards he 'saw' nothing in his mind, though he could still think perfectly well about objects and concepts, and he functioned well in everyday life.

I was intrigued: visualisation is, for most of us, such a central ingredient of our mental lives, at work in memory, reverie, dreaming, reading, problem-solving and creativity. Think of an apple for a moment. Was it green or red? Shiny or gnarled? Was there a stalk? Could you have used the stalk to twirl the apple on request? If you can answer these questions, or at least they make sense to you, it's likely that you experience 'visual imagery', as most of us do.

Given his deficit, it seemed remarkable that our patient - MX, as we called him - was able to function so well. In fact, MX was an ideal research participant - intelligent, interested, cognitively intact in all respects bar this single, subtle but striking deficit. Using functional MRI scanning, we showed that, while his neural activity was normal when he looked at famous faces, once he tried to visualise them mentally, he failed to engage the visual parts of his brain as you or I would if we engaged our mind's eye (assuming you can visualise). His presentation matched a disorder of 'visual imagery generation' previously described by the American psychologist Martha Farah, drawing on the background work of another psychologist, Stephen Kosslyn. I found MX's case fascinating and odd, but unlikely to lead much further. Then events, as they sometimes do, took an unexpected turn.

In 2010, the US science journalist Carl Zimmer described our work on MX's case in the science magazine, Discover. Over the next few years, 21 people contacted me explaining that they'd recognised themselves in Zimmer's lucid description of MX, but with one difference - they'd never been able to visualise. For as long as they could remember, they'd been aware of this quirk in their psychological nature: while others seemed to have a somewhat visual experience when they thought of an apple, or their front door, or their last holiday, these folk saw blackness.

If you're aphantasic, and you want to know what something looks like, one solution is to draw it

Reading around the topic, I discovered that this quirk had been commented on before. Francis Galton, the first psychologist to measure the vividness of visual imagery, recognised in the 1880s that a small number of those whom he approached lacked imagery entirely: their 'powers of visualisation ... [were] zero'. But oddly this intriguing observation had lain in the long grass since. One reason might have been that it lacked a convenient name. So when my colleagues and I came to describe in the research literature the 21 individuals who'd made contact with us, we decided to coin one. At the suggestion of my classicist friend David Mitchell, we borrowed from Aristotle, who used the term 'phantasia' to denote the mind's eye, adding the prefix 'a' to denote absence. In 2015, we published our paper reporting these participants as having 'congenital aphantasia'.

Five years on, I have heard from around 14,000 people with unusual mental imagery capacities, most of them at the aphantasic end of the spectrum, but also a minority with 'hyperphantasia', who experience imagery 'as vivid as real seeing'. Depending on the precise definitions used, aphantasia is estimated to occur in around 3 per cent of the general population, and hyperphantasia in around 6 per cent of the population.

Through questionnaire and face-to-face studies, we have found some consistent associations with these extremes of imagery vividness, helping to assuage the worry that they might simply reflect vagaries of introspection. People with aphantasia are more likely to work in science, mathematics and IT, while those with hyperphantasia are more likely to work in traditionally 'creative' industries. Aphantasia is associated with difficulty with autobiographical memory and with imaginary or future thinking; people with aphantasia also tend to be relatively poor at recognising faces (which is intriguing, as this is a perceptual rather than a representational problem) and they're diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder at above-average rates. Extremes of imagery tend to cluster in families, hinting at a genetic link or links. Some people with aphantasia report avisual dreams, but many dream visually, which suggests wakeful and dreaming imagery depend on somewhat separate processes. Some lack imagery in any of the senses - no mind's ear or mind's nose, for example - while others have vivid imagery in at least one other sense. In short, aphantasia is almost certainly more than one 'thing'.

You might be feeling that, on the whole, people with aphantasia have a raw deal but, while it has some drawbacks, there are advantages too. For example, lack of distraction by emotional imagery might allow people with aphantasia to be 'present' in ways that some of us might envy, and it's abundantly clear that aphantasia is compatible with high achievement: Craig Venter, who led the first draft sequences of the human genome, Ed Catmull, past president of Pixar Disney and recent recipient of the Turing Prize for his work on computer-generated animation, Blake Ross, co-creator of Mozilla Firefox, and Oliver Sacks, the acclaimed neurological author, have all declared their aphantasia.

We are immensely complex creatures: the possession of visual imagery is one small piece in the huge jigsaw of cognition

When I first encountered people lacking visual imagery in some numbers, I was fascinated by this invisible variation in human experience. I wondered how to make sense of it. My first pass was that it probably reflected an extreme form of the old distinction between 'verbalisers' and 'visualisers'. I assumed that people lacking imagery would be more dependent on language and generally less interested in the visual world, than those with vivid imagery. My colleagues in our Eye's Mind project at the University of Exeter - two historians, a philosopher, an artist and a neuroscientist - broadly agreed. The finding that aphantasia predisposes people to work in scientific rather than creative trades seemed to bear out this assumption. Imagine our puzzled surprise, then, as aphantasic visual artists got in touch in growing numbers - about 150 so far, alongside a smattering of actors, authors and architects. Why would you want to depict a world you can't imagine? How can artists create without any imagery to guide their creation?

I realised belatedly, after hearing from these people, that aphantasia might sometimes increase rather than reduce interest in the visual world. People with aphantasia see perfectly well and can have an eye for beauty. In fact, deprived of the ability to contemplate the look of things in their mind's eye, their visual attention to the here and now might be heightened. And lacking a mind's eye might also increase the motivation to represent the visual artistically - as my colleague, the cultural historian Matthew MacKisack pointed out to me, if you're aphantasic, and you want to know what something looks like, one solution is to draw it. This meshed with the report from many of our study participants that they used photography extensively to capture appearances they would otherwise be unable to retrieve. As Sheri Bakes, a Canadian artist who - unusually - had lost imagery following a stroke at the age of 29, told us: 'The paintings have become the picture inside that I can't see.' She wrote elsewhere: 'After the stroke, I taught myself to paint before I could even walk or speak again properly; it was the only thing I could really do.'

Increasingly struck by the accounts we were receiving, in 2019 we mounted an exhibition of work by aphantasic and hyperphantasic artists at the Tramway in Glasgow and then at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter - Extreme Imagination: Inside the Mind's Eye, curated by MacKisack and the artist Susan Aldworth (now accessible virtually). I would challenge any visitor to 'diagnose' which category each artist belonged to. Artists with aphantasia produced works ranging from the photorealist to the abstract, conjuring vivid detail as well as suggestive ambiguity. But their accounts of their artistic process were distinctive.

The point of departure for the aphantasic artists' work is not a visual image, but a 'feeling', 'emotion, desire, energy', 'thoughts and ideas' or a sense of a spatial arrangement. Some then make use of existing materials, through collages or reworkings of famous paintings; others rely on drawing from life, or refer to archives of images and photos; a third group, intriguingly to me, describes using the developing work on the page or canvas as a kind of externalised imagination, allowing them to 'push and engage with the appearing image', sometimes with a 'thrilling sense of stepping out into the unknown'.

A lifetime of looking, of drawing and - I suspect - a wealth of unconscious imagery informs aphantasic artists' use of their work to dream itself into being. Catmull was startled to discover that one of his favourite illustrators, Glen Keane, animator of The Little Mermaid (1989) and Beauty and the Beast (1991), lacks imagery, like Catmull himself. Yet Keane was named a Disney Legend in 2013, and won a 2017 Academy Award for his animated film made with Kobe Bryant, Dear Basketball (2017). I've seen a clip of Keane drawing that shows him peering intently at a preliminary, indecipherable scribble, hunting for the cues that will help him to conjure a vivid drawing from the page. Intriguingly, he belongs to a lineage of artists - his father Bil was a celebrated cartoonist, and his daughter, Claire, helped to illustrate Frozen (2013).

Our finding that aphantasia predisposes people to work in the sciences suggests that our initial assumption, that it would militate against a career in art, was not wholly wrong. But we are immensely complex creatures: the possession of visual imagery is one small piece in the huge jigsaw of cognition. There are many ways to represent things in their absence besides a sensory image - language for example and, as our exhibition illustrated, art! Our work with aphantasic creatives drives home another broad conclusion: we shouldn't confuse visualisation with imagination, the far broader capacity, to represent, reshape and reconceive things in their absence. Imagination can certainly make use of imagery - but it doesn't have to. As the examples of Bakes, Catmull, Keane, Ross, Sacks and Venter demonstrate amply, aphantasia is no bar to an imaginative life. If, reading this, you come to the conclusion that you too might lack imagery, or have it in spades, don't hesitate to contact me ( a.zeman@exeter.ac.uk) as we still have much to learn.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
When the mind is dark, making art is a thrilling way to see | Psyche Ideas

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the early 2000s, I encountered a patient who had lost his previously active 'mind's eye' following neural complications arising from heart surgery: he could no longer conjure up the faces of family and friends, visualise places he'd visited or imagine scenes in a novel; even his dreams were now without imagery.

# data[].attributes.body
This little creature is a Psittacosaurus, and is the first dinosaur fossil to have been discovered with skin pigment in tact. Although he isn’t the most ferocious of creatures, discovering that this had happened really pushed me forward into wanting to research this topic further.

# data[].attributes.headline
When was the first depiction of dinosaurs?

# data[].attributes.subject
When was the first depiction of dinosaurs?

# data[].attributes.body
The term 'dinosaur' was coined in 1842, but the first pop culture reference to a dinosaur-like animal was during the mid 1900s, with the release of films such as 'Godzilla'

# data[].attributes.body
Looking closer to home, in 1853 Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins began sculpting the now iconic Crystal Palace Dinosaurs.

# data[].attributes.body
Dinosaurs - how has their representation changed within pop culture over the last 180 years?

# data[].attributes.body
Seen here are the previously spoken about Crystal palace dinosaurs, the first ever film featuring dinosaurs named "Along Moonbeam Trail", and the most recent pop culture depiction of dinosaurs - "Jurassic World Domination".

# data[].attributes.body
After presenting my initial lead question concept to my peers and lecturer we discussed the most interesting parts of my idea. This lead us to the areas surrounding consumerism.

Something about the poor representation of dinosaurs and the link to consumerism spoke to me and therefore we decided to change my initial lead question...

# data[].attributes.body
Dinosaurs - What are the links between their representation and consumerism?

# data[].attributes.body
I wanted to delve into further research outside of online studies. I have not been into a library for years, but a new one opened near my home and I decided to dive in! I found a brand new (and rather expensive!) book on dinosaur representation. It was good to find some other sources aside from the internet, which can sometimes feel biased.

# data[].attributes.body
Collecting wider facts gave me a good grounding and a lot of inspiration when it came to my topic in general. I enjoyed reading into the arguments on both sides of this story.

# data[].attributes.body
I knew I needed to delve into consumerism too, if I wanted to do this topic.

I was recommended this book called 'Stuff' by Daniel Miller. I took a look and realised the topic goes very far and is very extensive! I need to hone in on this research over summer to gain a better understanding of this topic before writing my final dissertation.

# data[].attributes.body
To say this movie announcement was exciting is an  understatement! In seriousness, I was already writing deeply about the Jurassic Park franchise within my research and dissertation. This new film offers a 2022 version of pop-culture dinosaur representation that I can compare to older takes on the subject.

# data[].attributes.body
Looking into this feedback was absolutely key before jumping into writing my dissertation.

I think the topic of consumerism and capitalism is something I will need to put more focus on in future research.

I also know that narrowing down my title might be a good next step.

Finally I need to think about both sides of the story to give me more debate and analysis!

# data[].attributes.body
I have highlighted some key words which I wanted to keep in mind when arguing my points within my dissertation.

# data[].attributes.headline
Back into writing! First thing to consider was my introduction and when I want to write it…

# data[].attributes.subject
Back into writing! First thing to consider was my introduction and when I want to write it…

# data[].attributes.body
Though I considered the idea of writing my introduction later down the line, I still decided that I wanted to begin tackling it first, with the knowledge that I could always go back and edit it later.

# data[].attributes.headline
What to consider writing about within my introduction...

# data[].attributes.subject
What to consider writing about within my introduction...

# data[].attributes.body
Oxbridgeessays.com was a simple resource which compiled some prompts for a balanced introduction. I wanted to make a note of the prompts which seemed to link well to my plans.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
It's fair to assume that because the abstract and introduction are the first chapters to be read by someone reading your dissertation, it means they must be written first also. But in reality, this isn't the case. When considering how to structure your dissertation, you'll actually be far better off writing your introduction, conclusion, and abstract after you have written all the other parts of the dissertation.

But why?

Firstly, writing retrospectively means that your dissertation introduction and conclusion will 'match' and your ideas will all be tied up nicely.

Secondly, it's time-saving. If you write your introduction before anything else, it's likely your ideas will evolve and morph as your dissertation develops. And then you'll just have to go back and edit or totally re-write your introduction again.

Thirdly, it will ensure that the abstract accurately contains all the information it needs for the reader to get a good overall picture about what you have actually done.

So as you can see, it will make your life much easier if you plan to write your introduction, conclusion, and abstract last when planning out your dissertation structure.

In this guide, we'll break down the structure of a dissertation and run through each of these chapters in detail so you're well equipped to write your own. We've also identified some common mistakes often made by students in their writing so that you can steer clear of them in your work.

The Introduction

Getting started

Provide preliminary background information that puts your research in context

Clarify the focus of your study

Point out the value of your research(including secondary research)

Specify your specific research aims and objectives

While the 'background information' usually appears first in a dissertation introduction, the structure of the remaining three points is completely up to you.

There are opportunities to combine these sections to best suit your needs. There are also opportunities to add in features that go beyond these four points. For example, some students like to add in their research questions in their dissertation introduction so that the reader is not only exposed to the aims and objectives but also has a concrete framework for where the research is headed. Other students might save the research methods until the end of the literature review/beginning of the methodology.

In terms of length, there is no rule about how long a dissertation introduction needs to be, as it is going to depend on the length of the total dissertation. Generally, however, if you aim for a length between 5-7% of the total, this is likely to be acceptable.

Your introduction must include sub-sections with appropriate headings/subheadings and should highlight some of the key references that you plan to use in the main study. This demonstrates another reason why writing a dissertation introduction last is beneficial. As you will have already written the literature review, the most prominent authors will already be evident and you can showcase this research to the best of your ability.

The background section

One of the main purposes of the background section is to ease the reader into the topic. It is generally considered inappropriate to simply state the context and focus of your study and what led you to pursue this line of research.

The reader needs to know why your research is worth doing. You can do this successfully by identifying the gap in the research and the problem that needs addressing. One common mistake made by students is to justify their research by stating that the topic is interesting to them. While this is certainly an important element to any research project, and to the sanity of the researcher, the writing in the dissertation needs to go beyond 'interesting' to why there is a particular need for this research. This can be done by providing a background section.

You are going to want to begin outlining your background section by identifying crucial pieces of your topic that the reader needs to know from the outset. A good starting point might be to write down a list of the top 5-7 readings/authors that you found most influential (and as demonstrated in your literature review). Once you have identified these, write some brief notes as to why they were so influential and how they fit together in relation to your overall topic.

You may also want to think about what key terminology is paramount to the reader being able to understand your dissertation. While you may have a glossary or list of abbreviations included in your dissertation, your background section offers some opportunity for you to highlight two or three essential terms.

When reading a background section, there are two common mistakes that are most evident in student writing, either too little is written or far too much! In writing the background information, one to two pages is plenty. You need to be able to arrive at your research focus quite quickly and only provide the basic information that allows your reader to appreciate your research in context.

The research focus

The research focus does two things: it provides information on the research focus (obviously) and also the rationale for your study.

It is essential that you are able to clarify the area(s) you intend to research and you must explain why you have done this research in the first place. One key point to remember is that your research focus must link to the background information that you have provided above. While you might write the sections on different days or even different months, it all has to look like one continuous flow. Make sure that you employ transitional phrases to ensure that the reader knows how the sections are linked to each other.

The research focus leads into the value, aims and objectives of your research, so you might want to think of it as the tie between what has already been done and the direction your research is going. Again, you want to ease the reader into your topic, so stating something like "my research focus is..." in the first line of your section might come across overly harsh. Instead, you might consider introducing the main focus, explaining why research in your area is important, and the overall importance of the research field. This should set you up well to present your aims and objectives.

The value of your research

The 'value' section really deserves its own sub-section within your dissertation introduction. This is because it is essential to those who will be judging the merit of your work and demonstrates that you have considered how it adds value.

The biggest mistake that students make when structuring their dissertation is simply not including this sub-section. The concept of 'adding value' does not have to be some significant advancement in the research that offers profound contributions to the field, but you do have to take one to two paragraphs to clearly and unequivocally state the worth of your work.

There are many possible ways to answer the question about the value of your research. You might suggest that the area/topic you have picked to research lacks critical investigation. You might be looking at the area/topic from a different angle and this could also be seen as adding value. In some cases, it may be that your research is somewhat urgent (e.g. medical issues) and value can be added in this way.

Whatever reason you come up with to address the value added question, make sure that somewhere in this section you directly state the importance or added value of the research.

The research and the objectives

Firstly, aims and objectives are different things and should be treated as such. Usually, these have already been created at the proposal stage or for ethical clearance of the research project, so putting them in your dissertation introduction is really just a matter of organisation and clarity.

Typically, a research project has an overall aim. Again, this needs to be clearly stated in a direct way. The objectives generally stem from the overall aim and explain how that aim will be met. They are often organised numerically or in bullet point form and are terse statements that are clear and identifiable.

There are four things you need to remember when creating research objectives. These are:

Appropriateness (each objective is clearly related to what you want to study)

Distinctness (each objective is focused and incrementally assists in achieving the overall research aim)

Clarity (each objective avoids ambiguity)

Being achievable (each objective is realistic and can be completed within a reasonable timescale)

In creating research objectives that conform to the above, you may want to consider:

Starting each objective with a key word (e.g. identify, assess, evaluate, explore, examine, investigate, determine, etc.)

Beginning with a simple objective to help set the scene in the study

Finding a good numerical balance - usually two is too few and six is too many. Aim for approximately 3-5 objectives

If you can achieve this balance, you should be well positioned to demonstrate a clear and logical position that exudes competence.

Remember that you must address these research objectives in your research. You cannot simply mention them in your dissertation introduction and then forget about them. Just like any other part of the dissertation, this section must be referenced in the findings and discussion - as well as in the conclusion.

This section has offered the basic sections of a dissertation introduction chapter. There are additional bits and pieces that you may choose to add. The research questions have already been highlighted as one option; an outline of the structure of the entire dissertation may be another example of information you might like to include.

As long as your dissertation introduction is organised and clear, you are well on the way to writing success with this chapter.

The Conclusion

Getting started

Your dissertation conclusion will do one of two things. It may fill you with joy, because it signals that you are almost done. Or it may be a particularly challenging test of your mental strength, because by this point in the dissertation you are likely exhausted.

It is your job at this point to make one last push to the finish to create a cohesive and organised final chapter. If your concluding chapter is unstructured or some sort of ill-disciplined rambling, the person marking your work might be left with the impression that you lacked the appropriate skills for writing or that you lost interest in your own work.

To avoid these pitfalls and fully understand how to write a dissertation conclusion, you will need to know what is expected of you and what you need to include.

There are three parts (at a minimum) that need to exist within your dissertation conclusion. These include:

You may also wish to consider a section on self-reflection, i.e. how you have grown as a researcher or a section on limitations (though this might have been covered in your research methods chapter). This adds something a little different to your chapter and allows you to demonstrate how this dissertation has affected you as an academic.

Furthermore, just like any other chapter in your dissertation, your conclusion must begin with an introduction (usually very short at about a paragraph in length). This paragraph typically explains the organisation of the content, reminds the reader of your research aims/objectives, and provides a brief statement of what you are about to do.

The length of a dissertation conclusion varies with the length of the overall project, but similar to a dissertation introduction, a 5-7% of the total word count estimate should be acceptable.

Research objectives

The research objectives section only asks you to answer two questions.

These are:

1. As a result of the completion of the literature review, along with the empirical research that you completed, what did you find out in relation to your personal research objectives?
2. What conclusions have you come to?

A common mistake by students when addressing these questions is to again go into the analysis of the data collection and findings. This is not necessary, as the reader has likely just finished reading your discussion chapter and does not need to go through it all again. This section is not about persuading, you are simply informing the reader of the summary of your findings.

Before you begin writing, it may be helpful to list out your research objectives and then brainstorm a couple of bullet points from your data findings/discussion where you really think your research has met the objective. This will allow you to create a mini-outline and avoid the 'rambling' pitfall described above.

Recommendations

The purpose of a recommendations section is to offer the reader some advice on what you think should happen next. Failing to include such information can result in the loss of marks. Including these recommendations as implicit suggestions within other parts of the brief (e.g. the analysis/discussion chapters) is a good start, but without having a detailed explanation of them in the conclusion chapter, you might be setting yourself up for failure.

There are two types of recommendations you can make. The first is to make a recommendation that is specific to the evidence of your study, the second is to make recommendations for future research. While certain recommendations will be specific to your data, there are always a few that seem to appear consistently throughout student work. These tend to include things like a larger sample size, different context, increased longitudinal time frame, etc. If you get to this point and feel you need to add words to your dissertation, this is an easy place to do so - just be cautious that making recommendations that have little or no obvious link to the research conclusions are not beneficial.

A good recommendations section will link to previous conclusions, and since this section was ultimately linked to your research aims and objectives, the recommendations section then completes the package.

Contributions to knowledge

The idea of 'contributions to knowledge' largely appears in PhD-level work and less so at the Master's level, depending of course on the nature of the research. Master's students might want to check with their supervisor before proceeding with this section. Ultimately, in this section, the focus is to demonstrate how your research has enhanced existing knowledge.

Your main contribution to knowledge likely exists within your empirical work (though in a few select cases it might be drawn from the literature review). Implicit in this section is the notion that you are required to make an original contribution to research, and you are, in fact, telling the reader what makes your research study unique. In order to achieve this, you need to explicitly tell the reader what makes your research special.

There are many ways to do this, but perhaps the most common is to identify what other researchers have done and how your work builds upon theirs. It may also be helpful to specify the gap in the research (which you would have identified either in your dissertation introduction or literature review) and how your research has contributed to 'filling the gap.'

Another obvious way that you can demonstrate that you have made a contribution to knowledge is to highlight the publications that you have contributed to the field (if any). So, for example, if you have published a chapter of your dissertation in a journal or you have given a conference presentation and have conference proceedings, you could highlight these as examples of how you are making this contribution.

In summing up this section, remember that a dissertation conclusion is your last opportunity to tell the reader what you want them to remember. The chapter needs to be comprehensive and must include multiple sub-sections.

Ensure that you refresh the reader's memory about your research objectives, tell the reader how you have met your research objectives, provide clear recommendations for future researchers and demonstrate that you have made a contribution to knowledge. If there is time and/or space, you might want to consider a limitations or self-reflection section.

The Abstract

When planning how to write a dissertation, the abstract can often come across as an afterthought by students. The entire dissertation is written and now there are only a few hundred words to go. Yet the abstract is going to end up being one of the most influential parts of your dissertation. If done well, it should provide a synopsis of your work and entice the reader to continue on to read the entire dissertation.
A good abstract will contain the following elements:

A statement of the problem or issue that you are investigating - including why research on this topic is needed

The research methods used

The main results/findings

The main conclusions and recommendations

An abstract generally should be only one neat and tidy paragraph that is no more than one page (though it could be much shorter). The abstract usually appears after the title page and the acknowledgements.

Different institutions often have different guidelines for writing the abstract, so it is best to check with your department prior to beginning.

When you are writing the abstract, you must find the balance between too much information and not enough. You want the reader to be able to review the abstract and get a general overall sense of what you have done.
As you write, you may want to keep the following questions in mind:
1. Is the focus of my research identified and clear?
2. Have I presented my rationale behind this study?
3. Is how I conducted my research evident?
4. Have I provided a summary of my main findings/results?
5. Have I included my main conclusions and recommendations?

In some instances, you may also be asked to include a few keywords. Ensure that your keywords are specifically related to your research. You are better off staying away from generic terms like 'education' or 'science' and instead provide a more specific focus on what you have actually done with terms like 'e-learning' or 'biomechanics'.

Finally, you want to avoid having too many acronyms in your abstract. The abstract needs to appeal to a wide audience, and so making it understandable to this wider audience is absolutely essential to your success.

Ultimately, writing a good abstract is the same as writing a good dissertation; you must present a logical and organised synopsis that demonstrates what your research has achieved. With such a goal in mind, you can now successfully proceed with your abstract!

Many students also choose to make the necessary efforts to ensure that their chapter is ready for submission by applying an edit to their finished work. It is always beneficial to have a fresh set of eyes have a read of your chapter to make sure that you have not omitted any vital points and that it is error free.

Want some help with a chapter of your dissertation?

Our dissertation chapter service provides focused, expert advice on individual chapters and on your dissertation structure. Whether it's your dissertation introduction, conclusion, or other section, our academic experts are on hand to help you succeed.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to write a dissertation introduction, conclusion and abstract

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It's fair to assume that because the abstract and introduction are the first chapters to be read by someone reading your dissertation, it means they must be written first also. But in reality, this isn't the case.

# data[].attributes.body
Give background.. don't  just state what you're writing about, state why.

Then outline a list of 5 sources of information that I found influential during my research, why were they influential?

Consider writing a glossary for terms a reader may not be familiar with

Don't go too far into research now, it's the intro!

# data[].attributes.body
Clarify the areas which you intend to research, why have I done this research?

Link these pieces of research back to the background information

# data[].attributes.headline
Introduction Prompt 3 - The value of research

# data[].attributes.subject
Introduction Prompt 3 - The value of research

# data[].attributes.body
You need to state the worth of your work

Why is it worth doing? What does it add to the field?

Does the area or topic lack investigation?

It isn't enough for it to be interesting to you personally

# data[].attributes.headline
Introduction Prompt 4: Research Objectives

# data[].attributes.subject
Introduction Prompt 4: Research Objectives

# data[].attributes.body
What are my research objectives? - are they appropriate, distinct, clear and achievable?

Start each objective with a keyword like... identify, assess, investigate, determine... etc.

Aim for 3 - 5 objectives

Remember to address these research objectives later in your dissertation, not just now.

# data[].attributes.body
Its bold, but it is a way of gaining initial traction within your question, along with bringing your general viewpoint into the foreground.

# data[].attributes.headline
Research into consumerism and science - Abominable Science!: Origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and Other Famous Cryptids

# data[].attributes.subject
Research into consumerism and science - Abominable Science!: Origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and Other Famous Cryptids

# data[].attributes.body
This book discusses the obsession we seem to have with mythical, ancient and famous creatures. I thought dinosaurs came under some of these terms, and the exploration into the reasons behind this could help me to build a balanced argument.

# data[].attributes.headline
Horror after 9/11: World of Fear, Cinema of Terror

# data[].attributes.subject
Horror after 9/11: World of Fear, Cinema of Terror

# data[].attributes.body
This may be slightly far fetched, but this book published by University of Texas Press looks into the human obsession with horror / terror. I thought this could link back to movies such as jurassic park, loved by many for their gore.

# data[].attributes.headline
So, what's wrong with consumerism? - Daniel Miller

# data[].attributes.subject
So, what's wrong with consumerism? - Daniel Miller

# data[].attributes.body
This could be a good baseline book to look into when in the territory of consumerism.

# data[].attributes.headline
This journal article within 'ETC: A Review of General Semantics"

# data[].attributes.subject
This journal article within 'ETC: A Review of General Semantics"

# data[].attributes.body
This was my first 'confirmed' source within the dissertation. I was overjoyed when I found a journal which contained information so relevant to my topic.

# data[].attributes.body
Confession: I had not been in a library for years before this dissertation, but I wanted to experience this form of research in a physical space!

# data[].attributes.headline
Armed with a  library card and 2 borrowed books I wanted to point out some key facts I wanted to include...

# data[].attributes.subject
Armed with a  library card and 2 borrowed books I wanted to point out some key facts I wanted to include...

# data[].attributes.body
Reading into literature surrounding consumerism I realized I wanted to change the way I looked into the business side of my question. I don't want to give a history on consumerism within my dissertation, so I needed to formulate a way to talk about money without getting too far into societal issues surrounding consumerism.

# data[].attributes.body
I was a bit lost, I realized I didn't want to speak about consumerism as much as I thought I did. So, I called a friend who is also a film student. I knew I would look at a lot of films when it came to the monetization of dinosaurs. I asked him how he valued the worth of a visual tool within film, and he was simple and to the point. Profit, money made. I realised then that I wanted to compare profits from dinosaur related media instead of getting into the depths of consumerism. I want to use those stats to create 2 sides of an argument.

# data[].attributes.body
"To what extent are dinosaurs monetized within the wider media, and how does this effect the accuracy of their visual representation?"

"Barney the purple dinosaur would have murdered your child - Dinosaur monetization within the wider media, and its' effect on the accuracy of their representation"

"Why is Barney the dinosaur purple? - The accuracy of dinosaur representation within the wider media and its' links to their monetization."

- Go for something fun / bold
- Give it a hook / personality
- Give it a title youd want to read

# data[].attributes.headline
Lets think of some fun subject matter for my dissertation content!

# data[].attributes.subject
Lets think of some fun subject matter for my dissertation content!

# data[].attributes.body
What was my initial thought when I saw Barney as a dinosaur fanatic? - He is absolutely hideous, atrocious. So ugly. Could he be my starting point?

# data[].attributes.body
- Disney (kids films)
- BBC (walking with dinosaurs)
- Stephen Spielberg (jurassic park)
- Museums

# data[].attributes.headline
I was advised to improve the language I use within my lines of questioning... E.g.

# data[].attributes.subject
I was advised to improve the language I use within my lines of questioning... E.g.

# data[].attributes.body
What is the impact and how do we change behaviour? As opposed to just talking about X, Y, or Z

# data[].attributes.body
Personal preface is a place to write about you, where you want to be, whats important to your future job? Why did you write about this, what do you love (dinosaurs), along with any thank yous.

# data[].attributes.body
This was a concept which came to fruition during a conversation within a lecture. We began speaking about AI generation as a group and my topic came up. I realised that AI could be used to look at how a robot sees dinosaurs based on the information it is given, but also how the future could look in terms of dinosaur visualization!

# data[].attributes.headline
Lead question is still plaguing my mind!

# data[].attributes.subject
Lead question is still plaguing my mind!

# data[].attributes.body
"Dinosaurs aren't your cash cow - the effect monetization has had on the accuracy of visual representation within wider media"

And a slightly edgier option...

"Barney isn't your b*tch - the effect monetization has had on the accuracy of visual representation within wider media"

# data[].attributes.headline
The discovery of a very important book + contacting the author 

# data[].attributes.subject
The discovery of a very important book + contacting the author 

# data[].attributes.body
After stumbling across the paper back version of this book in a book store I could not pass it up. I somehow had found a book which went into dinosaur representation without being too hard to digest! This was a jackpot. I decided to contact the author, Darren Naish for a potential interview / questions!

# data[].attributes.headline
Further research into industry proffessionals

# data[].attributes.subject
Further research into industry proffessionals

# data[].attributes.body
Emily Willoughby is a Paleoartist, writer, and researcher in behavioural genetics and cognitive psychology. Her website drew me in whilst I was looking for dinosaur art. I was truly inspired by her scientific approach to paleo-art and research into creatures. I decided that she would also be a fantastic candidate for an interview within my dissertation.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Paleoartist, writer, and researcher in behavioral genetics and cognitive psychology.

Research Art Writing Photos

Copyright © Emily Willoughby, 2013-2023.
Do not reproduce any content without permission.

Website designed by Alice Heurlin.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Paleoartist, writer, and researcher in behavioral genetics and cognitive psychology. Research Art Writing Photos Copyright © Emily Willoughby, 2013-2023. Do not reproduce any content without permission. Website designed by Alice Heurlin.

# data[].attributes.body
Although I received an initial reply from Darren, issues with his schedule meant his free time would not line up with mine in time to complete my questionnaire before the end of the dissertation unit. This was a blow to my research but it was important to endeavor in finding a solution! This was when I reached out to Emily Willoughby and luckily got a reply, confirming she would be happy to answer some questions over email!

# data[].attributes.headline
My list of questions for Emily Willoughby 

# data[].attributes.subject
My list of questions for Emily Willoughby 

# data[].attributes.body
Dinosaurs are always described as exciting and enticing for an audience. Do you think this was always the case? Or do you see their popularity to be linked to media portrayals?

How do you feel about incorrect portrayals of dinosaurs within visual media? Take for instance the use of Velociraptors in Jurassic Park and the fact they look more like Deinonychus. I know in the 90s there was less knowledge about the velociraptor but do you think more could have been done to portray them correctly?

As a paleo-artist, you are well-informed on the visualisation of dinosaurs based on fossil findings. How important would you say the correct portrayal of dinosaurs is within visual media? This can include films like Jurassic Park but also movies aimed at children, for example.

Do these creators do a disservice to extensive scientific research by ‘ignoring’ certain dinosaur facts? For instance, the newest Jurassic World still features Velociraptors that looked more like Deinonychus.

Giving visual creators freedom to represent things however they want is a topic I wanted to look into. Do you think designers / visual creatives have a moral responsibility to stick to the truth within their work? Dinosaurs are an example of this but it can be applied to a number of topics.

# data[].attributes.headline
Tweaking my lead question based on changes in phrasing within my dissertation

# data[].attributes.subject
Tweaking my lead question based on changes in phrasing within my dissertation

# data[].attributes.body
Although the concept behind my dissertation has not changed, it is important that my lead question is as relevant as possible. For this reason I tweaked it, mostly to take out the mention of 'Barney' and replace it with 'Jurassic Park'. This was because throughout the writing of my dissertation I began to focus on the film more and more and thought it was only correct to reference it within the title...

“Jurassic Park you’re breaking my heart  - the importance of visual representation within digital media and how its’ accuracy is affected by the consumer.”

# data[].attributes.body
Emily Willoughby responded with really insightful comments, which I can now use within the final chapter of my dissertation, and perhaps throughout.

# data[].attributes.headline
Completing my dissertation using all of the previously mentioned resources was now the only thing left to do...

# data[].attributes.subject
Completing my dissertation using all of the previously mentioned resources was now the only thing left to do...