Significance of Findings and
Discussion
Lecturer: Dr. Samira Albati Kamaruddin
myutmthesis.wordpress.com
Significance of Findings and
Discussion
Contents
• Significance of Findings
• Findings Chapter
• Context of Findings
• Implication of Findings
• Discussion on Limitations
• Discussion on Future Directions
• Summary and Tips
• By now you have reached the final phase of your research
work. You are ready to write the final and concluding part of
your thesis
• This is your last chance to show your capability, proficiency
and expertise as a researcher
• How will the findings assist or be of benefit to the body of
knowledge ?
• How would the solution to the problem influence the
theory and practice?
• What is significance of the study?
• Indicate significance of the study by emphasizing on :
– theory or advancing accumulated knowledge. What
implications have these results or findings to existing related
theories?
– current literature;
– model development and implementation
– Given now the findings of the study, how well is each of the
significance realized?
• summarize the findings,
• discuss the importance of the findings,
• place the research findings in the context of current
literature,
• compare and contrast the research findings with other
relevant research,
• identify the strengths and weaknesses of the research
study,
• discuss the implications of the research findings, and
• make recommendations for future research.
Findings Chapter
• To provide the readers with a thorough understanding of
what the results of your study mean to the research field
and to professional practice.
Summary of Findings
• Restate the results presented in Chapter 4 using little or no
statistical jargon.
• Write in a clear straightforward manner with no
interpretation of the results.
• Use past tense.
• Do not include tables and figures.
• Identify whether the findings of your study supported the
hypotheses or research questions.
• Present unusual findings (e.g., results that you did not
expect to be significant but were, and vice versa).
Interpretation of Findings
• Analyze both significant findings and not significant
findings.
• Were the results what you predicted?
• Why do you think the results turned out the way they did?
• Were there any issues related to sampling, measurement,
and procedural issues, as well as confounding variables?
• Provide possible explanations for the results.
• Link the results to any theoretical framework you used to
develop your research question or hypotheses.
Context of Findings
• Place your findings in perspective to other studies of the
topic found in the reviewed literature.
• How are your findings similar or different from those of
other studies?
• Based on the literature, are the findings what might have
been expected?
• If your results differ from those of other studies, what
plausible explanations can account for this?
Implications of Findings
• How do the findings expand the understanding of the
phenomenon under study?
• Identify the implications of the findings for
– Theory: Are findings consistent with current theories in the field? Are they
consistent with the selected theoretical framework for your study?
– Research: Does the study help advance the research methodology in the
field? (e.g., understanding of new confounding variables, issues of
measurement, issues of design)
– Practice: Who may be interested in using these findings in a professional
field? Why should they pay attention to the findings? Could the findings
lead to changes in the way professionals “do” things?
Discussion on Limitations
• Review the potential limitations that you initially proposed
in the proposal. Discuss the limitations that may have
affected—one way or another—your findings.
• Limitations typically originate in one of two sources: the
study’s design and the study’s problems during
implementation.
• Issues of design involve decisions about sampling,
assessment, procedures, and choice of research design
(poor match).
• Some of the issues that may have arisen at the time of
research implementation relate to low sample size,
measurement issues, heterogeneous groups, and so forth.
Discussion on Limitations (Cont.)
• Think of limitations in four major areas:
– Internal Validity—Unless the study is a “true experiment” one
cannot claim that the IV “caused” changes in the DV.
– External Validity—Discuss the extent to which findings can be
generalized.
– Measurement—Discuss issues of reliability and validity of
assessment instruments.
– Statistical Analysis—Discuss issues of power, effect size,
conservative or liberal statistics, and statistical test chosen.
Discussion on Future Directions
• Discuss findings in light of questions or issues that suggest
future research directions.
• Extend the study to other populations.
• Think of other IVs and DVs that ought to be explored in the
field; also, think of how to assess those additional variables.
• This is the section of the paper where most researchers are
allowed to dream; think of extending your study to other
questions that may add to the understanding of the issues.
Summary
• The Summary of the Discussion section may be the
Conclusion
• Summary: summarizes the findings/conclusion
• Conclusion: ultimate take-away message
Conclusion
• Succinctly summarize implications of findings as previously
discussed
• Don’t make sweeping statements or conclusions that reach
beyond your data
• Present the bottom line message, point, value of the
described study
• Tell the reader what they should take away
Bottom Line
• The Discussion should answer the two deadly questions
facing all research:
– So What?
– Who Cares?
