A thesis statement also called a problem statement is a one-line statement that summaries what the researcher is going to find or analyze or discuss in the thesis. To decide on the thesis statement, firstly one has to decide on the type of thesis to be written. Now a thesis can be categorized under three categories namely analytical, explanatory (expository) and argumentative. A thesis statement is to be followed by research questions. These research questions have to be derived from the thesis statement only
If your thesis is analytical, then you will have to mention the main variables of your thesis (analytical research). For example, if you are writing a thesis wherein you are trying to find the impact of on the job training on the performance of the employees. In this case, your thesis statement can be-
“An analysis of the change in performance of the employees when they are provided on the job training”
The research question for this can be-
What is the impact of on the job training on the performance of the employees?
If your thesis is explanatory, then your thesis statement should be written in a form of explanation wherein you will have to write the statement in answer format thereby answering the main question( the phenomenon being answered at the end of the thesis) of the thesis by presenting the test variables as the answer. For example, considering the above example for explanatory thesis, the thesis statement can be-
“The change in the performance of the employees is dependent on on the job training being provided to them”
The research question for this can be-
Explain how on-the-job training facilitates the changes n the performance of the employees
If your thesis is argumentative in nature, then the thesis statement should be able to initiate a debate along with being assertive in nature wherein the main independent variable of the study should initiate the debate of the thesis. For example, considering the above example for the argumentative thesis, the thesis statement can be-
“The performance of the employees can be changed and improved by providing them on the job training”
The research question for this can be-
Present an argument and give evidence to support the claim that the performance of the employees can be improved by on the job training.
Some basic characteristics of a thesis statement are-
- A strong thesis statement takes some sort of stand and should be specific- thesis needs to show your conclusions about a subject. Taking into consideration the above example of writing a thesis wherein you are trying to find the impact of on the job training on the performance of the employees. If you write the thesis statement to be as follows-
“The change in the performance of employees is dependent on some factors”
This is a weak thesis statement. First, it fails to take a stand. Second, the phrase dependent on some factors is vague. So, a strong thesis statement for this scenario can be-
“The change in the performance of the employees is dependent on on the job training being provided to them”
This is a strong thesis statement because it takes a stand and because it is specific.
- A strong thesis statement justifies discussion- The thesis should indicate the point of the discussion. Taking into consideration the above example If you write the thesis statement to be as follows-
“The change in the performance of employees is dependent on some factors”
This is a weak thesis statement because it merely states an observation. The reader won’t be able to tell the point of the statement.
- A strong thesis statement expresses one main idea- readers need to be able to see that your paper has one main point. If your thesis statement expresses more than one idea, then you might confuse your readers about the subject of your paper. For example-
“The change in the performance of the employees is dependent on on the job training being provided to them which can be done by the reporting manager followed by some third party consultants wherein some organization consider third party consultants to be better owing to their specialization in the field”
Such statements confuse the reader that if the thesis is about the impact of on the job training on performance or if it is about the superiority of third party consultants over managers.
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