How to research and write a thesis in hospitality and tourism : a step-by-step guide for college students / James M. Poynter.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A comprehensive guide to academic research methods that focuses on two of the world's fastest growing industries... As tourism continues to play a larger role in economies all over the world, record numbers of students are flocking to college and university programs in this specialized field of study. Charged with writing a comprehensive thesis that relates to their special hospitality area of interest, many of these students--some of whom are preparing a thesis for the first time in their academic careers--experience difficulty in organizing a project on such a scale. Designed as a companion to the student who is writing such a thesis, How to Research and Write a Thesis in Hospitality and Tourism is a beginner's guide to basic research and writing specifically on this burgeoning field of study. This hands-on guide helps students pull together the various components of a thesis in an organized, coherent fashion--from the cover page to the bibliography--and all the chapters in between. Students learn everything they need to know about developing, designing,and completing an original research study including: How to develop an original thesis How to conduct a thorough literature review How to write a knockout introduction How to write effective chapter summaries How to prepare footnotes and bibliography How to prepare a persuasive cover letter How to obtain, record, analyze, and interpret data And much more!

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface (p. xi)
• Acknowledgments (p. xiii)
• About the Author (p. xv)
• Chapter 1 Your Original Thesis (p. 1)
• What Is an Original Thesis? (p. 1)
• What Is Hospitality Industry Research? (p. 1)
• The Original Research Thesis Chapters (p. 2)
• Contents of Chapter One (p. 2)
• Contents of Chapter Two (p. 2)
• Contents of Chapter Three (p. 2)
• Contents of Chapter Four (p. 3)
• Contents of Chapter Five (p. 3)
• The Appendixes (p. 4)
• How Your Research Can Help You and the Industry (p. 4)
• The Importance of Topic Selection (p. 4)
• Initial Topic Selection (p. 5)
• Initial Population Considerations (p. 6)
• The Writing Approach (p. 7)
• The Organizational Structure (p. 8)
• Selecting a Style Manual (p. 9)
• To Type, to Word Process, or to Compute (p. 10)
• Getting Organized--Where and How to Start (p. 11)
• Summary (p. 11)
• Bibliography (p. 12)
• Discussion Questions (p. 12)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 13)
• Exercises (p. 14)
• Chapter 2 The Starting Point--Chapter Two (p. 27)
• Introduction (p. 27)
• Should Chapter Two or Chapter One Be Written First? (p. 27)
• The Relationship between Key Words, Note Cards, and Outlines (p. 28)
• The Initial Research Question and the Literature Review (p. 28)
• Key Words (p. 28)
• Library References (p. 29)
• Internal and External Computer Searches (p. 29)
• Refining the Research Question (p. 30)
• Reference Cards (p. 30)
• The Continuing Development of Chapter Two (p. 31)
• Outline Cards and Tab Cards (p. 31)
• The Outline for Chapter Two (p. 32)
• What Is Footnoted? (p. 32)
• Summary (p. 32)
• Discussion Questions (p. 33)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 34)
• Exercises (p. 35)
• Chapter 3 Starting Chapter One (p. 43)
• Introduction (p. 43)
• The Mechanics of Front Pages (p. 43)
• Writing the Chapter One Introduction (p. 51)
• The Population Revisited (p. 51)
• Say What You Mean and Mean What You Say (p. 52)
• Summary (p. 52)
• Discussion Questions (p. 52)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 53)
• Exercises (p. 54)
• Chapter 4 The Chapter One Core (p. 57)
• Introduction (p. 57)
• The Importance of Chapter One Core Sections (p. 58)
• The Downward Importance Flow in Chapter One (p. 58)
• The Final Research Question (p. 58)
• The Statement of the Problem (p. 58)
• The Subproblems (p. 59)
• Hypotheses (p. 60)
• Organization of the Paper (p. 61)
• Assumptions (p. 62)
• Delimitations (p. 62)
• Summary (p. 63)
• Discussion Questions (p. 64)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 65)
• Exercises (p. 66)
• Chapter 5 Completing Chapter One (p. 73)
• Introduction (p. 73)
• The Final Organizational Structure of Chapter One (p. 73)
• Defining Terms and Abbreviations (p. 74)
• Writing the "Importance of the Study" Section (p. 74)
• Writing the Chapter One Summary (p. 76)
• Tying in Chapters One and Two (p. 76)
• Summary (p. 77)
• Discussion Questions (p. 77)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 78)
• Exercises (p. 79)
• Chapter 6 Chapter Two Revisited (p. 83)
• Introduction (p. 83)
• The Ongoing Literature Review Draft (p. 84)
• Writing the Front Pages for Chapter Two (p. 84)
• Writing the Introduction to Chapter Two (p. 84)
• Revising Chapter Two to the Three Standard Sections (p. 86)
• The Footnotes for Chapter Two (p. 86)
• The Bibliography for Chapter Two (p. 87)
• Summary (p. 87)
• Discussion Questions (p. 88)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 88)
• Exercises (p. 89)
• Chapter 7 The Cover Letter and the Research Instrument (p. 91)
• Introduction (p. 91)
• The Questionnaire as a Foundation for Original Research (p. 92)
• The Importance of Tieing the Population and the Thesis Research Question to the Research Instrument (p. 92)
• Preliminary Research Instrument Development Techniques--Note Cards of Questions (p. 93)
• Preliminary Research Instrument Development Techniques--Interview Sampling (p. 93)
• The Document Review/Revision Process (p. 94)
• Geographical Sampling Size (p. 94)
• Phone or Personal Visit Sampling (p. 94)
• Sample Size (p. 95)
• Refining Final Research Instrument Questions Based on Responses from the Sampling (p. 95)
• The Delphi Approach (p. 95)
• Writing the First Draft of the Research Instrument (p. 96)
• Writing the Cover Letter (p. 96)
• Summary (p. 101)
• Discussion Questions (p. 102)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 102)
• Exercises (p. 103)
• Chapter 8 Chapter Three--The Foundation (p. 109)
• Introduction (p. 109)
• Primary and the Secondary Data (p. 110)
• Criteria for the Admissibility of Data (p. 110)
• Validity (p. 111)
• Reliability (p. 113)
• The Chapter Three Population Description (p. 114)
• Summary (p. 114)
• Bibliography (p. 114)
• Discussion Questions (p. 116)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 116)
• Exercises (p. 117)
• Chapter 9 Chapter Three--The Research Structure (p. 135)
• Introduction (p. 135)
• Research Methodologies (p. 136)
• The Means of Obtaining and the Location of the Data for Each Problem and Subproblem (p. 136)
• Statistical Treatment Options (p. 137)
• Treatment Options for the Data (p. 137)
• Interpretation of the Data for Each Problem and Subproblem (p. 137)
• Item Analyses (p. 138)
• Tables, Figures, Graphs, and Charts (p. 138)
• Basic Review Checks (p. 138)
• Summary (p. 139)
• Bibliography (p. 139)
• Discussion Questions (p. 139)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 140)
• Exercises (p. 141)
• Chapter 10 Chapter Three--The Mechanics (p. 145)
• Introduction (p. 145)
• The Chapter Three Title Page and Introduction (p. 145)
• Preparing the Mailing and Mail Considerations for the Research Instrument (p. 146)
• Coding Options (p. 149)
• Putting Chapter Three Together (p. 149)
• Creating a Three-Chapter Package (p. 150)
• Summary (p. 150)
• Bibliography (p. 151)
• Discussion Questions (p. 151)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 152)
• Exercises (p. 153)
• Chapter 11 Mailings and Chapter Four (p. 155)
• Introduction (p. 155)
• Time Constraints (p. 155)
• The Mechanics of Questionnaire Mailing (p. 156)
• Second Mailing (p. 157)
• When to Start the Data Analysis (p. 158)
• Recording Incoming Data (p. 158)
• Applying Statistical Data Analyses (p. 159)
• Preparing the Charts (p. 159)
• Writing the Chapter Four Front Pages (p. 160)
• Preparing the Appendixes (p. 160)
• Writing the Chapter Four Conclusion (p. 161)
• Creating a Four-Chapter Package (p. 161)
• Summary (p. 161)
• Discussion Questions (p. 162)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 163)
• Exercises (p. 164)
• Chapter 12 Writing Chapter Five (p. 169)
• Introduction (p. 169)
• The Chapter Five Introduction (p. 170)
• Interpreting Each Subproblem's Data (p. 170)
• Interpreting the Conclusion of Each Hypothesis (p. 171)
• Interpreting the Conclusions Concerning the Problem and the Research Question (p. 172)
• Generalizations Beyond the Parameters of the Study (p. 172)
• Writing the "Recommendations for Further Study" Section (p. 173)
• Writing the "Contributions of the Study" Section (p. 174)
• Writing the Chapter Five Conclusion (p. 174)
• Summary (p. 174)
• Discussion Questions (p. 175)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 176)
• Exercises (p. 177)
• Chapter 13 Post-Study Tasks (p. 179)
• Introduction (p. 179)
• The Addenda (p. 179)
• Packaging the Original Research Study (p. 180)
• Writing the Research Study Synopsis (p. 183)
• Thank-You Letters and Synopsis Distribution (p. 184)
• Publishing and Otherwise Using the Thesis (p. 184)
• Summary (p. 185)
• Discussion Questions (p. 185)
• Role Play Exercises (p. 186)
• Exercises (p. 187)
• Index (p. 189)

Author notes provided by Syndetics