DISSERTATION WRITING: A PSYCHOLOGICAL TORTURE OR AN INTELLE

DISSERTATION WRITING: A PSYCHOLOGICAL TORTURE OR AN INTELLECTUAL EXERCISE?
A DISCUSSION PAPER ON CHRIS FLEMING’S “DISEASE OF THE THESIS”
by Marie Kathleen C. Santos

As mentioned by chris fleming, fraud paranoia is a mental disorder of conceited packaging of oneself. We are often drowned in the ocean of perfectionism since we are in the graduate school where everyone expects that we are already a connoisseur of our chosen field. A typical graduate student tends to set unrealistic expectations to himself, and self-criticism before he even get started writing. It is naturally very hard to begin and finish something that we have decided is going to be nothing less than perfect. The goals are too great and too obscure, and we often give up working on our task unless we have a timeless deadline.
As a solution for this hoax obsession he further elaborated that we find ourselves on top of a mountain of books, in quest of finding all the information we needed to maintain our deceitful figure. However, instead of acquiring the facts we need and gaining genuine wisdom we are locked in the maze of nothingness, clueless of the true purpose of being an authority.
Sustaining the author’s claim, there have been numerous studies in the past century examining the "mad genius" phenomenon, the most impressive of these studies conducted in 1987 by Nancy C. Andreasen (6). Conducting her studies at the infamous center for creative writing, The University of Iowa Workshops, Andreasen examined 30 writers and found that 80% had experienced at least one episode of major depression, hypomania, or mania. Andreasen also examined 30 controls and found that 0% had experienced some form of mental disorder (6). It was also found that there was a higher prevalence of mental disorder and creativity in the writer's first degree relatives compared to that of the control, suggesting that "mad genius" might be a genetically heritably trait (6).
It appears that the most common mental disorder amongst creative thinkers is bipolar disorder. This illness is characterized by four stages: major depressive, mixed, hypomanic, and manic episodes (5). During major depressive and mixed, the patient usually suffers from apathy, lack of energy, hopelessness, sleep disturbance, and slowed thinking (3). In the episodes of hypomania and mania, the mood is generally elevated, activity and energy levels increase, the need for sleep decreases, and speech is often rapid and excitable.
These observations led to some interesting questions: Does creativity cause bipolar disorder? Does the type of creativity matter? Psychiatrist Albert Rothenberg argues that there isn't a link and, in fact, because mental illness disrupts the cognitive and emotional processes necessary for creative thinking, highly creative people do better when they are treated for their mental illnesses (1). In direct opposition to this argument is HimaBindu Krishna's assertion that drug treatment often subjugates the creativity in the patient (5). Andreasen's conclusion regarding her observations of the University of Iowa writers supports Rothenberg's argument; she has found that most writers write when their mood is "normal," neither elevated nor depressed (6). In fact, when writers claim to suffer from severe depressive episodes, their writing usually suffers.
Does the type of creativity matter? Not really. Bipolar disorder affects a high percentage of people in artistic professions, including but not limited to, writers, poets, artists, and musicians (1). Interestingly, in a more recent study carried out by psychologist James Kaufman, it was found that female poets were more likely than fiction writers to have signs of mental illness, such as suicide attempts or hospitalizations, a phenomenon Kaufman has dubbed "the Sylvia Plath effect" (4).
The recent discussions in Neurobiology 202 provide some interesting insight into these above observations. If the neocortex and the rest of the nervous system are intimately connected through a series of pathways, and so inevitably leave traces of each other long after communication has ceased (if it ever does cease), it is not unbelievable that ailments of the "unconscious" can affect the "storyteller." Or to put it more simply, if the unconscious causes an individual to suffer from serious depressive illness, it is likely that the changes made to the nervous system following the disorder may cause some changes in the neocortex. Nothing in the body exists as an isolated system. Of course, the changes made do not necessarily have to translate into the ability to have creative impulses. But it shouldn't come as a surprise that a serious physical ailment of the body will probably have an effect on another seemingly unrelated part of the body.
It is important to note that there has been some speculation suggesting that the rise of mental illness in creative communities is due to the fact that there is much more toleration of mental illness than there is in the rest of society, and not an innate occurrence (1). Artists feel safe in a community that, to some respects, seems to value mental disorder in its members. But the nature of the creative profession is also not conducive to healthy living; there are very few jobs that have a higher rejection rate, that demand a serious removal of both mental and physical faculties to allow for serious speculation, and often writers find themselves absorbed in uncommonly shared symbols that can leave one feeling misunderstood.
Having such insights and as a response to my colleagues’ enquiries, on the graduate students’ light, the only solution to get out from this torment is to know the true essence of being a graduate student that is, contributing an innovative knowledge to our profession. It is through researching and conducting studies that we accomplish this purpose. Accordingly a dissertation is a formal document whose sole purpose is to prove that we have made an original contribution to knowledge. Failure to prove that we have made such a contribution generally leads to disappointment. With much being said, my reflection on chris fleming’s diseases of the thesis is that a person with an erroneous intention of being in a graduate school is at high risk of acquiring such psychological tortures. On the other hand, a dedicated scholar finds the dissertation process as a challenge to their competence, a mind exercise enriching their acumen. However reality cannot deny that dissertation writing is a real killer. It causes up to fifty percent of all graduate students to drop out of their degree programs because of it. The key to avoiding these ourselves may lead us to a better discernment on what we need to do, ideally, to get over this enormous hump.
Students run into trouble two ways when it comes to dissertation writing. Some of us do not get started on our research paper until much too late in the game. Other students get started nominally well – but then they do not get anywhere after that. They run into a wall. They cannot get any further. Pick your cliché; if it involves not being able to finish a big project, then it will work. It does not matter if we have the best dissertation ideas possible; we still have trouble continuing on the way we initially began.
To that end, our choice of dissertation ideas is extremely important. We do not want to choose an idea which is too broad; otherwise we are almost guaranteed to fail. We will become completely overwhelmed by all the information we need to find and all the research we need to do. We will be inundated and we will inevitably run into a serious block.
But why do so many students run into trouble during the dissertation writing process? Namely, it is because writing the dissertation is such a new experience. No matter what kind it is, whether it is an MA dissertation or one for your PhD, this is something we really cannot be experienced with if we have only written one. It marks the often difficult transition between a student and an actual scholar. That is an enormous amount of pressure. When we add into the fact that it is such a huge endeavour and that we are doing it independently, we can easily see why it is so difficult for so many students.
However, the dissertation writing process does not have to be this difficult. It does not have to be insurmountable or impossible. For one thing, although it is a largely independent project, there is a significant amount of dissertation help available for you. Proper guidance from the experts is what we need in this venture of becoming a full pledge authority. This person or group of people will be able to counsel and guide us through the writing process. Other than that, we need to remember to take things one step at a time. Be organized above all else, and things will not feel like they are going to fall to pieces around us.

References
1. Bailey, Deborah Smith. "The Sylvia Plath Effect." November 2003, Vol 34, No. 10. Print version: page 42 (http://www.apa.org/monitor/nov03/plath.aspx )
2. Davis, Laurie. "Mental illness meets creativity in new journal of literary arts." Chicago Chronicle. 2002. 21:11
3. Jamison, Kay Redfield. "Suicide and manic-depressive illness in artist and writers." National Forum. Wntr 1993. 73: 28
4. Kaufman, James C. "The Cost of the Muse: Poets Dies Young." Death Studies. 27: 813-821.
5. Krishna, HimaBindu. "Bipolar Disorder and the Creative Genius." (http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1772 )
6. "Virginia Woolf's Psychiatric History: Creativity and Psychiatric Disorder." (http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1772 )

Friday night was like the APOCALYPSE for all of us... the judgement day.... we had our prelim defense... for some it was their lucky night... for others it was a disaster... but the night went well as we learned and mature in writing our dissertation.... having the panel enlightened us as we take the path to the world of scholars... and the biggest revelation is that EACH ONE OF US HAD A MANIFESTATION OF THE DISEASES OF THE THESIS written by chRis flemming...all of us had a fraud paranoia... and reading depression.. making the whole process of thesis writing complicated and lead us to confusion... the thing i learned from the whole duration of our advanced tehchnical writing subject is "TO HAVE A SIMPLE AND FOCUSED MIND" in writing our dissertation as stated by Mr. Butcon. With this, i would like to hear from you what you have learned from our sessions and answer the following questions:

1. What is the most difficult step of the dissertation process? (give an explicit justification)
2. What actions did you take to surpass this obstacle?
3. After taking those actions, do you think you have evolve into a better writer? (give an explicit justification)

I tend to agree that we walk a really fine line when dealing with creativity and madness.
The most difficult part in thesis writing may probably be the formulation of a research topic. Authors need to be well-equipped with a wide range of review materials. And that, you cannot do overnight. The research topic and the related literature coexist. In the absence of the other you cannot proceed with the study.Once you have the focus then everything will follow.

I must agree with the both of you. Choosing a topic is the moat difficult part of the dissertation process. Take a deep breath. Yes, this is a difficult decision, but follow your instincts and you'll find your way to an appropriate and meaningful topic. Here are some criteria to keep in mind when choosing a dissertation or thesis topic.

* Choose a topic you love. This may be the most important criteria. You're going to be spending so much time with this project, and your quality of life will be much better if these hours are spent enjoyably. What's more, the quality of your research, writing, and arguments will be much better if you feel genuine passion for your work, Choose a topic you find both fascinating and socially significant. Never let someone pressure you into writing about a certain topic!
* Pick something your advisor finds interesting and is knowledgeable about. Of course, is this is not possible, you might want to change your advisor instead of changing your topic.
* Pick a topic that will be helpful in your career path. If your goal is an academic career, pick a topic that you can easily modify into journal articles or a book, and that will lend itself well to future research. If you want to work at a teaching oriented institution, consider a topic you can use in the classroom. If you are going into industry, choose a topic that will make you more marketable. Ask yourself this: how will my topic sound when I discuss it at an academic interview?
* Find a topic that establishes your niche in your field. Do your research and find a topic that fits into existing bodies of literature, but that builds upon theory and expands it.
* Choose research that is unique. Do significant research to make sure this topic has not been done before. Be creative and choose an idea that stands out from the pack as original and innovative.
* Think carefully before you choose a controversial topic. Academics are a sensitive lot, and in every field there are certain topics and positions that will send highly educated people into intellectual temper tantrums. This doesn't mean you should avoid topics that push people's buttons. However, if you choose a controversial topic, think carefully about whether it might restrict your employment, tenure, or publishing opportunities.
* Pick a topic that you already have some expertise about. This will help preserve your sanity and get you out the door faster. This isn't the time to explore a brand new area. Along the way, take coursework and write class papers that will help you write your dissertation or thesis.
* Pick a manageable topic. This is a huge project, but it isn't your life's research. A good advisor will help you narrow down your topic so that you don't remain in graduate school for many long years.


Reference:
http://www.suite101.com/content/dissertation-and-thesis-topics-a17177

hey guys, i wanted to share this optimistic article about discovering our potentials and also as an answer to chris flemming's fraud paranoia. hope you'll find time to read this and express your outlook in regards with it..

Self-Imaging – “the art of taking action to manifest your desired self!”

By Cathryn Taylor, MA, MFT, LADC, and author of The Inner Child Workbook


Self-imaging is a multi-level process which engages your mind, body, heart and soul in the evolution of your desired self. Who is the desired self? It is the you who stands in
your mind’s eye every time you say to yourself, “ When I finally .
I can’t wait until I .” It is your future self -- the one you think you will be when you have attained your desired goal. Take a moment right now, before you read another word, and write down ten sentences you say to your self which capture who you wish you were and who you hope to be. For example you might say to yourself “When I finally lose this weight then I will be able to find the man/woman of my dreams!.”
Or “I can’t wait until I find the job that will bring me the money I need to feel secure.”

Most of us make statements such as these a thousand times a day. And each
statement holds the seed of our desired self. It is always based in the future and is most often thought to be “just around the corner!” What prevents this desired self from materializing are the beliefs and feelings which follow these wishes? It is a
scientifically-proven fact that our mind does not know the difference between what is real and what is imagined.

Whatever you focus your thoughts on your mind will start
the process of creating it. UNLESS! Unless there is a stronger message from your emotional self which overrides that creation.

If there is fear attached to this image – the fear will dissolve the wish. If this wish is not
in harmony with your most authentic self – if this image is based on the values of others and on shoulds instead of wants -- the evolution will be thwarted. There will be a conflict between your desired self and your true self. Your self-image is the result of your
becoming who you think you need to be in order to be accepted and loved. Self-imaging
is taking this noun and making it a verb. It is seizing control of your image by putting deliberate action to its creation thus empowering yourself to create that which you desire.

If you want to see this phenomenon in living color I recommend you go see the recently- released movie entitled: “What the Bleep Do We Know?” It employs quirky animation to depict the impact your intentions have on every cell within your body. What you say and what you think plays such a profound role that you can literally use your thoughts and feelings to alter your cells. Athletes know this. Cancer-survivors know this.

What we do not hold in our day-to-day awareness, however, is the fact that even when we are not deliberately intending this to occur – it nonetheless occurs. If our thoughts

and feelings are negative – they produce negative results. Our cells flat-line…become lethargic… and are programmed to energetically attract what we intend. If we tell ourselves we are fat, our cells create fat. If we tell ourselves we are a failure, we
creative situations in which we fail. If we fear getting hurt, we attract hurtful situations.

Our cells act like a computer. We download the program and our cells respond accordingly.

“What The Bleep Do We Know” features Dr. Masaru Emoto who “…discovered that
crystals formed in frozen water reveal changes when specific, concentrated thoughts are directed toward them. He found that water from clear springs and water that has been exposed to loving words shows brilliant, complex, and colorful snowflake patterns. In contrast, polluted water, or water exposed to negative thoughts, forms incomplete, asymmetrical patterns with dull colors. The implications of this research create a new awareness of how we can positively impact the earth and our personal health…”

When you choose to understand this concept you have the opportunity to impact your
cells with your intent. You can either enhance them and encourage their expansion. Or you can engage in your addictions, compulsions and negative self talk which flattens
them. The remarkable component to this dynamic is the fact that as our cells split – and they do split and recreate -- they carry the energy of the old cell. It does not split with a fresh start. A cell’s off-spring carries the imprint of the parent cell at the time of the split.
Negativity begets negativity and positive reinforcement begets positive reinforcement!

Once again look at the sentences you completed above. Look into the heart of the
desired self. What is the source of that wish. Is it really based on who you want to be –
or is this image more in line with what you think you should be. As children we take the
lead from our parents, our teachers, and society in general to determine who we need to
be in order to be accepted and liked. Often there is a division between our real or
desired self and our adapted self. There will always be a conflict between who we think we need to be and who we really are.

Self-imaging has the potential to perpetuate or dissolve this conflict. If our thoughts and feelings focus on the negative we create negative results. If they focus on the positive
we create the possibility for the change and expansion which accompany our new image. Self-imaging is a process designed by your mind, fueled by your emotions, integrated into your body and inspired by your faith. It has been called creative visualization and creating with deliberate intent. Even Norman Vincent Peale’s The
Power Of Positive Thinking books and tapes are based on consciously impacting who
you are by what you think. In short, it is engaging in the art of pretending.

Self-imaging involves the process of giving form to a mental image or concept of who you want to be and then infusing that image with the color of your emotion and
the inspiration of your faith.

In other words – once you have consciously designed the image of who you want to be
you add the dimensions of how it would feel to actually attain that image. The emotion is the energy or the electricity which will give this mental form life. It is the air which fills the balloon of your desired self. Once the balloon is filled you want it fly. This requires
putting action to the cardboard figure – bringing this image into the activity of your day-
to-day life You implant your desired self into present time. You take the image from the movie screen in your mind’s eye and superimpose this desired self into your day-to-day activities. How do you do this – by a little technique called “acting as if.”

yes. I also agree with the others that the hardest part of doing a thesis would be finding a topic. In a site that I've browsed, (1)it says that it's absolutely essential to develop a research question that you're interested in or care about in order to focus your research and your paper. However, sometimes the topics that interest us the most have already been studied and proved. Therefore, we must learn to observed well our environment, because although there have been a lot of things that was already published and proved, still, a lot more requires discovery or maybe a bit of breakthrough in the field of Nursing. Also, I must say that a finding a good research question requires time and a lot of readings. Moreover, a good research paper requires a good analytical question which acts as strong roots. So the moment we think and decide for our topic, we have to be meticulous and find supporting data for it. Finding the right related literature review is also essential so that the research that we would want to pursue will be appreciated and recognized. Yes I agree with aimee, that research topic and related literature co-exist with one another..

(2)Conducting a literature review is a means of demonstrating an author’s knowledge about a particular field of study, including vocabulary, theories, key variables and phenomena, and its methods and history. Conducting a literature review also informs the student of the influential researchers and research groups in the field. Finally, with some modification, the literature review is a “legitimate and publishable scholarly document” (LeCompte & colleagues, 2003, p. 124).

In conclusion, I must say, that finding a topic that interest you the most plus a good background of it from the related literature that you've read and searched equals a perfect thesis in the end. So while we are novice in this field, we just have to practice our writing skills and read a lot. A good thesis can't be done overnight. It requires dedication, attention to detail, knowledge on you chosen field, critical thinking skills, and of course a methodological approach so that result of our study would be as objective as possible.




References:

1.http://www.esc.edu/esconline/across_esc/writerscomplex.nsf/0/f87fd7182f0ff21c852569c2005a47b7

2. Randolph, Justus J. (2009, June). A Guide to Writing the Dissertation Literature Review. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation. Volume 14, Number 13, ISSN 1531-7714

well, i think the hardest part of the dissertation process is finding out that what you knew isn't true at all....

during undergrad, the styles and ways of making a dissertation is far different from how it was taught to us byDr. Butcon. Never did i imagine making/starting a thesis as early as our first day of class!

anyhow, re the thesis writing alone... i think for most of us, to come up with a significant and interesting topic was the hardest part... hahaha

a good thesis, accounts for a good topic of people's interest....

it's a process. number 1 comes first, a baby crawls before he can walk, before you proceed to the next chapter of a book, read first the first chapter, before going to high school, be an elementary student first unless you're a genius. so for a researcher to do a research, he or she should think of the title first. it's the difficult part because it is where you will came from to arrive to the finish line. we should think of a title that is in our iterest and at the same time, still in the scope of our field. well, actually, i was able to finalized my title because i ask for help from a newly met friend who is ahead of us but also taking up masteral in a highly recognized university.

thank you for the replies... i agree with what you have said. thinking of what topic we could work out with is indeed the hardest part... we have to find a topic significant to our field then the process follows.. a roller coaster ride for all of us. at first it would excite you then scare you then after the ride you'll realize that it was fun...

For me, I think the most difficult step of the dissertation process, is choosing a topic to be research on. Because these would prove that your research you actually be of benefit in the nursing field. This would determine if it is still possible to be research on or it has already been answered by other researchers made. To surpass this obstacle what I just did was, I read journals and articles that may be off help on the topic that I wanted to research on. I search reading materials that would say that there is not enough evidence on my topic. I cannot say that I evolve into a better writer because we are just starting to do the process of thesis writing and I’m still in the process of improving myslef in writing.

I couldn't agree more. Looking for research topic that is interesting not only to your viewpoint but also to your soon-to-be readers is indeed very challenging. There is always this pressure that the study should to contribute to our profession, that your every argument should have a basis etc. A good research topic for me should present the summary of your whole study. It would mean that by the mere sight of your research topic, the reader should have a wild grasp on what you are trying to say/study. Is that possible? Aside from that, you have to anticipate where your study will direct you. If it would just lead you to blind alley, then you have to start from the very challenging step one.

I strongly agree that the most difficult part of thesis writing is choosing the topic that interest you most. First, you should have more than one topic to choose from. Second, if you picked a topic, you should have read enough literature so that you can be able to widen your ideas and defend it. But even though you exerted your full effort in doing this, your thesis will just go to waste specially if it doesn't have any significance at all. But i think thesis writing is not a difficult thing to do if we just learn how to love and enjoy what we are doing.