| CODE | COU5121 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Dissertation | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 30 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Counselling | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Students shall be required to submit an individual dissertation of 20,000 words (minimum 18,000 words and maximum 20,000 words) According to the PVC鈥檚 Guidelines for Essay Type Assignments and Dissertations, PG Dissertations of 30 ECTS (excluding footnotes, references and appendices. The dissertations provides students with an opportunity to examine a selected area related to counselling and to understand the relationship between theory, empirical research and practice. The students shall be followed by a supervisor throughout the process. Should the examiners deem it necessary, students may be required to defend their dissertation during an oral examination. Study-Unit Aims: This study-unit requires students to undertake a systematic enquiry into a topic related to counselling. The dissertation should be a critical inquiry on an aspect of counselling intended to help develop a corpus of research on counselling in Malta. Students will be given the opportunity to demonstrate synthesis of the knowledge and skills developed through their course. This study-unit will familiarise students with the research process. Dissertations should include an introduction and a comprehensive literature review on the subject being researched. It should also include an account of the methodology chosen, its philosophy, validity and credibility, the research tool chosen and the rationale and validity/credibility of the research tool chosen. Student should also give a comprehensive account of their reflexive process during the research process. The research findings should be analysed against the background of the literature review and chosen methodology. The whole dissertation process needs to take into consideration all the ethical issues involved in counselling research, including an appropriate research design, informed consent of research participants, confidentiality and the social responsibilities shouldered by the researcher. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Evaluate existing literature associated with the selected research question; - Demonstrate a deeper understanding of the specific topic under investigation; - Reflect upon and critically analyse relevant theories and existing research material; - Demonstrate a stronger knowledge of the research methods employed; - Analyse the data collected by using quantitative or qualitative techniques; - Demonstrate a clear understanding of the main concepts emerging from the study; - Critically reflect upon all aspects of the research process including: method, findings and conclusions; - Draw conclusions from the research findings and link them to counselling practice; - Make recommendations for future research and counselling practice. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Design and conduct a research study; - Identify a relevant area of investigation; - Undertake an extensive review of literature; - Develop an appropriate research question; - Apply appropriate research methods; - Reflect upon the philosophical and ethical foundations of research; - Critically analyse theories, perspectives, concepts and existing research; - Present empirically supported arguments and conclusions; - Synthesize the research and write a coherent academic piece of work. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (latest edition) Washington DC: American Psychological Association. - Dissertations鈥� Handbook (Department of Counselling). Supplementary Readings: - Blaxter, L., Hughes, C., and Tight, M. (2010). How to research. (4th. Edition). Open University Press. - Bond, T. (2002). 'Naked narrative: real research?' Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 2, 2, 133-138. - Bond, T. (2015). Standards and ethics for counselling in action (2nd. Edition). Sage Publications. - Bryman, A., & Cramer, D. Quantitative Data Analysis with SPSS 14, 15 and 16: A guide for social scientists. Routledge. - Chase, S. (1996) 'Personal vulnerability and interpretative authority in narrative research', in Josselson, R. (Ed.) - Ethics and Process in the Narrative Study of Lives. Sage Publications. - Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (Eds.) (2000) Handbook of qualitative research (2nd ed.. Sage Publications. - Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (1994). Introduction: entering the field of qualitative research, in Denzin, N.K and - Lincoln, Y.S. (Eds.) Handbook of Qualitative Research. Sage Publications. - Etherington, K. (2001). 'Research with ex-clients: a celebration and extension of the therapeutic process'. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling. 29, 1, 5-19. - Field, A. (2013). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics. Sage. - Gergen, K. (1985). The social construction of the person. Springer-Verlag. - Heiman, G. (2010). Basic statistics for the behavioral sciences (6th revised edition). Broadman & Holman.- Hertz, - R. (Ed.) (1997). Reflexivity and voice. Sage Publications. - Kreuger, R.A. and Casey, M.A. (2000). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research (3rd ed.). Sage Publications. - Lewis Lanza, M. and Satz, H. (1995). 'Researcher and clinician: Role conflict resolution'. Group, 19, 2, Summer 1995. - McLeod, J. (2011). Qualitative Research in Counselling and Psychotherapy (2nd ed.). Sage. - McLeod, J. (2003). Doing Counselling Research (2nd ed.). Sage Publications. - Moustakas, C. (1994). Phenomenological research methods. Sage Publications. |
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| ADDITIONAL NOTES | Students are required to submit their dissertation by the submission date/s and to ensure that they then submit any changes required by their Dissertation鈥檚 Board of Examiners. Failure to do so will delay publication of students鈥� final classification. | ||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Dissertation | ||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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