Writing a dissertation requires in-depth analysis of the topic and that can only happen from quality study. Perhaps you are about to write your dissertation, and you are wondering, what are limitations of a study? Well, look no further.
Limitations of a study are the flaws, challenges, and problems encountered during your research process. They are the constraints or restrictions resulting from the methodology of your work.
Despite the sound of things, there is nothing wrong with including the limitations of the study section in your dissertation. Instead of weakening your work, it strengthens it because it lets the readers know that you acknowledge the constraints and their role in the research.
Examples of limitations of the study
During research for your dissertation, you are bound to encounter certain limitations in the process. Therefore, you need to know how to find limitations of a study to include them. Below are some limitations of the study examples.
- Access
This is one significant example of the limitations of study in dissertation. While writing your dissertation, you may face setbacks in getting access to documents, people, or other resources relevant to your research. If this is one of the limitations you eventually experienced, it is advisable to state it.
- Prior research
A lack of prior research on your dissertation topic can be a limitation too. Some research works will include a literature review section requiring reviewing pre-existing literature. However, on some occasions, you may find out that very little work has been done before in a particular area of your research.
- Sample size
Sample size refers to the number of people included in a research study – they represent a particular population. In quantitative research, sample size can be a limitation because the statistical results will be less accurate if the sample size is too small.
- Language barrier
Some research work may require interacting with data and people from different socio-cultural backgrounds. Thus, you can experience the problem of the language barrier. Be sure to acknowledge this limitation if it affects your dissertation.
- Data collection
There are various ways you can collect data for research. As such, each method for gathering data will have its limitations.
- Financial resources
Depending on the kind of research, there may be instances where purchasing some types of equipment or software to aid your work will be necessary. However, getting them may prove difficult and eventually impossible due to a lack of money. This can limit your research in multiple ways; thus, it is important to state it.
Tips on how to write limitations of the study
Now that we know the limitations of study dissertation examples let us consider some tips on how to write limitations of the study:
- Identify your limitations
First, you have to state the restraints of your work. You can create a list to guide you. Look at the examples of limitations of study we earlier established and see if some of them apply to you.
- Expand on the limitations
After you identify some imitations, enumerate them and detail how they affect your research work. You should also state how important they are to your study and the reasons for the limitations.
- Focus on your weaknesses
It is essential to focus on your shortcomings in this section rather than highlighting your results. This section is all about acknowledging flaws and limitations, so it is best to avoid praising one’s findings.
- Reference the future
After acknowledging the flaws of your research:
- Explain how things could be done differently in the future.
- Make mention of mistakes and how they will be avoided next time.
- Consider admitting how using a better method could address the research problem better in future studies.
Conclusion
Limitations of the study are an essential section while writing your dissertation or research. It helps contribute to making suggestions for future research work, assisting researchers in focusing on areas that need improvement. To write limitations of study in dissertation, you can follow our tips and be assured to impress.
