Academic research and writing

This book addresses fundamental aspects and techniques of academic research and writing in order to provide the beginner and the intermediate student with a solid basis for working on essay assignments, term papers as well as undergraduate and graduate research projects. The objective is to deliver an easily applicable, yet theoretically profound introduction into the field of academic research and writing, which can be understood without additional literature. Applying a classroom tested instructional design, each chapter starts with an abstract and keywords followed by a structured overview explaining the chapter's context und relevance, from which learning objectives are derived. As supporting elements, examples and sample cases are used throughout the book. End of chapter questions and problems deepen the understanding of the chapter's contents. The book forms part of an integrated educational media concept developed on the basis of the authors' experience in working with students on academic research projects. The textbook can be used either separately or in combination with complementary e-learning tutorials. E-learning and further materials are available for free at: https: //academic-research-and-writing.org

Christian Decker is a Professor of International Business at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences. His teaching focuses on international and corporate finance as well as academic research and writing. He has specialised in didactical concepts that are grounded on competency-based education as well as educational media. His focus lies on the development and execution of course scenarios deploying e-learning, blended learning and the inverted classroom model (flipped classroom) as well as project-based, case-based and research-based learning. Previously, he spent ten years within the corporate and investment banking division of a large German bank and worked three years as consultant and evaluator in the corporate finance department of a Big Four auditing firm. Christian Decker graduated with a degree in Business Administration from the University of Hamburg and received his doctorate in Business Economics from the University of Bremen, Institute for World Economics and International Management. He was awarded the Hamburg Teaching Award 2012 for his academic lecturing achievements and e-learning activities.