Thesis Guidelines for a Research Master Thesis in Marketing

Thesis Guidelines for a Research Master Thesis in Marketing Document elaborated by the marketing department to the attention of students who write a Master thesis in Marketing

THESIS STRUCTURE This document aims to help students write a research thesis as part of the 2-year master program in Marketing. This section shows (1) the typical structure of a (empirical) research paper, (2) questions we expect the students to answer within each section, along with (3) some guidelines students can follow to answer these questions, and (4) suggested deadlines. Most of research papers follow that structure, yet be aware this is not always the case1. Accordingly, this document aims to be informative: it does not include strict rules students must comply with, nor does it substitute the School guidelines that apply to every master thesis. Preface (e.g., acknowledgements, personal motivation, copyrights, liability ) Title Is the title appealing? Does it reflect the content of the thesis? Abstract Is the abstract appealing? Does it reflect the content of the thesis? Provide the reader with a summary of the thesis, following the same structure described hereunder. The abstract (and introduction) should tease the reader to read the thesis entirely. 1 Other kinds of papers exist such as conceptual paper, business cases

Chapter 1: Introduction (5-7 pages) (end of June of Bloc 1) Context: Is this a current topic? How important is the topic in the current context? Why is it important to examine this topic right now? Explain the changes in the business environment, the new challenge(s) met by companies and their managers. Illustrate your arguments using key trends, facts, and figures1. Such information may not only come from scientific papers, but also from surveys, reports, business press releases, interviews with key actors, etc. Research Motivation: Why is it important to examine this topic? Managerial Motivation: Do managers need more insights about the topic? Is the topic an important concern for practitioners today? Explain the gap(s) in the current business knowledge and the reasons why managers should care about your research. Academic Motivation: Is there a gap in the current literature related to the topic? Do scholars need more insights about the topic? Explain the gap(s) in the current academic knowledge and the reasons why it is important to examine this topic from an academic point of view. Problem Statement: What is exactly the problem investigated in the thesis? Is(Are) the research question(s) clearly stated and consistent with the motivations? Report the main research question(s) you will be investigating throughout the thesis. For instance: What is the impact of X (e.g., customer satisfaction) on Y (e.g., customer loyalty)? Contributions: What are the expected benefits of the thesis? What is your added value? Managerial contributions: What should managers do differently? Academic contributions: What do you add to the literature? Show how the results of the thesis will fulfill the needs identified in the research motivation section; be consistent. Approach: How is the thesis structured? Report the different steps that you will follow to reach your goals. It is crucial to illustrate each fact (e.g., a growing sector) with figures coming from well-known and recognized institutions or authors. Furthermore, when a figure is mentioned, make sure it is clear what this figure is about: for instance, if you evoke the growth of 5% for a specific sector, make sure we know which type of growth it is (e.g., turnover, volume, number of employees, ), the period (e.g., one-year growth between 2014-2015), and the geographical region (e.g., Wallonia, Belgium, Euro zone, USA, ). 1

Chapter 2: Literature Review (15-20 pages) (mid-december of Bloc 2) Conceptual background: What do we know (and do not know) so far with regard to the topic? Relate your research to existing (and recent) scientific papers, summarize the current knowledge and define theoretical concepts relevant to the research question(s), develop a theoretical framework (i.e., what is the main theory in which you anchor your research?), and formulate hypotheses that are theoretically supported by previous studies. Model: Summarize, using a figure, the hypotheses that have been formulated in the conceptual part. One picture is worth a thousand words. Chapter 3: Research Design (5-7 pages) (research design choice: mid-december of Bloc 2; data collection: February of Bloc 2) Methodology: Which particular methodology did you choose to answer your research questions? Why is this me- thodology the most appropriate one (in line with your research question2)? Which particular sampling method has been used? Why? How did you collect the data? Who were the respondents? Describe, explain, and justify the research methods used. Measures: Which particular measures (e.g., scales, performance tests, observational measures...) did you use to capture the variables of interest? Report all the measures you used. If you use scales, use scales from prior research. Chapter 4: Results (5-10 pages) (March-April of Bloc 2) Mention the analyses you did to test your hypotheses and report the results. Chapter 5: Discussion (5-7 pages) (April-May of Bloc 2) Explain what the findings actually mean. Relate the results to the conceptual part and the scientific papers used to build the hypotheses. If you did not find what you expected, provide alternative explanations (e.g., another theory or variable may be at play) and expand the existing theory. If your research question investigates a causal relationship (e.g., the impact of X on Y), then you will use a quantitative method such as a survey or an experiment. If your research question explores a particular phenomenom (i.e., identifying the barriers to the adoption of a new product), then a qualitative method (e.g., in-depth interviews or case study) is more likely to be the appropriate method. 3

Chapter 6: Conclusion (5-7 pages) (April-May of Bloc 2) Short summary Managerial implications of this study It should be consistent with the motivations and contributions mentioned in the Introduction section. Provide further details and describe what managers should do differently based on your results. Theoretical implications of this study It should be consistent with the motivations and contributions mentioned in the Introduction section. Describe the added value of your research for scholars. Limitations and suggestions for further research: Provide relevant and interesting call for more research (e.g., another variable of interest should be included in the model), based on your findings and limitations. Each of the limitations you identify (e.g., sample choice, methodology used, variables examined) should reflect a need for additional research. Show that you are aware of the limitations of your study. REFERENCES Refer to at least 30 scientific papers published in high-level journals. Show you read a significant number of relevant articles, books, and other sources. Use the APA style to consistently report the references within (1) the body of the text AND the (2) bibliography (e.g., see the following APA online tutorial: http://flash1r.apa.org/apastyle/basics/index.htm). Be aware that not including references properly (especially in the text) may be considered as a form of plagiarism. Any evidence of plagiarism will result in failure. The software Endnote may help you in managing the bibliography. APPENDICES Do include all the information that is considered «non-essential». Put differently, if you remove the appendices, the thesis should remain perfectly understandable. The main objective of the appendices is to provide extra information (e.g., raw data, interview transcripts, etc.).

THESIS TIMING This document provides an agenda along with suggested deadlines to maximize the likelihood of defending in June (2nd year of the second Bloc). Writing a thesis is time and energy consuming, and requires regular efforts. This timing may thus help you stay on track. Bloc 1 February-March Meeting 1 with the supervisor: Contact potential supervisor(s). Provide him/her (them) with a short but well-supported research proposal. This proposal should then be discussed and validated during the first meeting. June Meeting 2 with the supervisor: Provide your supervisor with (1) a draft of Chapter 1 (Introduction), along with (2) the references of the articles you have read. (on average, a master thesis includes a minimum of 30 scientific papers). Bloc 2 End of November Meeting 3 with the supervisor: provide the supervisor with the introduction, the literature review, and research design plan (that is, how are you going to collect the data you need). The objective of this meeting is to validate the introduction and the research design. December-January Meeting 4 with the supervisor: provide the supervisor with the instrument(s) that you plan to use in order to collect data. These instruments (e.g. questionnaire) should then be discussed with and validated by your supervisor (e.g., survey, interview guide, experimentations ). Provide a detailed description of the measures you will be using. Before Easter break Meeting 5 with the supervisor (optional): provide the supervisor with the first results to discuss them. QUALITY OF THE COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR SUPERVISOR Do always use the same email for the exchanges with your supervisor. In doing so, both the supervisor and yourself will be able to have a full picture of the conversation. Following each meeting with your supervisor, do send him/her the minutes of the meeting within three days.

EVALUATION GRID This evaluation grid aims to be informative: it does not include strict rules students must comply with, nor does it substitute the School guidelines that apply to every master thesis. Student behaviors Deadlines met Autonomy Sought feedback Positive and receptive attitude Listening skills Ability to integrate the feedback provided by the supervisor Ambition Written thesis Title Consistency between title and content Originality of the topic, academic and managerial relevance Introduction Quality of the problem statement and the related research question(s) Relevance and clarity of the key theoretical concepts Relevance of the main theory used Literature Review Clarity and relevance of the hypotheses and the model (if available) Relevance of the bibliography/quality of the references used Clarity and relevance of the methodology choice Methodology Quality of the sampling procedure, quality of the data collection Results Quality of the data analyses: relevance of the method used; clarity of the reporting of the results. Discussion Quality of the discussion and quality of the links with the literature review Relevance of the academic and managerial contributions Conclusion Relevance of the limitations and future research Transversal skills Synthetic and analytic thinking Critical thinking Open-minded Scientific rigour Objectivity ; ability to take a step back Originality, creativity (of the topic, the perspective adopted, the data collection, the data analyses ) Guiding thread throughout the paper Form Layout Structure Ad hoc vocabulary Syntax, spelling, punctuation and grammar* Text flow Respect of APA norms Oral defense Clarity, originality, and organization of the presentation Quality of presentation Communication skills Relevance, conciseness, and completeness of the answers Development of convincing arguments Quality of the answers to the questions Mastery of the subject Critical thinking skills * Note concerning syntax, spelling, punctuation and grammar: Students may fail if the thesis contains more than 40 spelling mistakes and/or if the fluency of the reading is impeded by an obvious lack of language skills. Even if the thesis is satisfactory in terms of content, the poor form may justify a failure. The jury is sovereign in this regard. Note concerning plagiarism: Any form of plagiarism is severely sanctioned. Please, refer to the ad hoc brochure edited by the University of Liege (entitled Plagiarism, not for me ) available on the website to avoid any issue.