Step 7: Read to support your thesis

Academic Writing Steps

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Now that you have a tentative thesis, you can return to the readings with a clear purpose. Re-read in more depth those sources you think are the most relevant. As you read, gather the most effective evidence. Read to support your thesis, and build your argument.

The key skill at this stage is selecting quotations and ideas that will provide the best evidence to support your argument. For example, this article by Einarsdottir [Website], provides many descriptions of the way health workers in a neonatal unit manage to stay happy. From the earlier quick reading of this article (Step 4), you noted that this article provides evidence for the idea that happiness is about meaning and purpose in life. This is relevant to the essay question (Step 2). So now, select and note potential quotations or specific points or arguments to draw evidence from in the essay. More information.

Key factors for happiness (Einarsdottir):

  • For the love of children, doing good, professional pride
  • These are all narratives the staff can construct, or tell themselves about why the work is meaningful

For the love of children – evidence that they construct a narrative:

  • Some were ‘influenced by their own experience of being admitted to hospital as a child or having their own child hospitalised’
  • Realised straight away that ‘this was the right place’ for them

Doing good

  • Physically visible good results, ‘rapid and positive results’
  • Being useful: ‘when I feel useful and help parents, my work becomes a source of pleasure’

Professional pride:

  • Staff saw themselves as having personalities suited to the environment
  • ‘the professionals attributed positive meaning to heavy workload and stress through which they experienced excitement and the opportunity to demonstrate their competence’

Coping:

  • The professionals ‘evaluated their well-being at work as a whole’
  • ‘when confronted with adverse experiences the professionals negotiated their meanings as well as the goals and priorities of their work’
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