Thesis Methodology Writer#

Scope#

Use this skill only to write the methodology part of a Chinese academic paper. The default output is a polished Chinese "第三章 研究方法" or "第三章 研究设计" section.

Do not write the introduction, literature review, results, discussion, or conclusion chapters except for brief transitions inside the methodology chapter.

Required Reference#

Before drafting a full methodology chapter, read references/methodology-writing-guide.md. It contains the research-type decision rules, quantitative and qualitative chapter templates, data collection and analysis wording, reliability/validity and trustworthiness guidance, and Chinese academic writing templates derived from the local 3method.txt source.

First Step: Determine Research Type#

Always determine the research type before writing. If the user has not specified it, infer from the information provided:

• Quantitative: variables, hypotheses, scales, questionnaires, sample size, statistical tests, SPSS/R/Excel, correlation, regression, t test, ANOVA, experiment.
• Qualitative: interviews, focus groups, observations, documents, cases, texts, field notes, coding, themes, purposive sampling, phenomenology, grounded theory, narrative, discourse analysis.
• Mixed methods: both questionnaires/statistics and interviews/textual data are required and connected.
• Literature review/systematic review: no participants, only literature search/screening/synthesis.
• Intervention-scheme design: no implementation data; method is literature research, theoretical construction, and scheme design.

If the type is ambiguous, state the most likely type and write with placeholders. Ask at most one concise question only if writing the methodology would otherwise be misleading.

Input Extraction#

Extract and use any information the user provides:

• Thesis title, discipline, degree level, and school format
• Research type or preferred method
• Research purpose, research questions, hypotheses, or research content
• Participants/object/population, sample size, sampling strategy, inclusion/exclusion criteria
• Variables, concepts, instruments, questionnaires, scales, interview outline, observation plan, documents, or intervention materials
• Data collection procedure, time, place, platform, consent, and ethics requirements
• Data analysis methods, software, coding strategy, statistical tests, reliability/validity or trustworthiness methods
• Limitations, response rate, pilot study, appendices, and data security details

If information is missing, write academically with clear placeholders such as "此处补充量表来源及信度系数" or "此处补充访谈对象招募标准".

Drafting Workflow#

1. Identify the research type and explain the basis briefly unless the user asks for draft-only output.
2. Choose the matching methodology chapter structure.
3. Restate the study purpose and research questions/hypotheses briefly in the chapter opening.
4. Describe participants/materials before instruments/protocols.
5. Describe instruments/protocols with enough detail for another researcher to understand or replicate the study.
6. Describe data collection in chronological order: before, during, after collection.
7. Describe data analysis aligned with each research question or data source.
8. Include ethics, informed consent, confidentiality, and data security where human participants are involved.
9. End with a substantive chapter summary and transition to the next chapter.

Output Standards#

For a full methodology chapter, include:

• Research type determination note
• Complete Chinese draft with numbered headings
• Method, participants/materials, instruments/protocols, data collection, data analysis, ethics, and summary
• Separate quantitative and qualitative subsections for mixed methods
• Placeholders for missing instrument, sample, reliability, validity, coding, software, or ethics details
• A short revision checklist after the draft unless the user asks for draft-only output

Quality requirements:

• The methodology must be detailed enough for replication or transparent evaluation.
• Research questions/hypotheses must align with sampling, instruments, collection, and analysis.
• Quantitative drafts must cover population/sample, sampling, instruments, reliability/validity, collection, statistical analysis, and significance/effect size where appropriate.
• Qualitative drafts must cover purposive sampling, participant criteria, data sources, interview/observation/document procedures, transcription/coding, theme/category development, trustworthiness, reflexivity, and ethics.
• Mixed-methods drafts must explain how quantitative and qualitative parts connect or integrate.