Authority to Imagine: The Struggle Toward Representation in Dissertation Writing

In this book, scholar-practitioners offer alternatives to the five-chapter thesis crafted in the tradition of science reports. As authors of meritiorious and award-winning dissertations, they provide insights into the challenging process of conceptualizing interpretive methods of inquiry including narrative, heuristic, social cartography, grounded theory, spritiual inquiry, reflective art-making; and essay writing. Each author explores the interconnections among her ontological leanings and the method, content and form of her dissertation. The editors frame these examplars of individual studies within the broader discourses of interpretive inquiry. This collection is particularly timely as many universities are currently exploring what types of scholarhip might best serve educational practitioners pursuing graduate and doctoral degrees.