Well I am getting ready to go through the Applied Research Project phase of my program. When I received the guide it looked basically like a dissertation with the addition of requiring that the research have practical application. A professor called today to begin working over my proposal with me and had questions and we will be meeting again (in cyber space) to continue the development process after I have considered some of the issues. It has seemed like a long couple of years of working on the class work at a full time pace and balancing family, work, and other issues. I am still finishing up some classes. To be honest I am beginning to feel somewhat burned out. I think this happens in the process (i.e. I know I am not the first person to feel it) but I feel somewhat disheartened and tired. I could not wait to be so close to completion and now that I am here I feel bogged down and stuck. Sigh...... I hope to develop a fresh perspective and move forward. I remember what a Rabbi told me and that was that he worked on his dissertation ever day until he completed it. He made that contract with himself. Anyway, just venting and wallowing in a little self pity (maybe I am just tired after being in a couple of different cities in as many days). North
North, procrastination is the key ingredient to finding yourself ABD for the rest of your life. You don't want that. Work a little every day. Understand you are not required to come up with a new quantum theory as your contribution to the body of knowledge. Realize that it is more about demonstrating competencies in well established academic research methods, practices, and procedures as it is about enlightening the world with your conclusions. Obviously topic and results are important, but demonstrating you can conduct doctoral level research is the focus. Who will likely be questioned less on the specificity of your conclusion as you will be held accountable to support and defend your methods and assumptions.
North You know that you have my best wishes, my friend. As this is my first experience with a dissertation, and I'm only half done, my advice may be presumptuous. But what has spurred me on since June of 02 to get this done, is that I so love the topic and consider it important, and am able to access and to deal with prior reseach on it....most which I consider wrong. So I guess my advice to anyone would be to carefully chose an area about which one has strong feelings and beliefs and about which one sees some lack which needs to be supplied or some wrong view that needs to be righted. To work for two or three years on something the worker feels is inconsequential would be very burdensome. But to be able to do it the way I'm doing, it becomes a genuine labor of love. It almost is something that would be gladly done even were there no new title to be gained at its completion.
Hi North, Been there, done that, felt the same way. The only way I managed, as previous posters have said, was to assign myself a time each day to work on the dissertation. It was not a choice, but a necessity. As a motivator I took paper and pencil in hand and toted up the amount that I had spent to that point and realized that without the dissertation that it was all basically down the tube. HANG IN THERE - YOU ARE TOO CLOSE TO DR. TO STOP NOW.
Hi North. Hang in there. Having had a diss trashed, and then having had to hunt high and low for a venue to restart, my motive for study and writing is the basest form of Central European vengeance. Yours, I am sure, is the greater glory of God. I think the trough called ABD is tough regardless of whether it's a DMin, PhD, or my own unattainable unavailable "ferne Geliebte", the DA. Go ahead, wallow. Just scribble notes while you do it, and the thing will take shape. This sounds perverse, but if you are spooked by the "new contribution" bugbear, just keep telling yourself that nobody will ever read the thing. Then write what you want, remembering that you only have to float it past your supervisor, who isn't really all that interested. I suspect that once the accreditation issue is resolved for ACCS in the next few days, it will make coping with diss/ARP completion easier--regardless of which way that decision goes. Consider, finally, some of the mountebanks, charlatans, and pompous asses wandering about as doctor so-and-so. Are they of the Herrenvolk and you an Untermensch? Not bloody likely. Go get 'em.
Thank you to all for the kind thoughts and words of encouragement. Yes Uncle, I think with the resolution of the accreditation situation it may breathe some new life into my motivation. I think I am just in that home stretch blues phase where I can see the end but it still seems so far away. I have to still negotiate the process and produce which is a big part. I kind of got the impression that the Prof wants to work over my topic a little. My topic has to do with the integration of a particular therapeutic modality with a solid christian foundation to produce a practical christian model. I got the impression that the therapeutic modality was not a favorite of the prof and concern over the secular nature of the modality and whether it was integratable. Nonetheless, the Prof was willing to consider the proposal and to work with me. So, we shall see what comes out of it. At this point I am ready to get done with the whole thing. I am getting to the point of a chaplain friend of mine that told me he wanted to study what he wanted at the pace he wanted and without having to produce documents that others want. North
Uncle Janko: "This sounds perverse, but if you are spooked by the "new contribution" bugbear, just keep telling yourself that nobody will ever read the thing. Then write what you want, remembering that you only have to float it past your supervisor, who isn't really all that interested." Cehi: You always dazzle me Uncle Janko. Thank you. Regarding your response, you are absolutely correct. A lot of people still don't get it that nobody reads these voluminous dissertations that have been put together except for the committee members. I agree with you whole heartedly that there are different meanings, interpretations, assumption (assumtion is the mother of all screw ups), for "creating new knowledge for mankind" and "contributing to mankind knowledge." The bottom line is that the supervisors are the only one that care to know about the alledged knowledge one is contributing or creating. Actually, they don't care to know. They only want to know because the student chose to write a dissertation. One can only imagine what the rest of the world feels about these quantum discoveries. Most Ph.D holders who teaches in colleges and universities don't even teach their own ideas. They teach someone else's idea that are cripted in a lecture book chosen by the department. The only one who teaches their own ideas are the ones whose books are actually being used for lectures at their colleges. Thanks for your dazzles, Uncle Janko. Thank you.
North: "To be honest I am beginning to feel somewhat burned out." Cehi: I have been there too. I eventually saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Please don't give up. Your efforts that create the doc degree is actually the light at the end of the tunnel that you must see. I wish you well in the journey. Good luck.
Sometimes, depending on the situation of course, when I am working with fellow counselors, I ask them to tell me what counsel they would offer clients with the same issues. It usually is very productive. Perhaps you could ask yourself what counsel you would give someone in your particular situation.
Hi North: Try to prevent the occurrence of a long gap in communication between you and your adviser. You should always update him with what you are doing. Read his feedback carefully and ensure that his suggestions and concerns were properly and exhaustively addressed before sending him an updated version of your work. It is your research but you can't conduct it your way. You will conduct it his way. Last but not the least; you should see the dissertation process as a marathon contest. If you persevere, victory will be yours. Ike Okonkwo, Ph.D.
== OK, Here comes old hokey Bill with his divergent view based on old hokey convictions. Do I really think that more than a few will be much interested in the lines I just 5 minutes go wrote in chapter 5 of my rough draft, ... "Is Burk right that 'harpagmos' cannot be anaphoric and that the double accusative makes it questionable that 'morphe' is to be connected to 'isa' by that participial phrase?" ... Umm..., no, I think very few will be interested, especially as written in that technical jargon. But first, I do this for me, myself, and for ONE other. I want to know my conclusions, and I want the satisfaction of basing these on sound arguments which are well expressed. I enjoy what I am doing and while approbation and recognition from others is nice to have, personal gratification and a feeling of accomplishment means more to me. Further as I write, what I write affects me in terms of growth in my area of study. Then second, in some disciplines, as Biblical and Theological studies, there are groups which regularly indulge in reading just the sort of thing I now write. For example, consider this excerpt from the Evangelical Society Journal , which thousands read, ... "Pinnock and his colleagues conflate immutability and immobility. But this misses a crucial step;namely, that of determining whether the tradition did in fact adopt Arisotle's doctrine." ... These same readers of this Journal regularly attend meetings of this, and other societies, where is presented papers with statements comparable to this, ... "Therefore, in approaching the articular infinitive in Philippians 2:6, we should expect to see the article bearing more of a grammatical/syntactical function than some supposed semantic force." [ETS, Spring 2000, SW Regional MTG] ... So, even were there very few, as in thousands, who regularly pursue these obtuse and musty products, there are, in fact, some who do take interest in exactly the sort of things argued in theological dissertations. Often, as in the above quote, work done for degrees are shared in these formats and/or become published. I know I don't stand alone in believing that the products of research at least in this discipline really are not important as no one really cares. So to North, whose ARP is intended be practical and therefore put to use, I say, your work is important to more than just your supervisor. Write what you perceive to be truth and important. There must be more motivation. at least for me, than to do a dissertation just so I can get a degree.
Bill Grover: "I know I don't stand alone in believing that the products of research in this discipline really are important or that some really do care about such research." Cehi: You don't and will not stand alone with your different views. Obviously, all divergent as well as convergent views are, and as a matter of fact, must be respectfully welcomed. This is a forum for sharing information based on individual expertise. I have learned something new from your logic. However, the problem here is not fulfilling an institutional dissertation requirement for "creating new knowledge" or "contributing to existing knowledge." Rather, from my views, it should be the determination of the targeted audience acceptance rate that would validate the actual knowledge creation or contribution a dissertation makes to mankind. I know this is a radical approach that is far fetched from being universally accepted because it is not indigenous to the traditional institutional mindset. I apprecaite and respect your divergent views. I have also learnt some logic from it that has consequently, make me probe some of my own thought process too. Thank you.
Bill Grover: "if and when I finish...to evaluate.Three professors plus my supervisor, as I see it, are able by their qualifications and contributions to the field reach a judgement on whether my product adds to knowledge or not." Cehi: Yes, I agree. You are correct. All in all, the above process is the traditional norm for validation. It was the same process that I went through and it is the same process that current doc degree seekers will go through. I have no doubt that you will sail through your program with distinction. My very best and kindest regards to you in the final process of your dissertation. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me. I appreciate it.
