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Photo by Andre Hunter<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Fortunately, we at PGPR have years of experience with trimming down qualitative PhDs so that they are the required length and yet still contain the depth and nuance needed. Here are some of our top tips for writing qualitative research as succinctly as possible.<\/p>\n
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- Watch out for written tics <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
We all have stock phrases that we fall back on and reuse when we\u2019re speaking or writing. These are often overly wordy at best and totally unnecessary at worst. They might include wording such as:<\/p>\n
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- It appears that the participants expressed\u2026<\/li>\n
- It is interesting to note that\u2026<\/li>\n
- It could therefore be suggested that\u2026<\/li>\n
- Research carried out by Smith et al. (2012) found that\u2026<\/li>\n
- In order to\u2026<\/li>\n
- Due to the fact that\u2026<\/li>\n
- A number of\u2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
All these overly wordy phrases can be replaced with more succinct alternatives, as shown below\u2026<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nRead some of your work back and look out for phrases like this that you over-use, then use the search function to find all examples. You\u2019ll be able to cut many of these back, which will have the dual benefit of getting you closer to your word count and making your work more readable.<\/p>\n
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(NB: don’t just do a find and replace – find each instance and use your judgement to work out whether it can be replaced and if so, what with!)<\/p>\n
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- Put your work down for a few days <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
In addition to these common phrases, many qualitative students tend to write in a flowery, verbose way. This is fine for a first draft. Indeed, I don\u2019t recommend even trying to think about word count while you\u2019re getting your initial ideas down. Capturing your interpretations and ideas is far more important in the early stages of writing.<\/p>\n
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However, if you put your too-long chapter down for a couple of days and then come back to it with a clear head, you\u2019ll almost certainly start to spot unnecessary words. Reading your work aloud really helps with this, so if you\u2019re struggling, try reading a page or so to yourself. You\u2019ll instantly see cuts you can make \u2013 and then you can apply that same thinking to subsequent pages.<\/p>\n
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Taking a break can help you work out which words you can cut
Photo by Artem Beliaikin<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n- \n
- Trim data <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
As mentioned above, the data we deal with as qualitative researchers is one of the reasons we can struggle with word counts. Of course, it\u2019s important to ensure that you are including quotes that are long enough to illustrate all the interpretations you\u2019re making.<\/p>\n
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However, it\u2019s often the case that a bit of data can be trimmed off the beginning or end of a long quote. Or maybe there\u2019s a section in the middle that is less relevant? If so, you can take this out, as long as you use some notation to mark this. [\u2026] is a common way to demonstrate the removal of less relevant material.<\/p>\n
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Be careful here \u2013 don\u2019t take out sections of data that point to a different interpretation than the one you want to make, just to strengthen your argument! Data like this must stay in and be considered. However, if the participant says something in the middle of a quote that is just not relevant to this subtheme topic, it\u2019s fine to take it out.<\/p>\n
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- Stay laser-focused on your theme topics and research questions<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
And speaking of subtheme topics \u2013 one of the most common problems I see in my clients\u2019 work is that data and interpretations are presented that are lovely, but not actually relevant.<\/p>\n
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Remember that no matter which qualitative method you\u2019re using, all the material you present under a section or subtheme must feed into that topic. Similarly, each subtheme or lower-order section should feed into the higher-order theme or section. And everything you discuss in the findings section must be relevant to your research question.<\/p>\n
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Staying laser-focused on your thematic points and research question will help you write succinctly
Photo by Erfan Afshari<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWhile the tips I\u2019ve offered so far are all about trimming individual sentences, this final tip can help you to remove whole paragraphs or even pages that you don\u2019t need. This can be painful if you\u2019ve spent a long time reaching this interpretation, but if it\u2019s not relevant to your research question, I\u2019m afraid it belongs on the cutting room floor!<\/p>\n
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- Book PGPR <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
If all of this feels too much like hard work, get in touch with PGPR via the contact form below, and we help you to cut your thesis down to size by trimming individual sentences and suggesting larger areas that you may be able to edit down. We’ll be happy to help!<\/p>\n
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- Book PGPR <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
- Stay laser-focused on your theme topics and research questions<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
- Trim data <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
- Put your work down for a few days <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n