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Tutke Guide: Article-based Commentary

Article-based Commentary

 

The commentary in the doctoral research can be realised as article-based, in which case it consists of a minimum of three peer-reviewed original publications, a summary/discussion of the publications and an introduction of the commentary.  

All publications of the commentary of the article-based doctoral research shall deal with the same related set of research problems.

The commentary of the article-based doctoral research shall meet the same basic requirements than the commentary in general: it shall demonstrate an ability to critically analyse, articulate, conceptualize and theorise artistic research designs and contextualise these in ways that are characteristic of artistic research. The doctoral research commentary shall present the aims, methods, structure and results of the research.

 

Realising an article-based commentary

The commentary of an article-based doctoral research is not just a technical question, but a choice affecting the whole research process that needs to be reflected in the research plan already in the beginning of the research project. The doctoral candidate must discuss their intention to realise the commentary of the artistic research as article-based with their supervisors and Contact Teacher as early as possible. Based on the discussions, the doctoral candidate shall produce a publication plan covering the peer-reviewed publications to be included in the commentary, including information, as concrete as possible, about the planned publication channels, the publication timetables and processes with feedback and revision rounds as well as publication agreements. The individual publications shall relate to the examined artistic parts both timewise and regarding the content.

 

Individual publications

The individual publications comprising the article-based doctoral research have to be either published or accepted for publication in an acknowledged peer-reviewed publication forum. One individual publication can be national and the others international publication.

When leaving the commentary of the article-based doctoral research for pre-examination, the doctoral candidate must present a list of publishers of the individual publications in which the publication has been published or accepted to be published, as well as agreements with the publishers granting the doctoral candidate a right to re-publish the article as part of the doctoral research. If the publisher sets an embargo for the re-publishing, it needs to be secured that this does not affect the planned timetable of the doctoral research. The doctoral candidate must take care of that the publication agreements and permissions are in order before the doctoral research is published.

The individual publications need to comply with the language requirements set for the commentary in general. The language of the individual publications has an impact on the choice of the pre-examiners of the commentary, which needs to be addressed in the publication plan. In case the articles are written in different languages, the language of the integrative chapter is the principal language of the commentary.

 

Co-authored publications

The publications can include co-authored publications on the condition that the defender has an individual contribution in them which can be demonstrated. The doctoral candidate does not need to be the first author in a co-authored publication. The same individual publication can be included in the commentaries of several doctoral candidates if the author’s individual contributions can be demonstrated. The article-based commentary cannot include individual publications that are part of the earlier demonstrations of skill and knowledge of the same doctoral candidate. Before the pre-examination process is started, the doctoral candidate shall present their supervisors and Contact Teacher a report on the contribution of the doctoral candidate in the co-authored publication and what content the doctoral candidate has contributed to the publication, in case the contribution is not stated in the publication or the integrative chapter. In case the co-authored publication is part of a doctoral research of another doctoral candidate, this must be mentioned in the report. This report must also be submitted to the co-authors of the publication. The report is submitted to the planning officer of TeaK’s doctoral programme when the work is submitted for pre-examination.

 

Introduction of the commentary and summary/discussion of the articles

Besides the articles, the article-based doctoral research shall include an introduction as well as a summary/discussion which can comprise one or several parts, and also abstracts in Finnish or Swedish and English. The recommended length of the introduction and the summary and discussion is 50–70 pages.

The introduction of the commentary typically:

  • introduces the topic
  • presents the background and the aims of the research
  • presents the theoretical starting points
  • presents the methods and materials

The summary/discussion typically:

  • clarifies how the individual publications relate to each other and to the main research questions
  • presents the primary results, their relevance and contribution to the field
  • evaluates the results
  • contains discussion and conclusions

In the summary/discussion, the earlier individual publications are discussed as a whole, new points of view related to this are presented, as well as reflection and material related to the topic which did not fit into the individual publications.