International Journal of Doctoral Studies最新文献

{"title":"A Framework to Enhance Graduate Employability","authors":"L. Underdahl, Patricia Akojie, Myrene Agustin Magabo, Rheanna Rae Reed, Shawishi Haynes, Maureen Marzano, Marianela Navarro, Margo S Patterson","doi":"10.28945/5090","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/5090","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: Alignment of academic curricula and employer needs is widely discussed yet implementation lags. Research on EdD curricula has universality for other academic programs and may catalyze pedagogical innovation to promote employability in other disciplines. Background: This study contributes evidence-based data to strengthen career relevance of academic programs, align curriculum content with industry requirements, prepare students for the workforce, and improve job placement rates, defined as degree-related employment. Methodology: In this mixed method study, current Doctor of Education (EdD) students and employers of Doctor of Education (EdD) graduates commented on the alignment of the EdD curriculum with industry-specific needs. Contribution: Results may promote corporate and academic partnership to optimize alignment of curricula and industry needs. Findings: Partnerships between educators and employers in developing curricula can bridge the industry specific skills gap and enhance students’ understanding of the professional workplace and capacity to communicate, be empathetic, and solve problems. Recommendations for Practitioners: Educators can strengthen capacity for the adaptability and continuous learning associated with mastering new skills as technology evolves. Employers can provide skilling, reskilling, and upskilling opportunities, offer job shadowing and internships, and participate in collaborative research. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can develop pedagogy targeting interpersonal, communication, participative, and organizational competencies. Impact on Society: Improving graduate employability creates positive outcomes for graduates, educators, employers, and the global economy. Future Research: Perceived employability is a powerful motivator. Research is needed to reframe curricula to synthesize discipline-specific skills with generic skills, such as teamwork, communication, and critical thinking, that enhance students’ self-confidence and self-perceptions of employability","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"90 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87117016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Factors Contributing to Imposter Phenomenon in Doctoral Students: A US-Based Qualitative Study","authors":"Sara Bano, Cailen O'Shea","doi":"10.28945/5195","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/5195","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: Our study explores the factors contributing to the Imposter Phenomenon among doctoral students in the United States. Background: Many studies show that Imposter Phenomenon impacts women doctoral students and students from minority groups, especially if they are enrolled in Predominantly White Institutions. Our study focuses explicitly on contributing factors to the Imposter Phenomenon among doctoral students in the United States. The study also explored how Imposter Phenomenon is related to doctoral students’ academic goals and achievements. Methodology: We utilized a qualitative phenomenological research design and conducted semi-structured interviews (45-90 minutes) in person and via Zoom. This study was conducted at a public research university in mid-western United States. A total of 14 (3 male and 11 female) doctoral students participated in the study. These students self-identified as White (9), African American (1), South Asian (2), mixed race (1), and Latina (1). Of the 14 students, 4 were international, and 10 were domestic. These students were from various disciplines, such as Education, Economics, Anthropology, Biology, Plant Sciences, and Engineering. Contribution: The study contributes to the field of psychology and higher education and helps us better understand doctoral students’ conceptions and experiences of the Imposter Phenomenon. The study provides empirical support to some of the previous claims by researchers and provides new insights related to the Imposter Phenomenon. Findings: In our study, participants did not consider the Imposter Phenomenon merely a personal or internal feeling or mental condition as presented in previous studies. We found there are multiple layers of the issue, and sociocultural factors play a contributing role to the Imposter Phenomenon. In our study, we found that relations with family, siblings, peers, and faculty played a significant role in shaping our participants’ sense of self and impacted how they responded to challenges in their academic life. We also noted that institutional culture impacts doctoral students’ self-concept and academic performance. Female doctoral students mentioned institutional culture and prevalent sexism in STEM fields as contributing factors to the Imposter Phenomenon. Overall, gender, race, age, and mental health emerged as major contributing factors to the Imposter Phenomenon among doctoral students. Recommendations for Practitioners: We recommend that higher education institutions should help doctoral students, especially students from underrepresented groups, by providing social, emotional, and economic support. To mitigate the challenges of institutional sexism, racism, and ageism, higher education institutions should consider creating peer support groups and try to foster a healthy and supportive environment for doctoral students. These groups could build on ontological inquiries to bolster student resiliency and self-perception. Also, there is a dire","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"31 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135448594","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Effort-Reward-Imbalance Among PhD Students – A Qualitative Study","authors":"Melanie Vilser, Sabrina Rauh, I. Mausz, D. Frey","doi":"10.28945/5020","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/5020","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the perceived efforts, rewards, motives, and coping strategies of a sample of PhD students in Germany based on tested stress models, the Effort-Reward-Imbalance Model and the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping. Background: Pursuing a PhD can be challenging and stressful. Students face conflicts, isolation, and competition as well as difficulties with their supervisors. However, there is little known about how students perceive their PhD. Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were conducted in 2021 with 21 male and female doctoral students from various fields of research. The recorded interviews were transcribed and analyzed according to Mayring’s qualitative content analysis. Contribution: Little is known about the work stress of PhD students. Most studies focus on single aspects (e.g., the relationship with the supervisor or the heavy workload) and use questionnaires that do not show all aspects causing work stress and how to prevent it. In this study, we examined the elements of work stress and coping strategies by using the Effort-Reward-Imbalance Model and the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping in a theoretical framework. Findings: The analysis yielded two main categories for efforts and three main categories for rewards as well as several sub-categories. Participants persisted in the PhD program for five reasons: an intrinsic motivation, an interest in improving one’s skills, the motivation to become an expert in one’s field, the ability to contribute to research, and because of the flexibility and freedom offered during a PhD. Further, the study analyzed how PhD students cope with stress. Engaging in physical activities or spending time with family and friends were the most common coping strategies used, followed by work routines (like scheduling time for deep work and breaks) and seeking assistance from other PhD students. Recommendations for Practitioners: To decrease the stress factors and negative health outcomes, we recommend incorporating personal as well as organizational measurements in the university setting. Through kick-off events and personal development workshops, PhD students should be made aware of the potential stress factors and coping strategies. Mentoring programs with postdocs can further support the doctoral students. On an organizational level, the knowledge about the elements of work stress should be incorporated in the recruiting process and supervisor workshops. Recommendation for Researchers: As past research has investigated the effects of stress on physiological parameters, the framework of this study proposes the incorporation of the imbalance component into biological stress research. Impact on Society: Understanding the efforts, rewards, and motives for a doctoral degree will help to reduce work stress of PhD students and create a more positive over-all workplace, for example, by improving the relationship between students and their su","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85209564","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The (National) Doctoral Dissertations Assessment in China: An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis","authors":"Ahmed Mohammed Saleh Alduais, Abdulghani Muthanna, Fabian William Nyenyembe, Jim Chatambalala, Markos Tezera Taye, Md Shahabul Haque, Mjege Kinyota, Patrick Severine Kavenuke","doi":"10.28945/4938","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4938","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: Our study explores the perspectives of international doctoral graduates on ‎‎(national) dissertation assessment in China.‎ Background: In the absence of national standards or in the presence of impractical ones ‎for assessing doctoral dissertations, these factors have inevitably led to what ‎‎Granovsky et al. (1992, p. 375) called “up to standard rejected” and “below ‎standard accepted.” Improving upon this debate, this study examines the ‎lived experiences of seven doctoral graduates who have completed their ‎doctoral degrees in a leading university in China.‎ Methodology: An interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) method was used, which ‎entails seven participant observations, seven semi-structured e-interviews, and ‎‎29 external reviews.‎ Contribution: In the present study, we addressed the issue of doctoral dissertation assessment ‎standards ‎with a view to enhancing understanding of the quality of doctoral ‎education. It ‎emphasizes the strengths of this aspect in China and critically describes the ‎weaknesses based on the experiences of doctoral ‎graduates in China.‎ Findings: Among the major findings of this study are: (a) the external review of the ‎dissertations presented in the literature review appears to be extremely unique ‎in comparison to the countries discussed in the literature and the countries of ‎the participants (Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Malawi, Tanzania, and Yemen); (b) the ‎national assessment strengthens higher education on a macro level, but is ‎detrimental at the micro-level; and (c) while external reviews appear credible ‎as a policy towards the standardization of doctoral dissertation assessment, ‎this credibility evaporates when one considers the quality of reviews provided ‎and the motivation of reviewers to pass or reject a dissertation, including the ‎supervisor’s exclusion from this process.‎ Recommendations for Practitioners: Students seeking a doctoral degree or dissertation should become familiar ‎with the A-Z detail of the requirements for the degree and thesis. In addition ‎to meeting this overt requirement, their efforts must also be directed to meet ‎the covert requirements, including the requirements of the ‎external reviewers, their supervisors, and the country’s laws. There is a ‎necessity for external reviewers to rethink their decisions and attempt to ‎assess objectively, putting aside their personal views and preferences. There is ‎a need to re-examine the flexibility granted to external reviewers for making ‎decisions regarding doctoral degrees.‎ Recommendation for Researchers: Future research should consider involving an increased number of parties in ‎the conflict between doctoral students, supervisors, and external reviewers.‎ Impact on Society: The Chinese government allocates ‎substantial resources for doctoral studies for both international and local students. The spending of government funds on a doctoral student for four years or more, and then the degree is decided by a","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"7 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78877364","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Progress-Oriented Workshops for Doctoral Well-being: Evidence From a Two-Country Design-Based Research","authors":"Luis P. Prieto, Paula Odriozola-González, María Jesús Rodríguez-Triana, Y. Dimitriadis, Tobias Ley","doi":"10.28945/4898","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4898","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: This paper explores an intervention approach (in the form of workshops) focusing on doctoral progress, to address the problems of low emotional well-being experienced by many doctoral candidates. Background: Doctoral education suffers from two severe overlapping problems: high dropout rates and widespread low emotional well-being (e.g., depression or anxiety symptoms). Yet, there are few interventional approaches specifically designed to address them in the doctoral student population. Among structural, psychosocial, and demographic factors influencing these problems, the self-perception of progress has emerged recently as a crucial motivational factor in doctoral persistence. Methodology: This paper reports on an iterative design-based research study of workshop interventions to foster such perception of progress in doctoral students’ everyday practice. We gathered mixed data over four iterations, with a total of 82 doctoral students from multiple disciplines in Spain and Estonia. Contribution: An approach to preventive interventions that combines research-backed education about mental health and productivity, peer sharing and discussion of experiences, and indicators of progress, as well as self-tracking, analysis, and reflection upon everyday evidence of their own progress. The paper provides initial evidence of the effectiveness of the proposed interventions, across two institutions in two different countries. Further, our data confirms emergent research on the relationships among progress, emotional well-being, and dropout ideation in two new contexts. Finally, the paper also distills design knowledge about doctoral interventions that focus on progress, relevant for doctoral trainers, institutions, and researchers. Findings: Our quantitative and qualitative results confirm previous findings on the relationships among progress, burnout, and dropout ideation. Our iterative evaluation of the workshops also revealed a large positive effect in students’ positive psychological capital after the workshops (Cohen’s d=0.83). Our quantitative and qualitative analyses also started teasing out individual factors in the variance of these benefits. Recommendations for Practitioners: Intervention design guidelines for doctoral trainers include: focusing on actionable productivity and mental health practices, the use of activities targeting perception biases and taboos, or the use of active practices and real (anonymous) data from the participants to make progress visible and encourage reflection. Recommendation for Researchers: The construct of progress, its components, and its relationships with both emotional well-being and doctoral dropout need to be more deeply studied, using multiple methods of data collection, especially from more frequent, ecologically valid data sources (e.g., diaries). Impact on Society: The proposed interventions (and focusing on doctoral progress more generally) hold promise to address the current emotional ","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"142 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90641372","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Printable Table of Contents. IJDS, Volume 17, 2022","authors":"Michael Jones","doi":"10.28945/4905","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4905","url":null,"abstract":"Table of Contents for Volume 17, 2022, of the International Journal of Doctoral Studies","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78415259","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Open Cage: A Force for Transformative Learning in Professional Doctoral Studies During COVID-19","authors":"John Anthony Fulton, L. Hall, D. Watson, Gillian Hagan-Green","doi":"10.28945/4987","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4987","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: This paper explores how professional doctorate candidates responded to the restrictions and changed context of COVID-19. Using connectivism as a theoretical framework, it explores the ways in which their patterns of study were recalibrated in light of the restrictions caused by the pandemic. Specifically, this study aims to: explore the experience of the professional doctorate student during the pandemic; and demonstrate the ways in which networks are recalibrated and adapt to changing circumstances. Background: In 2020, in response to COVID-19 many countries, including the UK, went into lockdown resulting in most doctoral candidates being confined to their homes and restricted to online contact with peers and supervisors. Part-time students have a finely balanced pattern of work which was required to be recalibrated and refocused which required considerable adaptation on the part of the candidates. Methodology: A qualitative methodology was used comprising four focus groups, each consisting of four professional doctorate candidates. Participants were professional doctorate candidates and as such were all mid-career professionals from a variety of backgrounds. Purposeful sampling was combined with theoretical sampling, which ensures the sample is deliberately selected and ensures the emergent development of the theoretical ideas. The focus groups were recorded and transcribed. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data and identify the main findings, allowing themes to be identified. Contribution: The findings indicated that professional doctorate candidates were highly adaptable and were able to adjust rapidly in response to COVID-19 restrictions. The networks they had previously established had to be refocused through adapting and adjusting patterns of study and developing digital skills to enable them to progress in their doctoral studies. Findings: Three themes emerged from the analysis: recalibrating work-life-study balance; adaptivity in studies and research; and empowerment through Information and Communications Technology (ICT). To progress their doctoral studies, the networks they had previously established had to be refocused through adapting and adjusting patterns of study. Recommendations for Practitioners: While lockdown was an unusual experience, some factors can inform future developments for doctoral education, mainly: the importance of establishing a pattern of study; the importance of connectivism and Information Technology (IT); and how such use can enhance and expand the research process. Recommendation for Researchers: Adaptivity achieved through IT; connectivity and the recalibration of networks were key to enabling doctoral candidates to continue their research. The use of connectivism as a theoretical framework for research merits further exploration, as do methods for online learning and approaches to incorporating digital skills into doctoral studies. Impact on Society: According to connectivis","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"30 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85324282","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Iranian Ph.D. Candidates’ Perceptions Toward Their Supervisors’ Responsibilities and Activities","authors":"F. Rostami, mohammad hosseein Yousefi","doi":"10.28945/4974","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4974","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: The present qualitative study examined the perceptions of Iranian Ph.D. candidates toward the responsibilities and activities that supervisors should take during the dissertation writing. Background: Writing the dissertation is the main concern for Ph.D. candidates. In the view of doctorate students, supervisors are the main contributors to establishing a well-prepared dissertation. Methodology: To this end, 15 Ph.D. candidates who either graduated recently or were about to have their viva sessions participated in the study. The data were collected through phone interviews as well as narrative inquiry. The current study adopted the mentorship model as its theoretical framework. The framework is well suited because the supervisors as mentors and persons that are more competent transfer their experience and knowledge to the supervisees as less competent students. The multiple case study has been applied as the design of the current study. Geared toward the objectives of the qualitative study, the data analysis process embraced Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis approach. Contribution: The study has a number of theoretical and practical implications for both supervisors of Ph.D. students as well as teacher educators. Findings: The authors presented and discussed their perceived themes, and they consented to the following four major themes: practicality, professionalism, emotional engagement, and career traits. Recommendations for Practitioners: To ease the burden of writing a Ph.D. dissertation and to soothe the stress of Ph.D. candidates’ experience, supervisors should take the responsibility for their task of supervision by providing moment-by-moment care and guidance to their students. Recommendation for Researchers: The researchers utilized the two instruments of telephone interviews and narrations to collect data. It is suggested that other sources of data collection like observations and focus group interviews be included to gain further conceptions of the attendants. The researchers interviewed the dissertation writer in various majors; however, the topic was not questioned. It is recommended to evaluate the extent of the supervisor’s interest in the topic on the success rate of the project. Impact on Society: The present study revealed that students have different and varying needs and expectations of their supervisors. To meet these needs, supervisors should ask their students to submit a weekly report of their work as well as possible problems and questions. Future Research: The findings were based on the Ph.D. candidates’ perspectives; it is recommended that future research include the voices of the supervisors, too, particularly the supervisors of the same supervisees.","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"86 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89744169","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A Thematic Analysis of the Structure of Delimitations in the Dissertation","authors":"David C Coker","doi":"10.28945/4939","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/4939","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: The purpose of the research was to examine the function and application of delimitations—what the researcher includes and excludes in a study—in the dissertation process. The aim was to map the delimitations process to improve research, rigor and relevance of findings, and doctoral completion rates using a formalized and standardized approach applied flexibly. Background: All research is bounded whether formally defined or not. Unlike limitations, which are issues which the researcher addressed after the completion of a study and cannot control, delimitations are what a researcher includes and excludes to make a project manageable and focused on the research question. Yet, there was no research identified which specifically discussed delimitations. Researching the structure and utility of delimitations in educational administration dissertations provided a systematic analysis of the formation of the scope and boundary of research in doctoral studies. Methodology: The structure of delimitations in dissertations were examined using descriptive quantitative statistics and a qualitative thematic analysis from 28 universities. The first stage included delimitations from 30 dissertations. Triangulation was conducted using the findings with a training set of delimitations in 15 dissertations with a rubric generated from the primary sample. Contribution: The thematic analysis presented a description and interpretation of the nature of delimitations and a systematic framework to improve the research process in dissertations. Mapping the delimitations process gave a detailed portrait of internal and external characteristics which could aid doctoral students in completing the dissertation. Doctoral attrition rates, poorly completed dissertations, and lack of relevance or applicability of results need remedied. Furthermore, the delimitations rubric provided a systematic method to focus communities of learners around a common goal. Findings: Findings suggested doctoral students used delimitations haphazardly and lacked a systematic application to research. Three major themes emerged from the delimitations sections: rituals, equifinality, and pragmatism. Topics within delimitations sections centered around two axes: the internal topics of sampling procedures and factors/variables and external topics of research design and conceptual/theoretical framework. Recommendations for Practitioners: Poorly understood and developed delimitations negatively impacted findings in dissertations, completion rates, and future research skills of doctoral students. By applying delimitations to a design of research framework in a community of learners, doctoral students and dissertation chairs could improve the dissertation completion process and improve research results using a Delimitations Evaluation Rubric. Recommendation for Researchers: Developing a rules-based process with a formalized and standardized process could give researchers a way to evaluate a","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"279 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86378903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A Multilayered Approach to Understand and Imagine Doctoral Students’ Spaces of Learning","authors":"S. Naghshbandi","doi":"10.28945/5014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.28945/5014","url":null,"abstract":"Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the main conceptualizations of learning space from doctoral students’ perspectives. The aim was to develop a participatory approach to make students’ multiple voices heard. Background: Doctoral experience is viewed as being influenced by social practices of the scholarly communities; learning space in this context is a collective resource that can be altered through imagination of its inhabitants. The intersection of Lefebvre’s Production of Space in architecture and situated learning theory in education enabled building an integrated conceptual framework to explore learning space of doctoral students in its complexity. Methodology: Three research questions reflected theoretical and practical aims. To answer them, drawing on Design Based Research, I developed multi-phased research through three sequential phases: questionnaire, Photovoice, and prototyping, which respectively addressed subjective, objective, and co-constructed aspects of learning spaces. Contribution: This study is one of the few studies that looks at doctoral students learning spaces within the literature of learning spaces. It supports the development of a participatory procedure to design learning spaces for doctoral students. Findings: Findings suggested that learning space is a layered multi-faceted phenomenon and a changing entity. Doctoral students believed that learning space is an indicator of support from doctoral programs and has a potential to improve and sustain their well-being. Recommendations for Practitioners: Inviting students to take charge of the configurations of their working environment is suggested for higher education institutions. Doctoral students imagined using movable, folding, and writable walls to create private spaces for individuals as well as collaborative workspaces. Recommendation for Researchers: Identifying the interactions between learning space and learning over a longer time frame both in undergraduate and graduate settings can help us view the campus through a spatial ecology model. Also, future research might examine a participatory approach to design and research on learning spaces around parallel partnerships with other research-intensive universities. Impact on Society: Findings from this study identified areas for future studies and actions suggesting implications for learning space studies for the U15 (Group of Canadian Research Universities) and U21 (the leading global network of research universities for the 21st century). Future Research: Considering the radical changes that COVID-19 has brought in how we work, collaborate, study, and engage in social events, it is vital for higher educational institutes to rethink their learning spaces for the post- COVID era to support students’ learning and their meaningful engagement in learning communities and learning spaces. Further exploration on learning spaces in post COVID era is needed to expand the empirical","PeriodicalId":53524,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Doctoral Studies","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78674996","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}