Specifications & notes

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This is the procedure preferred by the FG for the completion of theses at Bachelor's or Master's level. In justified cases, the requirements listed in the table may be waived.

With regard to formatting and citation style, please follow the guidelines of the core curriculum of the University of Kassel (individual arrangements are permitted):

We will provide you with individualized guidance and support as you work on your final theses. At the same time, we are unable to train you in the fundamental aspects of academic work or in the writing of academic texts. If you need to catch up in these areas, please refer to the bibliography below as well as the linked web and software resources. In addition, you can also enroll in the Moodle courses “Academic Work: Core Curriculum – Module 1C (Goller)” for the various semesters (e.g.,“26/27 Academic Work: Core Curriculum - Module 1C (Goller)”) for the various semesters using the password “Wiss.Arb.1C.26” and make use of the resources listed there.

In addition, the following Moodle courses are available to support you in writing your thesis:

• Bachelor’s/Master’s Theses IBB (Fields of Study: Vocational and Business Education, Business Didactics & Technology Didactics): The institute’s general Moodle course is intended for students writing their Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis in one of the aforementioned fields of study. Self-enrollment is possible without a password.
• PRISMA Self-Study Course: This self-study course is specifically designed for students who wish to prepare a systematic literature review using the PRISMA method as part of their thesis. You can obtain the enrollment key upon request.

In addition, we would like to draw your attention to the following university advisory services:

• LEOs – Student Learning & Writing Advisory Service (questions regarding academic work, writing skills training, etc.)
• ProStudium – Coaching for Students (especially for issues such as demotivation, procrastination, and psychodynamic difficulties related to writing the thesis)
• Self-study materials from the Teaching Service Center

Otherwise, we strongly recommend that you find writing partners or groups where you can discuss problems with peers. You should also seek support early on from your own circle of friends for the final proofreading of your thesis.

In all empirical projects, the requirements of European, German and Hessian data protection standards must be taken into account. In particular, the collection (e.g. written surveys, interviews) and evaluation (including transcription) of personal data (e.g. names, voice recordings) must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Information on this can be found on the website of the data protection officer of the University of Kassel:

https://www.uni-kassel.de/hochschulverwaltung/organisation/beauftragte/datenschutz.html

On these pages, there are also sample formulations for informing test subjects about data protection issues and corresponding consent forms, some of which must be signed. Please ask your supervisors about this. If in doubt, you may otherwise be liable to prosecution.

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Methods in General

• Baur, N., & Blasius, J. (Eds.). (2019). Handbook of Empirical Social Research Methods: Volume 1 ( 2nd ed.). Springer VS.
• Baur, N., & Blasius, J. (Eds.). (2019). Handbook of Empirical Social Research Methods: Volume 2 (2nd ed.). Springer VS.

Statistics and Quantitative Methods

• Field, A. (2026). Discovering Statistics Using R and RStudio ( 2nd ed.). Sage.
• Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2018). Multivariate Data Analysis ( 8th ed.). Cengage.
• Wickham, H., Çetinkaya-Rundel, M., & Grolemund, G. (2023). R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data (2nd ed.). O’Reilly.

Qualitative Content Analysis and Qualitative Methods

• Dresing, T., & Pehl, T. (2024). Practical Guide to Interviews, Transcription, and Analysis: Instructions and Guidelines for Qualitative Researchers (9th ed.). dr.dresing & pehl GmbH.
• Gläser, J., & Laudel, G. (2010). Expert Interviews and Qualitative Content Analysis (4th ed.). Springer.
• Kuckartz, U., & Rädiker, S. (2022). Qualitative Content Analysis: Methods, Practice, Computer Support: Foundational Texts on Methods (5th ed.). Beltz Juventa.
• Witzel, A. (1985). The Problem-Centered Interview. In G. Jüttemann (Ed.), Qualitative Research in Psychology: Fundamental Questions, Procedures, Fields of Application (pp. 227–255). Beltz.

Reviews Using PRISMA

• Liberati, A., Altman, D. G., Tetzlaff, J., Mulrow, C., Gøtzsche, P. C., Ioannidis, J. P. A., Clarke, M., Devereaux, P. J., Kleijnen, J., & Moher, D. (2009). The PRISMA Statement for Reporting Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Studies That Evaluate Health Care Interventions: Explanation and Elaboration. PLoS Medicine, 6(7), e1000100. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000100
• Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., Brennan, S. E., Chou, R., Glanville, J., Grimshaw, J. M., Hróbjartsson, A., Lalu, M. M., Li, T., Loder, E. W., Mayo-Wilson, E., McDonald, S., … Moher, D. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71

Q-Method

• Watts, S., & Stenner, P. (2012). Doing Q methodological research: Theory, method, and interpretation. Sage.

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