Researching the Stereotypes of People Around Me: An Introductory Thesis Writing Course for International Students

This textbook will help students to develop thesis-writing skills through experiential learning by conducting a research project based on questionnaire - and interview-based research focusing on stereotypes, and reporting on it in a mini-thesis. It was developed for the benefit of international students who, in their penultimate year of study, are planning to write a graduation thesis in English related to stereotypes in their final year with little or no prior knowledge of the subject, or of thesis-writing itself. The overarching structure of the book provides a clear overview of the main parts of a thesis, and how they fit together. It presents a wide range of activities designed to help students to critically analyse and evaluate the academic literature with a specific research question in mind. It also provides a basic introduction to qualitative research methodology, placing a special focus on the systematic exploration of stereotypes. Fifteen units guide students through the process of defining stereotypes, before exploring their content and sources in relation to various themes. To promote extensive reading, the textbook may be used in conjunction with its optional accompanying handbook, from which many of the reading passages are drawn: Houghton, S.A., Furumura, Y., Lebedko, M., and Song, L. (Eds.), Critical cultural awareness: Managing stereotypes through intercultural (language) education (Newcastle Upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2013).