Is it taboo to discuss your dissertation topic outside the academic world?

Is it taboo to discuss your dissertation topic outside the academic world?

I was going to discuss my topic with co-workers and someone that may be able to help me but I do not know if that is something I should not do. Any advice...

 

Well, if you know someone who might be able to help, go right ahead, There's no taboo/protocol issue that I've ever heard of.

In fact, you're better off discussing it with a nonacademic if you fear that your ideas might get swiped (as happened to yours truly on floating a thesis proposal past a professor in a legit foreign university).*

The risk, of course, is that most people outside your field, academics or no, will get the ol' eyeglaze if you slide into a diss explanation/rant. So go ahead. The worst you can do is bore people senseless. (Remember, I preach sermons every week and know what I'm talking about.)



*No, I won't ID the country, uni, or prof. One jerk does not blemish an entire school, but if anyone ever posts an interest in that particular professor at that particular university, I will warn the individual poster.

 

Unless you're sponsored by the government or a company under an NDA of any kind, the answer is usually no. In fact, talking to as many people as possible and presenting as widely as possible is a very good idea.

If you want to avoid what happened to Janko you should first register your thesis proposal with your uni. You may also be allowed to copyright anything you hand out or ask your uni for an NDA for any materials you wish to discuss.

The only real taboo is to not acknowledge anybody you've talked to in the introduction to your thesis.

Of course, I freely admit that I went to talk about my subject because it got me sponsored holidays. The thought that somebody will pay your travel expenses from west Wales to go and talk about your obsession and you get a holiday in the States as well was just too tempting for words!

Angela

 

Not taboo. Could be boring as hell, though, so be careful.

I love it when people ask me what my dissertation was about. I tell them and then watch their eyes glaze over as they stumble to change the subject. I never bring it up myself for the same reasons--I don't want to initiate the glazing. But it's fun to watch when they start it.

 

Just a minor clarification: It was a research-only program where the first protocol step was to find a prof interested in supervising. This had to be secured before applying to the program in question. So there was no "registry" applicable, as there would have been had the thesis already been approved and then subsequently swiped, or if it had been a US-style course+diss program.

If a registry or other nail-down protocol is available, by all means use it.
Without fail.

To return to topic: I know, I know, a diss is not exactly a book. However, saying "I'm working on a book" is more understandable to some folks than saying "I'm working on a dissertation." Of course, anybody can write a book, so that doesn't carry the prestige of letting people know that you're a doctoral student.
It also doesn't carry the embarrassment if you crap out (as I did).

 

I work in an environment in which "laypersons" frequently ask me about my dissertation topic ("Intergenerational Reconciliation and Justice as Essential Dimensions of Missional Renewal in the Postmodern Era"). I commonly share the feelings expressed here that discussing this subject with non-academics will surely be the shortest path to putting them to sleep. However, as a non-resident PhD student, outside of these interactions, I have limited opportunity to verbally articulate what my dissertation is about. So, I actually appreciate the challenge of communicating in simple, clear terms what I'm up to. I benefit from attempting to paint a picture of the problem I'm striving to address and, in turn, explaining my proposed solution.

 

One thing I've found in discussing my master's thesis topic outside the academic world is that because it's on a general subject that everyone and their mother has an opinion about, it gets annoying really quickly.

 

"One thing I've found in discussing my master's thesis topic outside the academic world is that because it's on a general subject that everyone and their mother has an opinion about, it gets annoying really quickly."

Let me guess. Ebonics?

 

Genocide.