Discussion – Physical Security

Please read the Journal Article called “IT Doctoral Students with Completing Their Dissertations”. Shares your thoughts about what the major challenges are with pursuing a Ph.D.  

Please provide a discussion with 200 to 300 words. No Plaigarism

physical securityinformation systems

International Journal of Business and Social Research (IJBSR)

23

Information Technology Doctoral Students Challenges

with Completing Their Dissertations

Dr. IrikefeUrhuogo-Idierukevbe
a
, Dr. Archie Addo

a
, Dr. Timothy L

Anderson
b

ABSTRACT

The problem that is addressed in this paper is that information technologies (IT) doctoral students
are not receiving the proper guidance and feedback they need to complete their dissertations. The
purpose of this qualitative observational case study was to investigate the types of challenges IT
doctoral students encounter as they complete their dissertation. A qualitative observational
research design was used to collect data for the study. The data was collected between the years
2014 to 2018. Ten participants were used for the study, which were five professors and five IT
doctoral students. The researchers of the current study observed how professors supervised
students in IT doctoral projects. The researchers observed students from three universities in the
southern part of the United States. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit participants. Thematic
data analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings suggest that the doctoral team is not well
trained, do not communicate to doctoral students effectively, do not provide clear feedbacks, and
do not use the dissertation checklist that is required by their school. The researchers provided
some implications for practice and some conclusions.

Key words: Dissertation, dissertation teams, doctoral students, challenges.
This is an open access article under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, 2018.

1.0 Introduction

Dissertations are projects that are undertaken during doctoral studies in universities. Doctoral
students are not always provided with proper guidance and directions as they complete a project of
this magnitude. This can affect a university’s bottom-line and future students’ enrollment. When
doctoral students do not complete their dissertation due to lack of substantial feedback from the
dissertation team, they may quit the program or may be removed from the program as a result of poor
performance. Due to lack of direction and commitment from their chair and committee members,
doctoral students from different fields of studies, including information technologies (IT), find

a University of the Cumberlands, School of Computer and Information Sciences, United States. Email: irikefe01@yahoo.com
a University of the Cumberlands, School of Computer and Information Sciences. Email: aaddo7744@gmail.com
b Indiana Wesleyan University, DeVoe School of Business. Email: timanderson7@yahoo.com

International Journal of Business and Social Research

Volume 09, Issue 02, 2019: 23-

31

Article Received: 13-03-2019

Accepted: 22-05-2019
Available Online: 24-05-2019

ISSN 2164-2540 (Print), ISSN 2164-2559 (Online)

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18533/ijbsr.v9i2.1167

http://dx.doi.org/10.18533/ijbsr.v9i2.1167

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themselves working on their dissertation based on minimum feedback from their dissertation team,
which include the students’ chairs and committee members (Silinda&Brubacher, 2016).

1.1 Purpose statement
The purpose of this qualitative observational case study is to investigate the type of challenges

IT doctoral students encounter as they complete their dissertation. Completing a dissertation is not
easy, but proper guidelines and direction can facilitate a project of this magnitude.

1.2 Problem statement
The researchers of the current study observed students and professors on different

dissertations. One of the reoccurring problems that was observed is that doctoral students often do
not finish their dissertation project for multiple reasons. Some of the reasons are personal in nature
while others are based on errors that are made by their dissertation team. Regardless of the reasons,
doctoral students are often penalized for not completing their project in a timely manner. When this
becomes the case, doctoral students’ projects are placed on hold because the department does not
have enough professors who can chair the project. Sometimes the professors who are available often
provide little feedback because they have other jobs and do not have enough time to provide
substantial feedback.

2.0 Literature review
Obtaining doctoral degrees can be difficult and challenging for students (Borràs, 2017; Brown,

2016). When IT doctoral students fail to meet the milestone during a semester due to lack of guidance
and understanding, they are often penalized and may be dropped from their program (Brown, 2016).
This negative penalization from the department may yield negative reviews for the university, thus
affecting future students’ interest in the university or the program.

Choosing a dissertation topic in the field of IT can be difficult because IT-related topics are
often associated with confidentiality, security, and regulatory rules. For instance, doctoral students
whose dissertation topics focus on IT usage, IT security, IT management, IT governance, and
cybersecurity may find it difficult to receive permission letters from the organizations they intend to
use for their project. When doctoral students are successful in finding a researchable topic, they may
find themselves at a stand-still because they may not be able to secure a permission letter from an IT
organization in order to use their employees or data as part of their dissertation. This may be the case
due to laws governing employees and customers’ confidential information. If doctoral students are
not able to obtain permission letters from organizations, they may not be able to move forward with
their doctoral project.

Organizations may promise IT doctoral students that they would provide them with
permission letters stating that they can use their staff and data as part of their study. However, when
the time arrives for students to obtain such a letter, the organization may decide not to grant the
permission letter at the last-minute leaving the student with little time to find another organization
they can use for their study. The prospect of not knowing whether permission will be granted to use
an organization as part of their project may discourage IT doctoral students from moving forward with
their doctoral project. Also, IT doctoral students who need permission to use a quantitative or
qualitative instrument but find it difficult to secure such permission because they cannot locate the
author (s) of the instrument may also be discouraged from finishing their dissertation.

IT Doctoral students may also be discouraged from working on their dissertation if they have a
sick child who needs their attention, if they have a pregnant wife, or if they are pregnant and are unable
to contribute to their project due to the symptoms of pregnancy, or if they have a medical condition
that affects their day-to-day activity. Also, IT doctoral students may discontinue working on their
project if they find it difficult to get along with their dissertation team and if they feel their dissertation
team wants them to change their topic to a topic they are not interested in researching.

Additionally, some doctoral students may lose their jobs, get a divorce, lose a child or family
members to death, take more responsibility at work, etc. As a result of such challenges, doctoral
students may be discouraged from finishing their dissertation journey (Brown, 2016). While some
problems may not impact doctoral students’ abilities to work on their project, some may distract

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students from achieving their dissertation milestones each week (Kivunja, 2016). For instance, an IT
doctoral student who lost his or her job may spend time searching for another job and a doctoral
student who lost a family member may need time to grieve and come to terms to the death of the
loved one who died. Table 1 contain some list of problems dissertation students may face as they
complete their dissertation.
Table 1:
Dissertation hindrance factors

1. Pregnancy symptoms

2. Sick child or parents

3. Job responsibilities

4. Marital conflict

5. School responsibiltis
6. Lack of guidance from dissertation team

7. Not receiving approval letters from organizations or participants

8. Lack of permission to use quantitative or qualitative instruments

9. Not getting along with dissertation team

10. Making changes to living arrangements

Borràs (2017) stated that all research contributes to the scientific community so that other

researchers can expand on the research subject in greater depth. Starr and DeMartini (2015) noted
that doctoral advisors need to implement realistic practices that will help their doctoral students
graduate and succeed. Sometimes some of the directions that are provided to IT dissertation students
from their chair and committee members are not clear while others lack clear examples of how
students’ finished dissertation should look. Because some IT related topics can be complex and difficult
to understand, IT dissertation students find it difficult to choose a topic they can develop and
eventually defend during the dissertation proposal and final defense stages.

Also, the doctoral student may find it difficult to overcome behaviors that reflect
overcommitting, procrastination, and perfectionism (Montgomery, 2017). It is necessary that the
student is proactive during the dissertation process. Due to opposing demands on time, many students
do not always formulate and follow a work schedule, which can have implications for the quality of
work that is produced (Thompson, Ballenger, & Templeton, 2018; Hands, 2018). In order to be
successful in the end, students must devise a winning strategy.

2.1 Research Question
What type of challenges do IT doctoral students encounter as they complete their dissertation?

3.0 Methodology
A qualitative observational research design was used to collect data for the study. Ten

participants were used for the study which were five professors and five IT doctoral students. Creswell
(2014) stated that qualitative research methods require a smaller number of participants because
qualitative data methods generate a greater volume of data, which must be then analyzed and
described in detail. Therefore, ten participants seemed to be enough. The primary objective of a
qualitative observational research is to define a specific problem at the beginning of a study (Creswell,
2014). Even though the researchers identified the problem in the beginning of the current study, they
still wanted the events to unfold as freely as possible during the gathering of the data. By so doing, the
researchers were better able to observe participants and identify patterns in behaviors. The data was
collected between the years 2014 and 2018. The researchers of the current study observed how
professors supervised students in IT doctoral projects. The researchers’ role was to record the
participants’ interactions and behaviors objectively. During this process, the researchers suspended
presumptions they may have held that would influence the research findings.

Additionally, the researchers observed students from three universities in the southern part of
the United States. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit participants. The qualitative instrument

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that was used to gather the data was an observation guide that was created by the researchers. A flyer
about the study was emailed to ten professors at different universities. Among the ten professors who
participated, only five agreed to participate with the IT doctoral students they were working with. A
letter of consent was then drafted and sent to the professors and their students. The consent form
explained the purpose of the study, how participants will benefit from the study, and how long the
observation would last. Participants were informed that their participation in the study was voluntary.
Participants were also informed that they may choose not to participate in this study at any time
without penalty and that they have the right to inspect any instrument or materials related to the study.
Also, participants were informed that any information that is obtained in connection with this study
that can be identified with them will remain confidential and will be disclosed only with their
permissions or as required by law.

The following criteria were used to select professors for the study. The professors had their IT
doctorate degrees for at least five years, had three years’ experience as IT dissertation chairs or
committee members, and are familiar with general dissertation guidelines. The following criteria were
used to select the students who participated in the study. All the participants had completed all their
course work for the IT doctoral program and have been working on their doctoral project for one-year
during the time of the study. The doctoral students who had not completed their course work or
begun the dissertation project were not selected for the study. The professors and doctoral IT students
were from different cultural backgrounds such as African American, Hispanic, Caucasian and Iranian.
Most of the students who embarked on doctoral degrees were between the ages of 25 to 55 years old.
Most of the students took time off their regular jobs in order to complete their dissertation within the
time frame that was provided to them by their school.

3.1 Analysis
The researchers used NVivo software to analyze the observation data. NVivo is a software

program that is used for qualitative analysis. The observation was transcribed verbatim. Then the
transcripts were imported into NVivo software. NVivo was used to code the unstructured text and
develop themes. The NVivo program allowed the researchers to use a method referred to as the
constant comparison technique to arrive at themes. A thematic analysis involves the pinpointing and
examining of patterns within a data set (Creswell, 2009).

The first step of the thematic analysis involved the researcher understanding the data. The
researchers read through the data to identify information that did not pertain to the research questions.
Such information was removed from the data. The second step of the analysis was to label the data.
The researchers labeled sentences that were the same. Thus, the researchers were able to transcribe
the information from the notes verbatim in the same manner as received. The third stage of the data
analysis was recognizing common themes in the data. The fourth stage involved reviewing the themes.
The researchers reviewed and reflected on the information that was collected by paying attention to
impressions and tones that were revealed. In the fifth stage, the researchers named the themes. The
researchers summarized all the themes that emerged and the categories they were placed in. For
instance, the researchers summarized all the common themes and what they meant. In the sixth stage,
the researchers weaved together the analytic narrative and verified some information collected with
participants to ensure that they are documented correctly.

Additionally, validity in a qualitative study involves the trustworthiness of the data. For the data
of a qualitative study to be considered reliable, a researcher must address issues that pertains to the
data credibility, dependability, transferability and confirmability. Credibility was achieved in the current
study through member-checking. During member-checking, the researchers checked the data to ensure
that information is collected and transcribed appropriately. In some cases, participants were asked to
clarify information that were unclear. To achieved dependability, the researchers provided detail
information about the research procedure. To achieve confirmability, the researchers engaged in audit
trail that provided a transparent description of the research process starting from the beginning of
data collection process to the interpretation of the findings. To achieved transferability, the
researchers ensure that detail information was provided so that other researchers could make an
informed decision about generalizing the findings to other populations.

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3.2 Findings
The findings suggested that some of the challenges IT doctoral students faced as they complete

their dissertation is that their doctoral team was not well trained, did not communicate with them
effectively, did not provide clear feedback and did not use the dissertation checklist that is required by
their school.

4. Discussions
4.1 Training

The findings suggest that dissertation chairs and committee members were not trained on how
to direct and instruct IT doctoral students on their dissertation. The researchers observed: The
dissertation team were reviewing information from google on how to improve chapters on a
dissertation. It appears the team did not know how to instruct students based on a guideline that is
set by their school. This finding is consistent with Rapp, Moody, and Stewart (2018)’s study which
suggested that doctoral students’ dissertation teams and doctoral students need to be trained on how
doctoral students would be successful in their academic pursuit. Simply having a general training course
on how to provide instruction to students is not significant enough. Gokhale (2018) asserted, “the
doctoral training has to be designed to cater for, the expectations of candidates as well as expectations
and requirements of [professors]” (p.5). The dissertation team should be educated on how to utilize

reasoning behavioral coaching, evidence‐based strategy that will lead to significant and long‐term
behavioral change as it relates to completing the dissertation project. Muriisa (2015) stated that
dissertation training programs are necessary for doctoral students and professors so that all will
understand the dissertation process.

Additionally, the researchers observed: A dissertation team asked a student if the student
remembered what they were taught regarding how to draft their problem statement. The team also
asked the student to conduct research on how to draft a problem statement rather than explaining in
their own words what the problem statement should entail. This finding is consistent with Richards et
al.(2017)’s study which suggest that doctoral student advisors need to be trained on how to guide
doctoral students through the doctoral journey. Committee members, as well as advisors, should
provide guidelines during this initial stage of the dissertation.

Other researchers pointed out that most doctoral students begin their projects with over-
ambitious topics and find it difficult to focus their initial research question (Clua-Losada, 2018).
Educating dissertation teams on how students can develop a good research topic early on can have a
positive impact on students’ research. Other researchers noted that guidance for a dissertation topic
selection should include the development of a clear statement of the research topic and solidification
of the scope of the project, ensuring a topic is doable and ensuring a topic is researchable and not too
broad (Richards et al., 2017; Li, Zhou, & Huang, 2018).

4.2 Communication
The findings also suggest that dissertation teams do not provide clear direction on how to

adjust the dissertation. The researchers observed: the dissertation teams expected students to figure
out what they wanted the students to do. Some of the students told their professors that they
wanted them to explain what needed to be changed in the paper in standard English. This finding is
consistent with Thompson, Ballenger, and Templeton (2018, p. 51) views which suggest “clear
instructor to learner interaction is an important factor in increasing doctoral student performance in
the online learning environment.” Many dissertation projects have circling of ideas that were rejected
earlier on in previous submission by a dissertation team member, but in another round of submission,
such ideas may be suggested because a new dissertation team member may feel those ideas should be
included in the doctoral project.

The researchers observed: The dissertation team did not communicate with each other
effectively. In different occasions, committee members asked students to include information in their
chapters that were already asked to be removed from their chapters by their chairs. This finding is
consistent with Li, Zhou, and Huang (2018)’s study which suggested that if doctoral students are
motivated and properly guided through their academic pursuit, they are more likely to be satisfied with
the education and doctoral degree. The circling of ideas by dissertation chairs and committee members

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can be viewed as a waste of time for the student. Wasted time and delays can lead to financial hardship
for students when they are registered for the same dissertation class because they did not meet the
milestones for the previous semester and thus are required to repeat a semester. Clear
communication is needed for all who are involved in the dissertation process.

Furthermore, a dissertation chair may discuss with the student how the student can narrow a
topic and draft a problem statement and purpose of the study statement. Because the problem that is
addressed in a dissertation is the meat of the project, doctoral students need to have a good
understanding of how to present the problem of their research topic in their project and then support
it with academic references. Simply stating that there is problem based on communication with
colleagues is not substantial. The problem of the dissertation section needs to have a detailed
explanation and need to be backed up by peer-reviewed academic references.

4.3 Feedback
The findings also suggest dissertation chairs and committee members do not review students’

dissertations gradually and carefully as they progress, and do not provide the needed
recommendations. For instance, chair and committee members do not provide feedback on how
students may need to introduce their topic in the introductory paragraphs and how to draft their
purpose of the study statement.

The researchers observed: One of the committee members did not get back to a student for a
month because she was not notified by the department that she was the student’s chair. The student
told her chair that she should have graduated last year but did not because the department have
assigned her multiple dissertation chairs and committee members. Each time a new team is assigned to
her, the team want her to make major adjustment to her topic. This finding is consistent with De
Ramírez (2016)’s study which pointed out that direction on a research project needs to be clear and
achievable so that students would be able to make adjustments to their project accordingly. Other
research pointed out that students who are not clear on the directions that are provided by their chairs
should be provided with a sample dissertation that their chair has directed so that students would have
an idea of what their chair is asking of them (Jones, 2016). When students adjust their paper
accordingly, but fail to implement the recommended feedback, chairs and committee members should
provide an example of how they want the students to adjust their paper. Thompson, Ballenger, and
Templeton (2018) observed that professors’ interaction with doctoral students help students applied
themselves to their doctoral classes and projects. The doctoral student dissertation team should be
willing to step in and help when necessary at individual, relational, and institutional and departmental
levels. Individual success often depends upon relational factors such as interaction.

4.4 Checklist
The findings also suggest that the dissertation teams did not use the dissertation checklist

that is approved by the school. While every school has different dissertation checklist, a thorough
dissertation checklist that is approved by a department would help dissertation students complete
each section on their project. Simply using a dissertation checklist that is approved by another school
from which the professor received his or her degree may not help a doctoral student meet the
dissertation requirements of the school he or she attends.

The researchers observed: Some committee members told their students that the literature
review section should be more than 60 pages. This information was different from their schools’
dissertation checklists which states that chapter two needed to be 30 to 40 pages.

Research shows that the dissertation chair, committee member and student all need to
understand each other when it comes to how a student’s dissertation project sections should be
organized (Li, Zhou, & Huang, 2018; Starr &DeMartini, 2015). Providing adequate feedback based on an
institution dissertation checklist would enable a doctoral student to draft the dissertation according to
his or her school standard, and at the same time, prepare the project for publication in the future.
Figure 1 contains the key findings.

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Figure 1. Key Findings

4.5 Implications for Practice
This study recommends four areas of implementation. First, if a department chair notices that

IT doctoral students are not graduating in a timely manner as they ought to, the chair needs to get to
the root cause of the matter by investigating the cause of the problem. It could be that the dissertation
team is not trained in managing dissertations. If this is the case, training seminars on supervising
dissertation projects need to be provided to the team. The seminars may be conducted every
semester, or every month based on evidence-based practice. The chair needs to get to root of the
problem and then resolve it so that it would not lead to low enrollment in the IT doctoral program.

Secondly, communication regarding doctoral project should be made on a weekly basis from
the team to the doctoral students. By so doing, all will be on the same page and student would be
provided with constant feedback on how to improve their work. In some cases, a problem may arise
from the student. If this becomes the case, the department chair needs to have a one-on-one meeting
with the students to see how he or she can help the student. If the student needs to take additional
writing classes, such classes should be provided. However, if the student needs time off due to
personal reasons, such request should be granted, and the chair should discuss with the student when
the student would like to return to finish his or her dissertation.

Third, department heads need to ensure that IT students’ dissertation teams fully understand
the time-sensitivity of their work. the team that is involved in students’ dissertations have jobs with
other universities. As a result, they have little time to provide detail feedback on students’ dissertation.
In other cases, the dissertation teams may be out of town in the middle of a semester. When this
become the case, they are not available to provide feedback.

Fourth, considering that dissertation teams review multiple dissertations during a semester,
they need to be provided with an attractive compensation package so that the department would
keep the same dissertation team for a long period of time. Also, instead of paying the team when a
student completes a dissertation chapter or the whole dissertation, such teams need to be paid every
month or every two weeks because the work they do require much of their time.

4.6 Further Recommendations
An IT dissertation student can be proactive by sitting in on mock dissertation defenses as well

as final dissertation defenses. By so doing, the student would be able to have a visual understanding of
what to do during his or her dissertation and what to expect from the faculties who are present during
the defense. The doctoral teams also need to encourage doctoral students to practice defending their
projects with committee members/advisors in order to become more effective at presenting their

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dissertation topic. Doctoral students need to be prepared for the question-and-answer session that
follows the presentation; they need to be primed to answer questions about their methodology; they
need to defend and explain their choice of analysis; and they need to be able to discuss how their study
contributes to the literature and informs theory; and where the research might go next (Chamberlin,
2004 ). Providing clear communication during dissertation feedback would help the student have a
better understanding of what is expected of him or her.

Furthermore, Kunttu, Huttu, and Neuvo (2018) observed that doctoral students can be
successful and motivated if their institutions collaborate with firms that would help them transfer
their knowledge to the real world. Jacobs, Augustin, and Park (2018) stated that doctoral students are
likely to have peace of mind and confidence when their institutions help them with job placement upon
graduation. Cross (2014) observed that success in the dissertation journey is dependent on the effort
of the dissertation team members. Additionally, Tribe and Tunariu (2016) observed that a dissertation
needs to be well written so that it would be accepted for publication in an academic publishing journal.

Additionally, it is important to maintain firm boundaries around a dissertation writing time. It
takes a considerable amount of time to complete the dissertation process. It is essential for dissertation
teams to educate doctoral students on how to develop excellent time management skills in order to
maximize the time students spend on their projects. Students may need to schedule their writing time
around their family’s schedule or another part-time job, which is perfectly legitimate. If this is the
situation, the doctoral students need to consider waking up an hour or two earlier than usual or
working late in the evening when they are alone (Louise, 2018). In order to manage time properly, the
doctoral team should teach students how to set up small milestones and deadlines, track and reward
progress, create outlines for individual chapters, and maintain a running “to do” list to ease getting in
and out of the dissertation requirement. Hands (2018) noted that when students are taught how to

apply themselves in research, they are better motivated to pursue a doctoral degree.

5.0 Summary
The purpose of this qualitative observational case study is to investigate the types of challenges

IT doctoral students encounter as they complete their dissertation. A qualitative observational research
design was used to collect data for the study, the data was collected between the years 2014 and 2018,
and thematic data analysis was used to analyze the data. Ten participants were used for the study
which were five professors and five IT doctoral students. The findings suggest that IT doctoral students’
doctoral team is not well trained, do not communicate to them effectively, do not provide clear
feedback and do not use the dissertation checklist that is required by their school. For doctoral
students to be successful during their dissertation journey, they need to be supported by their
dissertation team (Rapp, Moody, & Stewart, 2018; Starr &DeMartini, 2015). A dissertation is like a
rolling-wave in that corrections will be made to it by doctoral students when a better understanding of
the topic and subject is realized (Thompson, Ballenger, &Templeton, 2018; Hands, 2018). Dissertation
chair and committee members need to keep in mind that a dissertation would not be perfectly written
the moment the students begin working on it. Ingman (2014) observed that dissertation challenges
have the potential to enhanced doctoral students learning capacity and ability to review and analyze
literature carefully. Every dissertation student needs a team that will empower them to complete their
project and obtain a doctoral degree.

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