Authority To Imagine : The Struggle Toward Representation In Dissertation Writing

In this book, scholar-practitioners offer alternatives to the traditional five-chapter thesis format. As authors of meritorious and award-winning dissertations, they provide insights into the challenging process of crafting interpretive methods of dissertation inquiry. In addition, they relate their struggles to claim for themselves the authority to imagine creative representations of their research. Faculty and students who are looking for theoretic principles as well as good examples of interpretive dissertations will find this book invaluable.

The Editors: Noreen B. Garman is Professor of Education in the Administrative and Policy Studies Department at the University of Pittsburgh where she coordinates the Social and Comparative Analysis in Education Program. Her specializations include curriculum studies, instructional supervision, and qualitative/interpretive research. She is a Fulbright Scholar who has published numerous articles in professional journals and is the co-author of The Qualitative Dissertation: A Guide for Students and Faculty (1999).
Maria Piantanida has adjunct appointments in education at Carlow University in Pennsylvania and the University of Pittsburgh. She teaches introductory courses on qualitative research, co-facilitates a dissertation study group, and participates in several special interests groups dealing with qualitative research, including the Center for Interpretive and Qualitative Research at Duquesne University. Dr. Piantanida has served on a number of dissertation committees, conducted numerous workshops, and given presentations on the dissertation process at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. She and her colleague, Noreen B. Garman, co-authored The Qualitative Dissertation: A Guide for Students and Faculty (1999).