Appendix C

Typical Proposal and Dissertation Table of Contents: Multi-topic Dissertation

1. Introduction
   1. Overview of research problem in connection to existing literature
   2. Explanation of how chapters/articles below fit together
   3. Brief explanation of contribution the dissertation will make to new knowledge
2. Literature Review and Research Question
   1. Describes the major literature(s) within which the dissertation operates
      1. Theoretical frame
      2. Substantive literature
         • note that while you will also present literature in each of the articles, it will be helpful to do a broader review here that places all the next articles into context and demonstrates their connections
   2. Explains where there are gaps the dissertation will address
   3. Justifies approach taken in rest of the dissertation
   4. Full statement of Research Question/objectives
3. Article 1
   1. Research Question
   2. Literature Review
   3. Research Method
   4. Findings
   5. Conclusions/Contributions to Knowledge
   6. Sources/Bibliography
4. Article 2
   1. Research Question
   2. Literature Review
   3. Research Method
   4. Findings
   5. Conclusions/Contributions to Knowledge
   6. Sources/Bibliography
5. Article 3
   1. Research Question
   2. Literature Review
   3. Research Method
   4. Findings
   5. Conclusions/Contributions to Knowledge
   6. Sources/Bibliography
6. Summary
   1. How three articles fit together
   2. Their contributions to knowledge
   3. Future directions
7. Appendices – lengthy data reports, matrices used for analysis, etc.