Dissertation Introduction - Outline & Writing tips

The introduction is the first section and chapter of your dissertation or thesis. It sets the main focus of the research and sets the expectation of the readers. Though it is the first part of the research, it is better to write it at the end when all of the other parts of the research are done.

For successful dissertation writing, you must engage the readers and encourage them to continue reading your dissertation. How to do it successfully? Begin the introduction with a hook and grab your readers’ attention.

Writing a good introduction is important if you do not want your readers to leave your work in the middle. This will waste your work, which you do not want. However, we also know that writing an engaging and interesting essay is not easy.

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Read the blog to know about how you can write an engaging dissertation introduction.

Purpose of the Introduction Chapter

The main purpose of an introductory chapter is to introduce the readers to your research and the content of your dissertation. It is important because the reader should know what he is reading about. This will pique his interest and will make your work more interesting.

Below are the questions that should be answered in an introduction.

• What will be the research question?
• Why is the chosen topic important?
• What is the scope of your research?
• What research methods will be used?
• What are the limitations of your research?

Answering all of these questions is important if you want an engaging and well-written introduction. It should provide an overview of your entire research. This chapter should explain the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of your research.

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How to Write a Good Dissertation Introduction?

Here are the steps to write a good dissertation introduction.

1. Write an Engaging Opening Section or Paragraph

This section should be written in clear, concise, and an easy to understand language. It is important that you keep the language simple and use words that could be understood easily because you do not want your readers to get lost in finding the meanings of your words.

This will only distract them, and you will lose your audience. Writing an academic assignment does not mean that you should ignore the essential writing principles used to engage the readers. Be concise but be clear about your research’s aim.

2. Add Background Information of the Research

Provide the background and historical context of your chosen topic. Go a little deeper and lay a proper foundation for your dissertation. Add a broad overview of the research topic and explain the topic properly.

Provide a brief history of the chosen topic. Why is it important? Because you want your reader to understand the context of the research. Knowing the topic’s history will help them in understanding the significance of your research.

3. Define the Research Problem

Add and discuss the specific research problem that you will be talking about in your dissertation. Narrow down the research focus and highlight the main question and issue you will discuss in your dissertation. To structure it properly, add the following three sections in the chapter.

• Discuss the problem statement or the present state of the research you have discussed in the literature review section and dissertation proposal.
• What are the research gaps? Discuss the limitations of the previous research.
• Why is it important to address these missing gaps in the research proposal?

Answering these questions will help you in formulating a good introduction.

4. State the Research Aims and Objective

What do you want to achieve with this research? Answer this question in this section. Explain why the research question or matter is important for you and the reasons to choose it. It will help your reader to understand the significance of the research properly.

Discuss your aims and objectives for conducting the research and your hypothesis, the results you want to achieve. The aim of doing it is to set and explain clear boundaries for your research. You can also do this by focusing on a single point like a specific country, industry, or a specific era.

5. Discuss the Significance of your Research

Why is your research important? Why is it important to address this question? Answer these questions and establish the importance of your research. Explain how your research will help solve the problem that you have explained in the previous sections of the introductory chapter.

This will help the readers understand the importance of your research and why you have invested so much time in your research. Explain how your research will help solve the problem and how it will benefit society or a specific industry.

6. Identify and State the Limitations of Your Research

No research is perfect. Especially when we talk about a dissertation vs. thesis, we all know that the researcher has to face certain limitations when doing the research. These limitations are inevitable, and some of the common ones include time constraints, shortage of resources, and shortage of research data or research scope.

Discussing the limitations of your research will make your research more credible and authentic.

7. Explain the Structure of Your Dissertation

Once you are done explaining all the important aspects of your dissertation, it is time that you explain its structure.

The purpose of explaining the structure is to tell the readers about the content of the dissertation. Explain each methodology chapter briefly and explain the main point and factors that are explained in it. This will provide a roadmap to the readers.

Moreover, discuss the theoretical framework, research design, and other parts of your dissertation also.

Dissertation Introduction Outline

The introduction of a dissertation explains the main research question and presents it with proper reasoning and examples. This reasoning is also known as a theoretical framework as it justifies the need for the respective study and the expected outcomes.

Below is a suggested dissertation introduction template for your help.

• A Brief Description of the Main Area of Concern

  It is 3 to 4 paragraphs in length, and it sets the stage for the research material.

• Significance of the Problem

  Here, you will explain the significance of the research topic. Why is it important to conduct the research? What kind of answers are expected from the research? Answer these questions here in this section.

• Analyze the Theoretical Design of the Research

  Explain the theories and methods that will be used in the research framework. Explain the important terms and theories that would provide the basis for the research.

• Critically Analyze the Relevant Literature

  Analyze relevant literature and use it to explain the significance of your research. Add relevant quotes and other details to magnify the need for your research.

• Statement of the Problem

  State the main purpose of the research and state the problem you will address in the research paper. The introduction should provide a proper explanation of the problem statement.

• Hypotheses and the Research Questions

  State the research questions that you aim to answer with the research. The questions should be added in the form of questions, and the answers would be the hypothesis. The results that you expect to achieve from the research are added to the hypothesis.

  The introduction should be 800 to 1,000 words long and when writing it, make sure that you take care of the word count.

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Sample Dissertation Introduction

Writing a great dissertation introduction is important if you want to hook your readers from the very start. An engaging beginning of your research project will help you do it properly and easily.

Below is a PDF of a sample to help you understand the dissertation introduction structure.

Tips to Write a Dissertation Introduction

Looking for some stellar tips to write an excellent dissertation introduction? Here are some helpful tips and good ideas to write an engaging introduction for your dissertation.

• Write everything clearly and use clear and easy-to-understand language.
• Do not give away the entire information here.
• Make a proper outline of what you will explain in the introductory chapter of the dissertation.
• Divide the researched data into sections and explain everything briefly.
• Explain the research question and its significance properly.
• Write it after you have completed the other sections of the dissertation.

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