La historia interna: La biografía de una tesis doctoral cualitativa

Abstract

There is still little written about the use of research diaries by international students in relationship to doctoral dissertation writing in the social sciences. This essay describes the writing of a specific type of research diary: a dissertation biography, to account for the process of writing a doctoral dissertation and becoming a researcher. Based on the personal dissertation biography of the author, this essay discusses the specificity of this type of writing in relationship to other types of reflective diaries, the meanings and functions of dissertation biographies, the reasons for writing a dissertation biography and the added value of writing dissertation biographies for the reflective practice agenda. Furthermore it suggests some hints on how to write a dissertation biography. The general argument stated in this essay is that the writing of a doctoral dissertation in the social sciences has a dialectical nature: a tension between product and process that can be partly channeled through the writing of a dissertation biography.